“Hello, my friend. If you’ve received this, it is with great sadness that I inform you that I have passed on to become one with the Force. Do not weep for me, however. I knew the risks and took the challenge readily, just as you did for me. Just as I am sure you will do again when the time comes…”
The holocom clattered to the floor as Cato stood there in shock. It couldn’t be true, shouldn’t be…but the very presence of the message was proof that it was. The man who had pulled him back from the brink when his sense of honor led to that reckless, downright suicidal “plan”…the friend that he probably didn’t call as often as he should have…was gone.
The recording had also been delivered with a package that looked to have been wrapped with great care and detail, but that wasn’t something he could deal with right now. The weight of the sorrow he was feeling made the small apartment feel more like a cage whose walls were closing in around him.
Having made his way through the streets of Veles, their usual bustle now near silent as midnight approached, Cato found himself on the plains outside the colony’s gate. As if with a will of their own, his feet carried him toward the forest to the east. As he made his way through the trees, his detatched state, and the tempest of his emotions blinded him to the sound of snapping twigs as four rough-looking men stepped out from the trees, two in front of him, and two behind.
“What’ve we got here, then? Looks like one of those offworlders” one of the men in the front said.
“You lost, offworlder?” another jeered from behind Cato.
“Nice jacket you’ve got there, offworlder…think I’ll be takin’ it off your cor-” the man’s words were cut short as the red flash of a blaster bolt ripped through the night, leaving a smoldering hole in his throat
“You’re gonna pay for tha-” another flash, this time leaving a hole in the man’s chest. The tempest of emotions that had been swirling through Cato’s mind had given way to cold, calm anger. As he turned to face the two men behind him, they were backing away with their hands in the air.
“H-hey now” one of them said, his voice shaky “We didn’t mean nothin’ by all that…we was just havin’ a bit of-” Another shot, another body.
“Oh, just havin’ a bit of fun, is it?” Cato spoke, his words cold and emotionless as he faced the remaining man, his blaster leveled at the man’s forehead. “Well, two can play that game”
A cruel smile played across his lips as he nodded in the direction behind the now very terrified man. “Run”
Wasting no time, the man turned and sprinted into the forest, crashing through the underbrush and stumbling several times before continuing on. Cato watched, counting down from fifteen before following, though much quieter and more carefully. The chase went on for several minutes before the glow of firelight appeared through the trees, growing brighter as Cato moved closer
That’s right, little rat he thought lead me back to your den
"What the…?!?’ one of those in the camp exclaimed as the very terrified man tore past him, screaming for everyone to wake up. What followed was a veritable massacre… an unfeeling, uncaring slaughter…
Many of those in the camp fell before they could even find their weapons and get a shot off. Those who were, namely the crude perimeter watch around the camp, were firing wildly, hitting many of their own in their panic.
“DIE!” one of the vagabonds roared, a vibroblade over his head as he rushed forward. Acting entirely on instinct, Cato extended his arm toward the man. A wave of force sent the would-be attacker sailing through the air, landing against a tree with a sickening crack.
Seemingly as quickly as it had begun, it was over. The camp had fallen silent and the physical toll of the fighting had to be paid. Cato’s blaster fell from his grip with a soft thud, only moments before Cato fell as well, exhaustion taking hold as his world faded to black
Several hours later…
The sun was high in the sky, and the cacophony of forest fauna was in full swing when Cato awoke, stiff and sore.
“Ungh…” he groaned as he struggled to pick himself up, only to fall seated in the dirt once again when he saw what laid around him. “Fuckin’ hell…” he exclaimed, the sight of his surroundings bringing both nausea and the memory of the night’s events in a tumultuous flood. He looked down at his hands, shaken by what he had seen. Sure, he’d taken life before…in self defense, in the defense of others, and even the occasional bounty.
This, however, was something else entirely… He’d toyed with the surviving bandit, followed him back to his camp, and slaughtering everyone like an exterminator purging a nest of common vermin…and he’d enjoyed it, took sadistic pleasure in the fear and screams as he cut them down to the last. He’d undoubtedly crossed a line…and he wasn’t sure if it was one that could be uncrossed