Chapter 5 - Food for Thought

"Before we accept, will this job entail us being shot at?" AD-hoc ask.

Repeating his Rodian eye roll again (to himself as usual, since no one can see his eyes through his goggles), Ken slaps Ad-hoc on the back. 'I hope so.'

Well, I can patch most of you up, but AD-hoc's body is not my expertise... Foess says and shrugs.

"Well then, I shall endeavor to avoid blaster fire. Let us except the assignment."

Kytra strode down the rows of vendors, hovercarts, and parked freighters at the spaceport. Her pace was rather leisurely as she had done this a dozen times since being stranded here. The planet was neatly organized and rather homogenous in its ventures. Someone of her profession was hardly needed here, as had been apparent when her quarry had gotten himself arrested rather quickly for a minor felony. She stood a little less out now with her corporate poncho - which had also been the pay for her first, and only, day farming. It was apparent that she needed to find either the correct corporate contact or the correct off-worlder. Grain freighters usually had their full complement of crew and no spare room.

A woman in a folding chair and parasol ushering people to her small freighter, caught Kytra's eyes. The woman hardly looked like someone in need of a mercenary, but maybe they could work something out or at least get to the next planet. Kytra adjusted the strap of her rifle case and started to move towards the woman when a different crew caught her attention: Another human, a Rodian, a Xexto, and a droid heading straight for a YT-2400 she hadn't noticed yet.

That wasn't your average grain freight crew, and it certainly wasn't a regular freight ship either. They stood out perhaps even more than her. Her eyes sharpened. Was this her lucky break? Kytra quickly shuffled between two booths, the Gran in one of them shouted something after her. She ignored him and ducked under a parked freighter, hoping to cut her way directly towards the YT before the odd crew. Shuffling between crates and parked vehicles, she managed just that. Kytra leaned assertively against a crate next to the freighter while waiting for the group to arrive.

"You don't seem like the regulars around here," Kytra said.

The woman leaned against the crate next to your ship was somewhat tall and athletic, and looked like someone who could take care of herself. She also certainly didn't look like the regulars here; she wore a simple poncho with some agricultural slogan on it, that covered a light armor with various gear attached to it. She had two pistol holsters on her hips, but the covers were closed. A rifle in a carrying case was slung over her shoulders. She did not appear threatening, even though a pair of steely brown eyes narrowly looked you up and down as the last rays of the afternoon sun played across her face and blonde hair, which shimmered almost platinum golden white in the light.

"I need to get off of this agricultural hellhole, and will gladly work for passage," she said and pushed herself off the crates and opened her arms in a "what's it gonna be?" type of motion, addressing all of you - not really knowing if any command structure was present.

---

The slim Rodian stops, and turns to look at the human. His face is pretty much inscrutable behind the faintly ludicrous scanner goggles, but he seems young. He strikes something of a cocky pose, one hand on a jutting hip revealing a heavy blaster pistol.

'Achuta emeela. That's a lot of weaponry for agricultural work. Know how to use it?'

AD-hoc answers bluntly; "We don't seem like regulars, because we aren't regulars." he pauses, noticing the weaponry the human is carrying. "I can't determine if another being would be useful in our upcoming mission, but it be worth it in case people start shooting at us again" he adds matter-of-factly.

Good, Kytra thought as the Rodian stopped and greeted her, nonchalantly brandishing a heavy blaster pistol. Cautious people bode well, and she knew she didn't exactly come off as a home droid saleswoman.

She nodded at the droid, who had spoken last. "Fair," she agreed with the assessment, despite not knowing the background for what the droid referred to. Still, Kytra took note of the word again. Maybe she could be of use to this group other than loading cargo and scrubbing decks. Kytra returned her attention to the Rodian

"Jee keepuna killee da waba, Rodian" the woman coldly remarked on the Rodian's question if she knew how to use her weapons. Kytra's formative years on the fringe with the Nite Owls before the civil war had her pick up a few tidbits from the Outer Rim and her recent run-in with the underworld had brushed up on her Huttese. It was passable, but not perfect. Its message was loud and clear, however. "Do you need a demonstration?"

---

Hello stranger! Foess bows slightly, while surveying the stranger that had approached them. Not knowing what Ken and that lady were saying, he decided to stay back and watch the proceedings.

You don't seem too regular around here either. The Xexto has two hands gesturing toward the woman and his other two fiddling around in his pockets. He then looks at those with him Another blaster wouldn't hurt, don't you think

Pleased with this human speaking Huttese, the language of business and of business in the Outer Rim, Ken still has some reservations about picking up an armed stranger in a starport.

He gives a thin-lipped Rodian smile, 'No need for demonstrations. But what brings someone like you to Uyter? Do you have any...references?'

Kytra nodded politely at the other human when he greeted her before the Xexto and Rodian chimed in. Despite the fact that she seemed somewhat seasoned with a calm almost cold demeanour, she did not appear gruff or impolite towards the group. If anything she was doing her best to conceal her desperation to get off the planet. Even though she did her best to push professionalism and work in front of her to conceal the fact, the more observant of the group had no trouble understanding her predicament. As the conversation continued, it would even become blatantly obvious.

"Judging by the last weeks, I am a regular," she amusingly replied the Xexto, although there was no hint of humor in her voice nor expression.

"But you're right," she addressed both the Xexto and Rodian who both were engaging the issue, but she also glanced over at the others when she spoke, "my last job hit a dead end here, as did my credits. I'm an independent contractor, so to speak," a phrase that could mean only a few things in this case, "As long as my patron has no need for me, I chase down what work I can acquire," she explained.

"It doesn't always pan out," Kytra shrugged and gesticulated with both her arms to the area around her, clearly tired of this place.

We don't provide free rides and we have our own job to complete I assume you are okay pulling your own weight?

"Can we all pull our weight toward our ship? This mission is time sensitive is it not?" AD-hoc says bluntly

"Oh, I can do my fair share," Kytra assured the Xexto. "Of course, I can also stay out of your business and just do menial tasks until we reach a hub world or station," the woman conceded. "I can respect and understand the need for subtlety," Kytra added and folded her arms, awaiting any response.

Then the droid spoke of the group's urgency. The woman cocked her head and gesticulated with an open hand towards the droid, "and that of expediency," she added as a point to her previous comment.

"I'm Kytra, by the way," she finally revealed, banking on being let on board under some condition or other.

Pergano at your service, I will be flying this ship. Now let us get going

Ken shrugs, he's satisfied enough, and perhaps he won't have to take the brunt of the blaster fire any longer. Still, he's learned enough not to just trust someone who signs up to get shot at particularly not given all the people they've pissed off. He'll he keeping an eye on this one.

Glad to have you along Kytra, Foess says as they head towards the ship. Let me show you where you can stow your gear and bunk down.

Kytra nodded and followed the others inside and eventually the other human to her quarters. "Thanks," she said when they got to her bunk. She didn't really have a lot of things. More or less all she had of value was on her person, but it would be nice to offload some of the gear and maybe hit the refresher at some point.