Chapter Forty one

"So... Those are your parents huh?"

Asked Sabine as I sipped on some coffee. Parents? More like pests.

We had a few shouting matches, ever since I brought them here two days ago, or more like they were shouting at me while I did not react.

I did not care about their opinions.

"Yes."

My answer came with a sigh, being completely done with their antics.

"You don't seem to get along with them..."

I shrugged at her very astute observation. It was true, no point in lying, we were besically at each other's throats.

"They want me to stop what I am doing, and I want them to fuck off."

She rose an eyebrow and snorted, which I ignored in favor of sipping the coffee.

"Don't you want to go back to normalcy? Now that they are back?"

I roll my eyes, putting the cup down on the table, the look I gave her was unimpressed.

"No."

She hummed and leaned forward, placing her elbown on the table and leaning on them.

"But aren't they your parents?"

What the hell was she doing? Testing my resolve? I sighed and looked down at the coffee, seeing my own reflection staring back at me.

"My kill count is higher than the number of times they have fucked, so my apologies if I find it hard to behave like an obedient child, catering to his parent's every word."

That was the truth, I have not been a child for a long time, and I was not planning on going back to that any time soon, or ever.

"And they have a hard time accepting that..."

I shrugged at her, wasn't that obvious? I sipped my coffee again done with this conversation, but the way she was looking at me informed me that she was not.

I got up and washed the cup and placed it in its place before shoving my hands inside my pockets.

"I'll be in the Phantom."

Her eyes followed me as I made my way to the smaller ship. Climbing the ladder, I sat down in the pilot seat and slumped into it. What was taking so damn long with the fake IDs?

I massaged my forehead for a moment before taking out my Holo-Projector and making a call.

A few seconds buzzed before it was picked up, revealing Dina who was smiling while cleaning her armor.

[Hello Love, miss me already?]

I chuckled, in a way, I did. She was pleasant woman to be around.

"Indeed. How did the bounty go?"

Her smile turned into a grin and she reached outside of the hologram border, bringing back a rifle that looked like a sniper into the frame.

[It went well and I even got the Disintegration rifle as a bonus.]

I smirked, looking over the rifle and nodding. From what i could see, it was a well made blaster. Placing my chin in my hand and leaning my elbow on my leg, I raise an eyebrow at her.

"Thats good, but are you any good at it?"

She blinked, chuckled and put the rifle away again with a grin on her face.

[Oh? Is that a challenge I hear? Are you sure you won't regret those words, love?]

I smirked right back at her, my other eyebrow joining its twin.

"You sure you want to do this?"

She nodded, putting away the vambrace and standing up to stretch.

[I will be back on Lothal tomorrow.]

Her grin turned smug as she leaned forward a little.

[We shall see if you can walk the walk.]

I leaned back into the seat, my smirk remaining in place.

"It's a date."

She chuckled, running a hand through her hair and tossing the locks behind her dramatically.

[Obviously.]

Well, wasn't she feeling playful? This was a nice change of pace from all the drama that has been going on recently. Talking to her was nice, I should call her more often...

__

"You're coming with us."

I raised an eyebrow at Ephiram in curiosity. Did he really make Zeb get me from the Phantom, just so he could sit me down and try to act like a father?

"No."

He frowned and Mira looked tense, staring at me intensely.

"I wasn't asking, Colt."

I narrowed my eyes at him, orbs of the same color as mine flashed with irritation and the little authority he could muster. I wasn't impressed, to say the least.

"Neither was I."

Everyone was here, well except for Chopper, since he did not really give a shit.

"I am you're father, Colt-"

I cut him off right there, lest I put a blaster bolt in his forehead.

"You're not a father, Ephiram, you are nothing but trash."

Mira gasped and Ephiram looked like he was slapped. Too stunned to speak.

"You had me, and the first thought wasn't to raise me, you used me as an excuse for your actions."

The surprise quickly turned into anger and the man slammed his hands on the table, standing up.

"We spoke out against the empire for you! We did what we did for you! To ensure a better future for you!"

I remained seated, looking at the man in front of me like he was nothing but a worm under my boot. The way he emphasized "You" was like it was my fault that things ended up like they did.

"The future I had was on the streets, stealing, selling, killing, and running to survive. If that's what you wanted, you could have thrown me out of the house."

His anger turned to rage and raised a hand. My other eyebrow joined its brother. A slap? Really?

I raised a hand, catching his incoming palm and squeezing. Painfully.

As Ephiram lost the wind in his sales as quickly as they came, I stood up, forcing him to sit down again.

"You will listen to me, and you will listen well."

His knees buckled from the pain, his other hand clutching at the table's edge.

"The IDs will be ready in the next few days, you will take them, and you will be moved to a planet that is not yet occupied by the empire or the one where its presence is small."

I let go of his hand, brushed off my jacket, and headed to the door.

"After that, you can go and die for all I care."

___

"That was cruel, don't you think?"

I twisted the screwdriver, tightening the bolt on the experimental grenade.

"No."

The answer came quickly, dismissively as I grabbed another part that was needed for the device, securing it in place.

"Colt, they're your parents..."

I clicked my tongue and tightened the part in place.

"Why does everyone seem to bring that point up? Is it so hard to believe that I don't hold any affection for them, Hera?"

The Pilot of the group sighed, crossing her arms and leaning back in the seat.

"I understand, Colt-"

I looked up at her, my eyebrow raised curiously.

"Do you? Do you really?"

She stopped and was about to start talking again, but I wasn't having it.

"I was used as an excuse for their behavior, and I paid for that, I grew up on the streets, when I was a child, I did not even remember them until a Rodian reminded me that they existed."

I put the other half of the cover on the grenade and secured it in place.

"I had to steal, I had to kill, but you know what? I'm not even mad about that."

I pressed a button, a few parts of the grenade folded out, and I inspected it.

"I'm mad that even after I went to get them, broke them out of prison, they have the nerve to act like they have any authority over me."

Another press of the button and the parts folded back in.

"They don't know me, and I don't want to know them, I'm doing them a favor and they are spitting in my face."

I sighed out, putting the EMP grenade on the table.

"Now, if you don't mind, I would like to be alone before Zeb comes in and starts snoring."

She hesitated for a moment.

"But what about their feelings?-"

I scowled in response, already tired of this back and forth.

"What about my feelings?"

She stared at me for a moment, before sighing and nodding. Without a word, she stood up and walked out of the room.

I stared at the closed door, and sighed, rubbing the bridge of my nose in frustration.

I grabbed my red lightsaber, feeling the other in the other inner pocket of my jacket, and paused... I took a deep breath and took that one out too, staring at it for a moment.

With a press of a button, the room was bathed in a soft white glow as the black blade extended from the hilt. I stared at it for a moment and felt the force gathering to the other hilt, or more specifically, inside the hilt.

I opened my hand, the lightsaber resting on top of my palm before floating and coming apart. The parts floated around, the red Cyber crystal remained right above my palm and I knew what to do.

I gripped the crystal in my hand and channeled the force through the small but powerful rock.

Lightning crackled on my hand, forcing whatever made the crystal red out. It was like washing off the dirt in a stream, all the taint slowly left and I held a white crystal in my hand.

I looked at it for a moment and the parts that were floating around...

I needed to pass time anyway, might as well make a more efficient hilt for this...