After leaving Hunter, Aurora walked the streets of Cantonica. The moons were high in the night sky and the streets weren't as packed as they are in the daytime. Aurora didn't even know where she was going but she wandered around the streets and found herself at a parlor. She strolled inside and sat herself at the bar. The parlor was surprisingly empty. She ordered herself a drink and couldn't help but start thinking about Hunter. She didn't even know if she wanted to even leave him at this point. Part of her wanted to return to him after she cleared her thoughts.
"Anything else darling?" The Besalisk bar keeper said, pulling herself back to reality.
"Oh-uh-no thank you." She laid a couple credits on the bar. He took the credits and walked away from her. To the other side of the bar. She took a sip of her drink and stared into the cup.
Not even three sips later, Aurora found her head spinning. A lot more than normal for just a couple sips. She placed her hand on the edge of the bar to steady herself, but her vision was already blurring. She had accidentally knocked over the glass, it crashed to the floor breaking into a thousand little pieces. The bar keepe not looking at her. "What the-" she whispered. She tried to get up but stumbled out of her seat and collapsed to the floor. A man, she didn't even notice had walked in, helped her up.
"Let me help you up, Aurora." She recognized the voice immediately and inside she started to panic.
"No!" She weakly said and tried to push him away but she was already too weak from whatever her drink was spiked with at that point. He had her under the arms, practically dragging her outside the parlor. She tried her hardest to fight back but at this moment he was much stronger than her. He got her outside the parlor and rested her against a speeder. Her breathing picked up. She tried to stand up on her own but her legs kept giving out.
"Isn't it amazing how easily you can just tip a bar keepe, to spike a drink with no questions asked?" The man turned Aurora around, her vision started going black but she of course recognized the man, even behind his moon mask. He took her chin and forced her to keep looking at him. "I am so happy I finally found you my darling princess." Aurora couldn't hang on anymore, her eyes rolled into the back of her head, blacking out. "Let's get you back home then." The man carefully scooped her up and laid her on the back of his speeder. He climbed on and powered it on and quickly took off towards his parked ship on the sandy beaches of Cantonica.
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Hunter woke up and found himself alone in the room and he sat up. "Aurora?" He called out.
No response.
For some reason he had a sinking feeling in his stomach. He looked around the room and saw his jacket that she had been wearing neatly folded on the bureau along with her comm-link resting on top. Hunter knew what that meant, but he didn't want to believe it. He quickly got up and dressed. He walked over to the comm-link and picked it up, part of him was confused. He left the room. Everyone was still asleep. "Aurora?!" Hunter called out again. Omega stirred from the area she was sleeping in. Wrecker remained unmoving next to Omega. Tech walked out of the refresher.
"Hunter, are you okay?" He asked.
"You haven't seen Aurora have you?" Hunter asked.
"No?" Tech raised an eyebrow. "She didn't run off after your latest and greatest fight?"
"No, she wouldn't have done that. I have this bad feeling." Hunter turned away from him.
"Would you like me to wake the others?" He asked.
"No, not yet. I'm gonna go looking for her, maybe she just went to clear her head." Hunter grabbed his helmet and opened the door. He exited the building they were staying in and he quickly picked up her trail in the sand. The streets weren't as well traveled during the night, so her trail was easy to follow. He started heading in the direction Aurora had gone.
It didn't take long for Hunter to find Aurora's destination. He found himself standing outside a bar. No one was hanging around the bar and figured that the inside of the bar was empty. He saw the trail of a speeder that was no longer there. He knelt down and picked up some dirt, he saw that it was a one-sided struggle and what looked like someone was dragged out from the parlor. "Aurora." He whispered. He just knew that it was her who was taken. "Why didn't you just stay with me?" He whispered to himself. He stood back up and went back to the hotel. He figured he may need back up.
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Hunter quickly made it back to the room. When he walked through the door he saw everyone was awake at this point. "Did you find her?" Tech asked.
"Hunter, what's going on? Where's Aurora?" Omega rubbed her eyes. She was still sitting on the couch.
"Aurora was taken. I just know it." Hunter walked over to the rest of his gear, the others followed suit. "I found her trail outside of a bar, I think she might've been drugged and taken away on a speeder because there was barely a fight and Aurora would have definitely fought back." He kept his back to his team as he packed his bag
"Hunter," Wrecker said. "She's known to try and run. What makes you think she didn't just steal it?" Omega had gotten off the couch at that point and walked over to her brothers as well.
"Because, there was in fact some sort of struggle and a body being dragged." Hunter stated. "It has to be her. I just know it and we need to get her back before she gets hurt."
"Is that all?" Tech adjusted his goggles. "Why worry about her like this all of a sudden? You would normally just let her run off."
Hunter paused, the question caught him off guard, he knows he should just be truthful about what happened between them. "Because-because, we kissed last night." Hunter surely wasn't gonna tell them everything that had happened.
"You two finally kissed?!" Wrecker gasped with a smile.
"I knew you two would eventually." Omega had a smug smile. "I'm just surprised it took this long."
"Well, I certainly was getting sick of them actually flirting not fighting fights and I was just one more argument from locking the two of them in a room together until they worked out their differences." Tech seemed to agree with the other two.
"Boys, Omega, now is not the time to have this conversation." Hunter said. "Tech, stay here, scour the comm-channels and see if she calls out. Wrecker, Omega, you two with me. We're going back to that bar." Everyone nodded and the three of them left the hotel again.
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The three of them made it to the bar. He instructed Wrecker and Omega to wait outside. There was a small protest from Omega about wanting to go in with him, but Hunter was quick to shut her down. He walked inside. The bar was empty. As he walked up to the bar he saw a broken glass on the ground, the contents of the drink soaked into the floor. He stood over it and observed it but ultimately left it alone. He walked up to the bar keeper and placed some credits on the table, "I'm looking for someone." He said.
The bar keeper eyeballed the credits. "Oh yea? Who might that be?" The Besalisk grabbed the credits and shoved them in his apron.
"A woman, she had purply-teal hair, she would've been alone."
The man tugged his collar, "sorry, haven't seen her." He turned and walked away from the counter, Hunter raised an eyebrow. He picked up the Besalisk knew something. He jumped the bar and walked over to him.
"Hey! I'm not done talking to you!" Hunter called out.
The man turned around, "hey, hey! You can't be back here-" Hunter grabbed him by the collar and pinned him against the wall.
"Tell me where she is!" He demanded, he pulled out his knife and held it against his throat. "I will not ask twice."
"The credit's I was paid is more than you have! Unless you have more credits I-I can't!" The Besalisk held up all four of his arms.
"You get to keep your life." Hunter threatened. "That is what I'm paying you, along with my credits you so graciously put into your pocket."
The bar keeper's eyes grew wide. "I-I-I don't know his name! Only that he was a bounty hunter and he gave a bunch of credits to spike a girl's drink that matches your description! I don't even know who the girl was! Seriously!" He pleaded. "All he told me was that he was bringing her home!"
Hunter thought about all the times she flinched from his touch, the scars that covered her back, and the way she denied all their moments. Someone she used to love a long time ago took her. He knew the Besalisk was telling the truth. He let the man go, Hunter knew nothing about her ex and he wasn't even sure where to start looking. He jumped back over the bar and walked out of the bar and up to Wrecker and Omega. "She was taken by an ex, but I'm not even sure how or where to find him."
"This isn't good, what if they aren't even still on this planet?" Omega rubbed her chin. The three of them started walking back to where the hotel was.
Hunter was about to say something when something in his pocket beeped. He paused and reached into his pocket, pulling out a comm-link. "Is that your comm-link?" Wrecker asked.
"No it's not." Hunter responded. He held the communication device in his hands. He had completely forgotten he had taken it from Aurora when it beeped again.
.. / .- -- / .... . .-. . .-.-.- / .... . .-. . / .- .-. . / -- -.-- / -.-. --- --- .-. -.. .. -. .- - . ... .-.-.-
(I am here. Here are my coordinates.)
Hunter of course knew the message but he continued to stare at the comm-link. "Why did the message blink like that?" Omega asked.
Hunter stayed quiet.
"It's morse code." Wrecker responded to her. "It said. I am here. Here are my coordinates."
"Who's here?" Omega asked again.
"I have no idea." Wrecker shrugged, before shaking Hunter's shoulder. "Want to come back to us sergeant? Who is here?"
"Right." Hunter shook his head. "It's Aurora's comm-link. I believe she uses it to communicate with Fennec. Aurora was supposed to meet with her."
"Why would she do that?" Omega questioned.
"She was going to leave us." Hunter said.
"Why?!" Omega exclaimed.
"I was trying to stop her and that's when everything happened..." He trailed off, not wanting to continue the sentence.
"We should go visit Fennec then." Wrecker suggested. "She gave us her location and maybe she knows where Aurora might've been taken."
"Wrecker, that's a genius idea!" Hunter said and started running off.
"Hey, wait for us!" Omega yelled. She and Wrecker took off after Hunter.
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Hunter and the others found the bar that bounty hunter Fennec Shand had been at. Fennec had no idea that it was Hunter she was meeting instead of Aurora and Hunter expected a fight but hoped for a peaceful conversation. "Wait out here in case she tries to run." He said to the others and walked inside alone. He saw Shand sitting alone at a table tucked in the corner. He walked up to her table and sat down. He saw two drinks and her helmet sitting on the table. She looked him up and down and picked up her drink, taking a sip. "Fennec."
She raised an eyebrow. "Clone."
"The name's Hunter." He introduced himself.
"Oh I know." She carefully placed her drink on the table. "How did you find me?"
"With this." He placed Aurora's comm-link on the table and Fennec straightened up and pulled a dagger out. Hunter held his hands up. "Easy."
"What did you do to her?"
"I didn't do anything, that's why I'm here."
"I don't believe you."
"I need your help." Hunter said and Fennec couldn't help but laugh at that statement. "I need to know something about Aurora."
"No." Fennec shook her head.
"You don't even know what I'm going to ask."
"Of course I know what you want." Fennec stated. "You want history. No."
Hunter sighed. "Fennec she's in trouble. I just need to know who this ex of hers is."
"How do you know about her ex?" Fennec sounded a little defensive.
"She was kidnapped and the bar keeper told me a man took her, I've put the other clues together. The flinching and scars on her back. They're from him aren't they?"
Fennec stayed silent for a moment. "There's more isn't there? Are you two?"
"We-uh-we had a moment last night."
"I warned her about this. About you." She pointed at him. "I told her to get out of there and of course she doesn't listen to me." Fennec rubbed the bridge of her nose.
"Maybe you are right, but I need to save her from him now." Hunter said, Fennec sighed and looked down at her drink, stay quiet. Hunter picked up on something else in Fennec's body language. "You loved her?"
"It doesn't matter what I feel now. She's moved on." Fennec looked at him. "He wasn't the only one she's managed to sneak away from. Seems like she got away from both of us as well."
"Will you help me?" He asked.
Fennec stayed quiet for another moment. "I won't tell you her past. That's not my place, but the man, her ex, you might be looking for his name is Stryker Orqunde. He has a place on topside of Coruscant. I would maybe start there, but that's all I'm going to tell you."
Hunter nodded, "thank you Fennec."
Fennec paused. "Hunter, I'm sure Aurora has told you about how dangerous that man is. He's known to fly off the handle for simply not liking how something has been done." Fennec warned him. "You don't even begin to understand what he's done to her."
"She wouldn't tell me, said it was safer for us to not know."
"She's right." Fennec chuckled, Hunter picked up on a hint of sadness behind her laugh. "We both got out of some crappy bar we worked together at. I followed her to Coruscant and we spent years working together. I always knew of the facade she put on for the world and just how perfect their relationship was. For years I tried to get her out but she wouldn't listen."
"When did she leave?"
"I don't know what fully happened but one day she called for me and I could tell she had been sobbing. When I got to Coruscant she was locked in her room. It took me a few hours just for her to let me in and when she finally did..." Fennec trailed off.
"What is it?"
Fennec furrowed her brow as she recalled the memory. "She was just covered in blood from the waist down. The dress she had been wearing was just completely ruined. I kept trying to get her to tell me what had happened but she wouldn't tell me. She just kept repeating that he pushed her down the stairs, but there was just so much blood for just pushed down the stairs, but she wouldn't tell me what happened."
Hunter started putting the pieces together. "How long ago was this?"
"I don't even know, over a year ago at this point."
"He has her." Hunter said. "I have to get her. Thank you for telling me Fennec." He stood up and started to walk out but stopped when she called his name.
"Hunter!" He turned to face her, "if he really does have her then you need to hurry. She's in danger." She said and he nodded and walked out of the bar, towards Wrecker and Omega.
Hunter walked past them, leaving the two of them to quickly catch up. "Hunter? Do you have a lead?" Wrecker asked.
Hunter pulled out his com, "Tech, get the Marauder ready for take-off. Set coordinates for the topside of Coruscant and look into Stryker Orqunde."
"Copy that." Tech responded.
"Hunter stop!" Omega grabbed his arm and pulled him back. Hunter turned to her. "Do you even have a plan? Or even who this man is?"
Hunter thought for a moment. "I don't have a plan yet. I don't even know who this man is. Fennec said that if Aurora is with this man then she's in grave danger."
"Well going in without a plan is a sure way to get herself or you killed. You need to have a level head, Hunter." Wrecker said.
Hunter sighed. "You're right, Wrecker. I'm sorry." He looked at Omega. "I'm sorry, Omega. We can think of a plan once we're back on the Marauder." Omega nodded and everyone made their way back to the ship.
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Hunter, Wrecker, and Omega met Tech back on the Marauder. The ship was still on the sandy beach of Cantonica. The group ran on board and Tech powered up the ship. He lifted off and got the group into space, then hyperspace, making their way to Coruscant, Tech was on his data pad. "Talk to me Tech." Hunter said.
"Orqunde is a crime boss who resides on the top side of Coruscant. He has high friends in the senate which is why he has never been caught, or why Aurora had also never been caught." Tech paused. "Also there is this." He handed Hunter the data pad and he read an older article. "Given some time, I'll finally be able to find out more about Aurora, now that we know his name." The title read: The Dynamic Duo Strikes Lower Coruscant! There was a picture as well. It was of a taller man with jet back hair and gold face markings, his arm was around a familiar looking woman with purple hair. She had her arms around his waist. The two of them are smiling.
It was Aurora.
"Is that the man that took her?" Omega asked.
"More than likely." Tech spoke for Hunter.
"Tech? How close are we to Coruscant?" Hunter asked.
"We are almost there." Tech was at the controls.
"Alright. Everyone else, let's make a plan to get Aurora back." Hunter said and everyone gathered around the holotable.