(Before the chapter, I just want you all to think about something. Some people have been consistently complaining. I happily accept constructive criticism but when it comes to your bitching, who asked? Truly. Who asked? I'm looking everywhere and can't find the bastard. However, I do have a legitimate response. Ask yourself this for me, all of you. Off the top of your head, name five things that you would be able to do if you were in the Star Wars galaxy that you can't do in the real world. Now that you have those five things, riddle me this. Would you play a game that has unparalleled realism to experience those things? If the answer is no, do me a favor and unfollow this book. For the rest of you, enjoy the chapter.)
It had barely been a minute since I separated from Galen. Within that time, I had picked up a piece of steel piping that I found on one of the shelves. This was my "weapon" for now. With how realistic the game was, I highly doubted that it would hit like a paper airplane.
I continued walking, passing four columns of shelves. Thankfully, I wouldn't have to wait long to find someone as I heard footsteps approaching me.
I quickly crouched behind a crate on the bottom shelf next to me, waiting for the person to approach. A few seconds went by as the footsteps got louder.
With each footstep, the sound echoed. They kept getting louder, my body shaking with anxiety and my heart racing. My palms felt cold as beads of sweat rolled down my body. I wasn't quite sure why I was so nervous. I knew this all wasn't real, but it didn't feel that way. It was damn exhilarating.
Finally, it sounded as if the person passed by. I poked my head out from behind the box after a slight wait, seeing the person. To my delight, it was a Pyke. They had the large head, typical of the race. Their face was hidden behind a mask with two appendages hanging from either side of their chin. They wore light armor plates that covered their torso but fortunately, their head was exposed.
I emerged from behind the box, slowly walking and gently placing my feet on the ground to avoid making noise. I made sure my pace was slightly faster than the Pyke so I would catch up.
After several nerve racking moments, I found myself right behind the Pyke. I wasn't even sure how they hadn't noticed me yet.
Raising the pipe above my head, I readied my swing. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed my shadow on the floor in front of the Pyke. In a panic, I swung the pipe as hard as I could, cleanly hitting the Pyke in the back of the head.
"Ugh" All that came was a grunt and then a dull thud as they hit the ground unconscious.
I was finally able to breathe again. I collapsed to the ground, sitting against a shelf. My chest heaved, rapidly inflating and collapsing like a balloon.
Collecting myself, I got up, walking over to the unconscious Pyke and kneeling down next to them. While going through the body, I looted a few things. Firstly, there were no credits. Unlucky, I guess.
Other than that, I found an earpiece that I could connect to my comm. It would allow me to have some privacy when on calls. Even better, it fit right into my ear without poking out.
[Communication Earpiece]
[Common]
[This earpiece can connect to your communicator, allowing the user to listen to their calls without others hearing.]
The next item was one that I realized would be extremely useful. It was a flask that I could use to hold water. I also found a ration bar. This would probably be a helpful snack in the future.
[Flask]
[Common]
[Durable container used to hold liquids. Commonly used to hold water or alcohol.]
[Ration Bar]
[Common Consumable]
[Calorie dense food item. Most commonly used as a field snack.]
Following that I had found my first piece of equipment! While the equipment part was exciting, it was only a belt. Still, very useful.
[Utility Belt]
[Common]
[Has a variety of clips to hold blasters, communicators, keys, and other objects.]
Lastly, was the item I needed most at the moment; the blaster pistol. Fortunately, the utility belt had a holster on it.
[CC-420 Blaster Pistol]
[Common]
[Standard issue blaster pistol for the Pyke Syndicate. It does a decent amount of damage to combatants wearing light armor.]
After strapping the belt onto my waist, pushing the connected earpiece into my ear, clipping the flask to the belt, and shoving the ration bar into my pocket, I holstered the pistol.
I then turned and started walking back towards the rendezvous point I had set with Galen. Before I could even take a few steps, I stopped, looking back at the unconscious Pyke on the floor.
Thinking about it, I couldn't just leave the body there. They were bound to wake up at some point. If that happened before Galen and I finished up here, then it could prove detrimental.
I wrestled with this for a bit. Should I kill them? I mean, they would kill me without hesitation if they had caught me. Would it be so bad to do the same?
I steeled myself, deciding that if there was anytime to kill someone, now would be it. Not wanting to use the blaster pistol since I wasn't sure how loud it would be, I wrapped my right arm around their neck. The feeling of the flesh and muscles in the neck squishing within my arm was unsettling.
Squeezing as hard as I could, I twisted their head slowly to one side. I took a deep breath. As I exhaled, I swiftly turned their head as far as I could. I felt a subtle crack before the neck went limp. I had just killed someone.
Weirdly, I didn't feel bad about it. Maybe it was because I knew this person had probably killed many others and was helping the spread of drugs that ruined people's lives.
I sighed, wondering if I was going to become a cold blooded killer. Pushing that to the back of my mind, I grabbed the, now dead, Pyke's legs and dragged them out of the aisle before pushing them onto a shelf.
Now, with that done, I could return to the rendezvous point. A few minutes later, I was there. To my surprise, Galen was waiting for me. I looked at him weirdly. "How are you back so fast?"
Galen scoffed. "Eh, I got lucky. I found a sharp piece of metal and rammed it through the bastard's head."
I shrugged. "Did you hide the body at least? We don't need them finding it."
Galen nodded. "Didn't even have to. They fell right into a crate so there was no mess."
I sighed. "Lucky. I had to snap their neck. It was an unpleasant feeling."
Galen shook his head. "I'm used to it by now. This isn't the first… ummm, how can I say this? Oh! This isn't the first time I've traveled."
I nodded, understanding what he meant. "Well, let's get on with it. I'd rather finish this up if possible." I then realized something. "Wait, I'm going to call the CSF before we go in. Someone needs to clean up the mess."
Galen chuckled. "You're right. There's no way in here I'm cleaning this place. There's also the drugs. Hopefully we can keep the credits."
I shrugged as I put in a request for the CSF to show up. "I'll find a way. I have no doubt that they have a small fortune on them." I put my comm away. "Let's go. I wanna get this over with."
After a few minutes, we found ourselves back at the shipping containers. In the time we were gone, it appeared that the deal was successful and the local thugs were unloading crates of what I presumed to be drugs from the Pyke's transport.
I pointed towards one side, waving my fingers. Galen nodded and moved around towards the left side of the shipping container we were hiding behind. I moved towards the right side.
Once we reached our positions, we looked at each other. I held up three fingers and started counting down.
3… 2… 1…
I closed my fist and pumped it, grabbing my blaster with both hands and emerging from my end of the shipping container. I squeezed the trigger.
*BYUM* *BYUM*
Two shots rang out, the second one presumably Galen's. Luckily, both shots hit their targets, immediately taking out a thug each.
One of the Pykes looked in our direction. "AMBUSH!"
The remaining three enemies were all Pykes and appeared to be experienced in combat. As they ran towards cover, I managed to hit another with my blaster but it only grazed their arm. They would definitely not be using that arm but they could still shoot.
As I was about to go back into cover, I watched one of the Pykes fall to the ground and stop moving. This must have been Galen's handiwork.
*BYUM* *Thud*
Another shot rang out but the sound didn't come from Galen's direction. In addition, a dull thud came from where I knew he was standing.
Turning over, what I had feared came to fruition. Galen had been shot. Fortunately, I could still see his chest moving but he appeared to be unconscious. He needed medical attention that I could not provide.
I ran over to him and dragged him behind the shipping container, preventing him from getting hit by the Pykes any further. Taking another look, he was still breathing. What was even better was that his breathing was stable. This meant his life wasn't in danger for the time being. He must have passed out from the pain.
I shook my head, trying to clear my focus so that I could make it through this. There were two of them, and one of me. Well, technically one and a half since one of them was minus a working arm for now.
I didn't like the odds but I also didn't really have a choice. Shuffling past Galen, I reached the end of the container. Just a few feet away was another container. Maybe, if I pulled it off right, I could change my position.
Now I had a plan. I returned to my original position, gripping my blaster with both hands. Taking a deep breath, I shot out from the corner of the container, letting loose three shots. Two of them went astray but the last hit the healthy Pyke in the chest. They fell to the floor and stopped moving.
Without waiting for a response, I sprinted back towards Galen, passing him and reaching the end of the shipping container within a few seconds. As I ran I heard several shots from the last remaining Pyke.
Once I was about to emerge from the end of the container, I dropped, sliding across the gap that stretched for just a few feet. Upon reaching the other container, I stood back up, slowly and sneakily making my way around it.
I was pretty sure that the remaining Pyke wouldn't be able to see me as I approached their flank. If I could just stay quiet, this would end without them even being able to put up a fight.
Peaking my head out from the other end of the container, my suspicions were confirmed. There was another shipping container that was almost touching this one. If I was remembering correctly, the last Pyke was taking cover behind a concrete block on the other side of this third container. This would be easy pickings.
I continued walking slowly, being extremely careful to not make any noise. I even breathed through my nose to silence my breathing. Reaching the corner, I, yet again, poked my head out. I was able to see the Pyke sweeping the area in front of him. Meanwhile, I was to their back.
I emerged from behind the shipping container, raising my blaster and aiming at their head. Unfortunately, it wouldn't be that easy. Seemingly out of the corner of their eye, they noticed me. They spun quickly and as they did, I panicked and squeezed the trigger.
*BYUM* *BYUM*
Two shots rang out in near unison. Almost instantly, I felt a hot burst of energy hit my stomach. It was scorching and I nearly passed out from the pain as I fell to the ground. I had been shot.
Would this be my first death in the game? I was so close to finishing this quest. The rewards were gonna be huge! I would probably be the richest player in the game. Unfortunately, it just wasn't meant to be.
I felt my body start to go numb as I tightened my grip on my consciousness, refusing to let go like a stubborn dog holding a shoe. With that dwindling consciousness, I heard two sets of rapidly approaching footsteps.
I groaned internally. The two people approaching were probably two guards that we didn't see. They would surely finish off Galen and I.
At this point, I could barely see, my vision completely blurred over as everything was out of focus. I watched as a small, blurry silhouette approached me. They were holding a long, staff shaped object that was glowing a bright blue.
A child-like voice chimed out. "Master, come quick! He needs help!"
Just seconds later, a much taller and larger silhouette came into view. They were holding a similar object that was glowing a vibrant green. The figure put away whatever was glowing, and knelt in front of me. "Good job, my padawan."
What I presumed to be their arm, reached into what I presumed to be a jacket. Their hand then moved towards my body. Suddenly, I felt an influx of warm energy. My pain instantly disappeared as I sucked in a deep breath.
I coughed, my vision becoming clear as I watched some blood fly out of my mouth and land on the ground in front of me. Despite the previous retreat of pain, it came flying back with each breath I took. My lungs must have been damaged somehow.
With my vision now clear, I could see the two individuals in front of me. The smaller one was a young Togruta with orange skin. She had dark brown robes that contrasted against the bright color of her skin. She also had a silver and black lightsaber clipped to her belt. Taking a close look at her head, she had a braided string hanging from her head. I figured that she was a padawan learner.
I shifted my focus to the other person. He was a very tall human male. He wore light brown robes that matched his dirty blond hair. He also had a thick and well groomed beard covering most of his face. His lightsaber was all black. Based on their interaction, this man was either a Jedi Knight or Master.
The man was still kneeling in front of me and somehow, the blood I coughed up had missed him. He spoke in a deep and tranquil voice. "I've given you a bacta injection. You'll be healthy after a good night's sleep."
I nodded, resting my head against the shipping container that I was propped up against. "Thanks."
The man smiled. "Can you tell me what happened here?"
I coughed again, the taste of iron coating my mouth, I turned my head, spitting the blood out to the side before turning back to him. "My friend Galen and I… WAIT!"
The sudden change of tone forced me to cough again, more blood needing to be spit out. I calmed myself, needing to be able to speak. "My friend Galen, he is just on the other side of these containers. He was shot but is stable. Can you help him?"
The Jedi nodded, reaching into his robes and taking out what I presumed to be another bacta injection. He handed it to his padawan. "Go help his friend."
She nodded, quickly running off to find Galen. Sighing in relief that he'd be alright, I got back to the task at hand. "We were here to retrieve a shipment of liquor for a restaurant. While we were grabbing the crates, we heard voices in the back and investigated. There was a drug deal happening so we decided we needed to stop it."
He nodded, smiling at me. "Quite the bravery, I commend you for that. I was actually sent here to investigate reports of the Pyke Syndicate being in the area. It seems that you have already done my job. Well done."
[Quest Completed]
[Epic Holocron, +4000 exp, +5000 credits, +100 reputation with CSF, +50 reputation with Old Republic, -200 reputation with Pyke Syndicate, Title: Good Samaritan]