532. Black Phoenix - Raezyr

The three vehicles sped across the desert planet, Trychon’s swoop following the land speeder closely while Raezyr ranged out far ahead, keeping watch for any up coming dangers. The Sith's black cloaks flapped in the wind behind them, and through their comms they hammered out a few more minor details.

After an hour and a half, the four closed up their formation as they arrived outside of an old abandoned mining facility many kilometers south of Anchorhead. The main facility built of stone and metal, had been refurbished into the landing hangar and headquarters of Jama the Hutt and the Desert Raiders, while many of the outlying adobe buildings were falling into a state of ruin and disrepair.

They slowed their pace as they navigated the ruins. Some still appeared to be inhabited, most likely by camp followers and others of ill repute who weren't skilled or privileged enough to be allowed inside the main compound. The couple of glimpses they were able to get as they cruised by told them their assessment was probably correct.

Eventually, they pulled up outside the rusted, sand-pitted iron gates of huge fortress and parked their vehicles next to several others in a small storage building clearly converted to a small parking hangar, backing them in the off chance they needed to leave in a hurry.

After disembarking, they walked toward the gate in their pre-determined formation: Falka in front, Raezyr to his left but a step behind, Trychon in the same position on Falka’s right, and Haley to the rear. Trychon and Raezyr pulled the hoods on their cloaks up, hiding their features deep within the cowls.

Falka had worn a vaguely militaristic uniform to give him the appearance of authority and respect, while Haley had worn a white dress made from a light material, which had slits up both sides to her hips. Over this she wore a white cloak, the hood pulled up as well, making the fact she was a cyborg less apparent.

Haley had protested the revealing outfit on the grounds that it wasn’t practical for travel across the desert, but Falka had insisted on it. Rumor had it that Jama’Rukus Rus’El was easily distracted by beautiful women.

After identifying themselves over a comm port, two mercenaries exited a small door set into the larger main gate, a blue-skinned Duros with red eyes and a reptilian-looking Trandoshan. “No weapons allowed,” the Duros said brusquely.

“As you can see, I am unarmed,” Falka said spreading his arms out so they could see he had no weapon strapped to him.

“Scan ‘em,” the Duros said, turning to his lizard-like counterpart. The Trandoshan hissed a reply and stepped toward Falka holding out a metallic wand, attached by a cord to a hand-held device. After passing the wand quickly over Falka’s body, he checked the readings on the hand-held device, then stood back. He hissed something, then motioned for Falka to step aside, and for Trychon to come forward.

Trychon stepped forward and, held out his arms, allowing the Trandoshan to scan him as well. The reptilian alien ran the scan, and checked the screen, then motioned for Raezyr to step forward. Raezyr’s scan also turned up negative results, and hissing, he motioned for Raezyr to step aside and Haley to come forward.

Haley stepped forward, and held her arms to the side. The moment the lizard’s wand got near her, the hand-held device began emitting a high pitched wail.

Instantly, the Duros swung the blaster rifle he was carrying up to cover the three who had already been cleared, while the Trandoshan grabbed Haley by the collar and threw her up against the wall, drawing his pistol and placing the barrel at the back of her head.

Trychon started to step forward, but Falka placed his hand out in front of him. “Easy, my loyal body guard,” the smuggler said, playing his part to a tee. “I will take care of this.”

Raezyr stood still, although he was surprised to feel Trychon’s anger rise in response to Haley’s treatment, and it only grew hotter as Trychon watched the Trandoshan search Haley for weapons. The Trandoshan was clearly taking his time, searching some areas more thoroughly than necessary.

“There is no need for that kind of treatment. My attaché is unarmed,” Falka said to the two alien guards.

“Our scanner detected high levels of energy, which indicates a power source for a weapon,” the blue Duros said, keeping his weapon pointed toward Falka and his body guards.

Falka began to laugh. “I’m sorry to laugh, but… she’s a cyborg. She needs artificial power sources to run her components.”

“Sskrok will determine if she has any weapons or not.”

When the Trandoshan finished his search, Haley stepped aside, jerking herself free from his grasp, and a look of extreme irritation on her face. The lizard-man hissed and grunted something in his native tongue to his Duros counterpart, and they both chuckled.

“I understand Dosh,” Falka commented dryly, which caused both mercenaries to shut up.

The Duros stepped punched something into his wrist comm, and opened the small security door, and a pinkish-skinned Zeltron woman with blue hair stepped out. She was wearing a few armor pieces over a tightly fitted, low-cut black and yellow body suit with twin blaster pistols strapped to each of her thighs.

Both the Duros and Trandoshan stood a little straighter at her arrival. “The visitors are weapon free Lexa, although the female is a cyborg, so Sskrok had to search her by hand,” the Duros reported.

“I saw the whole thing,” the Zeltron woman said, a disgusted look on her face as she glanced at the reptilian. “Come with me, I’ll show you to Master Rus’El’s reception chamber.”

The group from the Black Phoenix followed her through the door and down a dimly lit hallway. As Raezyr watch the sway of her hips in front of him, he feeling that he knew her from somewhere kept coming over him, despite the fact he was sure he had never met her before.