The Rescuer

Chapter 4: The Precusor.

Disclaimer: I WANT IT I WANT IT ALL!! But I can't.....damn movie and copywrites suck big fat coconut sacks....... the only characters I own are those that i created to help give this story a decent plot.



Hip grinding heavy metal and what could only be construed as techno pumped out of the speakers that surrounded the dance floor. And in Aayla's opinion, which most would agree with her on: It was incredibly loud. Tavin and those with him however seemed accustomed to the sound and Aayla found herself shouting over the music. "So what do you people do here?!" it was Vertigo who answered her. "Easy! We eat, we drink, or Dance. Or we do all three!" Aayla nodded as Tavin guided his people to a table in the back where it was quieter, and a rather....well endowed watiress came up to the table."Can I take your orders?" Lucifer directed her gaze to Aayla and the twi'lek spoke up. "Lomin Ale, if you have any instock. The waitress nodded then went off and Aayla looked questingly at the group and Ashram spoke up. "She only took your order because she knows what the rest of us want." Tavin grinned a bit. "Yeah and we all know that you want her." The doctor blushed slightly and cleared his throat. "She is a sweet natrued woman once you get to know her and---" Sorin called out over the music "A demon in the sack!" That caused Tavin and Lucifer to snort a bit choking back the laughter that threatened to erupt as Ashram turned even redder, as the waitress brought their drinks, eyeing the the six companions and sent a soft smile to Ashram before departing to other tables to take care of the patrons.
As the six of them relaxed and let the conversation and music carry on, Tavin stood up and tugged Aayla up. "Come, let's go dance a bit." Aayla stared at the other dancers in trepidation then looked at Tavin. "I've never danced like that before." Tavin grinned slightly and tugged her onto the dance floor. "Just do what feels right, use your body and mind and just flow with the rhythem." The twilek nodded numbly, and as they began to dance, she found herself indeed using her entire body and mind when dancing to the music that she vaguely heard called Living Dead Girl as she pressed her back agasint Tavin, and her rear ground slightly agasint him and she brought up her arms, linking them around Tavins neck as their bodies undulated together, and Tavins hands roamed over her body. Her head thrashed slightly as sweat trickled down her arms, and lekku, the music pounding out at its heavy rhythme, the strobes making it seem as if in slow motion. Sorin and the others stared at the two as they danced, and he leaned over to Vertigo. "Boss hasn't danced like that since...since his..." Vertigo nodded a bit. "I think maybe he is healing finally he will stop grieving." Sorin and Lucifer nodded their agreement and the Rodian spoke up."Maybe he will take her to the grave?" When the song Lithium Flower started up Sorin watched the two dance."Think we can find any survivors of this massacre?" Ashram shrugged slightly and took a drink of his Tarisian Ale."It is slim, but we do have all the planets that the jedi were on, in our starmap. We can cross off about half the planets on there two. My suggestion is we try for the Aqualish homeworld. I heard that is where Shaak Ti was before contact was lost."
The others nodded and on the dance floor Aayla looked up at Tavin as the music faded. Gently he leaned down, kissing the jedi's lips softly, trailing his fingers teasingly over her braintails, making her shiver. Then he lead her off the dance floor back to their table where the others lifted their tumblers in a toast to the two and Sorin spoke up. "Boss we have been thinking about where to go next." When Tavin merely rasied an eyebrow and Sorin pushed on."The last report we received of the Jedi Shaak Ti was that she was on Aqualish, It is on the way to Hoth, so maybe we could check there." Tavin looked to Aayla, and though she was afraid she set her lips in a thin line. "We have to go there Tavin..she is alive, but she is in the Empires hands. But she is alive." Tavin nodded again. "Alright so we are going to a water world. Aayla...I know I said not to use the Force...but I need you to use it so we can find her and extract her safely. The Jedi leaned back in her chair, nibbling on one nail as she thought about it. Wouldn't Darth Vader or Palpatine sense her using the Force? Or if not that wouldn't they get wind of Shaak Ti being rescued? There were so many risks....damnit what would she do? Sighing softly she lifted her tumbler and took a quick drink before looking at each person that called her friend. "When do we leave?"
Tavin grinned slightly, but deep down he was worrying about her. He did not say anything because right now she needed his support....their support so she could do this. "Come on, lets get back to the house. Da will be home now and I want to see him before we go back to Hoth." The others nodded and tossed down the credits for the tip and followed Tavin out into the night. As the left, a woman that had been watching them made her way into the night, anyone that looked into her eyes would see a yellowish red and a feral smile as she pulled the black cloak tighter about her and disappeared into the night.


It was quiet when the speeder pulled up, as it usually was at the house, and the six companions crept into the house after Tavin had shut down the speeder. Once inside they made their way to their rooms but before Aayla could get into her quarters, Tavin caught her about the waist and kissed her deeply. Caught up in the emotions, Aayla could only whimper softly as she returned the kiss, twining her arms about the humans neck. When the need for air broke them apart they just stared at each other for a long moment then Aayla spoke."I shouldn't be doing this....I am a jedi, even though we are almost extinct we can't love like this.....I.." Tavin gently pressed two fingers to her lips. "Right now let's just consider this an attraction that we will both enjoy. I'll not press you further." Aayla nodded and rested her head agasint his chest, and Taving ran his fingers lightly over her her tattooed lekku.
Niether noticed the shadow at one of the windows, it pulled a small comlink from it and spoke in quiet tones to keep from being heard with a decidedly female voice. "I have found the targets Master, just as you directed. I also placed a tracking device on one of them so we will know where they are." A voice returned over the comm. "Well done my apprentice, for now just observe, do not make direct contact until I say to do so." The woman nodded then after a bit of thought responded. "Are you sure we need him to get her to fall?" A soft laugh came back over the comm. "It is the best way for her to fall. Contact me again when they reach their next destination. Darth Shalleen out." With that the shadow disappeared as Tavin and Aayla parted for the night.
The first thing that awoke Aayla was the smell of caff, cautiously she sniffed the air, then opened one eye and nearly jumped out of her skin when she Tavin in her room on her bed with that cup of caff barely inches away from her nose. "Tavin Banner! You barbarian, get out!" Mortified and furious she pulled the covers over her naked body, and glared at him as he laughed then set her caff on the table. "Come on sleepy head you need to wake up." He tossed a robe to her and turned his back while she slipped out the covers and pulled it on. The next thing he knew he was face first into the wall, having been thrown by the angry Twi'lek through the Force. "Tavin if you do that again I will wait a year before I let you even consider touching me." He peeled himself away from the wall groaning slightly "Couldn't help it....you looked so peaceful sleeping." Aayla glared at him again and pikced up her caf. "Get out Tavin so I can get dressed." The human only chuckled as he left and was shocked when a stinging pain erupted on his cheek from his mother slapping him. "Tavin Davik Banner, You know better than to invade a womans privacy!" He rubbed his cheek slightly and retored. "Mom you told me to go wake her up. You did not say how." Fear gripped his heart when her eyes went steely. "You knew what I meant, next time I will let her kick your ass." With that she strode down the hall and behind him there was badly stifled giggles and he turned just as his crews ducked back into their rooms. Sighing he shook his head and went back to his room to see about getting his things packed.
The arrogance of that human! Aayls grabbed the clothes she had brought with her, stuffing them angrily into a pack. The things she had bought the day before had already been sent to the shuttle in a formless duffle bag. The rudeness that Tavin had displayed, coming into HER room when she wasn't even close to decent was....mortifying. She felt the blood rise in her cheeks, and she gritted her teeth together, pushing away the anger using one of the few jedi techniques she remembered to calm herself down. No she couldn't lose her temper that she had been so famous for at the academy. No she would prove to herself and her dead masters that she was better. Letting out a breath she shifted her pack over her shoulder, then checked to make sure she had her blaster and her sabrestaff and went downstairs to wait.
Tavin was already downstairs, sitting in a chair, across from him was a man that looked to be in his mid to late fifties, and he and Tavin were talking and laughing on occaision, and it pulled at her to see the connection he had with his family. Both men stood as Aayla came in and Tavin approached her. "Aayla this is my father, Jamis Banner, head of the Kuat Security Forces in this region. Jamis moved forward, taking the Jedi's hand in his shaking it and he spoke in a voice that bellied his age. "Tavin has told me much about you Aayla, I hope you do well with him and his group of smugglers." The Twi'lek nodded and when Jamie turned away from them she sent Tavin a fearsome stare that had him shrinking back, then he cleared his throat slightly. The others went on ahead of us, they said they would wait for us at the Idiot's Array. Aalya rolled her eyes at that. Great now she would be stuck with a man that she did not currently want to talk to or be around right at this point. "Then we had best get going hadn't we Tavin?" She smiled sweetly, but the fire in her eyes let him know she would kick his ass later. He hugged his father briefly and as he began to walk out he called over his shoulder. "I'll send you a holo when we reach the base Dad." Jamis waved him off and went back into the living area as the door slid shut behind Aayla and Tavin.
Twenty minutes later when they arrived at the landing pad, it was Aayla, not Tavin that broke the uncomfortable silence between the two of them. "I....I am sorry I used the Force in such a way on you....You surprised, and embarrassed me at the same time, and I did not think. I am sorry." Tavin shook his head slighty as he powered down the speeder and replied. "No you have nothing to apologize for Aayla, I was getting ahead of myself. I don't know why I did what I did....almost like an impulse...and I was going to bring you breakfast but that idea went down the drain after you and mum let me have it." Aayla slanted a look at Tavin then climbed out of the speeder as he rounded it, pulling their gear out of the compartment. Aayla took her pack when it was given to her and both headed up the boarding ramp of the Maruader Corvette as it began to lift off. Tavin's comlink beeped and when he answered it, Lucifers voice came over the comm, irritated but satisfied. "Glad you two could join us Captain, the route for the Hoth base has been locked into the nav computer and as you requested all previous stops were wiped." Tavin nodded, then a thought came to his mind. "Let's go to Aqualish first. We have a certain jedi that needs recuing and we cannot let her die, we need to save all the Jedi we can." There was a muffled acknowledgement then the comm cut out, and Tavin and Aayla went to the bridge after dropping their things off at their seperate quarters.
Aayla's thoughts centered around what was happening: Tavin and her new friends, despite all the risks to them were going to break into a heavily gaurded facility, rescue a jedi that for all they knew could be dying as they watched the skies of Kuat fade to the blackness of space, then elongate as the hyperspace tunnel opened up to take them in.....in all her years never had she seen people with such determination, such drive to rescue people.
As the Array jumped into hyperspace, a Sith Infiltrator that had been cloaked came into visibility, and the Sith inside stared at the Navicomputers coordinates before initiating the hyperdrive. She would be there before them, but as her master had ordered, to observe. The sith's lip curled in disgust as she pressed two buttons, and the stars infront of her cockpit elongated and sent the warship into hyperspace. She sat back to plot. Yes....this Tavin would make an excellent pupil for her master indeed.


A/N: And so ends my fourth chapter, FINALLY. I know i know its late in coming but I had a mile high writers block that i had to lace with Semtex before I could go on. but its posted and Chapter 5 will follow when I have finished that. as always positive reviews make for a happy author.