Outlaw Star

Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars…that honor goes to the brilliant Mr. George Lucas and I just come here to get away from it all…

FYI: I use locations, characters, and races from many other games and anime shows. I'm sorry if it bothers you but it's just the way I am!

Please REVIEW! Criticism is welcome (please don't be so harsh I cry) so I can become a better writer.

Chapter I: Ups and Downs

Part I – The Chase

Location: Ganymede, Ecru City outskirts

"Will you hurry up and get into the damn ship?" A very angry Vara Solo screamed out the cockpit door as she cruised along the ground, trying to keep the ship level as bullets pinged off the door, leaving little dents in their wake. As her dark eyes took in the burgeoning damage to her craft, she gnashed her teeth in rage and quickly turned back to Leon, lest she take a shot at him as well. He had watched the path her gaze took and tossed her a sheepish grin as he once again reached out and unsuccessfully grabbed for the ladder as the ship took a sudden jolt to the right.

"You did that on purpose!" Leon whined, and Vara gave him a wicked grin in response. A blaster shot whizzed by his head, causing him to yelp.

"Do you see what you're doing to my ship!" She yelled, then quickly yanked her head back inside the cockpit just in time to miss getting it shot off by a wild Rodian toting a repeating blaster.

"I'm sorry, Vara, it's not my fault!" Leon called back, switching gears to keep up with his partner's increasing speed, his speeder bouncing along the rocky trail.

"Not your fault?" She screeched as a stray shot shattered the glass window behind her head, sending shards of glass raining down around her. "How isn't this your fault? You just had to be late with our payment to the Exchange! You just had to gamble all of our money away on Pazaak! Pazaak! Ah, Leon, couldn't you have even chosen a more exciting game than Pazaak to lose it on! You're hopeless!"

Leon cringed as his partner ticked off the events that lead to the current little predicament they were in; gambling their payment away, him stealing a speeder, being chased down by Exchange muscle, and Vara considering whether or not to rescue him, like she always had to, from certain death. "Ok, so it's my fault!" He finally admitted, sharply jerking his speeder to the right to miss a downed tree. One of the thugs chasing him wasn't so lucky as his speeder crashed into the fallen foliage, careened out of control to the left, bounced off a boulder, and exploded in a brilliant shower of flames in the forest. Leon took that moment to glance behind him to see that there were still at least a dozen other speeders in the chase. A huge, hulking Gamorrean was the closest, his blubbery lips curled up into a grimace of concentration, well, as concentrated as a pig species could get as he swung wildly at Leon with his gargantuan ax. Gulping, Leon's foot pressed down on the pedal farther, causing the craft to jerk forward into a breakneck speed.

Turning the speeder right, he guided it back towards Raven's Wing, Vara's now very beat up ship. "You don't really want me to die do you?" He pleaded, his eyes turning large and innocent, causing Vara's anger to slip away. Damn, he knew just how to get to her…how's he doing that with his eyes anyway?

Groaning, she was just about to reach for him when a Duros pulled up next to her, firing a shot into the cockpit. The control panel sizzled, spitting sparks. Hers eyes widened in shock. That was it. They had gone TOO far. Letting out an almost primal battle cry, Vara reached out and grabbed Leon by the collar, lifting him straight off the speeder and into the ship, and in one quick motion, violently turned the ship completely around, facing the oncoming speeders. Leon scrambled to the seat next to her, firing off a few shots out of the window. With his sharp-shooting skills, he actually managed to pick off the Rodian, causing the little green alien to fly off his speeder, his tiny mouth opened in an 'o' of surprise. Then in the next instant he was just a green splotch on the road as his comrades drove over him.

"Um, you do know our grand escape is that way, right?" Leon asked as he pointed towards the direction they were previously headed, and then yanked the pin off of a flash grenade and lobbed it at the Duros that was next to them. It exploded in a brilliant flash of blue, causing the creature's bulbous red eyes to bulge as he tried to desperately rub the blindness from his vision. Unsuccessful, his speeder clipped a rock next to the road. It bounced left and right before plunging into a murky pond next to the lane.

"Oh, I know which way it is." Vara replied, her voice deadly calm, her wild eyes fixed straight ahead. Leon gulped, knowing that look all too well, and having been on the receiving end of it a few times. "Oh boy…" He muttered.

"But no one escapes after they damaged my baby." She growled, opening fire on the thugs, spraying them with a dazzling display of green fire. The Gamorrean's speeder flew out from under him as its damaged circuits caused it to spin out of control into the woods. He rolled along the ground, landing on his own ax, wedging it into his chest. Even as he lay there, Vara continued to shoot at his corpse, over and over. The rest of their pursuers turned on their heels and fled in a cloud of dust. Leon rolled his eyes, shaking his head.

"Vara, Vara!" Her partner yelled, as she cackled wildly, nostrils flaring like a crazed horse, pumping the triggers of the cannons. Sighing, he simply reached out slapped her across the cheek. Blinking, she immediately relinquished her grip on the triggers and sat back against the seat, blinking the daze from her eyes. Finally, she turned towards him.

"I was at it again, wasn't I?"

"Yep."

"What was it this time?"

"Shooting at a dead pig."

"Oh…that again."

Part II – Hard Times

Location: Ganymede, Laderala Town – Kayne and Solo Enterprises

Missed again. Leon's brow furrowed in concentration as he folded the paper beneath his fingers, glancing up ever so often at the downed craft a few inches from the garbage can by the door. Maybe if I fold the wings a little longer, it'll get more distance… He mused over in his mind as he slid his thumb over the fold that would be the second wing. But if it's flatter, it might be more aerodynamic… Running his thumb and forefinger along the bottom of the craft, he made the nose nice and pointy. Good for speed… He silently congratulated himself on his expertise on building perfect paper airplanes and after carefully lining up his shot, sent his new little creation into the world and towards its destination: the wastepaper basket. It sliced through the air with ease, bobbing and weaving left and right in its downward spiral. It's going to make it! Leon thought giddily to himself as his little plane headed straight towards the can, but suddenly, it lurched right and bounced into the wall with a sickening crunch, crushing its nose and sending it falling to the floor to the right of the waste can.

Leon sat in shock. How could this happen? It was perfect! My aim was perfect. My plane was perfect. Heaving a great sigh, he reached out and snatched another piece of parchment from the stack on his desk and began again.

"Well, I see you're spending your time constructively." A voice sounded from the doorway behind him. Spinning around in his chair, Leon faced Vara, who was wiping grease from her fingers with a rag.

Rubbing the back of his head, Leon gave her a nervous smile. "Hehe, yeah, well, you could say I got a little sidetracked."

Rolling her eyes, she crossed the room and stopped at the sink to scrub her hands. "So I take it you didn't categorize all the new parts I found out back?" Her partner glanced out the window at the mushrooming pile of rummaged parts that they found in the junkyard outside.

"You would be right." He answered as he resumed folding his new airplane, deciding right then and there it would be the best one he ever made.

"If you didn't do that, then I guess you wouldn't have fixed the landing gear on Raven's Wing?"

"You would be right again."

Vara leaned against Leon's desk and watched him methodically fold and refold, smooth, and crease his plane, eyes scrunched together in deep concentration. She rolled her eyes again. Minutes ticked by in complete silence except for the droplets of water dripping from the faucet at the sink. She stifled a yawn. He folded the second wing. She sighed loudly. Finally, Leon was complete, his baby was finished. Smiling in satisfaction, he held the paper plane out in front of him, examining it. "This has to be the best plane I've ever done, Vara. Just look at this craftsmanship!" He held the paper plane under her nose so she could get a good look at it. "I just wonder if it will be able to make the trip though..."

She looked over at the garbage can, the floor around it a graveyard of smashed aircraft. "I know how it will make it."

"Vara, please, I'm the expert at building paper planes. What could you possibly teach me?" Leon scoffed, his eyes rolling back in their sockets.

"Oh, I know some little tricks. I bet it makes it to the can if I tweak it." She challenged.

"Ok, let's see it." He hesitantly handed it over to her, afraid that she was going to mess up his creation.

Vara held it up to her face, turning it gently back and forth, examining the wings. She ran her slender fingers along the nose, slightly bending it to the right. Then she carefully bent the left wing just a fraction of an inch down. "That's all there is to it?" Leon asked, raising his eyebrow questioningly.

"No, the real trick is this." With a careless shrug, she simply scrunched the plane in her fist, the sound of crackling paper filled the air. The entire world stood still as Leon's eyes widened. "Noooooooooo!" He cried out, reaching forward. Vara continued balling the plane up until it was a lumpy sphere in her hand.

"Perfect." Raising her arm, she flicked her wrist and launched the ball into the air. It arched and soared towards the can. Landing on the rim, it went around and around and then, plopped into the wastebasket with a metallic thud. She turned back to Leon, a grin spread across her face. "Told ya it would make it." She stood up and stretched. "Glad to be of help." With that, Vara headed back outside to work on Raven's Wing.

Once again, Leon sat in shock, staring into space. "She's good." He finally relented and stood up to start picking up the fallen craft around the garbage can when the door suddenly opened, the sensor sending off a little alarm to let he or Vara know that there was a customer. Not that there really ever was one. Not lately anyway. He tossed one of the planes into the can and looked up to find himself staring into the most beautiful face he had ever seen in his life…okay, so he's said that to himself a dozen times before, but this was different! Okay, so he's said that before too… Blinking, he continued to stare at the woman stupidly. Her golden eyes and soft milky skin was intoxicating…

The woman glanced over her shoulder just to make sure the man wasn't looking at something out the window. "Um…hi." She began, outstretching her hand toward him. Leon shook himself out of his trance and quickly gripped her hand, giving it a warm shake. "I, uh, saw out front that you'll do anything form piloting to bounty hunting, so I think you're just the company I was looking for." She had a warm, soft voice.

Leon continued shaking her hand. "You would be right, ma'am." He gave her one of his winning smiles. "I'm Leon Kayne, the Kayne half of Kayne and Solo Enterprises." I'm such a dope… He thought miserably to himself.

She blinked and gave him a 'is this guy for real' look and let out a small chuckle. "So I gathered. I'm Relena Esune." She pried her hand from his grip.

"So, what can we do for you, Ms. Esune?" Leon asked as he led her over to his desk. He indicated for her to sit in one of the worn armchairs in front of him as he settled down into his own chair.

"Well, my father recently passed away and my sister and I need to head back to Coruscant for the funeral. But since it's been all over the holonet news, I'm afraid that we might be attacked, people looking to kidnap my sister and I to ransom back to my family. We don't usually travel without an escort but things just sort of turned out this way."

Leon nodded as he racked his brain. Esune…Esune…Esune…where have I heard this name before? Esune…Esune Trading Company! That guy's worth a good 50 million credits! Wow, he kicked the bucket? That's news to me.

"I would need your services from here to the Core. I know that's a long time, but you don't…" She paused, glancing around but Leon put his hands up.

"You can say it. We don't have a lot of customers." They both laughed. "Now let me see, I have to add up expenses for the expense of fuel, and our services…" He trailed off and started punching numbers and distances into a data pad on his desk. "It would cost approximately 500,873.825 credits. But seeing as how you're a really pretty lady, I'll knock it down to 500,872 credits." She blinked and then chuckled. She has a nice laugh…almost like music…what the hell, since when did I get poetic? Relena bit back a smile at his last thought but the cost was much more than what she had. She hesitated, then gently waved her hand in front of him. "Do I really need to pay that much, I mean, I don't carry much money around with me." Leon blinked at her, his head starting to itch.

"Uh, if it were up to me, no, but my partner…" The sight of his crumpled airplane, his creation that he had poured his soul into and spent an entire five minutes of his life on, crushed into a ball by her hand, flashed through his mind. "You know what, to hell with her! How much money do you have with you?"

She swallowed nervously but flashed him a pretty smile. "Um…only 25,000."

Leon found himself staring at her again, mostly at her lips. "What a coincidence, 25,000 is the going price."

Part III – You Agreed to WHAT!

Location: Ganymede, Laderala Town – Kayne and Solo Enterprises

Leon desperately wished that there was a hole in the floor that he could crawl in, but sadly there wasn't. But maybe if he stared at it long enough…

"Leon, are you even listening to me!" Vara bellowed, her hands planted on her hips, eyes flashing in anger.

Sighing, still looking at the floor like a dejected child, he nodded his head. "Yes, Vara."

"Don't you know how stupid it was for you to accept this offer?"

"Yes, Vara."

"Did you even check out this woman to see if she's who she said?"

"No, Vara."

"Do you even know if she only had 25,000 credits?"

"No, Vara."

Exasperated, she started pacing. "We're in it big time with the Exchange, Leon! They were already breathing down our necks for the payment, and you screwing them over, stealing one of their speeders, and taking out four of their guys didn't help matters!"

"Hey, it wasn't just me, you were the one who went all ballistic and shot up the pig. You're the one that caused the rest of them to run away. So don't lay all the blame at my feet."

"Will you just let the pig thing go?" She groaned, rubbing her temples, grinding her fingers into her skin. "Ok, I'll admit, some of this is my fault. But we need at least 200,000 just for the down payment!"

Leon leaned back against the wall, his head hitting it with a dull thud, and crossed his arms. "We wouldn't have needed such a big loan if you hadn't made that deal with the Hutt."

"What! That deal was fine! If your piloting skills weren't so terrible, we wouldn't have lost the cargo! Then we wouldn't have needed the loan to pay Ajuur back!"

They faced each other, seething, only inches apart. "This is getting us nowhere." Leon remarked simply, and returned to his position of leaning against the wall, once again bumping his head, and returning his arms to their crossed position. Vara frowned, but begrudgingly nodded. "Look, I took the job and that's that. We'll just make the best of it and maybe will find a way to make some money on the way."

Vara's frown deepened and she walked over to her cot, plopping down with a rustic creak of the springs. "Oh, I'm sure you won't be having a difficult time making the best of things…" She had taken a glimpse at their new customer, Relena Esune, when she heard the alarm go off, indicating someone had entered the building. The woman was beautiful, with a great figure no less, and Vara didn't miss the lustful spark in Leon's eyes when he took in the sight of her. She started to gnaw on her thumbnail as the images played through her mind like a sadistic holovid movie.

Leon watched her with mild amusement, knowing that when she started 'sucking her thumb' as he put it, she was in deep thought, or just chewing her finger because it was a habit. She looked back at him. "So…when do we have to pick her up?"

"In about half an hour." He said, glancing at the chrono on his wrist.

Blowing out a breath, Vara stood up and started rummaging through a drawer in the table next the bed. "She said to expect trouble?"

"Relena told me people might try to kidnap she and her sister for ransom money. I mean, her father's Odin Esune! You know how much cash that family's got."

Finding the object of her search, Vara slapped a cartridge onto her Mandalorian blaster, stowing an extra magazine into the pocket of her vest. "If that's who she really is."

Leon slid his vibroswords into the sheaths that crossed his back in the shape of an X. "Why do you doubt her so much?"

She pulled out a box of grenades and stashed two flashes in her pack. "I just know that you're head's turned by a pretty face and you lose your common sense. What little bit you actually have…"

"Whatever, Vara. Look, she's a woman that needs our help. She looked pretty worried when I talked to her even though she tried to hide it."

"Maybe."

He shook his head. "Nothing I say is going to change your mind, huh?"

She smirked at him and snatched her Twi'lek spinning blade off the bed. "Nope."

Sighing, he gave the room a quick once over to make sure they had everything. "Ready?"

"Let's do this."

I know this chapter is short, but it's only the beginning. They'll get longer I promise…

Till next time…