Young Sullustans in Love
Brought to Gelgelar Free Port as a teenager, I soon grew to love the swampy shadowport and its freedom as an Outer Rim locale. Gelgelar Free Port is run by an enterprising Sullustan family headed by Loro Ecls and his sister Nofre [truly a stunning specimen of Sullustan beauty]. The Ecls family run or have a hand in most of the shadowport’s businesses, legal [repair, outfitting] and not-so-legal [forgeries]. They are an honorable family, with the general welfare of the port at heart.
The Ecls’ chief rival is an ill-tempered Rodian named Slerog Fenn, a smalltime gangster favoring hired muscle but a fair shot himself. Fenn owns some platforms on the edge of town but charges inflated prices as he hires goons to “protect” his customer’s parked craft; which involves shooting anything that comes near Fenn’s Landing, including the rightful owners. His goons often break into the ships and steal small, inconspicuous items such as hydrospanners and power packs, though they are too dumb to effectively siphon information off the shipboard computers.
While my parents tried their hand at the vohis mold and shvash gas businesses, I scampered about town with the Ecls’ offspring and had a grand time. I found I was spending all my time hanging around Nofre’s Repair Bay (where in time I became involved with Nofre). We spent countless days absorbing holonovels and technical manuals or pouring through whatever computers we could get our hands on. Nofre Ecls, the way the sunlight made her black eyes glimmer with an inner glow, the way the morning dew gathers on her jowls. I could go on and on about the way I feel about her. As time passed, my love grew stronger and stronger.
Feeling like I was king of the galaxy, it was no surprise when trouble occurred within town limits one day, and I decided to interfere. Picking up a crate of spare parts from a spacer parked at Fenn’s Landing, I overheard a heated argument. Knowing Fenn like I did, I decided to look into it. Sure enough, the shifty Rodian and his goons were arguing with an indignant spacer over his bill. Fenn promptly ended the argument by casually blasting the spacer at point blank range. A woman screamed and I went into action. Throwing the crate of parts at the largest of Fenn’s thugs I roared and charged Fenn, intent on impaling the gangster on my vibroknife. A shot from the Twi’lek goon missed, but Slerog is handy with the ‘iron’ so to speak and put a bolt into my stomach. Their laughter was all I heard as red-hot darkness overcame me.
Upon waking I was rather disconcerted as Fenn’s goons had chucked me over the side of the platform. Once again I was surprised to find myself among the living, albeit missing Nofre’s parts. Knowing I could not forcefully retrieve them in my current state, I dragged myself back to Nofre’s and explained it all, blaming myself for sticking my nose where it didn’t belong; as I had no desire to widen the conflict between the Ecls Family and Fenn. I was painfully aware that Slerog had more men than I could handle, and if the rumors of his alliance with the Glarsaurs made it all the more bleak. The Ecls had credits, but Fenn had the monopoly on whatever muscle passed through.
Despaired, I drew deep down inside and decided to leave and make a better Sullustan of myself; I promised that I would return to her one day soon, when I was the man she deserved. After having said my goodbyes I thumbed a ride on the only tramp freighter outbound, off towards the Crucible Sector, wherever that was.
