Chapter 17

The beginning of their protection detail had been easy but what had transpired on their return trip back to base went so far off the rails that the only way to be fully covered would have at least required another pair of Jedi and there was no way that either Quinlan or Thann could call for help since it would raise unnecessary questions. " Is there any other route to back to your shop other then the way we've been going?" Quinlan asked as the blaster fire continued to rain down on them from above and would not have been heard if not for the ear pieces Tana had provided and he received a response from his employer " If they've tracked us this far then it means that they know where are base is and most likely have an ambush waiting for us there I think we should head for the warehouse, you know the one Quinlan."

When Quinlan heard where they where going he instantly blushed as it brought back memories still it was not the time nor place to be thinking of such things, Thann was lost in his own thoughts as he was doing his best to keep his blaster rifle trained on the person who was shooting them but couldn't get a clear shot since Tana was pushing the speeder at max speed and was swerving to avoid being hit not only that but whoever was shooting them wasn't registering in the force as something that was alive which led both Jedi to conclude that it was most likely a high end assassin droid they were against which explained why it was able to keep up moving from rooftop to rooftop and blending in since all the buildings were mostly metallic in color, finally Quinlan had enough of being shot at and used the force to jump from the speeder to the nearest rooftop and landed gracefully a few feet from where the assassin droid had just landed and was about to open fire on the speeder but soon changed targets on the being who had just suddenly appeared.

" Die human scum " the voice said in a gravelly electronic tone that would've sent the tingling sensation of fear down the backs of those who would soon meet their end at it's hands but this human was no such person and just as the droid assassin was about to fire its weapon its head was turned into a smoking piece of melted metal but Quinlan knew that it was not the end for if it was droids he was against he was sure that whoever bought this one would have bought many more and the blaster fire that began to come his way proved he was right. Thann saw that Quinlan had dispatched one of their attackers and at the same time drew out the others and used that as an advantage to locate and use the force to help him steady as he began to take out the other assassin droids one after the other, but what came next almost took him by surprise out of nowhere he felt ripples in the force and then the speeder was flipped over and every one was thrown from the vehicle landing in different places on the ground along with the item that they had been protecting.

A few moments later another group of mercenaries arrived and began to arrive in masse and armed to the teeth and Thann began to question how a simple job went into almost being a miniature war then the blaster fire began to come and with that for Thann was the final straw he dropped his blaster rifle and drew his lightsaber and blaster and began to attack the enemy at close range using the the lightsaber to bat bolts away and using the blaster to drop the combatants in front of him or nearby, which soon ended with almost a third of the opposition reduced just through Thann's efforts alone and then the blaster fire began to come from the rooftop that Quinlan had jumped to but instead of hitting the retreating group it was now focused on the mercenaries that had been chasing them finishing off the rest of them and allowing for Tana and Lenaas to run on foot in the direction that had been discussed earlier and Thann began to follow behind them covering their escape. After a short while they had arrived at the warehouse which Tana quickly opened the hidden door and soon everyone was inside including Quinlan who had caught up to them by traversing the rooftops which also allowed for him to make sure that they weren't followed.

Once they were fully inside Thann and Quinlan made sure to be on guard just in case anymore assailants came while Tana began to set up the warehouses perimeter defenses which only took a short time and then she told her Jedi security to " relax guys were safe now till the buyer arrives which shouldn't be too long and then you two can be on your way" at that Thann felt like he needed to do something before he left and so he approached Lenaas when he saw her alone and asked her if he could talk to her alone for a few minutes " sure just give me a second while I check these diagnostics and then we can talk."

A little while later after she was done checking she went with Thann to far enough away from where Tana and Quinlan were so that their voices wouldn't be heard and that's when Lenaas asked what was on Thann's mind " so what did you want to talk to me about?" Thann was a bit embarrassed at first but he knew that he wouldn't get a second chance and he knew that he wanted to get this off his chest " Lenaas I know we don't know each other well but I would like to change that and keep in contact, maybe even go out to eat when I'm in the sector" Lenaas was a bit taken aback and didn't know how to respond at first and then a small smile appeared on her face " sure you can take me out but one thing." Thann wondered what her one demand would be and so agreed " sure what do you want." she looked at him as if she was about to make a big decision and then said " You can't pursue other women while your pursuing me, I won't stand for it like Tana does with Quinlan and I know that you have your duties to the Jedi but please do make time to come and see me ok." When Thann heard what she wanted he knew that it would be hard to give she was asking for and but he knew that if he wanted to pursue this he would be breaking some part of the Jedi code but he felt this was right so he agreed to her demands.

After they had finished talking they walked back together hand in hand with smiles on both their faces spanning from cheek to cheek which both Tana and Quinlan instantly recognized since they had both had that smile on their faces when they had spent time with each other the first time romantically. Before they had made their way back Lenaas kissed Thann without even thinking once he agreed to what she wanted and at first Thann was awkward but he followed her lead and the kiss grew into something passionate as he began to take the lead and then it ended with both of them coming up for air and they looked deep into each others eyes and Thann could sense the desire that was coming of Lenaas and knew that if they continued things would progress at a spiraling rate so he decided that stopping there would be best and told Lenaas what he was thinking " We should stop here and get back to Tana and Quinlan before they think were lost back here." Lenaas looked at him as if she didn't want to leave the very spot but she knew that he wasn't going to push for more which in the end earned more points with her and so they walked back.

Once everything had fully calmed down the buyer had arrived later in the day due to making sure that he wasn't followed and once they had arrived the the deal went smoothly and it was later revealed that this was one of Quinlans contacts from Malastare one of the mid rim planets in the galaxy. After everything was wrapped up Thann and Quinlan did an inventory check and made sure that they had all their belongings as well as enough money to charter a ship that would take them to Tatooine since there wasn't a star cruise ship that went towards the outer rim when out of the blue Tana made them an offer " If you boys are looking to get off planet quietly I think it'd be best if if I helped since the cost of business here has done nothing but draw attention to you and since me and Lenaas will need to get off planet for awhile I think we can ferry you around the galaxy for a bit." Quinlan agreed to the offer with no fuss and Thann was secretly grateful since this would give him the chance to spend more time with Lenaas.