You Can't Escape Me

[Fireya Noir]

Bounty Contract: #B-287384 [Threat Level 2]
Name: Jianna Bokiana
Wanted for: Slicing/Cyber Theft
Crime Level: Moderate
Bounty Issued by: Lyran Horn
Location: Corellia
Bounty status: Active
Wanted Dead/Alive/No Preference: Alive
Bounty: 5,000 credits

***

Hell yeah!

Fireya let out a sight of relief as she landed on Corellia. That planet was much more civilized than Sullust where she had gone for her last mission for her employer. Even the shadiest areas of this planet couldn't be worse than the crappy under cities she had roamed to get her last target!

Before traveling to the Corellian system, the bounty hunter had used her different contacts to figure out possible places where someone wanted for slicing and cyber theft could go. A few possibilities had cropped up, but when she had heard of an important underground circle of hackers, she thought that it might be where she'd find her target.

It was in the outskirts of Doaba Guerfel. Now the brunette would need to get in touch with one of her contacts, in hope she'd get an easy way to get closer to the circle. She didn't think it was going to be so fast, but doing things in a sensible order didn't hurt.

She knew she'd wing enough things as time would unfold...

[Fireya Noir]

Getting to her contact was the easy part, especially as Fireya had known Sahala for many years. The blue haired woman was a hacker of excellence and it was her who had taught quite a few things to the bounty hunter when she was younger. Fireya didn't dare say she was the most amazing slicer in town, but she held her ground really well. It could come in handy at times, such as now.

Sahala told her that she'd have to go through the tests once inside to get to the VIP lounge, where a few people who could match her target's description were present. Of course, the hunter was welcome to check the first open area to all people who could get inside if someone vouched for them. Yet, Fireya agreed that it was unlikely her target was just there.

She thanked Sahala for vouching her in and she hoped that she'd be able to get to the VIP lounge once there. Her contact gave her some insight about what was awaiting her, but she wasn't in charge of things, so in the end Fireya would be on her own once inside.

[Fireya Noir]

Fireya showed up at the club on the next evening. As she arrived and gave her identity, she was let in. Sahala had kept her word and vouched for her to get into the main floor. Once inside, she was surprised by how much like a normal club it looked like, at least at first glance. As she grabbed a drink and did some chitchat, she realized how many of the tables had people talk and show some hacking stuff and comparing portable devices.

Thankfully, she had come prepared for this and when she began to speak with the right people - knowing this wouldn't be a one evening gig, she was more comfortable than at first.

Hopefully, this would go alright and within the next days, she would be able to access that VIP lounge, because so far, she could tell that her target wasn't on the main floor, which wasn't surprising, given what she knew about them.

[Fireya Noir]

Of course, things didn't go as expected. That was no real surprise to Fireya but it still annoyed her greatly, especially as the clock was ticking. She had no deadline to bring the target back to Drifter's, but she preferred getting things done as promptly as possible, without rushing.

She didn't prove good enough to get to the VIP lounge, and that bugged her. The people in this hacking circle were way more impressive than she had thought. It meant that she did more observation of who was getting upstairs and who wasn't. Thankfully, the place had only one access to the VIP lounge, which was staircases starting in the main floor. So, she was able to recognize her target and watch her moves, get to know her habits of attendance.

Now, she just needed to find the right moment to catch her.

[Fireya Noir]

It took a few days to get a clearer idea of her target's habits of attendance, because the woman wasn't so predictable. It required all of Fireya's observation and intuitive skills to find a pattern in what looked like pure randomness at first. She kind of bet that the woman knew she had a bounty on her head and was careful while looking casual. She was a smart cookie.

The good thing was that while the woman took a different path every evening to leave, she always stopped by two specific points. The bounty hunter gave closer looks to these and decided on one. It'd be more acrobatic to catch her there, but the location was overall more appropriate.

So, one evening Fireya was ready to catch her target. Now the woman just had to show up. The brunette had to wait for a long while, but she knew that the slicer could leave the den rather late, so she had made sure to be alert.

When her prey showed up, she realized that for once she wasn't alone. That annoyed Fireya, but she could make do anyway. She tossed a cryboan grenade at them, so she'd have time to use her sniper rifle on both of them. She did as such, making sure she'd deliver them both alive.

Sadly the other person managed to scream before she leaped from her perching position and punched them unconscious. Her target tried to kick her, but she was unable to. Fireya grabbed her, but the other woman presented a better challenge than expected and they ended fighting in the middle of the empty street for a while.

When she heard someone coming, the hunter took a hook in the face but was quick enough to drag her target away with her, so nobody would see them. She was grateful for her extended skills at martial arts, otherwise she wasn't sure she'd have had the upper ground with this annoying slicer.

When she managed to pin her to the ground, she cuffed and gagged her at once. Then she dragged her towards the rental speeder she had. And she made her sit next to her because there was no way she'd let a prey out of her sight. It wasn't her style.

[Fireya Noir]

The contract brief said to deliver the slicer to the one who had issued the bounty in the first place, Lyran Horn. The person lived in the suburbs of Coronet, so the hunter decided to take the target aboard her ship so the trip there would be quicker.

As she threw the other woman in the cell she had in the bottom floor of her ship, the pest tried to get her way again, but she landed two black eyes instead. She could be happy she had no broken bones or worse injury. While Fireya made sure to deliver her victims alive when the contract said so, she didn't care about missing pieces or bruises and such. She got the job done and it was what mattered and so far, people didn't complain.

Once she was sure the slicer was locked up, still gagged and cuffed, with no way out, she headed to the cockpit. She'd patch herself up later on. The trip to their destination shouldn't take more than one hour.

She was tired of always getting hit in the ribs. She really had to work on improving her posture again as to avoid such things in the future. That'd make for some interesting training sessions.

***

When they arrived, she announced herself and Lyran Horn said he would be here personally. Grabbing weapons again, she headed to the cell and grabbed her target, who seemed finally tamed. The hunter remained on her guard though.

As they descended the boarding ramp, she saw who must be Lyran Horn and his men. "Here is your thief as requested." She said as she handed the other woman to the guards.

Lyran Horn nodded with a devil grin on his face. "Well done. I see she has even given you trouble. She'll be dealt with now we have her. I'll make sure to tell your employer your service was satisfying."

Without further ado, he left and Fireya returned to her ship.