Saga - PT "The Demons of the Dark Side" (OCs, clones wars short story COMPLETED)

Yoicks, catch-up time! Here goes...

5: Oh no! Tekken's back! I remember what a menace he was in The Secrets of Sewosta, and now he's even more so, with this terentatek in tow, whatever secrets he's stolen from the Polis Massans' databases (or that he thinks he can steal from Prof. Maneeli) and this grudge (and yes, I love that "big ugly monste with a grudge" exchange between Flint and Maya too ). And what was he being "seen" for by Prof. Maneeli? Was that just a ploy to get access whatever Maneeli knows about the Niorde project? And the biggest question of course is what interest Tekken has in Maneeli's work on Niorde; I'm guessing he wants to turn whatever kind of bioconditioning is implanted in the clonetrooperstoward his own sinister purposes. And now he's getting away! And if it hadn't been for that darned Trandoshan in the barge (who can't be there by accident), Maya and Flint would have had a chance of catching up to him... hopefully they still will!

Like the others have said, I have really been enjoying Flint and Maya's banter; they have every look of becoming one of those charming "mismatched pairs" toward which I have been known to be partial. . And I do feel for Dznori and Selif here, for the way Tekken used them as his pawns; I wonder if they still may be of help in setting things right.

6: The chase is on! Thank goodness that Tio was able to get a lock on the escaping ship—off to Tatooine, eh? The plot definitely is thickening. What could Tekken be up to there (that requires Maneeli and/or Maneeli's expertise)?

I love Maya and Flint's conversation here. They still have a ways to go toward full rapport, but they are both totally sincere in their efforts to understand each other's viewpoints and thoughts and modi operandi, and they both raise good points. Yes, this is not a situation where one can wait around for reinforcements without running a huge risk—but it makes absolute sense to have that sort of rule in place for those of us who don't have the Force helping and prompting us constantly. (Not that having the Force is always a walk in the park, as Maya points out!) The fear discussion really brings to the fore some of the most fundamental differences between these two: fear is a bit of a hangup for Maya because of her upbringing in the tenets of the Jedi Code, but to Flint it is just a momentary annoyance that can be dispelled with the judicious deployment of laughter and "ex-boyfriend jokes." (Perhaps the full reality is somewhere in the middle.... )

It's rather interesting in this case that Maya, the Jedi, is the one advocating decisive action, while Flint, the soldier, is the one advocating caution and waiting for reinforcements—kind of opposite from what one would expect, and in a good way.

More soon, please! Can't wait to see what these two will find on Tatooine, and how their relationship will grow.

 

I think I know who that was.

 

Kurisan, just popping in to say that I am still following as best I can, that I hope you have a wonderful time on your trip, and that I will be back with a regular comment hopefully soon—but yes, I echo Ewok Poet in earnestly entreating you to slow your update schedule a little tiny bit (though I get why you did the extra update this time). I'll do my utmost to catch up, because I've been enjoying this. Thanks so much, and have a great time!

 

OK, I am finally caught up, and I do apologize that it’s taken me so long; I know things have been stressful on your end, and I did want you to know that during all that time I did have this story in mind and didn’t forget about you.

7: Here they are, on Tatooine, and just a stone’s throw away from Jabba’s Palace… and naturally it turns out that that’s exactly where Tekken and Maneeli are headed! It’s neat that Maya happens to know Ithorian, of all languages (though as I recall, one or more of her teachers are IIthorians, right?), and I am curious if these two helpful Ithorians will end up being helpful to her, Flint, and Xam in the future, too. And of course I echo Xam’s consternation about coming along; it’s going to be very interesting to see how a cerebral type like him gets on in a hardboiled, underworldy place like this!

8: Hah! The whole sweat-selling thing is just priceless (and shows you know your SW species well!). But hey, it worked—and it got our group some fabulous new garb that will be just perfect for infiltrating the Hutt’s palace. Though, awww, why is it that the droid always seems to end up playing the part of the goodwill offering? But I’m not really worried about Tio—I’m sure he’ll be able to hold his own just fine. I bet Flint cuts quiet the dashing figure in that medieval-ish costume, and I bet if he puts his mind to it he’ll do better at this whole disguise business than he thinks! And of course the “consort” ruse didn’t slip past my notice.

But now they’re making Flint wait outside? Hmmm… that does indeed give me a bad feeling. Or at least a perplexed one…

9: Fantastic descriptions here of Jabba’s Palace and Maya’s progress through it—you really do a great job capturing just how steamy, stinky, scummy, and dark the place is. The plot is really starting to thicken up, though: Tekken as prisoner? Maya as potential slave and “comforter”? And ohmigosh, after all this, PONG KRELL, of all people, is here, gives her away, and she becomes nothing but a bargaining chip destined for the Pit of Carkoon? Oh no, it’ll take nothing less than a miracle to get Maya out of this one! (Flint and Tio, this is your cue!)

 

WWMD—What Would Maya Do? These two have definitely got guts to attempt a ruse like this! And it would almost be humorous if the situation weren't so serious—I can just imagine little Dr. Xam sitting atop Flint's shoulders (I think it accidentally says "soldiers" somewhere—might want to check) juggling for dear life. It's fun to see these two very different beings having to work together, and I hope the fat fellow doesn't take too long in deciding whether there's space for them... (I also wonder if the "boss won't like it" comment is indicative that the fat fellow may know something about the fate of Maneeli...)