The Kloo Horn Cantina Caper

"The Kloo Horn Cantina Caper" is a short story in the anthology From a Certain Point of View. The story was written by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Matt Fraction.
==Plot summary==
This story is centered on the Talz Muftak (aka "the Muftak") and the Chadra-Fan Kabe, two vagrants who patronize Chalmun's Spaceport Cantina in Mos Eisley. In the exposition, Kabe recounts a Bith legend about the afterlife to an individual known as "The Scrapper," who takes little interest in his legend. At night, the Muftak and Kabe sleep in the cavernous stone pipeways beneath Mos Eisley's spaceport. During business hours, the Muftak and Kabe prowl the cantina stealing the belongings of the cantina's patrons. They give the proceeds to Ackmena, who pays rent on their behalf to the cantina's owner, Chalmun.
Kabe and Ackmena like each other, with the latter liking her musical voice. When the time comes to pay their "rent," Kabe learns that the Muftak has spent their money on alcohol the previous night. The Muftak and Kabe suspect that the Abyssin Myo was involved in the Muftak's change of fortunes last night. Kabe instead pays Ackmena 45 credits from her own pocket. However, Ackmena tells them that they are still 60 credits short and gives them until that night to cough up the rest of the money. Later, the Muftak asks Kabe where she got the money.
Kabe explains that she obtained the money from selling the Kloo horn of the Bith Lirin Car'n. The Muftak then tells Kabe that Myo, who owes them both a significant sum, won said horn last night from Lirin Car'n himself. The Muftak had pocketed the horn with the intent of converting it to funds later that day in reparation of Myo's debt. Kabe admits taking the horn from him while he slept and selling it to a Scrapper for cash. The Muftak is angry that Kabe stole the Kloo horn while he slept. Kabe tells them that they will sort out the issue of paying tonight's rent first before dealing with Myo's wrath.
Meanwhile, a vindictive Lirin Car'n hires the Sakiyan bounty hunter Djas Puhr to recover his father's horn, which he lost to Myo. Car'n informs Puhr that someone stole the horn from Myo. Car'n agrees to pay Puhr 200 credits to recover the horn. Djas Puhr is familiar with Mos Eisley and its environs. In order to pay tonight's rent, the Muftak embarks on a plan that involves finding the "Smuggler," the "Pig-Nosed Man" and the "Walrus-Faced Man." Inside the cantina, the Muftak finds Myo and the Scrapper haggling over the Kloo horn.
The Scrapper claims that he sold the Kloo horn for 300 credits, but Myo does not believe him. When prompted, the Scrapper reveals that he sold it to Kabe. Elsewhere in the cantina, Djas Puhr attempts to steal a cane from the Smuggler and the Wookiee only to be surprised by Han Solo and Chewbacca. Han tells Puhr that he was going to pay Jabba but that he had to jettison his cargo when the Millennium Falcon was boarded by the Galactic Empire. After striking a deal not to collect the bounty on Han, Djas Puhr warns Han that Jabba the Hutt has placed a bounty on the latter's head.
Meanwhile, Myo angrily confronts Kabe and chokes her. Kabe manages to save herself by implicating the Muftak. The two decide to find Djas Puhr before he finds and kills them. Elsewhere, Greedo along with the "Pig-Nosed Man" and the "Walrus-Faced Man" confront Lirin Car'n over an unpaid debt. It is revealed that Car'n had secretly planned to sell the legendary Kloo horn of his father Lirin D'avi that morning, seeking to settle his debts with Greedo. Lirin tells Greedo he doesn't have the money and offers to pay it next week. Instead of killing him, Greedo raises his interest rate to 35 percent. After intimidating Lirin, Greedo decides to settle scores with his old adversary Han Solo.
Embarking on his plan, the Muftak meets with the "Pig-Nosed Man" Dr. Evazan, who pays him money to pay the balance to the "Smuggler" Solo. Per their arrangement, the money will be converted into drugs for Dr. Evazan to consume. The Muftak meets with Solo, who tells him he had to drop his cargo due to an Imperial patrol. The Muftak manages to speak with Chewbacca and convince him to accompany him as he explains their "shared predicament" to his client in the hope of alleviating his fury. The Muftak meets with Djas Puhr, Lirn Car'n, and Myo to find a solution to their interconnected debts. While they are discussing Greedo's plan to collect the bounty on Solo and Evazan's medication, Luke Skywalker, whom the Muftak mistakes for a teenage girl, enters the cantina.
As the discussion continues, Djas Puhr proposes a wager that they see Han Solo survive the day while Greedo fails to collect his bounty since he has no friends but those he pays. If he is right, Puhr offers to pay Lirin Car'n's debt to Myo. In return, Myo will pay his debt to the Muftak. The Muftak will then pay what he and Kabe owe Ackmena. However, if Solo loses, Puhr wagers that Evazan will kill the Muftak. Myo will then figure out that Kabe took the horn from the Muftak and pawned it and would probably kill her. With Lirin's debt unpaid, Greedo would take Chewbacca's pelt and Solo's scalp as trophies. A pessimistic the Muftak departs to inform Dr. Evazan about his dropped shipment of illicit narcotics.
While waiting, the Muftak accepts a drink from Kabe. He then watches as Ponda Baba attacks Skywalker. Skywalker's companion, the "Old Man" Obi-Wan Kenobi, then draws his lightsaber and slices into Ponda Baba and Dr. Evazan. Chewbacca reassures the Muftak that sometimes things take care of themselves. The Muftak and the others then watch Solo kill Greedo with a blaster shot. Honoring his bargain, Puhr pays Lirin Car'n's debt to Myo. Myo then pays the Muftak his share, allowing him and Kabe to pay the rest of their rent to Ackmena, who then pays Chalmun. While celebrating with a drink, the Muftak stumbles but is helped to his feet by his ally Lirin Car'n.
==Appearances==
==Notes and references==
Category:From a Certain Point of View