Bogg-4: soft landing.

Gabriel gazed out of the window with genuine interest. He had already seen two whole planets from space, which undoubtedly had left an impression on him, but this planet was radically different from what he had seen before. In front of the ship, in space, there floated a genuine archipelago. No, it was more like a swarm of diverse moons, with a small gray planet at the center. And now the question was: where would they land, exactly?

Day and night were randomly alternating on these circling small worlds. Some of them never left the shadows, while others were perpetually bathed in sunlight. Boba began to input something into the computer, confidently pressing buttons. The Sith didn't know what he was doing, but he had no intention of interfering with a skilled pilot.

Fett skillfully maneuvered around the planets, glancing at the monitor and then at the window, as if he were comparing something. It seemed that the boy had scanned the moons and was now comparing the results visually. Gabriel stepped away from the pilot's seat and sat down on the floor near the captive, completely entrusting the landing to Boba.

Shaak Ti contemplatively observed the dark space, not being surprised in the least by the archipelago of moons. What did it matter to her? She was already a seasoned Jedi who had even outlived her own apprentices, so there was little that could surprise her now. However, she was very intrigued by Hassan as a person and a Force user. If he had truly mastered the Force on his own, then he possessed an incredibly vast talent.

Gabriel noticed that Boba had begun to descend toward one of the moons. He didn't bother asking about the pilot's choice since the Sith himself was utterly clueless about ship navigation. One could say that without the company of an experienced person or some other preferably humanoid creature, he would have a very hard time... surviving in this new world. Survival was hardly a question, as with his new body, killing him would be extremely difficult. The key was not to engage with a cruiser and to escape when things got too hot.

Hassan rose and stood behind Shaak Ti's chair, placing his hands on her shoulders. The woman didn't even flinch at the touch of the self-proclaimed Sith, partly because she was not in a position to complain. Beyond the glass, numerous lights were visible – most likely a city. The atmosphere was thin and sparse, and soon, Rab-1 entered the landing trajectory above a small town nestled between rocky valleys.

Boba was descending very smoothly and carefully, displaying all his professionalism at such a young age. However, for some reason, the ship began to sway from side to side. Gabriel tightened his grip on the captive's shoulders to prevent her from accidentally falling out of her seat. With bound hands and feet, she would hardly be able to stay in one place during such turbulence.

Nevertheless, the landing was still going relatively well. When the ship was almost on the ground, Hassan even relaxed for a moment. However, in the next moment, he literally grabbed the captive from behind. The ship tilted to the side, causing everyone except the secured pilot to fall onto the adjacent wall. Upon reflection, it seemed that Gabriel took the brunt of it, as he had managed to position himself under the woman to cushion her fall, but he didn't even feel the impact thanks to his armor.

"What happened?!" the Sith exclaimed in concern.

"One of the landing struts bent," Fett said while looking at the computer. "I don't know why this happened! I did everything carefully!"

"It's alright, Boba," Shaak Ti calmly replied, lying on top of Hassan. "These things happen. And Hassan, could you please remove your hands from my chest?" Gabriel, preoccupied with the situation as a whole, hadn't even noticed that he was literally groping the woman's chest. "And thank you for your concern."

"Of course..." the young man quickly removed his hands from her and promptly stood up.

They definitely couldn't stay on Slave-1 now. They needed to leave the ship before the repairs were complete, and that meant they needed to come up with a plan for Shaak Ti. Boba unfastened his seatbelt and jumped down to the ship's hold, where he began checking something.

"I hope you'll be a good girl," the Sith said as he pulled his lightsaber from under his cloak.

The Jedi looked a little frightened at the sight of the weapon, then cast a questioning glance at her captor, who nodded in response, indicating that she should turn over onto her stomach. The master complied, and Hassan swiftly cut the ropes on her hands and feet. Shaak Ti sighed in relief and, for the first time in a long while, stood up on her own, beginning to massage her swollen wrists.

"Let's go quickly!" the boy rushed past them, carrying a bag on his shoulder.

He was very concerned about the ship, so he paid no attention to the adults' business. He sprinted at full speed into the adjacent compartment, leaving the pair alone, which was precisely what the Jedi needed. She had something to discuss with her captor.

"You're not letting me go, right?" she asked while still massaging her wrists.

"Of course not," Hassan replied, removing his cloak and handing it to her. "Cover yourself. It wouldn't be good if someone recognized you."

"We need to talk about Boba," Shaak Ti put on the cloak. "We may not be able to dissuade him from his plan with Dooku, but could you keep an eye on him until that time comes?" She paused for a moment. "Please."

"I'll think about what you've said," Gabriel crossed his arms over his chest, "but here's what I want to tell you." He approached her closely, and his distorted reflection was visible in his mask. "If you try to escape," he continued, "I'll kill Boba. Do you understand?"

"I understand everything," the Jedi replied cautiously.

Perhaps the words of the self-proclaimed Sith might have sounded threatening, but through the Force bond, she could feel that Hassan was lying. He still didn't take the Force connection too seriously, or perhaps he couldn't help but issue a threat to her? It was unclear.

"You first," Gabriel waved his hand, indicating the exit.

Shaak Ti obediently took the lead. As soon as her feet touched the ground, she nearly fell. She suddenly felt dizzy, and her legs were stiff and swollen from being tied up. The unfamiliar gravity of the place didn't help either. However, she was caught by Gabriel, who seemed to be keeping a close watch on her like a guardian or, rather, a warden.

"Thank you..." she turned to thank Hassan but stopped mid-sentence when she saw the new wooden mask on his face, through which his eyes were not visible. "...very much."

"If you join me, you'll get your own mask," he replied.

"I think I'll pass," she replied with a slight smile.

"Where is your father then?" an unfamiliar voice suddenly inquired.

The two adults looked ahead and saw an unknown figure speaking to Boba. While Shaak Ti was quick to identify the newcomer's species, Gabriel was puzzled by the sight of this new being. The strange humanoid had bead-like eyes, a long nose, and short, thick legs, making him look very much like a hobbit or goblin.

"I'm his father," Gabriel said firmly, standing next to his "son."

"I'm Honest Gjon, at your service!" the merchant shifted his attention to the potential customer. "This is my landing pad. That means you owe me for the landing. And I also think your ship needs some fixing."

"How much does your repair service cost?" Gabriel's instincts told him that they were dealing with a con artist.

"And how much do you have on you?" the merchant asked.

Now Gabriel was entirely convinced that they were dealing with a swindler. However, he had no idea what currency was used here or what the nominal value was.

"Two hundred credits!" Boba spoke up instead of the silent Gabriel.

"My oh my, what a coincidence!" Honest Gjon smirked. "That's exactly how much the repair costs!"

"What about the landing fee?" Hassan asked.

"You're my first customer in a long time, so I won't charge you for the landing fee this time," the merchant replied professionally, rubbing his hands together, one of which was replaced by a prosthetic.

"Thank you for your generosity," Gabriel said, clapping his hands. "But you'll get your payment after the full repair," he added, grabbing Boba's hand with the money.

"How... would you like..." the merchant spoke somewhat disappointedly.

"And one more thing," Gabriel continued, "if our ship isn't here when we return, or if you do anything else, I will personally cut off your head." Hassan loomed over the dwarf-like merchant as he made the threat.

The Sith remembered that mercenaries were the main inhabitants of this planet, so he had no fear in openly threatening a genuine con artist like this. Boba and Shaak Ti didn't interfere in the conversation. The former played the role of the obedient son, and the latter, by her position, simply shouldn't. The Jedi stood quietly next to Boba, her face covered by the hood, observing Hassan's actions to further construct his psychological profile in her mind.

She had already realized that Gabriel didn't trust Gjon, just like she didn't. Of course, this revealed little, but for now, she was content with any information she could gather about the kidnapper. If it turned out that they had been acquainted in the past, she was obliged to recognize the person beneath the mask. However, the longer she stayed with him, the less she felt that he was an old acquaintance or friend.

"Don't worry, dear customer," Gjon replied somewhat nervously, "everything will be done in the best way!"

"Alright," Gabriel stepped away from the dwarf.

Once Boba handed over the security codes, the trio made their way toward the shimmering lights of the small town. Deep down, Hassan hoped that Gjon wouldn't do anything to the ship. If it were up to him, he would have stayed to watch over it, but he couldn't allow Boba to roam freely in a town full of mercenaries.

Dear Readers,

I would like to share with you some interesting details about how the last two chapters were written. For the first time in the history of our project, I had to write them from my phone and in a hurry. Why did this happen? It was directly related to you, our amazing readers.Your support, your comments and your "Power Stone" have been a real source of inspiration and motivation. Thanks to you, we decided not to waste a minute and start writing the next chapters.

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