Escape from Nar Shaddaa

The escape from Nar Shaddaa was a brief skirmish fought between the crew of the independent trader StarHawk and the retainers of Ajuura the Hutt after a deal between the captain of the StarHawk, Rann Tye, and Ajuura went sour. The battle started in the throne room of Ajuura's palace on, spreading into the detention levels, kitchens and sewers as the StarHawk crew, aided by a freed slave named Gila, fought their way out.

They boarded the StarHawk and tried to flee, only to be pursued by Ajuura's forces. By the time they reached low orbit, Ajuura had issued a bounty for Rann and his co-pilot and partner, Lilith, prompting several bounty hunters to join the fight. A lengthy dogfight through Nar Shaddaa's crowded local space followed, and though the StarHawk was badly damaged, the crew managed to escape.

Prelude
After running into financial troubles, the crew of the StarHawk needed credits. The captain, Rann Tye, took on a job for Ajuura the Hutt despite the misgivings of the his co-pilot, Lilith, who found the philandering, slave-owning distasteful. The mission seemed clear-cut: steal a small supply of for the notorious jewel fiend. Despite numerous difficulties, there were difficulties with the mission, including a run-in with assault droids, but Lilith and Rann successfully absconded with the gems and headed for Ajuura's palace on. The StarHawk's technician, Sheen Him, stayed with the ship, ready to pick up Lilith and Rann should there be any trouble.

A deal gone bad
Rann and Lilith arrived in Ajuura's throne room and prepared to hand over the gems in exchange for the one hundred thousand credits the Hutt had promised them. Ajuura examined the gems and found them satisfactory. Unfortunately, Ajuura was a compulsive gambler and a number of bad bets had left him with mounting debt. Reneging on the deal, Ajuura had his retainers hold Rann and Lilith at gunpoint. Rann's efforts to negotiate a compromise fell on deaf ears and he and Lilith were forced to follow an escape plan. Lilith threw a, which temporarily blinded many of Ajuura's guards, while Rann utilised his rudimentary control of to send out a wave of kinetic energy. In the confusion, Lilith ran over to Ajuura's dais and freed a young slave. Rann and Lilith, together with the freed slave and the case full of credits the Hutt had given, fled from the Hutt's throne room.

Pursued by guards, they ran down a tunnel into the palace's detention level, even though the schematics of the palace they'd acquired before arriving indicated that they would emerge in the servants' quarters. Trapped, Rann freed two prisoners, a and, who engaged Ajuura's guards. This bought enough time for Rann and Lilith, aided by slave, who introduced herself to them as Gila, to escape the detention level. Gila offered her help in return for safe passage off of Nar Shaddaa, which Rann quickly agreed to provide. Separated from Gila and the credit case she now carried, they reached the kitchens only to find their expected escape route cut off once more. With guards approaching and no other option, they jumped into a refuse chute.

The sewers
"Hutt poodoo. Just perfect."

- Lilith

Landing in the sewers beneath the palace, Rann and Lilith soon realised that the Hutt's guards were no longer pursuing them. The palace's sewer system was connected to Nar Shaddaa's main waste processing systems via a long, narrow tube that extended out over the urban canyons. Racing throw the filthy tunnel, Rann sensed a diffuse, dangerous presence through the Force. The two were attacked by a large, which almost pulled Lilith to her death before Rann was able to free her. Scrambling to safety, they were rejoined by Gila, who had entered the sewers through a small maintenance duct. Rann was relieved to note that she was still carrying the credits.

Ajuura's guards were once again in pursuit, but Rann and Lilith realised they were now over the urban canyon. Activating their homing beacon, it took only seconds for Sheen Him to pilot the StarHawk from its hiding place beneath Ajuura's palace and blast the tube, opening it to Nar Shaddaa's polluted atmosphere. Lilith jumped across to the ship's opened side hatch, followed by Gila and the credits. The tube, its support structure under extreme pressure, began to bend: only a Force-assisted leap allowed Rann to successfully escape the sewer pipe and board the StarHawk before the former collapsed into the urban canyon far below.

Appearances

 * This Thing of Darkness