//------------------------------//
// Political Scandal 
// Story: Bounty Hunter Anon II 
// by Sunny Solaire 
//------------------------------//

Adagio is a mess. She's clearly been in this cell for a long time. Probably since you dropped her off here.

She's sitting in the far left corner on the floor. She's barefoot, her wrists are bruised and bloody, and she's barely wearing these tattered, revealing rags that are supposed to pass as clothing, you wager.

"Adagio?" You repeat.

She slowly looks up and around the cell. She's disoriented. She can hear you, but it takes a while for her to look at you. "...o-oh... Who... Wh-who're..." She mumbles something for a moment before her eyes begin to widen slowly. "...you... B... B-Bounty...hunter..."

She remembers you. How touching.

"What happened? What are you doing in here?" You ask.

Her eyes squint and fill with some of the hate you remember her having on Nar Shaddaa. "You...did...th-this... t'me..."

Pinkie covers her mouth and gasps in shock when she sees Adagio. "Oh my gosh..."

Adagio looks at Pinkie slowly for a moment before looking back to you. Her look shifts to one of despair. "P-Please...kill me..."

Damn. She must've gone through all kinds of hell in here. Hoity Toity gets worse and worse with every second.

She shouldn't be in there.

You holster your rifle and go to the door controls.

"Anon, what are you doing?" Pinkie sounds suspicious. She probably thinks you're going to grant Adagio her wish.

"I'm getting her out of there. This is all kinds of wrong."

You try to open the cell, but the control console flashes red, denying access. You slam your fist down on it before trying again. Like before, it flashes red. You growl and make another attempt. If you want this to get open, you're going to have to make some noise.

"Pinkie, close the detention center door." You command.

She does as you say and, once again, the console flashes red. After three more tries, you take out your rifle and fire at the console a few times and destroy it. The blue energy gate flickers before powering down.

You and Pinkie step inside and move to Adagio. She makes no attempt to flee or fight. She just hangs her head weakly.

"Adagio, listen to me." You crouch down beside her and snap your fingers in front of her face. "Hey. Look at me." You grab her head and slowly move it back so her eyes focus on you. "I know you hate my guts right now, but I need you to trust me. I'm getting you out of here, alright?"

She just looks at you blankly as you speak. No emotion is shown on her face at all.

You continue. "I'm going to kill Hoity Toity and you'll be free, alright? Can you stand?"

You want to know what happened to her, but she's in no condition to talk right now. She slowly looks to her legs before bringing one up. You and Pinkie help her up and hold her to prevent her from collapsing. Adagio's legs tremble and she whimpers in pain as she weakly attempts to stand.

Pinkie looks her up and down with worry. "Anon, I don't think she's going to make it."

You hate to admit it, but she's probably right.

"She needs to live, Pinkie." you say. "She might be able to tell us something."

How are you going to get her out of here? This is not good. You hate it when you don't know what to do.

You reach over and press a button on your gauntlet to contact Sunset. "Sunset, come in."

"I'm here." She replies. "I just finished with the last charge."

"Good to hear, but we've got a problem."

"What is it?"

"It's Adagio Dazzle. She's alive." You and Pinkie drag Adagio out of her cell and into the hallway.

"You stopped her before, Anon. Do it again." Sunset says.

You shake your head. "No, it's not like that. She's been a captive here, probably since we dropped her off. She's alive, but only barely."

"Barely?" Sunset repeats.

"She's skin and bones, malnourished, disoriented, everything. It's horrible." You reply. "She's hanging on by a thread. We're getting her out of here."

Suddenly, lights in the hallway you're in flash on, catching you and Pinkie off-guard.

The sound of Hoity Toity's voice comes on through some speakers above you. "The only place you're going now is hell, bounty hunters."

You and Pinkie look up at the source of the voice.

Hoity Toity continues. "I wanted to have more fun torturing that little snake, but you two have caused quite a bit of trouble for me tonight."

The light on the door ahead of you turns red as it locks.

"No!" You leave Adagio with Pinkie and immediately go to the door controls.

"No matter." He continues. "You are not the first intruders I've killed, and you certainly won't be the last."

You scramble to open the door, but it won't open. You're locked in. Just then, you hear a faint hissing sound all around you.

"Anon!"

You turn around to face Pinkie. She's pointing to a small vent in the floor that has started to leak a thick, green-white cloud of gas.

"Dioxis! Both of you hold your breath!" You shout.

Pinkie inhales a deep breath and covers Adagio's mouth and nose.

Sunset is still active in your ear. "Anon! Anon, what's going on there?!"

"Hoity Toity is onto us! Get back to the ship!" You take a deep breath as well. Your helmet is useless against toxins.

You turn back to the console and pound more buttons to try and get the door to open. You have mere seconds, at this rate. The door console is not responding. Gas is now engulfing your legs and it's only getting higher.

"You've lost, Mandalorian. Accept your fate."

Hearing Hoity Toity's voice only pisses you off even more. Accept your fate and give up?

Never.

Thinking quickly, you grab a couple thermal charges from your belt and plant them to the door. It's going to make a big explosion, but it might be your only hope in breaking through. You don't know how strong this door is.

Once the charges are planted and active, they start to beep and flash red. You have five seconds.

You turn around and bolt toward the girls, grabbing them and heading into the gas, back toward the cells. The three of you dive into the nearest cell on your left and prepare yourselves.

"How pathet-"

The sudden tremor, the brilliant flash of light and the deafening sound of the explosion cuts the senator off mid-speech. A large wall of fire comes screaming past the cell half a second later, pushing much of the dioxis with it. It doesn't have anywhere to go, however, so it just spreads a thin layer of the gas all around you.

You wait with the girls until the explosion passes, keeping yourself between them and the fire. Pinkie's face has begun to turn purple and Adagio has started to try and pry her hand off her mouth.

A second later, you grab them and run toward the exit. Hopefully, it's open now.

Your hopes are not in vain. Beyond the patches of fire on the walls and floor, the security door and the surrounding area has been replaced by warped metal, flames, smoke, and debris. The three of you push past the gas and out into the open hallway. Upon reaching fresh air, all three of you gasp loudly and collapse onto the ground.

"WHAT?!"

Oh good. The senator is still watching.

You cough hard and remove your helmet to take a direct breath of fresh air. That was too close.

"Security! Get up here now! Bring the big guns! Bring everyone! Kill those bounty hunters!"

The lights above you have dimmed slightly and a fire alarm has begun to sound. You and Pinkie look around for a moment before standing up.

"Come on! We're not done yet!" You help her and Adagio up before taking off down the hallway as fast as you can. Subtlety is no longer an option.

"Anon what do we do?!" Pinkie asks before coughing again.

"We stick to the plan and kill the senator! It's our best way out! Sunset!"

She speaks in your ear. "Anon! You're alright!"

"I'm fine!" You cough again. "Triple time it back to the ship!"

Adagio can hardly stand up by herself, let alone keep up with you. It's slowing you down. You and Pinkie have to practically drag her between you two. When you round another corner, you come to a group of guards coming from downstairs. They are underworld police officers.

One of them points at you. "There they are! Blast them!"

The rest of them point their weapons at you, but you and Pinkie double back behind a wall with Adagio. Right when you get behind cover, the guards begin to fire suppressively around your hiding spot. You're pinned down. Adagio falls to the floor again and winces in pain.

You growl under your breath and blindly fire your rifle around the corner at the guards. "Pinkie, Adagio is in no shape to fight! Protect her!"

Pinkie protectively crouches beside Adagio. "Where are you going?!"

You stand and grab a thermal detonator from your belt. "I'll handle these guys!"

Pressing the button, you hurl the grenade around the corner toward the guards and rush across the hallway to the opposite corner, firing your blaster wildly in the process. The guards keep their focus on you and fire as you move to a different spot. 

Once you're behind the other corner, the thermal detonator explodes. Screams accompany the sound of the explosion and the flash of light ceases blaster fire for a moment. You take advantage of this and round the corner again, firing into the light smoke while rushing forward.

Two stragglers barely have a chance to react as you fire a few rounds into their chests. A guard down the hallway has recovered quicker than they did, and he fires at you. A blaster bolt clips your robotic arm on the shoulder. He also hits you on the left shin. It stings, but your armor absorbs most of the impact.

You press toward him and continue firing. He backs away from you as you advance, but his retreat is cut short when you hit his torso. He grunts and falls backwards. You fire a couple more times for good measure.

Before you can do anything else, however, you're blindsided by a guard on your right. He tackles you, making you drop your rifle, and you both fall to the left.

You grunt loudly as you land. The guard begins landing punches and kicks to your body. He attempts to grab your throat, but you grab his arm and stop him. He continues punching your helmet though. You twist around beneath him and catch his fist in your robotic one. The mechanisms whir loudly as you squeeze his fist tighter than humanly possible. The guard screams in agony and desperately tries to remove his fist from your grip as the bones in his hand begin to break.

Giving a low growl, you swing your arm up and throw him into the wall. You quickly stand up and rush toward him on the ground. Just then, you hear a few more pairs of footsteps approach from behind you. You turn and see three more guards, all running toward you with their blasters raised. Your blaster rifle is at your feet, but you don't have any cover right here.

Thinking quickly, you grab your rifle, stand the guard at your feet up, and hold him between you and the three new guards. He becomes a human shield as the guards fire at you. His screams only last for a second or two. You hold your rifle over his right shoulder and fire at the three guards as you advance toward them. They back up slowly, but one by one, they eventually fall.

The immediate area looks clear now so you discard your 'shield' and turn to the girls' hiding spot. "Pinkie, we're clear! Come on!"

She scrambles into the open as quickly as she can with Adagio and meets up with you. The three of you take off down the hallway toward Hoity Toity's room as quickly as possible. The alarm is still blaring around you. More guards are likely on their way. Your HUD indicates that Hoity Toity is just down this hallway. You and Pinkie hold Adagio close and charge forward.

The senator's voice comes on the speakers once again. "GET UP HERE! NOW! STOP THEM! KILL THEM!"

He sounds panicked. Maybe he's tried to call others for reinforcements, but they aren't responding, thanks to you and your communications jammer.

The three of you round a corner and spot two more guards in front of a closed door. You get between them and the girls and blast them. Pinkie and Adagio stay right behind you as they go down.

The door is locked and you're forced to stop. If you had your lightsaber right now, you'd be able to slice through it.

Thanks a lot, Maud Pie...

"Damn it! How do we get through?!" You shout.

"Anon, look!" Pinkie says. "This guard has an access key!"

One of the deceased guards at your feet as a small, plastic card on his hip. You grab it and place it on the door's security terminal. It beeps and slides open and the three of you step inside.

Hoity Toity's penthouse is a spacious, circular room with a large pillar in the center. The décor and architecture look exquisite. Whoever would come over to visit would know that this guy is loaded, just by looking around.

The door behind you closes. You lock it, then blast the terminal with your rifle. That should buy you at least a little time.

"ROOOOM SERVICE!!" You spray a few blaster rounds at the ceiling in an attempt to scare the senator out. Even though his exact location is still highlighted on your HUD. Pinkie laughs loudly.

You laugh as well and fire a few more blaster rounds toward Hoity Toity's hiding spot. Your HUD indicates that he's hiding out in a small room beneath the staircase that circles around the central pillar.

"Come out, come out, wherever you are..." You taunt.

Pinkie sits Adagio down on the ground and the two of you head toward the small room together. He's just behind this door. It's not locked. You'd love to mess with him some more, but unfortunately, your time is short.

The door slides open and you're finally face-to-face with the corrupt politician himself. He was prepared for you though. When he locks eyes with your visor, he makes one last-ditch effort to kill you by pulling out a small blaster pistol and pointing it at you.

You reflexively move out of the way with ease as he fires at you and you kick the blaster from his hand.

Okay, maybe he wasn't prepared for you.

You grab him by the wrist before he can run away and drag him out into the open. "No! Please! Release me! I'll-"

His demands are cut off suddenly when you grab him by the neck and choke him. He squirms and wiggles as he tries in vain to free himself, and you lift him off the ground. Pinkie points her blaster at his face.

"Ack!... What...do you...want?" He croaks.

You hold him above you and stare at him. "Spill your guts, senator, before I spill them for you. What do the Kath Hounds and death sticks have to do with each other?"

He gags and tries to pull himself free from your grip. You barely give him enough air to speak. "Rrrgh!...I don't...know...anything about...Kath Hounds!"

You shake your head. "Don't you lie to me, hu'tuun." Before he can retort, you walk over to the nearest wall and slam him against it. He cries out in pain as much as he can. "Let's try this again; the Kath Hounds and the death sticks."

He whimpers and looks at you with pure terror in his eyes. "Aah!... O-Okay!... The...The Kath Hounds have nothing to do w-with the death sticks! I-I sold them t-to the Twins for an extra profit! That's all!"

That could be true...

"What about the death sticks? What does Adagio have to do with this?!"

He struggles somewhat for a moment. "Why do you care?... She's just scum! Scum that you brought in, need I remind you..."

That's not the right answer.

You lean in close so you're mere inches away from his face. "Tell me, or else I'll shatter the other one."

He looks confused. "The...other one..?"

Before he can continue, you press your rifle to his left knee and blast his kneecap. He yells out loudly in pure agony and you throw him toward the booby-trapped window. He lands on the ground with a thud.

"That's strike two, senator! My patience is gone!"

He looks at you in utter terror as he struggles to back away from you. His now useless leg is bleeding profusely. He doesn't get far when you press the button on your gauntlet and detonate the charges on the window behind him.

The glass shatters loudly and the high-altitude air inside the penthouse de-pressurizes, whipping it all around you. Hoity Toity screams and cowers on the ground from the sudden force and sound of the whistling wind and traffic from outside. No doubt that explosion was seen by others. You really need to hurry now.

You stomp toward him and grab his neck again, lifting him up and moving toward the open window. "Tell me NOW, senator!"

You stop at the window and dangle him over the edge. He squirms in fear as he looks down at the thousands of lights below him.

"O-O-Okay! I'll talk! I'll talk!" You bring him back over solid ground a little. "Th-The death sticks and the girl were both provided b-by a Clawdite named Chrysalis!"

Oh, great. A Clawdite. A shapeshifter is the last thing you need to deal with right now.

He continues. "Sh-She said that the Sith were looking for individuals willing to help for a reward! She said they would pay me thousands to have the girl spread the drugs across the galaxy as much as possible! I-I agreed and took the money!"

"Why death sticks?!" You roar. "What's their plan?!"

He squirms again some. "I have n-no idea!"

You growl again and pull him close to you. "You lying, little sack of Bantha shit..." You point your blaster at his other knee.

"NO! NO, PLEASE! I DON'T KNOW! I SWEAR, PLEASE!"

You don't pull the trigger, but you leave your rifle at his knee as he begs for mercy. At this point, if he did know what their plan was, he would have told you.

"Alright then, answer me this; where do I find Chrysalis?!"

He breathes hard and shakes in fear as he stares at you. "I-I don't know...but Flim and Flam might! Th-They recently informed me that the Sith were good business partners! I-I would guess that if anyone knew where to find Chrysalis, it's them!"

"Where can I find Flim and Flam?!"

He whimpers. "Th-They move around a lot, but right now, they're on Kessel! I swear!"

You can hear the sounds of guards attempting to break down the door behind you. You're out of time.

"Pinkie, go grab Adagio. We have what we came for." She walks away and you bring Hoity Toity back over solid ground completely. "I appreciate your willingness to share, senator Hoity Toity. Our business has now concluded."

He grunts and slowly starts to grin. "Mmff... I should say so...bounty hunter..."

It's only now that you notice the sound of engines gradually getting louder and louder.

Suddenly, a police dropship ascends from below and shines its spotlights on you.

The pilot's voice comes on over the ship's speaker system. "Release the senator immediately! You are surrounded!"

You freeze and stare back at the ship as its blaster cannons point at you.

Pinkie comes up behind you with Adagio. "Uh, Anon? Is it time now?"

Two more ships ascend on either side of the one you're staring at and both point their guns and lights at you as well.

"Yep. It's time..." You activate your comms. "Sunset?"

Sunset's voice comes on in your ear. "I just got the ship started! I'm on my way!"

The ships slowly move closer to the building. You can see that they're each carrying officers and security personnel.

"Release him!" The pilot orders again.

You look at Hoity Toity, whose grin doesn't falter. "Look at you... Pulling a fast one on me, of all people."

"Do what he says, Mandalorian..." He grunts. "Let. Me. Go."

You look ahead to the ledge of the building. It's only about a meter in front of you.

You turn back to him. "Have it your way then, senator."

His grin fades and he also looks to the ledge. His eyes widen in horror once again and he shakes his head. "No... No! No! NO!"

You growl as you take a step toward the edge. "This one's for senator Melody!"

With a grunt, you heave him out the window with all your might. He flails around as he tries and fails to grab the ledge and save himself.

"NOOOOOOOO!!" His screams quickly fade away and you watch as he begins his long descent toward the planet's surface.

That's the end of senator Hoity Toity...

"Blast them!" The dropship's engines whir louder as its cannons charge up.

"Time to go, girls!" You press a button on your gauntlet and turn around to grab Pinkie and Adagio.

Beneath you, the ground starts to shake and tremble as the bombs detonate. Just outside, you hear and see the fireballs on the edge of the building below you. A second later, the lights inside flicker off and the building starts to crack loudly and twist. The main supports are gone. The building breaks and starts to crumble beneath your feet as the explosions create a chain reaction that causes the penthouse to lean forward and slide off the building.

You almost lose your footing, but you hold tight to both of the girls and dive outside. A second later, you're in freefall.

Behind you, the penthouse explodes and rains down debris onto the police dropships. The chunks of metal and concrete crash into the ships as they struggle to move out of the way. Two of them crash into each other in the confusion. They explode or careen into another building nearby, but you don't care. They're behind you. You need to focus on not crashing into anything below you right now.

Both Pinkie and Adagio are screaming at the top of their lungs and holding onto you for dear life. Your jetpack won't hold all three of you in sustained flight. The only thing it can do now is control your fall.

You maneuver out and away from the building a little bit, falling past traffic and ships along the way.

"ANOOOOON!!!" Pinkie is panicking. "ANON, WHERE IS SUNSET?!"

"SHE'LL CATCH US!"

The ground looks like it's coming up pretty quickly, even though you're kilometers away from the surface. It's been about fifteen seconds, but it feels like it's been forever.

You look around and above you for Sunset. Finally, you spot her.

"I'm right behind you guys!" She says in your ear.

"GET RIGHT BELOW US! MATCH OUR DESCENT!" You shout.

Sunset maneuvers the ship beneath your feet. Speeders honk and swerve to move out of the way all around you. The three of you approach the ship's hull. The top airlock opens and you can see inside.

Finally, you touch down. Pinkie grabs a handle and holds on tight.

"SUNSET, WE'RE ON! GET US OUT OF HERE!" You command.

"Copy that!" She replies.

You lay down flat on the ship and Sunset swings the ship down then up before evening out and giving you an opportunity to get inside. Pinkie moves inside the ship first, then she helps Adagio inside, and you follow behind them.

Once you're on the floor, the airlock closes and you feel Sunset gun the engines.

You lean back against the wall and take a deep breath. "That was close..."

You wait there for a moment to gather yourself before stepping into the main hold. Pinkie is already there and caring for an unconscious Adagio. All that excitement must have been too much.

Something else you're just noticing is that she's completely naked now. Those rags she was wearing must have flown off during freefall. She is literally just skin and bones from head to toe. Seeing her like this is horrible.

You head into the cargo hold and grab a large blanket for her. When you get back into the main hold, you wrap the blanket around her back and cover her bare shoulders and chest with it. She's freezing cold. This should keep her warm and looking decent.

"Pinkie, I'm putting you in charge of her." You say as you look at her. "There's food and water in the cargo hold. When she wakes up, give her some, then let me know, okay?"

She nods. "Okay, Anon. I will."

You stand up and head to the cockpit. Sunset is at the controls, maneuvering the ship through the traffic and up toward the atmosphere.

She turns to you. "You get everything we need?"

You sit down beside her. "More or less. Our hunch was right. Hoity Toity was commissioned to have Adagio spread death sticks around the galaxy by a Sith Clawdite named Chrysalis."

"How come?"

You shake your head. "He didn't know. He just took the money and agreed with no questions."

She scoffs. "Glad he's gone."

Damn right about that.

She continues. "So how do we find this Chrysalis?"

"He said that he has a feeling that Flim and Flam had worked with her before. Or they're working with her still. Either way, it's our best lead. They're on Kessel."

"Okay." She says. "I don't think we should just go to Kessel right now, all casual-like. Especially after this fiasco."

"I agree. The Republic will be on high-alert..." You reply. "We'll make a game plan once we're clear and we've rested. Head to Cato Neimoidia. Make random jumps on our way there, in case we're being tailed and we don't know it."

She nods. "Good idea."

Pinkie calls out to you from the main hold. "Anon, she's waking up!"

Oh, good.

Sunset turns back to you. "You really rescued Adagio?"

"You should see her, Sunset. What's been done to her is absolutely inhumane. I had to do something." You stand up. "Besides, she might be willing to talk to us this time."

She hums. "Fair point."

You head to the back of the cockpit and continue into the main hold. Pinkie is holding a bottle of water and helping Adagio take a drink.

Adagio is sitting on a chair, still wrapped in her blanket. You remove your helmet and set it on the table. She looks like she hasn't had a decent sleep in weeks.

Well, she probably hasn't, actually.

She's trembling weakly and hesitantly taking a few gulps of water.

You shake your head. This is so wrong.

Pinkie looks at you. "I don't think she'll be able to talk to us, Anon."

You shake your head. "There's no way she is in any condition to. Not yet, anyway."

She needs medical attention.

You turn to the table behind you and contact Rarity. After a few rings, she answers, her holographic face appearing in front of you.

"Anonymous! You're not dead! Thank goodness!" She says gleefully.

Of course you're not dead. It's you.

"Rarity, we're on our way back to you. We need medical attention."

She suddenly looks worried. "Oh dear! What happened to you, darling?"

"It's not me that needs it." You turn around and look at Adagio.

Rarity follows your gaze and pauses for a moment. "Is...that?"

You nod. "Yes it is. She needs help."

Rarity pauses for a moment before nodding slowly. "Very well then, Anonymous. I'll be ready for you."

"Thanks, Rarity." You shut off the hologram projector and she fades away again.

You set both your hands down on the table in front of you and take another deep breath. So many questions are going through your head right now. Hopefully, Adagio will be willing to answer a few of them. Last time you were together, you didn't exactly get along.

You hear her moan softly behind you.

Pinkie is smiling at you as she sets down the empty water bottle. "I think she's going to be okay now."

You sure hope so.

"Let's get her into a bed." You say. "She needs to rest."

You move beside her and carefully pick her up. She moans softly again and closes her eyes as she rests her head on your shoulder.

Pinkie follows you as you carry her into the crew quarters and set her on one of the extra beds you have. She lays down flat and immediately falls asleep.

You take another breath. "Alright then..."

You turn to leave, but Pinkie remains. "Anon? I have a quick question."

You stop and look back at her. "Yes?"

"Just something I was curious about. Before you threw the senator out the window, you called him...a word, or a name." She says. "It was, like, hoot...or hooton, or something."

Oh, that word.

"Hu'tuun." You reply.

"Right!" She says. "That word. Anyway, I was curious. That does that mean?"

You smirk and turn around to face her completely. "It's a word in Mando'a. It's pretty much the worst insult you can ever give to a Mandalorian. If you did, it's quite possibly the last thing you would ever say to anyone at all."

She nods slowly. "Okay, but what does it mean though?"

"It means 'coward'."

She gets a look of understanding on her face and nods again. "Ooooh, I see."

"Yeah..." You reply. "It's a bad word, but Hoity Toity tried to lie to me. Only cowards make a habit out of lying."

Pinkie nods once. "It's a bad word, and a bad person to be."

You grin at her and chuckle. "Couldn't have said it any better myself."

She smiles back at you and you turn around to head to your quarters.