Week 1 - continued

It is not a nice place we have landed in. The shadow port did not look like much on the outside - now I feel I shall have to check myself for disease once we depart from here. I have reminded myself that this is not a vacation, it is an escape, but I admit I'd hoped for something less fragrant with humanoid feculence. My brother is very tight-lipped about our reasons for being here, but I assume we will be switching transports. The journey has been trying; I hope from now I will not have to hide in smuggling compartments and shipping containers. Jean led me into the first bar we came across - a dingy, poorly lit affair with far too many dark corners. There was a man in strange robes tending bar. His garb was familiar, but the name eluded me until I saw the lightsaber at his belt. A Jedi?! What in the seven hells is a Jedi doing in a place like this? I ha heard stories in my childhood - I thought them to be fearsome warriors. Why else would they be so reviled in the Cluster? But perhaps my people's fears had inflated their formidableness; perhaps they were simply normal creatures wielding strange tools. Nonetheless, I sat down and ordered a drink. The last few days I'd barely seen the outside of a cramped container, I certainly needed one. The Jedi poured me some kind of whiskey and an ale - the whiskey burned painfully, but the ale snuffed it nicely an a needed glow began to settle in my belly.

Everyone in the bar seemed uneasy except for the Jedi bartender - someone mentioned a scuffle in the refresher. Apparently a group of pirates had chased a girl in there. Fine with me. With any luck the confrontation would stay in the bathroom. I turned back to my drink.

Luck was not on my side, however, an it was not long before the conflict exploded out into the bar. The noise was deafening, the lights split my head asunder; I had never before been so close to a firefight, and had absolutely no idea what to do. And so, without thinking I dove behind an overturned table, thereby managing to miss most of the fight. I peeked over the edge every so often when the noise would seem to abate - apparently the entire bar was involved except for myself, Jean, an a couple old derelicts who cowered behind tables as I did. Having finally chase the girl out of the bathroom, the pirates found themselves up against not only their quarry, but a human, a Tinnen, a Shistavenan, and even the Jedi! These people must enjoy fighting other people's battles for them. Perhaps the goddess had led us into this unclean place after all.

The battle was done in short order, with the pirates fleeing back to their ship, leaving only their companions who'd been welded into the refresher by the Tinnen. I listened to their conversation without speaking at first, and it seemed the Tinnen and his human companion were the crew of their own ship! Given the obvious need for us to change our transport, I quickly ordered my brother to pay for both our passage. As it happened, the Shistavenan, Jedi, and the strange pirate girl came along as well. The captain, once introductions were made, urged us towards the hangar. It would not do for us to stay there long. The Jedi led the way - apparently he was familiar with this shadow port. On his way out he grabbed several bottles from the bar and secreted them into his robes. His demeanor puzzled me - when he drew his lightsaber on the pirates (saving the wolf boy's life) he seemed fiercely powerful, eyes glittering with experience and deadly threat. Now he had folded in on himself, seeming weary and embittered. There is a story behind that one, I think. In any case, I followed his lead and took a bottle of my own. I was looking for the whiskey he'd poured me earlier, but couldn't find it. It was until later, when I'd completely failed to get drunk, that I realized the cordial I'd lifted was not alcoholic. A pity, I'm sure I could have used the relief from my troubles, but there wasn't any way I was going to admit my mistake and ask the Jedi for some of his.