"This is going to bite me in the butt." I thought as I watched the six year old girl sleeping on my spare bunk. I had rescued her a few hours earlier from the renegades that killed her parents. No more work from them. I am one of the best smugglers in the known universe, but I always end up playing the heroine. The last time I tried to rescue someone, he died in my arms. I quickly shut that memory away.
We were heading for Alabaston, a very rough and tough planet, and not just the terrain. Alabaston is a hideout for the many smugglers. It's also where I have my base. I grimaced when I thought of all the mail I'd have to sort through.
I guess I'd better introduce myself. I am generally known as Jenna, or Shenna, depending on what the being's accent. I started smuggling when I was nineteen. A planetary gang leader asked me to deliver some -ahem- restricted materials to another planet. I refused at first, until he offered me too much to resist. That was the beginning of my career. In the six years that I have smuggled, I have become one of the best around.
The next thought that occurred to me made me groan. I would have to try to find this girl's family, which meant going to the genealogical center in Alexandr (yes it is spelled that way). Alexandr is one of the biggest space stations in this galaxy, and wanted posters last a long time there, especially mine (more on that adventure later). If you're wondering my parents think of this career, don't. They're dead. And don't say that you're sorry; I really don't like people who do that.
Traveling to Alexandr is as close to a suicide mission as a smuggler can get. If you are wanted, there is sure to be a wanted poster up where everyone can see it. Only the really bad or elusive criminals get a billboard though. I am a proud member of their ranks. Before you start thinking I like my job though, know that the only reason I do it is to survive (and to play with the BAGs- Big Ass Guns, but that's a small benefit : ) . Anyway, back to the original problem. Traveling to Alexandr, finding the kid's family, and getting out without getting caught. Should be easy, right?
Just then, there was a beep. We had reached Alabaston. I went to wake the kid up. She jerked awake, and looked at me with big eyes. Big, blue eyes. Damn she looked like... no, No, NO. Not going there. Memories are bad things, Jenna. Very bad. Stay away. I said "We're here kid. Get your shoes on." I started to walk off when I heard "Alex." I turned and said "What?" The girl said "My name is Alex, not kid." I smiled, a real smile, and said "Nice to meet you, Alex." What can I say, the kid has attitude. Sorta like me. I finished my errand, which was to get a weapon for the kid. No, not the kid, Alex, I reminded myself. I reached the bunks and Alex was sitting there with her shoes on. I handed her the gun and holster. I was about to tell her how to put them on, but she immediately slung on the holster like an expert. Oh yeah, her parents weren't the biggest friends of the Government.
The Government is the ruling entity in this universe. Nobody knows where they came from, just that they showed up ten years ago with all of their rules and took over. Funny thing is, there weren't any smugglers or major crimes back then. Murder for good reason was legal, and if you needed something, you just bargained for it with the planet that had it. The only thing you could do to get arrested was go to the bathroom in public, so the jails were pretty much just a formality. There were no rules to break, so what fun was there in breaking them? It may seem like a bad idea to you, but it sure worked. Anyway, back to the story.
I asked Alex if she knew how to use the type of gun I had handed her, and she said yeah, so we left the ship. Alabaston is one of the safe places in the universe. If any Government agents showed up, they couldn't last five minutes. As disembarked the ship, everyone that could see us stared. I guess I forgot to mention that I am 6' in bare feet? No? Well, I am. And Alex was a lot taller than most kids her age- almost six inches taller, with long black hair and ice blue eyes. I have brown hair I keep back in a complicated braid, and gray eyes that change color depending on my mood and what I'm wearing. Needless to say, I don't wear pink. So, they had a good reason for staring.
We walked into my 2 bedroom house, and I sent her to go take a bath while I sorted my mail and changed into clean clothes. Then I called