Path of the Stars- Chapter 2

I raised an eyebrow at what I realized was a Pau'an in the barkeeper who led me into the back of the bar. And as we walked into a long, new hall, I asked curiously. "So you got a name."

The grey-skinned humanoid gave me a sideways look before he said calmly. "I have no name to share down in this den of depravity. And I suggest you also keep your true name to yourself, especially if your abilities prove to hold any truth."

I gave a wry smile to that as my identity didn't really matter as I had no loose ties or anything to really hold me back... I would LOVE to see someone slicer/hacker to find my information in the galactic version of the Net.

"I will keep that in mind then." I said simply before I refocused as we turned down the hall, and I saw three large pig-faced male Gamorreans who were standing guard with large blaster rifles in front of a large door.

The Pau'an then waved a hand before speaking a guttural language that I couldn't at all recognize, before the bigger gamorrean grunted repeatedly in a way that I realized was a real language.

'Is this Huttese?' I mused as I realized that I would definitely need to learn some of the local languages if possible. Or just have a translator droid at least.

Either way, the pig-faced guards moved aside with the Pau'an saying calmly. "Follow me. I am bringing you into the gang's front holding." 

'Ah fuck... Did I just literally sell myself into a gang?' I mused with a wry smile crossing my face at the realization.

And then he brought me forward with my eye's widening as passing through the thick blast door that led into the gangs... Not at all a hideout as they were basically in the open. It was a literal fortress in reality.

A large, open, and long 'hall' that was thirty meters tall and with two levels unveiled itself and on the front railing of the second level that was above our heads, were four large turrets that had a couple of humans and some other alien races sitting in the turret seats watching this armored door.

"Does this gang have a name then?" I asked curiously with the Pau'an giving me an amused look from the side before he shook his head and said somewhat patiently.

"You seem like an educated young man despite being just a human. Maybe you will figure it out if you keep looking. Now, I suggest you let me do the talking to an associate who is in charge of the wounded." 

He brought me down the long hall, and as we entered further into 'gang land', I remembered the symbol that was at the front armored door and several other places.

The symbol was a black circle in the center with an almost full ring around it that had several sharp spikes around the ring.

Still, I didn't recognize the symbol at first glance... To be fair in my previous life I wasn't a complete Star Wars autist, and in this universe, with Mass Effect fused into it. Who knows what has changed and what has not.

For all I knew, this gang was a patsy for Madalorians to be spying on the gangs of Coruscant's lower levels so they could more easily go after bounties.

Hell, it could be connected to some gang or power based in Citadel space even.

Either way, I was led into a nicer building of sorts with the man leading me into a side room before he said plainly. "You wait here for a bit. I will be back with our doctor in a couple of minutes." 

I nodded in understanding before I just went and sat on the couch as he left me alone to my thoughts... Oh, and the camera was clearly in the corner of the ceiling that was watching my every move. Oh fucking joy.

-

The Pau'an delicately entered a partly dark room and within the room's back end was a large screen that displayed a lively, almost jungle-like depiction that was full of life with the brush, leaves, and vines swaying silently to some unseen wind.

"Dell'rick, you know I do not like to be disturbed during my off time." A heavy female voice spoke.

The Pau'an then spoke quietly. "Lady Yisani, a force sensitive of some sort. Neither Jedi, Sith, or any faction I can recognize has approached me hoping for a job in using force-based healing. What do you wish for me to do with him?"

There was a pause before the chair facing the silent scene of nature swung around.

The figure sitting in the chair was an Echani, with their typical silver hair and skin tone that contrasted with her haunting mercury-like eye color that gleamed in the back light.

She inspected the man before saying slowly. "You seem to be clear of mind and not faltering in your words or tone. So I can rule out a mind trick at least... Hmm, fine, I will allow it, after all, getting Bacta down here is a fool's errand with how much they charge for it. To say nothing of Citadel medigel being kept out of Republic space as well."

The Zaltin and Xucphra corporations were called the 'Bacta Cartels' for a reason, they had a stranglehold on the production and selling of the healing fluid and if you didn't have the contacts and money to buy large amounts of it... It was hard to get hold of.

And the Bacta Cartels would declare war on ANYONE who dared to bring in Citadel medigel to heal. With their private army having recently gotten in trouble for bombarding a worlds surface with their army of Frigate-class spacecraft that was found to be hosting an independent Bacta operation.

Still, the Echani woman paused as she folded her fingers together thoughtfully before she added. "Have him work on Stobann; that rat can stand to have his limbs removed again if at all possible to send a message." 

The Pau'an bowed his head and said respectfully. "Yes, my lady. I will send the holo-vid of his work as soon as its done. Should he accomplish his reported abilities, what shall we pay him though?"

Yisani paused at that in thought, clearly several thoughts running through her mind before she hummed and said with a cool smile. "Sadly, force sensitives and people with high-end Biotics. Those who have a grasp on their powers make terrible slaves... So for the trial run, pay him five hundred credits. And afterwards, if it works out... I will speak with him and take his measure." 

The Pau'an, understanding the silent dismissal and to get going, bowed his head again and stepped out with the Echani leaning back in her chair before saying quietly to herself.

"A random force user walking into my bar... Is this the work of another gang? Another part of the Black Sun is trying to suppress me? Or is this a hand being offered by either Sith or the Jedi in some way to get moles into the depths of Coruscant?"

For now at least... The Echani warrior in Yisani needed to wait to see what this new variable was truly about. And then once she took a measure on him, she could make a move. 

One way or another.

-

I finally managed to get some water in that sitting room as well and I was just meditating to get a better understanding of the Path of Abundance as I could feel the distant gaze of Yaoshi, who gazed upon this world that was devoid of natural life.

Though at the very least, this Yaoshi I was connected to wasn't in this universe properly. So although he/she... It, couldn't directly fuck with this universe. I could feel their gaze upon the galaxy and by extension,n myself.

The Plague Author, The Master Of Immortality, Sanctus Medicus. The Aeon of Abundance had both many names, and its domain of Abundance covered more than just the creation and extension of life.

My musing of the Path drew me into a deep meditation until I... Felt that Pau'an was approaching the door somehow, and I came back to with my eyes opening, and as the door likewise opened and he paused at the sight of me before he swallowed and said.

"My superior has given you a commission to prove your abilities on a loose end. Please come with me so that we may validate your claims."

I followed him through another series of long halls and tunnels leading deeper into this fortress of iron and long-abandoned facilities that had been heavily fortified and I noticed that the majority of the gang members down here were non-human.

Which made sense, frankly. Humanity was just one race out of a fuck load that seeded throughout this massive galaxy that had two galaxies merge into one. Still, it did throw me for a bit of a loop when I saw the blue-skinned form of a heavily armed Asari walking past my vision.

"Now, I do hope you don't have a weak stomach young man." My guide spoke with a dull tone after he used a special key card to open a clearly more secure door, and as we walked in, I realized all too soon what he meant as the metallic scent of blood and the stank of piss hit my nose.

Across the room, mounted on what was clearly a Y-shaped torture rack, was a male Cathar that looked rather similar to a Khajiit from the Elder Scrolls Universe in figure and how... Furry he was.

And I recalled how he mentioned this man was a 'loose end' as his four limbs and tail had clearly been cut off as thick bandages that were dyed a dried rusty red covered the stumps of his wounds.

"So what did this guy do to deserve such a treatment?" I asked as I swallowed down the bile as the bloody scent got stronger as I approached.

And likewise the guy on the rack was completely out of it, I didn't know if he was drugged or just his mind coudn't take the stress and pain. But either way he was completly unconcious.

The Pau'an said rather blandly. "He is a traitor to our gang. He was given orders to deliver a supply of arms to an ally on another level. And instead he went and sold those weapons to a rival... Said rival decided to record the deal to show off how easily our leader's men could be bought off." 

"Hence in order to remind the lower ranks the cost of betrayal. This was done and shared with them to keep the consequences in mind." He said with finality before he looked to me and added.

"Now if you don't mind. Please heal him, we wish to show that not even death may easily be gotten if they betray their comrades." 

'Yup, I definetly got into bed with a gang.' I thought before sighing mentally as I realized that getting away from said gang was also going to be a pain in the ass obviously.

Still I walked up to the man and I laid a hand on his hairy chest before my full body glowed as I pulled deeply into the power of Abundance. "I don't suppose you left his limbs around? It would save me alot of effort fixing him." 

The Pau'an hummed before he said calmly. "We did keep his limbs in a nutrient solution in order to feed the mutants in the sewage lines. But I suppose you can have them to make things easier."

All the while as I pulled off the bandages which made the Cathar groan in pain as his dried hair attached to the wounds, were pulled away as well. I saw his eye's slowly open before rolling up in the corner of my eye.

Stil,l by the time I removed the bandages that were in the way, the other guy had already brought this so-called traitor's limbs back... Along with his tail, actually.

"Alright you watching closely?" I asked as I took a breath to clear my mind of the poor bastard who was going to be denied the sweet release of death.

My response was the Pau'an raising up a holorecorder in his hands that would be recording a three-dimensional video of this, and I hummed before the glow around me intensified,d before his own form glowed a rich vitality rich green as his stiff limbs that had been removed.

Also began glowing before in real time, where we could see tendrils, tiny threads of muscles, veins, nerves, and then bones and ligaments bridging the gap between the lost limbs as they came back together.

However... Having nerves exposed to open air, was a rather mentally overwhelming sensation as this place was in no way actually sanitized or anything.

"Good... Very good Jake." The Pau'an spoke with it's fang like teeth spreading to my eyes with it's wide smile.

Even then, it took me a good five minutes to re-attach those limbs, including his tail. And I exhaled at feeling a slight bit of strain in my core. "So. Payment for services rendered?" I asked rather bluntly as I wanted out of this situation frankly.

The man gave a slight hum before he clicked a button with a soft clicking noise that ended the recording. "Yes, here is the payment for your trial run... Now if you don't mind, I will need to speak to my leader as she will be making the contract for your employment." 

Taking the five credit chips that equaled five hundred credits. I wondered how much this would stretch out as I knew that trying to get my own spaceship was going to be. Very expensive to say the least.

Then the Pau'an spoke firmly. "Now, come with me. I will be taking you to meet the boss."

I silently just nodded, with us both leaving the man unconscious but still bound to his torture table to his imaginable fate.

A few more minutes of walking later, and coming across a number more of xeno races, some I vaguely recognized and others I had no idea, 'what' they were.

Still he led me past several more heavily armed checkpoints until we reached another large blast door that had two female guards with uniformly long silver hair and rather silver-toned skin as well.

'Hmm, aren't those two Echani?' I mused as I saw the two very close to human xeno's whose race was famous for being great fighters and having fighting being part of their whole culture.

"Lady Yisani is already expecting you. Go on ahead, and Xol'bsola you are wanted on level 1353 in the hangar bay." One of the Echani guards said cooly with the Pau'an now named, giving them a dull look at apparently using his name?

Either way, the Pau'an then stepped aside and walked away without a word leaving me to the gaze of the two Echani who inspected me far more closely with the other one who hadn't barked off the orders saying with a disdainful tone.

"Why do you not even have a blade? You aren't Jedi or Sith, clearly, but you don't even have a blaster!" 

I gave the two a dull look before I said calmly. "I do not need a weapon here do I?" 

And that was the kicker, if I were a guest. Why would I need a weapon after all? At least they couldn't so bluntly say that I should totally have a weapon on my person if I was in their territory.

The first speaker Echani cleared her throat and then said cooly. "Fine, hands up, though. We need to check to see if you have a detonator grenade or something else." 

I held up my hands with one of the guards coming over to pat me down and I jolted a bit as she patted my ass directly to see if I had something there... Or maybe she was just checking to see if my dumpy was nice and soft. I had no fucking clue.

Still, I most certainly didn't have a bomb on me, so the other guard put in a code which made the large armored door hiss as its pressurized seals were broken, allowing me to enter the office that the boss held sway within.

The leader/boss of this gang was a woman, definitely also an Echani, which partly made sense due to how the Echani race was matriarchal, I think? Either way, I could easily tell that she had seen a lot of combat with how she had several scars across her face and a literal bullet scar on her neck that she had survived.

And my own gaze was matched as she took in my form, then after a moment of silence and inspection, she broke the silence first.

"Tell me... What faction do you serve?" She demanded bluntly.

To which I smiled wryly and said honestly. "I serve only my own interests. I do not belong to any faction, and I just want to earn some money before I move on."

This 'Lady Yisani' was no fool and raised an eyebrow before she said flatly. "No one who can reattach limbs in but a couple of minutes would be unattached. Who trained you so deeply in the matters of the force then?" 

"Grandmaster Yoda and his wife Yaddle invade my dreams regularly and beat me up before offering me training. I am self-taught, I am not attached to any faction." I started off sarcastically before I finished in a calmer tone as her eyes all but flashed dangerously at me.

There was a long moment of silence as she seemingly debated shooting me to get rid of any possible trouble my so called 'backers' might bring. But still she leaned back in her chair and spoke slowly.

"Your name was Jake Bariss correct?" At my nod, she hummed and continued. "My name is Yisani, now let's get to the meat of things then."

I stilled as she reached below her large desk, and then she placed three things on the table before she spoke in a calm conversational tone.

"You have three options here Jake." She first laid a hand on the left object, which was fucking collar that clearly had a bomb on it from the bulge on it's outside. "You swear allegiance to my faction within the Black Sun, which will come with many perks... But to be clear, I won't be giving you this collar quite literally."

"It would only be a more metaphorical collar around your neck... In return for the most resources, luxuries, and protection you would have a bomb at your back if you betray my faction."

Then her hand slid over to a large blade, and she gently flicked a button that made the blade hum to life, and I realized it was a vibroblade. "Next is the middle path, you will be paid well, but if you betray any secrets of my faction I will have bounty hunters sent after your ass after you leave to move on."

She flicked off the vibroblade before she picked up one of the last objects in a stack of credit chips. "Lastly... It's just money for services rendered."

Her gaze was heavy as she spoke coldly. "You heal who I tell you to, you get paid promptly for the services, but any service of the gang you use. Like food, water, the bathroom, and the very purified air you are breathing at our expense will be charged back to you." 

That was the thing there... That may have seemed to be the least constricting of the three options, but it was a clear path to become a debt slave.

So I gave a slight hum before I said calmly. "I am not someone you can ensnare as a debt slave. So let's dispense from such a game... Plus if anything you would owe me even more as I can create any food and water I need. Along with constantly outputting cleaner air." 

The Echani remained silent... Merely staring at me for my answer.

And then my lips twitched as she casually took out a blaster and placed it on the table in front of me with her hand resting on the table next to it as she said blandly. "Or if you wish to waste my time... You can just choose the blaster, and what happens. Happens."

I looked up from the blaster and I took a breath before I said in a cool tone. "The second option. I have no interest in selling any secrets of yours, I am merely looking for money to get off this shit hole."

She raised an eyebrow before she asked curiously. "Oh? And how much money are you looking for? What goal do you have then?"

I gave a small shrug and said simply. "Simply put, a ride off Coruscant. Whether it be by buying a ticket to like Corellia, or if possible. Just outright buy a small freighter ship." 

Although I had no plans to join the Sith or Jedi especially right now with the Clone War's in the future. I had this beautiful idea of being a more handsome Han Solo roaming the galaxy as a smuggler/bounty hunter perhaps.

Hell, just my ability to use the Path of Abundance to make food could be a potent method to make credits as well.

Either way, Yisani gave me a long look at my words before she spoke slowly. "A frieghter especially one with a decent Hyperdrive Core is extremely expensive obviously. I wonder how you plan to heal so many people even if you charge a thousand credits for each session."

I shrugged and said calmly. "Sure some people can only afford a thousand credits after saving for years... But some people have so many credits that they can't spend them in a thousand years even with an obscene life style."

Her eye's widened and she smiled before saying in realization. "Ah yes, having wealthier clients who would pay dearly for... Quiet aid."

I shrugged and then said with finality. "Either way, now let's get to the business then. How much will you pay me for each healing session?"

She smiled thinly before she lifted up the vibroknife and gently ran her finger nail across the blade as she said casually. "I was thinking two hundred and fifty credits for my men and my working girls to be healed by you. And any slaves that get damaged, and sent to you, if you heal them. You can borrow them for a couple days."

The room went quiet as I tilted my head to the side and I said quietly. "Slaves huh... The depths of Coruscant truly are a shit hole I suppose."

Yisani snorted and then she said coldly. "This being the core of the Republic has nothing to do with anything Jake Bariss. The strong, the rich, and the cruel rule this galaxy, and the weak obey."

In the end, I shook my head before I said calmly. "Back to the business then, and no I wouldn't take less than five hundred credits for lesser wounds and issues. Whereas great damage would run seven hundred and fifty to a thousand credits." 

She raised an eyebrow at my demands before she drummed her fingers on the table in thought before she nodded with her raising a finger and saying. "Fine, but with those rates I expect you to heal three people a day for free while I send some men your way."

I considered it for a moment... Before I nodded and held out a hand to shake which she took and I asked curiously. "So how many people can you expect me to heal?" 

To which she gave a wane smile and said with a slight sigh. "You must understand that deep under Coruscant's surface, there isn't anything resembling a hospital let alone Bacta access." 

"Combined with how... Common conflict is down here, you will have plenty of slug thrower, knife and blunt weapon trauma to deal with. Can you deal with diseases and radiation damage as well?" She asked suddenly which made me blink at the question.

I slowly nodded before I said, unsurely, but honestly. "Radiation damage, I can deal with for sure. Diseases I am not sure about, as my powers don't suit directly destroying harmful life forms within another person."

After all, the Path of Abundance was not the Path of Destruction, directly killing with my powers... Just wasn't a thing, honestly.

Could I kill someone by filling their lungs with terrible spores that would make them suffocate? Sure, could I strangle or have someone crushed via vines and trees I could make grow from only a metal surface, let alone concrete?

Sure, with no problem. But directly pouring the life force-rich power of the Abundance into someone to kill them? Yeah nope.

"Hmm, either way. I do have a little issue I need you to fix for me. Follow me." Yisani said thoughtfully, and I followed her as she led me past the blast doors and when she reached the guards in the front she just snapped her fingers with the two following behind us.

"So who will I be healing then?" I asked curiously.

"Someone I owe a favor to. As well as someone who works for me and does very good at bringing me in credits." She said with finality.

And that was all I got from her as she brought me to another section of the gang fortress. Then brought me to a building that was clearly an ad-hoc medical building and the clear blaster mark scars on one of the walls that had blood stains on the floor made my face twitch.

"Yes... The doctor we did have at one point, had an incident. A man who still had a small secondar blaster, while high on some stimulants after getting jumped, shot the doctor." 

'Yeah, you would think it would be common sense to check people for weapons especially when they are out of their mind.' I thought before Yisani brought me into the back of the medical area where it was a bit cleaner with the air itself being a bit more crisp.

"Kali you still alive?" Yisani spoke with a somewhat amused tone that made me blink at the almost 'friendly' tone that was colored with something else.

A groan was her answer and Yisani sniffed before she tilted her head to the covered bed that had a sheet wrapped around it for privacy similar to other little stalls in the long hall. "Heal her, she is the half brother of that traitor. She is slated to be sold to a Hutt that has a fascination with feeding people to Sarlacc's."

I raised an eyebrow at that before asking curiously. "Is she worth more then my help just out of curiosity?" 

I walked into the cubical and I saw the woman had a missing hand along with several large burns across her body that were festering. Though I blinked at the realization that this half-breed was clearly mixed with a very humanoid race as she didn't have fur covering her form.

Only the cat ears, tail, and golden slitted eyes pointed at her half breed status. Still Yisani responded in a bland tone. "It turns out... When you are a fat slug whose entire life goal is the suffering of others, that you want them to be in the best shape they can be to suffer." 

Then she shrugged and then said. "When you are done with her, I got a Lepi lieutenant down the hall and one of my best dancers needs a hand, quite literally as well."