The air in the tavern was heavy with a mixture of smoke, laughter and the stench of various liquors. A lone human sat at a table in the back of the room where the rest of the bar gave him a wide birth. His hair was a disheveled mess of shoulder length brown hair that somewhat hung over his blue eyes. Many of the features of his face were hidden beneath a thick beard which served to place him deep within his adulthood. The man was dressed in a tattered set of tan and brown robes that hung off his broad physique. But the one things most noticed first about him was the fact that he was clearly missing his left arm.
While the majority of the bar gave him a wide birth and he seemed all too content to enjoy this isolation. That is until he noticed his latest bottle had finally run dry. Before he could signal the waitress over, a fresh one was placed on the table by the only man brave enough, or maybe crazy enough, to approach him.
“Dryden Volriech,” Simon Ortell warmly greeted the ragged looking man. “How’s the life of a professional Jedi drunkard?”
A toothy smile cracked the face of Dryden as he pulled the bottle towards his open palm. “Tch, I can connect to the Force better when I’m drunk,” he countered. “So what brings you to my favorite watering hole, Ortell?”
Simon reached into his jacket and produced a cube of bluish glass and golden metal. “Found some junk laying around that you might’ve wanted.”
Dryden’s smile widened as he looked over the object. “I can only imagine how a slum dog like you got your hands on something like this.”
“Hey now, you know the deal, no questions asked,” Simon reminded him as he placed the cube on the table. “I’ve got two more in the usual spot, provided of course you can get me the usual payment.”
Dryden flinched a bit at this. “Jeez, I doubt the temple’s got deep enough pockets to cover a cost like that.”
“Tell ya what,” Simon reached over and took the bottle from Dryden and began pouring the bright amber liquid into a pair of glasses. “You pay me for two and for the third one you get me some information.”
The Jedi looked at the cube, the glasses then back to Simon, “What’re you looking for?”
“I need you to find her for me,” he said before sliding a cup towards his drinking partner. “I need to find her and fast.”
With a sigh, the Jedi reached over and took the offered drink, “Fine, but you know that’s going to take some time, even for me.”
“I know, but you’re probably the only person who can pull it off.”
“Yeah, well, you’re just lucky I have to head back to Talgear anyways,” Dryden pointed out as he downed some of the liquor. “Old Man Laan finally talked me into taking on an apprentice.”
“They’re gonna let you teach?” Simon exclaimed through a fit of laughter. “Man, your order must be falling on some really hard times.”
“Tell me about it,” he replied before downing the last of his drink. “I’ve been told she’s some kind of super student or something. Still sounds like a freaking dumb idea to me.”
“Couldn’t agree more,” Simon chided him before washing down his own glass with a quick gulp. “I’ve got some business to take care of still, get in touch with me when you find her for me will ya.”
----------------------------------------
Strolling up the gangway of the Meaningless Venture, his mind still mostly focused on the meeting he'd had with Dryden. His wandering thoughts were cut off when he caught the sound of Rarity speaking with someone. Quietly he slipped to the edge of the entryway and found her speaking with the hologram of that tinier Unicorn she'd spoken to before.
"Rarity," The tiny little thing squeaked happily and bounced up and down. "So how's your trip going? Have you gotten to see anything really cool out on all those other planets? When are you coming home? Oh! Are you going to bring me any cool souvenirs? Have you gotten to-"
Rarity tried to suppress her laughter at the excited greeting she'd been given. "Sweetie Belle, please, one question at a time."
"I'm sorry, but it's been like a million years since you called," Sweetie Belle exclaimed.
"Yes, I know, I'm very sorry for that," Rarity replied in a sad uneasy tone. "But tell me, what have you been getting up to, I do hope you and your friends have left at least some of Ponyville standing."
"There was only the one time we nearly blew up the town. But things have been kind of boring lately, everypony is too busy with stuff to play or go crusading. Casus and Scootaloo are always doing that training junk and Apple Bloom had to go visit family in Appaloosa," she hung her head sadly as she looked up at Rarity. "I really wish you were here right now?"
"So do I," she said with a sigh, barely able to look at the littler Unicorn's hologram. "My business out here is nearly done and when I get back you and I are going to take a trip to Canterlot, just the two of us."
Sweetie Belle's face lit up at the mention of this while a wide smile pulled tightly from one ear to the next. "You mean it?"
"Of course," Rarity said with a soft smile. "Just be a bit more patient and I'll be home as soon as I can."
"Ooooooookaaaaaaaaay," Sweetie Belle agreed with a great deal of reluctance. "Bye Rarity, love you!"
"Good bye Sweetie Belle, I love you too."
With the image gone, Rarity stared straight ahead at the projector her sister's image had been floating over just a few seconds ago. Her shoulders began to tremble and her head sank low between her shoulder blades. Tears formed around the edges of her eyes before they rolled down her cheeks and onto the metal grate beneath her hooves. She began to sob and whimper softly to herself until the sound of footfalls snapped her back to reality. Rarity quickly brought a forelimb up to clear the tears out of her eyes and fought to regain her composure before turning to face her host.
"Princess," Simon greeted her awkwardly.
"Captain Ortell," Rarity replied in a forced even tone.
"I was just walking by, wasn't trying to listen in or nothing like that," he said in his defense.
“Yes, well, before you say anything, I'm very well aware after the last talk that intergalactic calls cost a great deal of money,” she quickly said. "And I assure you that I shall make restitution for this at my first convenience."
“Yeah, well, just so long as I don’t have to repeat myself,” Simon replied.
The smuggler looked over the currently rather pitiful-looking girl before him. Rarity's normally strong and unflinching outward appearance had started to crack and fray, and in its place were puffy reddened eyes and tear-matted fur running down the sides of her face. Simon refused to even acknowledge why, but it tore at him to see her like this. It didn't take long for his colder exterior to lose out in the internal struggle.
“So, I was thinking I might go hit up that holo-theatre down the block from the spaceport. You know, take some time to relax since we’re not getting shot at. If you want, you could join me.”
Rarity fixed a curious and confused look upon the smuggler who fidgeted a bit uncomfortably under her gaze. Slowly, she began to smile weakly and nodded in agreement with him. "Yes, I think some recreation would do us both some good. But one condition, darling."
"And that would be?"
"I pick the movie."
-----------------------------------
The smuggler and the fashionista strolled side by side down the main street of their latest location. Rarity hadn’t bothered to ask about this planet and Simon didn’t seem to care all that much to explain it. They were surrounded by a small city that a hugged large lake nestled beneath a mountain range. Tall buildings of glass and metal rose up around them and reached towards the sky while all around them various races and species milled about on whatever business they had on-hand.
Rarity took her time to admire some of the local sites of this unnamed world, the impressive architecture that could put even Manehattan to shame. Overhead she watched a number of airborne vehicles zip around through the sky. It briefly reminded her of Pegasus-drawn sky chariots, these were clearly based solely on the technology that these aliens openly flaunted. Eventually the pair reached their destination, a building marked in bright light up letters with a long row of posters lining the front. Aurebesh was still something she had been learning, but Rarity could make out the word “Theatre” in the title of the building.
She took her time looking over the displayed posters for the latest films to be shown at the establishment. One depicted a pair of near humanoids running in terror from form a hulking beast that was hidden by shadows, save for its glowing red eyes. Horror was certainly the last thing she felt like watching. The next poster depicted a group of men in identical white armor that had been smeared by dirt and grime while behind them was the twisted wreckage of a city. It never fails, leave a few stallions in charge of the camera and you’ll get a gritty war movie. Next on the line was group of youths that looked towards the camera with looks of shock and befuddlement whilst all manner of chaos erupted behind them. A typical comedy, she thought to herself, it was beginning to look like many trends were universal. Finally she came to a poster that showed a saddened woman in a fanciful gown clutching a pair of robes and the hilt of a lightsaber to her chest, tears rolling down her cheeks.
“Simon, how about this one?” she asked her companion.
“Heir to the Order,” he read the title aloud. “The story of a woman forced to choose between her life of a princess and her life as a Jedi. I’ve heard it’s one of Lisa Vondyar’s finest performances to date.”
“I’ve been meaning to learn more about these Jedi folk,” Rarity commented. “My friend Twilight has become all but infatuated with them. From what little I’ve learned they sound like an absolutely fascinating group.”
Before long the pair sat beside one another in the dimly lit theatre. Seating had not been a problem, despite rave reviews not many had spent their credits on the artistic piece. Stadium seats had been set up around the room facing a large holo-projector. Rarity watched as the trailers for other movies began to play in the hopes of attracting viewers. She found very little desire to see the one about the gritty space commando fighting his way through waves of space zombies with a frightened space female latched onto him.
“I have to admit, Simon, I’m actually quite impressed,” she commented in hopes of ignoring the prattling advertisements. “Most stallions I’ve known would recoil in fear at the very thought of seeing a film that was not some mind-numbing piece of dribble.”
"Please, you've seen my collection," Simon said with a snort. "I've always preferred a much higher caliber of viewing material."
"I recall you mentioning a love of movies."
"Yeah, before going to work for Lorn full-time on his ship, movies were pretty much my way to escape from the slums. Mom would get so mad at me every time I spent all my spare credits to see whatever was playing at the holo-theatre."
Even in the muted light Rarity could note a far off look in her companion's eyes. There was a pain in them that started to bleed through his entire expression. Raised a hoof from her arm rest for a millisecond but quickly stopped herself. She could easily guess how the small sign of comfort would be taken and thought it best to avoid the conflict it would cause.
"You and Serif I assume?"
"Hah, naw," Simon replied as some levity returned to his face. "Serif's always been a credit pincher. He never willingly went with me to see anything. But my big sister usually did."
A soft smile curled the edges of Rarity's lips as he let this small nugget of information slip by. "Oh, so there's another Ortell running around the galaxy, I wonder if she's as courteous as her brother," she said playfully.
"Kaily's a lot more intense than me. You would not like her," Simon cautioned with a smirk. "She was always the Tough One though, so I guess it makes sense."
“You and your sister are close, I take it?”
“You could say that,” Simon replied. “She was always watching out for me and doing whatever she could to keep her little brother safe, ya know. Especially if it meant breaking the faces of an entire swoop gang that tried to move into our neighborhood.”
For a brief moment she recalled the argument she'd nearly walked in on back at Lorn's shop. "A rough and tumble sort, eh?"
"And how," Simon replied with a snicker. "She used to get into just about any kind of a fight at the drop of a hat."
"She sounds a bit like my friend Rainbow Dash. Pegasi are known for being competitive but that girl takes things to a whole new level sometimes.”
"You've got a lot of friends back on that orb of yours."
"It tends to happen when one stays in one place for more than a few days," Rarity teased.
"Sounds horrible," Simon said with a grin. "Think I'll keep to my stars then."
"That may be for the best," Rarity added. "After all, if the great Simon Ortell suddenly had friends and a home the galaxy might suddenly implode."
Simon gave her a bemused look before rolling his eyes at her comment. "Probably not, but why take the risk, am I right?" They sat in silence for a while as the opening credits began to flash across the projected image. Simon could feel a question starting to worm its way from the back of his mind to his mouth. "So, that little Unicorn you keep calling, you two related or something?"
"Sweetie Belle," Rarity replied with a warm smile. "She’s my little sister and one of Ponyville's most notorious fillies. She and her friends have nearly brought the town down around everypony's ears more than once while trying to find their cutie marks. Beyond the chaos she and her friends tend to sow with their arguably good intentions she's actually quite sweet."
"I'm sure that's getting so much better now that you've got an infestation of bucketheads on your planet. Not sure how folks can sleep at night with those war worshiping nutjobs running around in your backyards." Simon then caught the critical look that Rarity had fixed on him.
"I’ll have you know that several of those ‘nutjobs’ saved both my life and the lives of my friends. Furthermore, my sister's life was saved by a little Mandalorian boy whom was kind enough to carry her on his back all the way home after her leg was injured. While I know a number of them can come off as abrasive, I’ve learned first hoof that not all of them are bad. Why do you have so much disdain for them?”
“After you spend a few months getting shot at by them, watching them shoot each other over some pointless ancient concepts, you tend to get a bad taste in your mouth. I’m sure you’re right - some of them are probably decent folks - but they just haven’t been any of the ones I’ve met.”
Rarity let a comfortable silence fall between them yet again as they watched the movie play out before them. They watched as the fire-haired woman on screen dealt with the demands of her people and her desire to stay true to the code of conduct of these Jedi. The way the movie depicted them, they reminded her of a sect of warrior poets from Equestria’s dark ages, sowing justice and hope across the land.
“Simon, darling,” Rarity spoke up in a low whisper. “We’re really nearing the end of this ordeal?”
“Yeah,” he replied with a light touch on her shoulder. “Pretty soon you’ll be back home, just like I promised.”
That could have been the end of that conversation, but something burned Rarity about that answer. “And what about you?”
“What about me?”
“Well, where do you go from there?”
“I go to the next job,” he replied curtly.
“And you’re fine living your life like that?” Rarity asked with no shortage of concern in her lowered voice.
Simon looked to clearly struggle with her question. His jaw tightened while he fought to force up a reply. "Yeah, it's fine."
“Don’t you ever get tired of that? Don’t you ever feel lonely running from world to world all alone?”
Simon rolled his eyes at the question. “Been doing just fine like that for years now.”
Rarity looked at him sadly before returning her attention to the film. "If that's how you feel, darling, then I won't push the matter."
Turning his attention back to performance, he tried to ignore the way her words started form an icy ball in the pit of his stomach. He kept his mind focused on the movie and that long lusted for light at the end of this long, long tunnel he’d been trapped in. All he needed to do was make one more stop, get Serif’s mystery item and then drop off those karking dresses that have been in the ship’s hold for weeks. Then it would be back to his glorious status quo. No more complaints about where they were headed next, no pestering about his sense of fashion and style and no more her. But why did these thoughts only make him feel all the worse?
----------------------------------------
“It’s certainly a shame what happened to you Mr. Xardos,” the Ubese commented as he looked over the empty display case. “I heard they made off with a few million credits worth of artifacts.”
“And you just happened to stop by on short notice out of the kindness of your heart, Mr. Vrax?” Kinaris questioned, his voice dripping with venom.
“Kindness, when have you ever heard of a kind hearted Ubese?” Vrax snorted. “The thieves that hit you happened to be a group I’m hunting at the moment. The way I look at it, I could stand to make a good stack of credits for killing them for you.”
He paced around the room, the empty expression of his visor taking in the surroundings as he moved around the perimeter. “You must realize that there’s no way you’re getting any of this collection back, they’ve probably hit about twenty different fences by now and unloaded them all. If you’re lucky they’ll have maybe two thirds of what it was all worth. That’s a pretty hard blow to stomach, don’t you think?”
Vrax stopped and looked dead into Kinaris’s eyes. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m going to kill them anyways. See, I’ve been really wanting to tear their limbs off like insects and beat them to death with them for a while now. But for the right price, I can make it into a very...special...kind of ordeal for them. It would make for a wonderful little show of force to anyone else who might try to do the same thing.”
He offered the human an open gloved hand. “What do you say?”
Kinaris stared at the full suited alien for a moment, his eyes giving away that he was clearly giving serious thought to this offered act of revenge. A razor sharp grin slipped over his expression as he took the offered hand in a firm shake. “You’ve got a deal, Vrax. I expect a nice, long, detailed holo of the entire affair. Their screams and cries for mercy are going to lull me to sleep every night.”