Across the Stars II: Murder!

The first thing Nathan noticed was the smell.
Burning.
Never a good thing when you work at a reactor plant that serves an entire city. Especially if it manages to climb over all the other scents produced by the runoff pipes.
Nathan had just handed in his resignation and was finishing out his last day as a Safety Inspector. Tomorrow he’d become a bounty hunter, tracking down the Imperial spy he had met—and fallen in love with—a few weeks prior. A weight sat on his chest, an anxious need to get a move on. He had to imagine Imperial Spies didn't have safe, stable lives; he had to find Mayla before anything happened to her. He hoped he could convince her to defect.

He was rounding the corner of a substation when he caught the scent. He had smelled electrical fires before, and this wasn’t that. It was more natural, more…roastey, for lack of a better word.
Then he saw the feet; all that was showing of the Ugnaught’s body from the runoff pipe he’d been stuffed into. It was Jep. Jep had helped Nathan fix a vulnerability in this substation just days ago. Nate’s heart raced as he pulled the Ugnaught out of the shadows. His eyes were open, but unmoving. Runoff waste stained his coveralls.

“Jep! Jep, can you hear me? C’mon, buddy, come on!”

Smoke rose from a burn on his chest.
A blast point.
Nathan heard footsteps on the catwalk behind him. He turned and looked up, eyes wide, to see a man standing there. He was wearing simple mechanics clothes. There was a blaster pistol clutched in his hand.

“Too many witnesses,” the man growled.

               
Connections sparked in Nathan’s brain. “You’re another Imperial spy?” he said.
Maybe if he could get him talking, he could stall. There was a panic-button clipped to Jep’s coveralls, something he’d insisted all the employees have. He inched his hand towards it.
               
The man hesitated, frowning at what Nathan had said. “…Another?”

“You’re a lot uglier than the last one,” Nathan said, wishing his voice hadn’t shaken so much. His heart was hammering. He was seconds away from the fob, from calling for help.
The Imperial blinked as he processed what the boy had said. Rage flooded his eyes.
               
“The girl lied! She said she never got in! Useless little—“ He composed himself as he remembered the matter at hand. “…No matter. We’ll deal with that loyalty problem later.”

Oh no. Nathan blanched. Mayla had covered for him, and he just blew her cover.

What had he done?       

With lumbering steps, the spy crossed the catwalk towards the prone Nathan, who quickly pressed the panic-fob’s button. An alarm klaxon sounded above them.
               
“No!” roared the spy. Suddenly frantic, he fired his blaster. The shot struck the grating past Nathan’s ear, and on instinct, he stood and spun, grabbing the man’s arms before he could flee. The blaster, knocked aside in the struggle, fell to the floor. There was shouting in the distance.
               
“Let go of me!” cried the Imperial.
               
“No!”
               
Though the spy was older and stronger, Nate had a strong grip and a firm hold on him. At any moment either of them could go over the edge, even with the guardrails Nathan had installed.
The spy, unable to break free, looked at the Ugnaught’s body, the blaster on the ground, and alarms. Security were on their way. He made a choice.
He bit down hard, crunching something in his teeth. Nathan felt him go limp. He stumbled to the floor.
The young man stared as the Imperial’s body began to shake and writhe in pain, like he was being destroyed from the inside out.
Snarling, the spy looked him in the eye.
               
“Pyerce….Resilient.”
               
There was a flash, and the implant in his tooth had done its work. The man was completely disintegrated. There had been a spy, now there wasn’t. Just a pile of dust.
Nathan stumbled back, scrambling on his hands on the grating. He could hardly even process what had happened.
The shouts of security were getting closer. Hearing them, Nathan realized what the spy had done: The guards were on their way. They’d see him—and only him—with the blaster and Jep’s body. No one else in sight.

He would take the fall for this.

He could let himself be arrested, he could prove his innocence, maybe Albee would testify for him. But if Mayla had really lied to her Imperial superiors, then she was in danger. He didn’t have time for a trial.
He had to leave the planet.

For a brief, confused, joyous moment, Nathan recognized what this meant; he was right about Mayla. She lied to the Imperials, took a risk, for him? That meant that she had doubts. That meant he might be able to convince her to leave it all behind.
This moment of delight was replaced by the crashing panic of the situation. He had to get away from here. He would never find her from a prison block. It also occurred to him that, with two spies now sent, the Imperial threat to Targonn was getting serious. That was a thought for later.
He took a final, sad look at Jep’s body. The Ugnaught was—had been—a friend. He deserved better. He hoped his family would be alright. There had to be insurance or something, some way they’d be taken care of. Nathan decided to send a chunk of his savings their way, as soon as he could.
              
Time was running out. Security was just around the corner.

Nathan turned and ran.