The Bittersweet Mission

Pickup Day

     Ahsoka looked around discreetly as the people at the Sun Fair bustled through the streets. She was right across from the building where the pickup would be taking place in less than half an hour, which meant she was right across from the last place she had kissed Lux...

     Shaking her head slightly to clear her thoughts, she raised her hidden wrist communicator closer to her face.

     "All clear here, Master."

     "Good, Sasha. Keep an eye out," she heard back.

     Reaching out with the Force, she glanced off around the block to the next street where Obi-Wan stood in a shadowed doorway, scanning the area as well. She could sense that Anakin and Padmé were making their rounds circling the building and slowly strolling through the vendor stalls that were selling some high quality folk art, apparel, and various trinkets.

     Finally, Ahsoka's eyes landed on the small carrier and blanket that sat at her feet. 

     It was unfortunate that Anakin and Padmé would have to go in alone, but Obi-Wan and Ahsoka would have to be keeping an eye on every entrance and exit to the building for when they would be leaving.

     Anakin and Padmé were not supposed to disrupt the mission at all, but rather just gather intel and take away the child. However, they were skeptical of the events of their last few days, and it would be impossible to know if they had blown their cover until they met the contact, especially if the contact could recognize them by their real identities.

      For now, all they could do was bide their time and hold out hope, then take off immediately. All their belongings had already been taken from the apartment to their ship, and so, they would be ready to leave as soon as possible once they had the child.

     As Obi-Wan turned the corner of the building and scoped out the next side, he slowly looked at each person he passed, trying to discern if anyone stood out or seemed suspicious, but he couldn't sense anything unusual.

     "All clear here as well," Obi-Wan said under his breath. 

     "Got it. We'll be heading in the entrance on your side soon."

     And so, Obi-Wan kept up his pacing around the vendors.

     A few minutes later, Anakin and Padmé passed him on the street, ducking into a low entrance of the tall building and disappearing inside.

*****

      As Anakin's eyes adjusted to the darkness, Padmé tightened her hold on his arm, allowing him to lead them over to a stairwell that would take them to the third floor where the contact should be waiting for them. It was actually likely that the contact had eyes on them now since they had entered the building.

     As they continued up in silence, Anakin turned on his own hidden communicator once more, which would feed everything they heard or said to Obi-Wan and Ahsoka so they could be ready for whatever was about to come.

     On the third floor, it was still relatively dark with the exception of a few streams of light filtering in from cracks in the boarded up viewports.

     They stopped in the middle of the room, and the two of them glanced at each other before they heard footsteps.

     Then, the shadows shifted in front of them and a figure stepped forward until they were just a few arm lengths away. A bundle of blankets was cradled in their arms, and yet, they gripped a blaster with one scaly hand.

     "You're just on time," the figure said, though from where they were standing, they couldn't make out the being's face.

     "Of course," Anakin answered with a nod of his head.