"To War"
by Chun Li, Escort Pilot
Axon (R2-X1), Astromech Droid
Cameo by Admiral Kano, Rebel Leader (NPC)

Location: Space around Chimearia
Date: Vadris 26, 5 ABY

***

Axon beeped and Li looked on the translation screen she had installed. "Indeed," she said as she started to move again, "shields on, weapons ready."

They had been waiting for over an hour at the edge of the Chimaeria system for information on the latest Jau ship movements. Now they had gotten them they could start their mission. "We aim for this one," Li said, indicating a destroyer on her screen. What it was exactly wasn't completely clear, but it was situated so that they could pop into the system on its aft, shoot a bunch of missiles at it and then move straight on while spending the least amount of time in the planet's gravity well. Also their data suggested that it was running without shields on.

Axon beeped an affirmative and started the calculations for the in- and outbound jump. As soon as he had finished the calculations were displayed on Li's screen and she pulled the hyperspace lever. The jump only took twenty seconds but Li wouldn't have minded it to be longer. Fortunately she came out as perfect as possible with a hyperspace jump. She also saw that her information was correct as she came out near the ship's engines. She flipped a switch to put her sensors to maximum and to record all the data. That would give them some more intelligence on the Jau and their reaction to an attack.

From her comm she heard a challenge from traffic control, but she ignored it. "Axon, paint the target," she ordered.

As the ship was big, at least compared with her fighter, that was quickly done. They had agreed to target the engines, as explosions there could ripple through the rest of the ship. Still her first two missiles were targeted at what they thought were shield generators. The missiles were still on their way when she linked both tubes and started firing at the engines. The first two missiles hit their spots and the two structures exploded while more voices came out of her comm. It became annoying to Li so she shut it down. She had nothing to say anyway.

Now she also started to see a reaction. A patrol frigate started to turn and some fighters were also on their way, but they would be too late. Li had launched all her missiles, two at the shield generators, six at the engines and her last two at the bridge. The destroyer was a bit larger then half the size of a Victory Class Star Destroyer. While it probably wouldn't be totally destroyed by the missiles, it would be put out of commission for quite some time, if not scrapped altogether. The missiles all hit, although missing a ship a bit more the 500 metres would be difficult. Immediately fires broke out and secondary explosions rippled through the ship. But Li didn't loiter to see their effect. She continued full speed and even engaged her -now rebuild- third engine for extra speed and the ability to go to hyperspace earlier. And she knew from the desert combat that those fighters were mightily fast and packed a big punch so she wanted to stay away from them as quickly as possible.

As she passed over the ship she fired her lasers and ion cannons as well, to do as much damage as possible. As soon as she had passed the destroyer she turned on her outbound course, keeping her rear firing blasters on the ship to do even more damage. The enemy fighters were closing in, but only slowly and Li was off in hyperspace before they were close enough to fire their missiles. All in all it had been a perfect mission and while the actual damage was only one ship and a small one at that, the amount of resources used were even smaller. Of course, Li knew that they would adapt. One the things that would probably happen was that the ships would keep their shields on so she couldn't kill them that easily.

They stayed in hyperspace for half a minute, before popping out and turning on a course that would eventually bring them to Coruscant if they followed it all the way. But Li had no intention of doing so and a minute later she popped out of hyperspace again to turn towards her final destination. It took fifteen minutes for her to reach the edge of the pirate system as she called it. Her IFF was on a setting they had to recognise and she moved slowly into the asteroid belt. Fifteen minutes later she had landed in the main hangar bay. When admiral Kano had taken over the base they had kept most of the layout, so Li knew her way around. After Axon had been taken out of her fighter, she walked to the admiral's office to report.

"When you said quick strikes against the Jau, I didn't think you meant quite so literally," Kano said. "How'd it go?"

"It went very smooth," Li said, "I came in, shot my missiles at a destroyer and flew out again. It was as if they were asleep. But they won't be next time. We'll have to think of something else."

"That we will," he said. "Most of our resistance has been on the ground, I imagine they didn't expect us hitting anything in space. It might give us a clue to how they're planning this out. We'll have to devise a different strategy for the next run. See that Commander Hobbes gets the sensor data. I'll have him go through it and see what we can turn up."

"I'll add some comments later," Li said, "but now I would like to have some sleep. With your permission?"

Kano nodded and Li left his office to go to her quarters after bringing Axon, who had stored all the sensor information, to the intelligence people.

---

"Breakfast For Three"
By: Analesse D'vrishay
Minn Starcrash (aka Minn Dakara)
Merrick Braston Bic [NPC]

Location: The White Noise, New Plouton
Date: Vadris 26, 5 ABY

***

Bic looked up from behind the bar when Analesse walked in. As was her usual custom when Merrick wasn't out front, she proceeded toward the back and his dressing room.

A wave of panic hit him. He pressed a hidden button behind the bar and then quickly moved to intercept her.

"Please, Ms. D'Vrishay," he called out. "Mr. Braston asked for you to wait for him out here. I just buzzed for him, so he'll be out in just a moment. If you want to grab a seat there. He said something about a special breakfast."

He gestured to one of the tables with his free hand. The other was holding a bottle and glasses.

Analesse considered the table only briefly before disregarding it. "I can wait for him back there if he truly doesn't want me to interrupt his meeting." She pressed on, wondering why Merrick had not mentioned a breakfast conference to her when they normally shared everything with one another.

Bic followed a few steps after her, feebly trying to get her attention back. He knew that she couldn't get into Merrick's dressing room. That was most important. No matter what, Analesse couldn't get into Merrick's dressing room.

Reaching the back hallway that led toward the facilities that operated behind the scenes at the White Noise, Analesse found Merrick coming toward her. He was wearing a pair of lightweight pants and his body was flushed from exertion. His chest, arms and waist glistened with the sheen of sweat.

"Lessa," he said with a grin. "I didn't expect you yet. I had a special surprise for you over breakfast." He saw Bic coming up behind her, shaking his head emphatically as his gaze bored toward Merrick's dressing room. Merrick glanced to the closed door with his name boldly stated in gold lettering. "Let's go out to the front room. They've got to be close to having something ready for breakfast."

She frowned in confusion, trying to reconcile Merrick's appearance with Bic's story of a breakfast meeting. Analesse folded her arms stiffly across her chest. "You haven't had breakfast yet? So you left your guest waiting in your dressing room while you did....what, exactly? Go for a run?"

"There are no guests, and the breakfast was to be with you," Merrick said, trying to direct her back down the hall. "I was waiting for you. I figured we'd share breakfast and I could tell you the good news. I was working out."

Analesse raised her hand insistently, suspicious about being ushered away so hastily. "Why did Bic tell me you were meeting with someone then?"

"I don't know," Merrick said shifting his gaze to Bic. "Why did Bic tell you I was meeting with someone?"

Bic flushed looking between Merrick and Analesse. "I didn't mean. I wasn't trying to. It's just...just I meant that he was meeting with you, Ms. D'Vrishay." Not realizing how much his stammering was exacerbating the situation, he continued on. "He wanted to have breakfast with you. Out at that table. Out in front. That's why I said. That was the breakfast. Not meeting. Oh, Mr. Braston doesn't meet with anyone this early. He was just working out to keep himself fit for his shows."

The look Analesse fixed upon Bic spoke volumes as to how she thoroughly doubted his sanity. She swivelled her gaze towards Merrick, still questioning the scenario being presented to her. "If we're having breakfast, why haven't you showered yet?" Sighing impatiently, Analesse seized Merrick's hand and drew him with her towards his dressing room. "While you shower, I have something to discuss that shouldn't wait until breakfast."

"Perfect plan," Merrick said, allowing her to lead him.

Behind them, Bic tried to dissuade them from the going further. In the end, however, they had put him out of their minds and there was nothing he could do. Everything would be ruined.

Bic was helpless to do anything to stop that, though.

Lessa's hand found the handle of the door. Merrick cast a glance back at Bic, a question in his eyes. Bic shook his head, a mix of anger and panic. But it was too late as the door was pushed open.

Thankfully, the large bed was not directly in front of the door. Just ahead was a large couch and a pair of chairs. To the right was the door to the refresher, small bar and table setting, and the large closet for Merrick's clothes he used for the show.

To the left, for times when he was forced to stay late, or didn't want to get away from the White Noise, a luxury bed. Usually, the bed was partitioned off with hangings, but those were pushed back this morning. And the large bed was occupied.

Dark hair falling over one of the pillows, Minn Dakara became aware she was no longer alone in the room. She sat up in the bed, a lazy smile forming on her lips as she looked toward the door. The shock of finding Analesse there brought a gasp from her lips. Quickly, her hands fluttered to cover her bare chest. Realizing she had the bedding bunched around her obviously naked hips, she quickly reached down and pulled a sheet up to cover herself.

"Ms. D'Vrishay," she murmured.

"I can explain," Bic stammered as he tried to get through the door. As Analesse pierced him with a steely gaze, the bottle in his hand became apparent along with the three long, fluted glasses. A good look at him there, trembling before her, showed Bic wearing what looked like a pair of pajama pants. Merrick's loose-fitting pants looked very similar. Maybe not pajamas, but easily to pull on quickly. "She's here with me. We've been...we're seeing each other."

Analesse was visibly trembling with bottled rage. Her indurate stare settled on Merrick as she asked coldly, "Then why are there three glasses?"

The fury of her gaze, suddenly turned on him, dashed any reply he could have made. He opened his mouth, but no sound came out.

"It was for the goddess," Bic said quickly. "Minn said we needed a glass for the goddess. It's a custom. Just me and her, and a glass for the goddess to bless our relationship."

From the bed, Minn gasped. "The goddess is a desert thing," she said. "Why would I ever suggest that? You said it was all okay, Bic. You said...you said this was normal. Didn't you say that that day I came to watch him, that you thought I was here for him? That we had a thing?"

Bic was suddenly off-guard. "Well, I said that. I thought...but it wasn't like that. You harpy!" He shot a panicked look at Analesse, then gave a long stare to Minn in the bed big enough for three. "It was just the two of us, Ms. D'Vrishay. Merrick, he wasn't involved. It was just her and me, in the bed."

Analesse's vision narrowed to just Merrick, appearing bewildered and speechless, and Minn, watching Merrick with a sweet ardency as if entreating him to confess the truth of their love; her memory flashed through the events of the previous days where seemingly innocent encounters between Minn and Merrick began to assume a not so innocuous tone, and Analesse's former suspicions acquired validation. Now, presented with no explanations regarding how a sweat-soaked Merrick hadn't known about a naked Minn sleeping in his bed, Analesse could draw no other conclusion. Her naturally beauteous visage twisted into a mask of hatred and grief that was at once piteous and disturbing as Analesse's control collapsed. "Don't show up at the office again," she rasped, "because I won't stop myself from throttling you the next time, you harlot." Her incisive glare lingered on Minn to impress upon the girl the seriousness of her warning, then she speared Merrick with the same scowl of revulsion. "Enjoy your breakfast, loverboy. I think I'll eat out instead."

Merrick threw a glare at both Minn and Bic, then hurried after her. "Analesse! Wait! There is nothing going on between me and Minn. Nothing!"

The sound of Merrick's voice spurred Analesse forward, propelling her into a full run. "Stay back!" she hollered.

"So this is it," he called after her. "You'll believe her lies before you'll even let me speak for myself? Are we over then, Lessa? Is this it?"

She came to a staggering halt then whirled on him, where her tear-stained cheeks were visible. "Tell me where your clothes are and why she's in your bed! Tell me why Bic tried every damned excuse to keep me from getting backstage!" Analesse angrily swatted away the tears and shrieked, "Why the hells were there three glasses, Merrick!?"

"I don't know why there were three glasses," Merrick said. He kept his distance from her, but approached close enough that he didn't need to shout. "Yesterday, Bic's place was damaged when some Resistance fighters were attacking the Jau. I don't use the bed in there, so I told him if he needed a place to sleep, he could use the bed in my dressing room.

"He was giving Minn looks when she was here last night for the show and I saw them talking afterwards. I saw them leaving together. I don't know where they went. When I got here, there was a note for me telling me he was using the bed. I was waiting for him to wake up before going in. I decided to get in some exercise, so I was using the equipment we have set up down the hall. I didn't know she was in there, and I didn't tell him he could bring her there. If they're happy together, then great for them. But I never touched her, never had any interest in touching her. I don't know what's going on. I don't know how to say it any plainer than that, Lessa. I don't know what's going on, but...but..." He broke off, trying to think the situation through. "It's like she's playing a subtle game, trying to come between us. Sleeping with him and making it sound like I was a part of it. If she told him to get three glasses, and tried to play it off as if... It's crazy." He threw up his hands. "It doesn't make any sense."

"No," she agreed coolly, "it doesn't. That's what makes it so hard to believe. How did she know I'd show up? Did she just request three glasses in the hope that I'd walk through that door? You sang to her, Merrick! You've been alone together! Is it just coincidence?"

"I didn't think anything of it when I sang to her," Merrick said. "She couldn't have known I would offer. We have breakfast together like this frequently, before you go into the office, right? And you're a very punctual woman. You always arrive about the same time, right? Maybe she's just been watching. Or maybe it's all stupid coincidence." He wanted to retort that Minn was just a child, but that would be a bad move. Talara was a child, and Lessa had seen that recording. "I'd love to blame this all on Reinrich, but this is too subtle for him. What will it take for me to convince you I have no designs on Minn? No interest in her."

"I don't know," she whispered, her anger losing some of its fuel. "I don't understand any of this. This is crazy! This shouldn't be happening. Our life together should be normal...right?"

"Right," he said softly. He was about to go to her, about to take her into his arms.

But, behind him, the whisper of bare feet against the hardwood floor sounded. She was wearing only the sheet from his bed. One corner had fallen from her shoulder, revealing the pale flesh there. One leg was unclad as she stepped forward toward him.

"Merrick?" As he turned, the sheet slipped to flash one small breast before she quickly pulled the fabric in to cover herself again. "I'm sorry I'm causing you trouble. When Bic signaled she was here, you told me to leave. Maybe I should have, but I don't want to just be a secret mistress. I'm sorry. I can't." Tears filled her eyes. "I want to walk into parties on your arm. You can have both of us, like Tae'Karada law says."

"What are you talking about," Merrick demanded. "You're not my mistress, Minn. You're nothing to me! You're delusional!"

"How can you say that? I know we haven't had much time together, but how could you say that? I...I thought we had... I agreed to have Bic in the bed with us because you said it was like with your ex-wife. I've never experienced anything like that before. It was amazing. I'd only do that for you though."

"Minn, this is wrong. There was nothing. We don't have anything."

Minn's only answer was the flow of more tears as she stepped forward toward him.

"Oh gods," Analesse groaned as she covered her mouth with one hand to keep the vomit rising in her throat from spilling out. She shook her head in disbelief, not trusting herself to weed out the lies from the truth anymore. Gagging, Analesse bolted, unwilling to abandon the final shred of her pride by retching before Merrick and his mistress.

Merrick knew that going after Analesse was not an option now. So instead, he turned on Minn.

"You vile, lying bitch," he snarled. "Get out! Get out of here or I'll do something we both regret!"

Minn let the sheet fall open, exposing herself to him. "I've got a couple ideas," she said sweetly. He took a step toward her, and she backed away, quickly pulling the sheet closed. "Okay. Just let me get my clothes."

"I should just throw you out on the street," he growled. "But get your clothes and go. I don't ever want to see you again. If I do, you're dead, Minn. You've destroyed everything and I promise you I will kill you if I ever see your face again."

As Minn fled from his gaze, she couldn't help feeling terrible inside. She had done wicked things in her life. She knew she wasn't a good person. She was a positively evil person when it came down to it. Training to be a Sith, doing her master's bidding, and destroying lives wherever she went. But this was, by far, the most terrible thing she had ever done.

She pulled her clothes on quickly. Bic was watching her with hate-filled eyes where he sat on the bed. He was ruined, as well. He would likely be fired and he would never get out from the hand she had left him with here. He would forever be the instrument of destruction between Merrick Braston and Analesse D'Vrishay.

Pulling her cloak around her, Minn hurried from the White Noise. She was Minn Starcrash again when she stepped out the door. Minn Dakara was no more, though she couldn't help feeling a slight bit of sadness at the alter ego's passing.

She turned toward the shadier districts of New Plouton. She had a report to make, and she suspected she would at least brighten one day today.

---

"Cometh the Herald"
By: Minn Dakara
Reinrich Tas

Location: Reinrich's Apartment, New Plouton
Date: Vadris 26, 5 ABY

***

Minn knew that Reinrich wouldn't be at his office or the club yet. She knew that while the sun was up, he would be in his office. While the sun was down, at his club. Before the sun could be qualified as having risen, he would be at his luxury penthouse apartment high atop one of the tallest buildings in New Plouton.

On foot, Minn was able to reach the place twenty minutes after leaving the White Noise. She smoothed her skirt as she rode the lift up to the top floor of the building. The lift deposited her into a foyer before the large double doors that would lead to Reinrich Tas' private domain.

Wanting to surprise him, she approached the door. Holding a hand before the lock, she reached out through the Force, feeling for the mechanism that held the door in place. Finding it, she toggled it. The door slid open.

She slipped through the door and went in search of Reinrich. She had a feeling he would approve of the news she brought him. A sign of movement off to her left pulled Minn's gaze to the living area. Arranged lazily atop the sofa, with one leg draped over the side and the other the backrest, a young woman with dishevelled red hair and languid gaze watched Minn with amusement. The ill-fitting robe wrapped about her and falling back from her shoulders was clearly Reinrich's, though she seemed unaffected by the fact that both parted legs and uncovered bosom revealed to Minn body parts that were better left concealed to strangers. Her entire mien conveyed a sense of confidence and disregard, and in heavily accented basic, she gibed, "You his seven o'clock?"

"No," Minn answered. She met the woman's stare with one of her most imperious looks. "I have news for him that he will want. Where is he?"

She waved a slender hand negligently. "If you're not an appointment, you must be the maid. Find him yourself."

Minn took three steps toward the whore and the power of the dark side began to radiate from her. Invisible fingers seized the woman's throat. "You have an insolent attitude," she growled. "I think you will need to adjust that immediately. You are only meat for him to sate his lusts, nothing more. You have no import besides warming his karking bed. Now, I will ask one more time. Where. Is. He?"

Terror replaced the serene, smug expression the woman had been sporting. Bare feet kicking at the sofa cushions, she futilely tried to escape from the unseen hand constricting her throat while her fingernails left tracks of blood down her neck. "Bed...room," she croaked.

Minn released her from the Force grip and turned. "Thank you," she purred as she sauntered toward Reinrich's bedroom.

A frightened cry preceded the front door swishing open and shut as Minn reached the room. Reinrich was just exiting his bathroom and stopped short when she appeared. He smiled charmingly and folded his arms over his bared chest. "You met Jahel, I gather."

"She was quite lovely," Minn said. "If I had my lightsaber with me, I would have cut her tongue out for her. But, that's not why I'm here. I am officially unemployed. Less than an hour ago, Analesse D'Vrishay walked into Merrick Braston's dressing room and found me naked in his bed. I did nothing to dissuade her from the notion that Merrick and I had been in the bed doing things she hotly disapproved of. She fired me, and she fired him as well."

"What?" He rushed towards her and grasped her arms, excitement clear in his pale eyes. "So soon? Was it enough?"

"Oh, I'm quite sure it was," Minn answered with a large smile. "You should have seen the look on her face as she left. I thought she was about to get sick right then and there. And the look she gave him. If he ever shows up in the same room as her again, I'm quite certain she will kill him. I think it may have been too much."

"Too much?" he repeated derisively. "It's perfect." Releasing Minn, Reinrich stalked to his closet and rummaged through it purposefully. "This is the best thing that could have happened. Now, I have to take things delicately at first - she hates me, can't scare her away. Do you think she likes flowers?"

"Flowers might be a bit much," Minn suggested. "Especially now. She's a very prickly woman, and moreso now after what happened. You need to give her a little bit of time, but not too much. You don't want her regretting what she's done. Ideally, you will need to come to her as a knight in shining armour. There's a meeting day after tomorrow with some investors. The people she will be meeting with are the clients I wowed. I think they might be a touch upset that she fired me, but if we play our hand right, you can be the one to help restore their faith in her. Point to you, and perhaps more."

"And you could arrange that?" he asked skeptically. "She'll only think I'm interfering or trying to steal them. You do remember she hates me, right?"

"Probably not as much as she hates me," Minn said. "I installed a backdoor into the office computer system. I've got access to her schedule, among other things. Which do you think she would find more suspicious, receiving flowers from you out of the blue or your unexpected arrival at a meeting, along with a selection of clients and member of the Plaza staff escorting you to your meeting space and then helping her save face in her meeting. With a few credits, I can convince one of the clients she'll be meeting with to be particularly obstinate and difficult. But, he'll settle down when you put him in his place for her. She'll win them back and you'll be her hero."

Reinrich watched her sidelong while buttoning his shirt. "You've thought a lot about this. It's...a feasible plan. You can make it happen?"

"I'll make it happen," Minn said. "I imagine there are other ways to do it, but I believe the key is making her believe that our carefully crafted coincidence is happenstance. And she has to see you in a new light."

"So," he asked with a roguish smile, "are you going to teach me how to be a gentleman, then?"

"The Force is capable of many things, but I think that one is beyond its power," Minn answered, an impish grin flashing in her eyes. "But, a good start would be looking into her face and not at her breasts. Just be human without being a sleaze, and you should be fine."

"Are you saying I shouldn't grope her?" He chuckled. "She knows I'm a lecher and now I'm to convince her I've turned a new leaf." Reinrich sighed, crossing his arms again pensively. "You think you could perform one of your mind brainwashing tricks on her?"

"She's got too sharp a mind for that," Minn said. "Maybe you can't convince her you're not, but if she's desperate enough for someone to comfort her, it may not matter."

"Then you have to make sure she and Merrick Braston don't reconcile," Reinrich told her, "or she won't need comforting."

"I'll do what I can," Minn said, "but I really can't reveal myself to either of them. Neither are very happy with me, and I suspect they'd turn me over to the Tae'Morad or the Jau if I gave them half a chance. I don't particular mind if they try, but I will have to reveal what I am if they do. You'll probably need to act quickly to woo her. I'll see what I can manage as far as obstacles to Braston."

Reinrich chuckled, watching Minn appraisingly. "You've become quite the asset...in many respects." His smile was leering. "You'll stay the night these evening, but for now I'd like you to keep an eye on Braston's movements. I don't want him near her to remind Analesse of how much she may love him. She's weak - she will bend if he comes around begging forgiveness."

"I'll make sure he's not able to contact her," Minn said. "I have a few tricks in mind, though I'm not entirely sure how easy they will be to implement. I think I should perhaps also stop by the office to clean out my desk. That should help keep the whole thing fresh in her head, don't you think?"

"You really are cruel." Reinrich grinned. "Impressive." He combed his fingers through his tousled hair and retrieved his jacket. "Keep me updated. I'm going to pay a visit to a friend." As he passed alongside Minn, Reinrich stopped abreast to Minn. "You did well today. I'll make sure your former master knows this, and you're awarded accordingly."

Minn smiled to herself and bowed as she would to Jax. "I will see you again this evening, Master."

---

"Nowhere to Turn, Part 1"
By: Merrick Braston
Kaysa Zenarr-Tregat
Zale Tregat

Location: Tregat Residence, New Plouton
Date: Vadris 26, 5 ABY

***

All day long, Merrick Braston had felt as if he were being followed. Every time he looked, though, there was no one there. Twice, he'd thought he saw Minn. But, a second look and it was only some other young woman who looked like her.

He had tried three times to contact Analesse's office. Nemyos had been pleasant the first time, but had coldly informed him he could no longer speak to him the second. Perhaps Moril could be of some help there. The third call, he was informed that calls were no longer being accepted from his comm.

With nowhere else to go, no other avenue to follow, he'd followed the path he had sworn he would never follow again. The bridge had been burned, and yet here he was.

The house was large and well protected. He was barred from entering at the gate, and could only signal from the call box beside the brick alcove beside the gate.

"Yes," came the static-filled voice from the house. "Merrick? How can I help you?"

The voice belonged to Zale Tregat and it gave Merrick a slight feeling of solace.

"I've got...there's a problem," he said. "It's Analesse. Things...she's...we're done. At least...at least until I figure out what's going on."

"You sound bad, Merrick," Zale said. "Let me buzz you through. Come on up to the house. I'll meet you at the door."

The line went dead, but the gate was opening. Merrick stepped through before it was fully open and proceeded up to the large house at the top of the small hill. He approached the door. It opened even as he raised a hand to knock.

"Come in," Zale said.

Merrick started to step in and saw Kaysa just behind him. Her standing there, her presence, it made all of this so much worse. "Thanks," he said softly.

He hadn't shaved since the previous day. His clothes were clean, but he had taken little care in dressing himself this morning. He had stayed in his dressing room the night before, but wouldn't use the bed there. Instead, he'd spent a fitful night asleep in one of the chairs. So, on top of being tired, his neck and back ached. He'd looked worse in his life, but this was the worst it had been for awhile.

Zale led the way into a sitting room, offering Merrick a seat. Kaysa followed like a pale shadow. Sitting across the low table, Zale regarded his friend. "Tell me what happened," he said.

"Analesse found a girl in my bed yesterday morning," Merrick said. "She was her assistant and came to a couple shows. She started seeing Bic, Chrik's son, last night. I told Bic he could stay in my dressing room, there's a bed there, while his place was getting repaired. The Jau blew it up in a fight the other day. And so Lessa comes in and finds Minn there. She's the girl, the assistant. And Minn tells her that it was me and Bic with her, and I only told her to bring Bic in because it reminded me of life here. So, Analesse left. She's got my calls blocked to her office now."

"And Lessa believed her," Zale said. "What would make her believe this girl over you?"

"She's good. She had everything set up to shine the worst possible light on me. She knew exactly what to say and exactly which of the events in my past to dredge up. She got the life we had here, Talara. She left out the whole murder and all that, but she hit most everything else."

Zale nodded, braids waving like the ocean with the movement. "I can talk to her," he said. "I'm assuming you didn't do all this, right?"

"Of course not," Merrick said. He was holding together, but there was a touch of despair under his voice. "The girl is pretty, but I wouldn't do something like that. I couldn't do something like that to Analesse."

Zale sucked in a breath then let it out. He glanced aside at where Kaysa waited, watching. "I'll talk to her, though I can't promise any results. She's a headstrong lady, and I'm sure even mentioning your name will raise her anxiety level. I could bring Moril with me, and at least he could get Nemyos on our side."

"Whatever you could do, I'd be very grateful," Merrick said. "I'm not quite going out of my head yet, but it's close. I've had the sense that someone is following me, watching me."

"If you don't mind, I can provide a shadow for you," Zale said. "Make sure there isn't someone following you. This sounds a lot like a set up to me."

From beside Zale, Kaysa's eyes watched Merrick unflinchingly. Having been deeply intimate with Kaysa, Merrick detected what was stirring beneath her outwardly dispassionate gaze: amused irony. He had cut all ties with her and banished all chance of reconciling to be with Analesse...and now she had abandoned him. It was difficult not to be cruel, but Kaysa was satisfied with these turn of events. Perhaps, she could forgive him, for now he was experiencing the despair he had inflicted upon her. Faintly, Kaysa smiled sympathetically. She patted Zale's knee affectionately. "Perhaps Merrick can stay here for a while," Kaysa suggested, still watching Merrick. "It would be easier to keep him safe if he is close by."

"Great idea," Zale said, turning an appraising eye toward Merrick. "We've got more than enough space."

Merrick nodded. "Sure," he said. "I don't think I could stay in my dressing room another night. Thank you both. I know things haven't been great between us, but..."

"Say no more," Zale said. "You'll always have friends here, and a place to sleep if you ever need it."

"We'd never turn our backs on you," she added meaningfully, "not for anyone or anything."

"Thank you," Merrick said. "It's...it means very much to me. And I know I haven't been... I guess after everything, I don't know if I deserve it. I can't believe all of this."

"Do you know who might be behind it," Zale asked.

"My first thought is Reinrich Tas," Merrick said. "He's been trying to come between Analesse and myself from the beginning. He wants her for himself and would do anything to make it happen."

"And you didn't suspect this girl was one of his minions?" Kaysa asked. "After all the time you spent with me, and having been witness to my cunning, I'm shocked you didn't see right through her."

"She worked for Analesse," Merrick said. "Apparently she had good recommendations from the school she attended and performed her job well. There didn't appear to be anything to indicate she was anything but what she appeared. Before things suddenly blew up, I didn't see anything to make me suspect there was an issue. In the end, the whole thing seems too subtle for Tas. The situation played out more like one of those old illegal shows that depicted the Sith's machinations."

Kaysa sighed. "Well whatever the case, you're in a mess. But--" she smiled warmly, "we'll help." Patting Zale's knee, Kaysa rose. "I'll prepare the guest bedroom, then something for you to eat." Assessing Merrick's overly thin state, Kaysa tsked disapprovingly. "When did you last eat?"

"Yesterday," Merrick said, but frowned as he thought about it. "Day before yesterday. Dinner after the show. I guess it's been awhile."

Shaking her head chidingly, Kaysa chuckled and started out of the living room. "I'll call you two when it's ready!"

"Thank you," Merrick said. The smile he gave her was distracted as he tried to put all the pieces together. "I don't understand it. If this is Reinrich Tas, the move isn't like him. He usually does it himself, usually likes to be in on the personal taunting. But it's never worked." He looked up at Zale. "Maybe...maybe trying to get her, get Analesse, was so important to him, that he went outside his usual circle. Brought in this girl."

"If you give me what information you have about her, I can see what I can find," Zale said. "I'm sort of in thick with the Jedi now, but I don't think this is really something we can turn over to them. Plus, they're on the run again."

Merrick looked up. "What happened?"

"Your time in the spotlight's kept you out of the loop. According to Master Darr, an Imperial soldier waltzed right into their safehouse. They've moved to somewhere much more secure where no one can just walk right in."

Merrick nodded. "I won't even ask." He was quiet for a moment, a question gnawing at him. "How's Talara?"

"She's good," Zale answered, suddenly curious. "Since the time we were my brothers' prisoners, you've barely mentioned her. Why the interest?"

"Recent events have sort of brought that time back to the front of my memory. I couldn't ever admit it, even to myself, but...but I think I loved her. I mean, real love."

Zale shrugged. "It was a tough time. I think we were all feeling things that we wouldn't have felt otherwise. But, she seems close to Keeve now, so if you don't get things settled with Analesse, I suspect you're out of luck."

"I don't think I'd pursue it with her even if I could," Merrick said. "Still, I don't think I would have made it through all that without her."

The silence stretched out between the two friends. They could hear Kaysa in the kitchen, a thought that frightened both but the hunger was enough to make Merrick hold his tongue.

"Did you see Maeren?" the singer asked.

"It was Kim," Zale said. "Still so hard to tell the two of them apart. Maeren wasn't anywhere, I could find. Keeve didn't seem to care, though. When we were evacuating the Jedi, Talara was asking about Maeren. There wasn't time to get her. She mentioned some club in the city."

Merrick looked up. "Maeren's at a club?"

"Keeve said she'd made her choice to leave the Jedi and get a job. He said that if she wanted to be a dancer, that was her business. Talara said something about her being being safer with the Jedi, but Keeve wouldn't budge," Zale said. "A place called Nocturnal something."

Merrick froze. "Nocturnal Delights?"

Zale nodded. "Yes, that's it," he said.

"Gods," the singer rasped. As Zale started to ask what was wrong, Merrick continued. "That's Reinrich's club. It's...it's practically a brothel. It's much much worse than the Palace of Stars. If Maeren's there...oh gods..."

"Dinner's almost ready," Kaysa informed them, watching their solemn faces inquisitively. "What now? You don't want my food?"

"It's not that," Zale said. "Merrick and I were talking. It's about Maeren. It sounds like she's working as a dancer for the same man Merrick thinks is behind what happened between him and Analesse."

"And why am I just hearing about this?" she asked incredulously. "Has anyone talked to her?"

"We didn't know until we were just talking," Zale said.

Merrick nodded. "I imagine Keeve knows where she is," he said. "He was the one who told Zale where she was, but he didn't make the connection that it was Reinrich's."

"I think Talara knew," Zale added. "And she was upset they weren't going to go get her out of there."

Kaysa glowered at Zale. "And what are you planning on doing to get her out of that place?"

"Don't have a full plan yet, but I am coming up with something," Zale said. "Merrick what more do you know about the club?"

"Not much," Merrick said. "Just that it's owned by Tas and has a reputation that makes the Palace of Stars look like wholesome entertainment."

Zale clenched his jaw. "I'll have a team ready to get her out first thing in the morning," he said. He rose from the sofa and started toward the door. "I'll need to get in touch with the office. Go ahead and start dinner without me. Tomorrow, we'll have a special dinner for Maeren. I'm cooking."

Kaysa hurried after Zale and slipped in front of him as he reached the door. Watching him from beneath her long lashes, Kaysa smiled. "You're my hero, Zale Tregat. Just promise not to leave me alone here with Merrick for too long."

Zale smiled at Kaysa as she blocked his way into the small office he'd set up at home, tying him directly into Antorial Industries. "I'll have Moril get everything started," he said. "He knows what we need to do. I'll join the team in the morning. I should only be out of the room for a few minutes. If you're worried about Merrick during the time I'm gone tomorrow, maybe he'll head in to the club." He kissed her forehead. "Are you sure you're alright with him here?"

"Well, you know how I hate uncomfortable silences." She grimaced. "It'll be fine, I guess. Just hurry...please?" Clearing out of his path, Kaysa started towards Merrick, sullenly glancing back at Zale.

"I'll be back before you realize I've been gone," Zale said with a smile. "Besides, you get him eating, it's an acceptable silence."

She chuckled in spite of herself and proceeded forward with greater confidence, summoning Merrick to follow when she passed him. Together, they entered the kitchen for Kaysa's thrown together meal.

---

"Nowhere to Turn, Part 2"
By: Merrick Braston
Kaysa Zenarr-Tregat
Zale Tregat

Location: Tregat Residence, New Plouton
Date: Vadris 26, 5 ABY

***

As Merrick seated himself, Kaysa carried over steaming pot of soup she'd whipped up and ladled a generous helping into Merrick's bowl. Smiling tightly, she sat herself down and filled her own bowl. "It's nothing much...but soup's all I know how to do on short notice."

"Soup's perfect," Merrick said. As he started eating, he realized just how hungry he was. "It's good. Though, I may have to have a second bowl of it if you have extra, just to make sure that isn't my hunger talking."

Kaysa wrinkled her nose sourly. "You sure know how to insult a girl, Braston. Zale likes my cooking." Studying her spoon as she stirred her soup, Kaysa muttered, "But I don't blame you. We didn't part on good terms. If you're at all holding a grudge, I understand."

Merrick stopped and looked up at her. With a sigh, he closed his eyes and set the spoon down beside the bowl. "I didn't mean it that way," he said softly, opening his eyes to look at her. "It's just right now, you could put Aria's food in front of me, and I would consider it an exquisite banquet. I wasn't trying to insult you or your cooking. It's just...I'm a lot hungrier than I thought I was."

"I know," she said quietly. "Things didn't end well for us...and I want to apologize for being so stubborn and refusing your offer of friendship." Lifting her gaze and meeting his, Kaysa smiled. "Can we be friends, then?"

"I'd like that," Merrick said. "It was very difficult, how everything happened. I know you went through a lot with Cadwin and Vrax, and I wasn't very helpful. I'm very sorry for not being there when you needed me."

"You should be," she told him sternly. "I went through hell, and to not have you there when I came out the other side.... It hurt a lot, and I know I was at fault, but I still could've used your support."

"I know," Merrick said as he picked up the spoon once more and began stirring his soup. "I'm...I'm just glad you had Zale here for you. With all the stuff that had happened, I was angry. I tried to help where I could, but I know it wasn't nearly enough. How have things been besides my being a schmuck?"

Her slender shoulders rose and fell in a weak shrug. "We're happy and I'm better. We finally have time to ourselves now that the family's gotten smaller. But...." She sighed and lifted an accusatory eyebrow at Merrick. "Aria misses you. You don't visit her nearly enough."

Merrick smiled. "I've missed her too," he said. "I suppose she's asleep at this hour, but maybe tomorrow I can spend some time visiting with her. If she still wants me to visit, of course."

"Don't worry, she's like her father: level-headed." She smiled fondly and sipped a spoonful of broth. "Tomorrow, then. That is, unless Analesse comes to her senses and decides to take you back."

"I think even if she does," Merrick said, "I'd still like to be able to spend some time with Aria. I suspect, going after Maeren, Zale may not have a chance to talk to her tomorrow."

"Well I know it's the last thing you may want...." Kaysa offered hesitantly, "I could talk to her. I know you best of all - if I believe you didn't do what you're being accuses of, then she must know you didn't do it."

"I appreciate the offer," Merrick said. "I truly do. But, with as angry as she was and because of our past relationship, I really think if you showed up to talk to her, it would only make her more angry. I think Zale talking to her could set her off as well. I'd really like to have a nice heart-to-heart with Reinrich. I wonder what he would do if I made an appointment to talk to him."

"He sounds like real nerf dung. If Analesse were to be told he's behind this, wouldn't it change everything? Would she care?"

"I think it would," Merrick said. "If she could see the truth, that I had nothing to do with Minn but the whole thing was a set up. Getting the proof, though, that's the hardest part. It's my word against what she thought she saw."

Kaysa sighed and shook her head gravely as she idly swirled the soup once again. "I wonder how I might have reacted in such a situation.... I'd like to think I would have been more understanding, but...." She shrugged. "As much as I would love for you to come back to me, Merrick...I'm still so sorry about what's happened. I hate seeing you in such pain. If I can do anything to make it easier on you...."

"I think your relationships put you in a better position to come to an understanding if something like that happened," Merrick said. "While I'm sure you would have liked all of us to only be devoted to you, you were understanding when Maeren was a part of the relationship as well. I think you're much more open and understanding about relationships. Analesse can't even conceive of something like that. The thought of having more than one partner is a descent into depravity for her."

Kaysa frowned. "Then how can you be with someone like that, Merrick? If she's so close-minded, how can you love her? You've gone from living so freely to being selfishly trapped by that woman. It's...appalling!"

"Because there is much more of her to love," he answered. "And, at the time, it was sufficient. It was just when someone used that against her that it all turned into a problem that is splitting us apart."

"Then maybe she needs to change so it won't be such an issue in the future. Or," Kaysa added with a wan smile, "I should just mind my own business."

Merrick chuckled. "If she continues being so stubborn," he said, "it may no longer be a concern."

Kaysa sat upright, her spoon clattering against the side of her bowl as she released it. "You can't," she insisted. "Merrick, you can't give up on her, not like you gave up on me. Who will you turn to then? What will happen to you?"

"I'm going to keep going on," Merrick said. "I'm not giving up, Kaysa. But, I know there's nothing I can do yet. Not until...not until she cools off at least. Not until I know what happened. But, I'm not going to give up. I hope through that, and after, that we can still be friends. Whatever happens, I'm not going to let our friendship go again. I can't do that again."

Smiling crookedly, and confirming where Keeve had picked up his particular facial idiosyncrasies, Kaysa quipped, "So does this mean you're going to start being a friend? Unless ignoring someone is your definition of 'friendship'."

"Now that I know I'm welcome here again," Merrick said with a grin, "I won't be a stranger and I'll do my best to be a friend. Besides, someone has to teach Aria some music appreciation."

"And--" Kaysa held up her spoon, pulled back on its lip and loosed a cube of pota root Merrick's way-- "food appreciation!" She laughed as it bounced off his forehead.

Merrick reached out and found the slimy, wet spot left by the pota root. "That's a waste of perfectly good soup," he cried, but promptly sent a small piece of chippen whizzing toward Kaysa.

That was how Zale found them when he entered the kitchen, flinging whatever was left in their soup bowls at one another across the table. "What the hell is going on," he called and was promptly pelted with another bit of pota root amidst Kaysa and Merrick's laughter.

"Merrick finds my food--" she shrieked as a pea splatted on her cheek "--unpalatable!"

"I don't find it unpalatable," Merrick answered as he flung another pea at her, along with a healthy bit of broth. "It's just that it's difficult to eat the soup when you're only able to eat what you can catch as it's flung across the table at you!"

"That's just an excuse," she exclaimed amid laughter, "to avoid eating it!" And like-mindedly, both picked up their bowls and tossed what was left over of their soup at one another. As the warm liquid spilled down the front of their clothing, Kaysa and Merrick stared dumbfounded before erupting into breathless laughter. "You needed a good shower anyway!"

"Yes, a shower of pota broth soup is just what was needed," Merrick said, still laughing. "And you too. Though, it does occur to me that I didn't bring a change of clothes."

Zale laughed. "You should have thought of that before you got in a food fight," he said.

Merrick grinned. "She started it," he offered.

"I think I have some things that should fit you, though they may be a little big on you."

"He'll grow into them," Kaysa said with a dismissive wave. "Just a few more of my dinners and they should fit just fine."

Zale patted his stomach. "Are you saying I'm getting fat," he asked with a grin.

Kaysa winked surreptitiously at Merrick. "No, my love, your clothes are getting smaller." She chuckled and gestured for Merrick to follow as she started out of the kitchen. "Come on. I'll get you some towels while you shower."

"Thank you," Merrick said as he stood and followed after her. Zale was chuckling as he shook his head. "I'll help you get the kitchen cleaned up after the shower, since I helped contribute to the mess."

"It's alright - you're a guest." Kaysa sighed and smiled at Merrick over her shoulder. "Besides...we haven't been able to laugh like that together for some time. It feels good."

"There definitely haven't been any laughs for me for a couple days," Merrick said. "Zale doesn't keep you laughing?"

"He does..." She stopped and turned to Merrick, her eyes sorrowful, yet dimly hopeful. "I've missed you, Merrick...even if you haven't missed me. I still love you, that won't change. It hurts not being able to be with you everyday. So...this is a nice change."

Merrick met her gaze and smiled. "It is nice," he said. "I haven't forgotten about the good times, and I haven't stopped caring. The situation is difficult and hard to explain. But hopefully from here on out we can put the pain behind us and continue on better than we have. I know I want that."

"Well then." She gave him her most dazzling smile and held out a hand. "Care for a shower?"

Placing his hand in hers, he nodded. "Definitely need a shower," he said. "I think I have half my dinner in my clothes."

Kaysa's breath caught as their hands met, but she covered up her reaction nicely with a non-chalant smile. Still, she couldn't disguise the slight shiver that travelled over her body at the thought that perhaps Merrick might return to her after all. If not, however, she was confident she would not dwell on such a disappointment for at least she'd had one last moment of joy with him.

"So tell me," he said as they worked their way toward the refresher, "how has Aria been? I bet she's grown so much since I last saw her."

"She's going to be tall like her father and she definitely has his hair." Kaysa sighed dreamily. "I hope she'll have at least a little of me in her." She grimaced. "Well...somethings more than others, of course."

Merrick chuckled. "I'm sure she will," he said. "Though, I guess sometimes you have to wait for them to grow into themselves before you see it. Maybe she'll have your nose. I think you've got a better nose than Zale. I mean, if she had Zale's nose, she'd look like a truffin hunter on the plains of Zaebo."

Kaysa was chuckling as they reached the refresher and had to stop herself before she walked in with Merrick. Clearing her throat awkwardly, she gestured towards the interior. "Well, I don't think I need to show you where the shower is."

Merrick smiled. "I think I can find it," he said. "I'll be out in a little bit. Thank you for everything, Kaysa. It means very much to me, to still have a friend."

"We've always been here," she reminded him. "We've just been waiting for you to take us up on our offer of friendship." With an encouraging smile, she playfully pushed him into the refresher and sauntered away.

Merrick chuckled to himself as he closed the door. He knew Kaysa meant well, but he also knew that before tonight, coming by here might not have found as generous a welcome. He didn't suspect Kaysa of trying to move in again, but she was genuinely trying to help him in a time of need. It showed him a side of her he hadn't seen for some time, the side of her he fell in love with. Before tonight, before the wounds torn open in his shattered relationship with Analesse, he suspected her desire to never see him again, expressed the last time they had seen one another, would have still held firm. It was good to have at least something feeling normal again.

He had no idea what would happen with Lessa, but at least the entire floor hadn't been pulled from beneath him...just most of it. As long as he still had Zale and Kaysa to count as friends, he just might be able to hold on to his sanity.

---

"It Was The Worst of Times, Part 1"
By: Sgt. Johan Eddis-Stormtrooper Spec Ops
Talira
Master Bennis - Jedi Master
Various NPC's of Team 3212

Location: Authority
Date:Vadris 26, 5ABY

****

The gear locker of the Authority was full of activity. Johan and his men were adjusting gear, stocking up on ammunition, doubling checking their preparations. Johan, Silas, and Mustoc all stood in the black armor that was commonly seen on Storm Commandos. Most people would say that it looked liked scout trooper armor, except matte black. In truth the armor was much more advanced, absorbing sensor readings and obscuring visual detection. It was a necessity on this mission, since the team was going to be operating as such a high altitude, they would need the suits oxygen and protection from the cold and wind.

The Authority was south of New Pluton, flying low, on it's way to a meeting with Jedi Master Bennis, their enemy turned unwitting accomplice on this mission.

Johan re-checked his weapon. The imperial repeating rifle had a full magazine of slugs loaded, and Johan had an abidance of ammunition with him. The imperial repeaters had been less than successful against Talara Sorenne's lightsaber skills, but they were still a better bet against lightsabers than blasters.

To'Makh stood silently in the corner, sheathing a Noghri blade. The stalwart alien was wearing no protective equipment beyond his cloak, his more robust biology allowing him to operate in the more extreme conditions the team would be going into.

Logan stood in the corner, watching. Johan could see the that his second in command wanted to go, but Johan hadn't allowed it. He wasn't healed, not yet. Johan gave him a firm pat on the shoulder as he headed out of the hatch.

Holding his helmet under one arm and slinging the rifle from his back, Johan stopped in front of Talira's room. Johan knocked on the door. "It's time".

Talira had been sitting cross-legged on the bunk. The meditation had helped, even though it wasn't quite the way of those who practiced on the dark side of the Force. She found that it brought her focus in preparation for what was to come. Her anger and hate would further focus her once the fighting began, just as she'd been trained. She was not Sith, would never be. While the Master had rescinded the Rule of Two, he had no intention of making clones into part of the Sith. As she slipped off the bed, Talira felt slightly nervous. It would be the first live engagement. All of her previous fighting experience had been within simulators and training exercises. It was exciting.

"I am ready," she said as she swung her heavy cloak around her body. She was dressed all in black. With her lightsaber swinging from her belt and a blaster strapped to her thigh, she strode toward Johan, a slight smile curling her lips. "Let the fun begin."

Johan moved out of the doorway to allow her to pass. "Something tells me you would make one hell of an Imperial operative".

Talira grinned at him. "We'll see how well I do today," she said.

"We're about five minutes out from the assigned meeting place," Johan informed her. "I need you to remain in the cockpit until we're at the drop off point, so that the Jedi remains unaware of our plans".

The stormtrooper led the way back up the cockpit, risking a glance over at Talira. "Nervous"?

"A little," she answered. "It'll be the first live operation I've been on. Before today, it's all been training."

"First time is always like that. Mine was on Jorva , a moon of Commenor," he said. "You'll do fine".

Grateful, Talira nodded. "Thank you," she said, then grinned. "This was what I was born to do."

Johan ducked into the cockpit. Thorgim was seated in his usual place, eyes moving from his instruments to the dark plains outside. Logan had moved from the armory locker to the gunners seat, and his eyes glanced up at Talira as they entered, but he said nothing.

"I'll call you when it's time".

Talira moved to the side where she could observe what was going on while still staying out of the way.

Johan made his way back down to loading bay, where To'Makh, Mustoc, and Silas were waiting. The sergeant secured his helmet, completly enveloping his head. The electronics inside automatically adjusted for the low light conditions.

The Authority banked, circling around the landing area, before quietly settling down at the assigned meeting place. The ramp was lowered, bathing the bay in a dull red glow. Johan led his group down the ramp, wary and looking for their contact.

The wind was blowing. A chilly wind, kicking up the grainy dust and blowing the scrubrush that grew over this area. Johan's helmet stitched over to night vision, searching for the Jedi.

As the landscape was washed in the greenish tint of the night vision optics, the figure of the Jedi Master Bennis could be seen approaching the ship. He raised a hand in acknowledgment of the sergeant as he reached the bottom of the ramp. "Is everything prepared"? Johan's voice had taken on a slight robotic tone as he spoke through his helmet.

"The Order is waiting and ready to begin their distraction," the Jedi Master said.

Johan led the way back up into the Authority, leading Master Bennis to the communications suite. He was careful not to let the Jedi Master anywhere near the cockpit. He had heard that Jedi had ways of sensing the presence of force users, and Johan hope that Talira was masking her presence.

Bennis calmly observed the Imperial sergeant, stretching out with his feelings. There was an edge rippling through the Force today. He had sensed it since his arrival at the meeting point. It was an uneasy tension, and he suspected that all would not proceed according to plan.

As the two entered the communications suite, Johan felt the floor shift slightly and knew they were airborne again. Johan tapped a key to activate the comm gear, keyed in the encryption, and looked to Bennis.

"Call your friends to let them know I'm keeping my end of the bargain, Jedi. You'll be along to observe and to keep the Jedi at ease that I'm not plotting to stab them in the back," Johan said. "Tell them they'll need to be ready at 0200 exactly".

"Of course," the Jedi said. He input the frequency previously arranged with Master Darr. "This is Master Bennis, we are ready to proceed fromt his end. 02h00."

"Understood," came the voice from the other side. It was Master Koran Darr. "We will begin at 02h00." The channel closed, and Bennis turned back to Johan. "All is ready."

***

The Authority roared through the lower atmosphere, a black shadow carving a way through the clouds and the thin air. The lights of New Pluton twinkled far below, and ahead, the kilometer thick shaft of the skyhook jutted through the sky. High above, it connected with the Drogen Shipyards. Below, New Plouton. The Jedi didn't know it, but they were about to be the accomplices in it's destruction.

Thorgim watched the scopes. As expected, Jau fighters and gunships patrolled the area, five of them making regular passes near the shaft. Thorgim didn't risk to journey too close, any closer and even the Authority's advanced stealth system wouldn't protect it. He checked his

chrono. 0150. If all went as planned. the bait was about to be cast. The Jau wanted the Jedi, and the entire plan relied on them be overzealous in their pursuit of them.

Talira stood at the back of the cockpit watching with her arms folded across her chest. It was only a waiting game now, and she managed to do so calmly. She could sense the Jedi Master on the ship. She had pulled in on herself as soon as she was aware he was aboard. More than her talent with the Force, it was that she so closely resembled the young Jedi he knew. If he saw her, it would give everything away.

The minutes ticked by, and then the chaos began. Monitors within the ship were patched into the New Plouton camera feeds. Normally used for traffic, the Imperials had tapped into them to observe their diversion on the streets below. A dozen lightsabers flared to life. Talira stepped closer as one of the small grainy shapes on the screen moved with grace and speed to draw all the Jau away.

"It's her," she whispered. A half smile curled her lips. "The other me."

"There's a comment you usually don't hear," Thorgim said back.

The Jedi had made their move, and now was the time for the Authority to make its move.

"Right on time", Thorgim whispered, mostly to himself. The Jau fighters and gunships on his scopes couldn't pass up an opportunity like a group of Jedi. Jau command had called in every asset that was close to bring down it's enemy. Every Jau aircraft on the Authority's scopes suddenly made a line for the Jedi's location below.

Thorgim brought the ship in to the skyhook security station, where a duo of catwalks extended to an emergency landing pad , useful for bringing out skyhook workers if the lifts ever went down. The nose of the Authority reached in over the balcony, lining up the loading ramp with the safe footing.

Down in the bay, Johan opened the ramp. A strong gust of wind filled the bay, and the stormtrooper pitied the Jedi Master, who wore none of the protective gear of the Imperials. The thin, harsh air of this altitude must be biting into him.

The sergeant was the first one off, landing softly on the pad. Up ahead, a hatch led into the interior of the skyhook. He turned to Silas. "Take Bennis and To'Makh to the first power relay station. Me and Mustoc will head to the second. Contact me when you've disabled yours".

Silas only nodded, motioning for the Noghri and the Jedi to follow him. With his instructions, Johan hoped that his teammates would keep the Jedi Master busy long enough for his team to set the bomb.

Bennis said nothing, but the look on his face was worrisome. It was difficult to tell if he suspected anything, but he was most definitely wary. With a final look around, he followed after the Imperials.

When the trio had vanished into the depths of the skyhook, Mustoc appeared out of the bay, carrying the gray box containing the anti-matter weapon. Talira was at his side. Johan took the other handle on the bomb's case, and together the trio made their way across the landing pad into the skyhooks superstructure.

Johan led the way, left hand gripping the case and his right holding the repeater in front of him. It might have been prudent to have Talira in front, but Johan wasn't able to bring himself to make her walk point.

The long curving corridor ringed the skyhook, and after about a hundered meters, it came to another hatch. Setting the anti-matter bomb down carefully, Johan moved close to the door. From his plans, this was the security substation. The stormtrooper had no idea how many security personnel would be on duty, or if the station was even manned at all since the Jau had taken control of the skyhook. Motioning for Mustoc to watch their backs, Johan hit the door control, sweeping into the room with the weapon raised, feeling Talira's presence at his back.

Two confused, sleepy security guards looked up in surprise. They had been watching a series of screens that showed the interior various lifts that were in operation. Skyhook security was run by a private contractor, and since the Jau invasion, weapons had been disallowed. With the muzzle of his weapon, Johan motioned the two into the corner.

When the two had their backs turned, Johan drew his sidearm, and stunned them both. The pair hadn't very long to live anyway, but their was no reason they should have to sit around to figure things out for themselves.

He looked over at Talira, her blood red lightsaber bathing the room in its light.

"Sorry that couldn't have been more exciting".

Talira shrugged. "It was too easy anyway," she said with a half-smile. "I prefer a more challenging fight. I've heard a fight against Jau soldiers would be particularly challenging."

Johan thumbed his comlink when the two were down. "Give me a status update, Silas".

"We've just arrived at the power relay station," Silas said. "No resistance. I'm about to get to work shutting this place down".

"Keep me informed".

As Johan thumbed off the comm, he looked over at Talira. "Can you read him? Does Bennis suspect anything"?

"He's very wary," Talira said. "I believe he does suspect something and is merely biding his time to react to it. I don't think he has any sense of me though, just that something bad is about to happen and he's in the middle of it."

"Lets keep him in the dark then," Johan said. The stormtrooper knelt down, opening the bomb's case. The cylindrical bomb sat inside, a small keypad and screen visible in the bomb's midsection. Johan pulled a activation key out of his vest, inserting the key into the weapon. The screen blinked red, and Johan tapped in a ten digit key. The screen blinked red agian. The screen red screen was the last chance to turn back. Imperial anti-matter weapons couldn't be disarmed, lest the enemy try to deactivate them and use them for their own devices.

But Johan wasn't turning back. "Here goes nothing". He twisted the key. The screen was now flashing red every few seconds. There was no timer, but Johan knew they now had five minutes to get back to the Authority and reach a safe distance.

"Time to go". Johan stood, turning back to Talira and Mustoc. Talira started to follow, but they both stopped in their tracks when the door they had came through opened.

Mustoc was caught off guard. A huge fist catapulted agianst the wall, and he slumped to the ground. Three Jau warriors stepped through the door. Johan had ducked the odd Jau patrol while he was in New Pluton, but he had never seen one this close. The three were huge, muscled, carried odd looking weaponary, and from the looks on their faces, seemed both angry and a bit surprised.

Johan cursed himself. He figured the Jau might have troops on the skyhook, but he had hoped that with such a big place, they could easily avoid them. He was wrong.

The three advanced on Johan and Talira.

---

"It Was The Worst of Times, Part 2"
By: Sgt. Johan Eddis-Stormtrooper Spec Ops
Talira
Master Bennis-Jedi Master
Various NPC's of Team 3212

Location: Orbital Skyhook Date:Vadris 27, 5ABY

****

Three Jau soldiers. A stormtrooper and a clone. It might have been the start of an bad joke, but there was really nothing funny about the situation, since there was a anti-matter weapon quickly burning down to detonation.

Johan fired, the heavy imperial repeater sending out a slew of slugs that impacted across the Jau's chest. The alien grunted, but didn't fall. The shots must have ruined the soldiers weapon, because the Jau threw it to the ground and charged Johan with a wicked looking blade. Johan was thrown off his feet, and wasn't even able to consider the other two Jau had set their sights on Talira.

The lightsaber Talira carried was essentially useless against the Jau. Instead, she unsheathed a pair of blades about the length of her forearms. They were lightweight and constructed of vibronium steel. As one of the Jau charged her, the other opened fire with his weapon. This would be fun.

His weapon falling several meters away, Johan ducked under the swing, the blade whistling through the air above his head. Knowing that his blaster would be useless, Johan's only option was to draw his own blade, a standard issue imperial serrated vibroblade, from it's sheath on his boot. The Jau grunted, apparently pleased with this turn of events. Johan was happy that they alien couldn't see his face under his helmet, because he was scared.

Using the Force, Talira tugged the charging Jau into the path of his companion's firing arc. The flechettes they preferred as ammunition skittered harmlessly off the Jau's hide. The option of ranged weapons, however, was gone, and the Jau charged in toward Talira as well. She brought both weapons up into an aggressive fighting stance. The Jau's heavy blade swung down, and Talira caught it with her left while trying to strike with the right. The sheer force the Jau's blow caught her off balance and her attack barely touched him.

Stepping back defensively, Talira readied herself against both Jau. She was fast, faster than both. She managed to keep her blades interposed between theres but their highly aggressive barrage was leaving her no option to retaliate. The bone-jarring impact of their weapons would wear her down very soon, much sooner than she would in a lightsaber duel. She'd have to make a move soon, or she might not survive the fight.

Johan dodged a second swing, but the third cut a trail across the chest piece of his armor. The armor stopped any damage, but Johan cried out in surprise. He delivered a hard kick to the Jau's knee. Such a kick would have broken the knee of most species, but if the Jau felt any pain, it didn't show it. It simply picked Johan up with one arm and threw him into the security console. Johan landed hard on the holocam screens, barely managing to keep a grip on his vibroblade. The stormtrooper rolled over and collapsed onto the floor.

The impact sent a show up Johan's back, and only his intensive training kept him from crying out in pain. The alien looked down on him, apparently relishing the one-sided combat. It raised the blade to strike.

One of the Jau swords opened a cut along Talira's arm, but deep in the Force she didn't feel it. The wound was a sacrifice maneuver, one that allowed her to strike as the Jau did. During the Jau's follow-through, she ran her left-hand blade up into the alien's chest with a savage lunge. Letting out a gurgling cry, the Jau fell back and ripped the sword out of her hand. It left her alone against one Jau, with one weapon, and a bleeding wound on her right arm. It was going numb as she turned to face the oncoming assault.

With a last ditch effort, Johan lashed out at the alien's ankle with his boot. Connecting, the Jau staggered, falling to one knee. Johan surged up, pushing the vibroblade through the neck of the Jau soldier. It roared in pain, and blood spurted from the wound as the vibroblade cut through the artery. With a last grunt, the thing died, and Johan wrenched his blade free. Pulling himself up with no small effort, he scanned around for Talira.

The Jau had backed her against a bank of consoles. She was wearing down. Her remaining weapon was now in her left hand. Her right arm hung limp at her side. The Jau loomed large and menacing. In a fierce strike, it swung down with the sword. Talira got her sword up in time. She was bounded back into one of the consoles. Her hand went numb and her sword clattered to the ground.

With apparent satisfaction, the Jau readied the attack that would finish her. Despite the numbness in her limbs, she brought her left hand up, clenched in a fist. The Jau, sword raised high over it's head, paused. His eyes bulged. The gleam in his eye faltered and the sword fell from his hands. The alien's hands went to its throat, clawing. He made a gurgling, gasping sound. Crushing bone and cartilage echoed around the room. Black blood spilled from his mouth as the light in his eyes went dark. With a thud, the Jau crashed to his knees and finally topped forward.

Talira sagged back against a monitor. She glanced around and found Johan. A smile, hidden by the mask she wore, formed. She reached down and picked up her fallen sword and took a hesitant step forward. "You okay?"

Briefly staggering before righting himself, Johan nodded. He wrenched the vibroblade out of the Jau's neck. It came out easily. He stepped over, examining the cut on her arm. "You're injured".

Johan realized he sounded foolish, he hoped the helmet had masked the worry in his voice.

"It's not bad," Talira said. "A little spray bandage, and I'll be good as new."

Remembering the situation, Johan turned back to the weapon. His chrono beeped, notifying him that the bombs countdown had reached four minutes. He looked to Talira.

"It's time to go".

They ran, sprinting down the corridors back to the landing pad. Johan keyed his communicator. "Silas, we are leaving, double time".

***

Silas clicked the comm twice, signaling an affirmative. He had been in the process of pretending to overload the power regulator, just as Johan's plan had stated. The Jedi Master couldn't hear the comm traffic in the stormtroopers helmets, but Silas turned to him and To'Makh.

"Move it, Jedi. We've run into a problem".

Whatever Bennis suspected, Silas took the lead back to the insertion point. Let the Jedi Master wonder. The surprise was coming.

***

Johan and Talira emerged back onto the landing pad. The wind had kicked up and Johan had to brace himself to keep him from being pushed towards the edge. His visor scanned for the Authority.

"Thorgim, where in the hells are you"?

As if on cue, the black form of the Authority rose to meet the landing platform. It stopped to hover a foot or so from the edge of the platform. The landing ramp retracted. Johan knew that Thorgim and Logan sat inside the cockpit.

"Someone call for a ride"?

Johan and Talira jogged for the ramp. The stormtrooper stopped short. "Get on," Johan said. "We don't have much time".

The comm crackled to life again. It was Silas. "We're almost on you, boss".

"We're ready".

A second later, the hatch to the skyhook opened, and Silas emerged. To'Makh followed close on his heels. A second later, Master Bennis emerged.

It had all been beautifully planned out. Perfectly planned, carefully staged. Silas and To'Makh dove to the ground. Only Bennis stood, framed in the doorway. The powerful laser cannons on the Authority locked onto the Jedi.

It should have been a clear shot. Only a Jedi Master could have avoided such a barrage. The Authority fired, ripping holes in the landing platform, beams of death stabbing towards Bennis.

When the smoke cleared from the attack, a shadow of a form seemed to drop from the sky back down to the deck. It stood tall with a green lightsaber ignited and ready for battle. Jedi Master Bennis shouted something, but the wind tore the words away.

Seeing that Bennis was alive, and turning his attention toward his betrayers, Talira leaped into action. Her blade, a crimson spear, snapped into being. Before the Jedi could reach either Silas or To'Makh, Talira reached him. He turned and caught her thrust and turned it aside.

Johan cursed loudly. It was supposed to be quick and clean. He watched the girl locked sabers with Bennis, wishing there was something he could do.

Silas and To'Makh reached the ship, reluctantly obeying their sergeants order to jump aboard.

Talara tried to press the attack, to get through the Jedi Master's defenses. She had to stop him. He couldn't get through her. She knew what a being filled with the Force could do, and she did not want to let the Jedi master harm the crew of the Authority.

Her blade spun and was caught. She heard words behind her, could hear Johan shouting through the headset she wore beneath her mask. She growled in frustration as the Jedi pushed her back. She reached up and tore the mask and headset from her head and threw them away, letting the wind take them.

Bennis was stunned. "Talara?"

"Close," she answered. If she had hoped to use the sudden surprise as a weapon, she was wrong. She attacked to his right, but found his blade ready. He knocked hers back, twisted deftly and riposted. There was a flash and blur of sound. She felt the heat of his blade and for a moment, feared at what he had done. She looked and found her hand still attached to her wrist, but in it was clenched the sparking remains of her lightsaber.

Sudden fear clenched at her throat. She backed away, tried to crush his throat the way she had done to the Jau, but he swept her attempt away as easily as if she were a child trying to get a toy away from him. Which wasn't far from the truth.

A huge wind gust rocked the platform. Johan was blown off of his feet, and the Authority was pushed away from the platform, it's engines straining to battle the turbulent mid-atmosphere. Thorgim struggled to bring the ship back.

Johan glanced back towards Talira. The wind gust had knocked the two apart, and both were blown from their feet.

"Talira", Johan struggled to yell over the howl of the wind. "It's time to go".

The stormtrooper prayed to whatever power that she would obey him. He hadn't wanted to put her up against Bennis.

Talira looked to Bennis, then to Johan. She had been defeated by the Jedi, but she wasn't ready to give up her life to him. With a cry of frustration, she tossed away the remains of her lightsaber and ran for the ship.

Talira jumped onto the ramp, easily clearing the few feet with a boost from the force. Only Johan and Bennis remained on the platform. The stormtrooper coldly turned to jump aboard.

The platform collapsed. The laser fire from the Authority had weakened the support struts under the pad. Remaining attached at the far end, the landing pad vanished under Johan's feet, slamming against the skyhook.

It all happened in slow motion. Johan was able to see Bennis make it to the relative safety of the skyhook hatch. The Imperial wasn't so lucky.

He tumbled off the ruined landing pad, and was suddenly falling through the mid atmosphere.

He fell away from the Authority, faster and faster. Johan had gone to airborne insertion school, had fallen through the atmosphere before. Of course, he had a anti-grav chute at that time. He was dead. He fell head first, through the clouds and out of sight.

****

Thorgim watched Johan fall, horrified as he watched his sergeant vanish below him. He secured the ramp hatch, turned the nose down, and hurtled the Authority into a vertical dive. Down below, in the loading bay, the others were sent tumbling painfully end over end.

Silas barely managed to key his comm as the rapid descent overloaded the inertial dampeners and pressed him into the bulkhead. "What the hell Thorgim"?

"Sergeant Eddis fell!"

"He what.....off the skyhook"? Silas's tone was one of disbelief. "We've got.....one minute and twelve seconds until that bomb goes off".

"I know".

Thorgim gripped the control yoke, using the Authority's advanced sensors to scan for Eddis's life signs. Their sergeant was falling quickly, but if Thorgim could pass him....

It wouldn't matter. They had no way to ease his descent. Even if they could get under him, there was no way they could stop his fall. Unless.....

*****

Falling gave one a lot of time to contemplate their death. Johan wasn't sure if that was a good thing. He tried to think of a way out, but there was really no solution here. He had never failed a mission before. He had never had kids. A serious relationship. There had never been time.

A hundred meters to his side. A black shadow flashed by him. They wouldn't......Johan thought.....they can't. It's impossible.

Luckily, Thorgim could speed toward the ground a lot faster than Johan could fall. The powerful engines burned, propelling the Authority towards the ground at a staggering angle. With a sudden jerk, Thorgim pulled out of the dive, pulling around and leveling off. Thorgim checked his scopes. The scanner showed Eddis above them, still falling, about to fall past the ships nose.

"Open the ramp".

Sitting next to him in the co-pilot's chair, Logan opened the ramp hatch. He hoped that their new accomplice had enough strength to catch Johan.

Using the Force to keep herself from being blown off the ramp as she walked out toward the edge. She could almost see Johan and it was enough. She reached out through the Force, as delicate as possible. Given the forces at work here, she could tear him apart like a doll if she were not careful. She found him and pushed gently, or as gently as one can use the Force to push up against a body falling at terminal velocity.

It was hardly gentle, but it could have been a lot worse. Catching man falling a hundred miles an hour wasn't a delicate task, even one with skill in the Force. Johan felt like he had been grabbed with an invisible hand. If it had been too sudden, it would have broke his neck. Luckily, it was only bad enough to give him terrible vertigo.

The Authority hovered alongside him, the red light of the loading bay ramp illuminating the lithe form of Talira. Johan felt himself being pulled into the ramp.

The timing had been enough that she had fully stopped him before he fell past them again. Her concentration was strained to the breaking point, all of her will set on getting him inside and to safety. She took an unsteady step backward, pulling him with her. She felt the wind cease against her as she stepped back into the safety of the bay. A moment later Johan followed her inside.

She remembered saying something into a comlink and the ramp began to close. Unsteadily, Talira sank to the deck and smiled numbly at Johan. "Welcome home."

Johan would have said something, if he hadn't of sagged to his knees, ripped off his helmet and threw up. As it was, he could only nod his thanks.

****

Thorgim hit the thrusters before the hatch was closed. Twenty seven seconds. Not enough time. They had to get out of range.

As the sense of foreboding Master Bennis had felt resolved into the Imperial ship's weapons firing upon him, through the Force he saw a much clearer picture of what had been happening.

>From the access hatch, Bennis watched the Imperial ship roar away. He had been able to see the dramatic rescue from his vantage, and felt a sense of impending doom approaching. With a serenity out of place with the crisis at hand, he withdrew a length of cable from his utility belt, attached it outside the hatch, and then leapt out into the nothingness.

There was too much interference where the landing platform had been, and he had little time left. As he fell, the Jedi Master withdrew another slender device from his belt. The Jedi may have been betrayed, but he would not sit by and wait for his death and take no action in response.

The Authority flew faster and faster, cutting through the clouds, leaving a sonic boom in it's wake as it fled at supersonic speeds. Thorgim watched the seconds count down. Three....two...one...

The world exploded.

One looking in the right direction on the planet's surface would have seen a brilliant flash, visible for hundreds of miles.

The explosion itself disintegrated thirty two miles of skyhook. Vaporized, instantly. Two lifts were in use at the time. A platoon of Jau soldiers and a dozen shipyard workers on their way to Drogen were killed in that instant.

The skyhook was far to thick to just topple over, but the huge concussive force of the blast shook the skyhook like a sledgehammer. Damaged pieces of the skyhook fell away, mangled and destroyed metal meteors breaking away from the skyhook and hurtling to the ground.

***

In retrospect, it could have been much worse. But no one would have thought that tonight. Like a meteor shower, the huge burning pieces of metal came down on New Plouton. No district was spared, since the spread of the chunks grew as they fell.

The skyhook ground transportation hub was destroyed. In Yesrin, a corporate headquarters, sixty five stories, was crushed completely by a huge skyhook chunk. In Yemol District, a late night daycare for children whose parents worked nights was hit. Fifty one children were killed. One of New Plouton's fanciest hotels was also unlucky, killing every resident inside. An entire neighborhood of low income housing was destroyed. A shopping center in Yellvin. A tax office in Yalyssar.

The terrible rain lasted nineteen minutes. When it was over, 10,192 citizens of New Plouton were dead. Huge plumes of smoke rose from the city. From the air, ugly jagged scars cut into the cityscape. Fires burned out of control. The sirens began, and would not go silent for days.

***

The Jedi had retreated from their fight, a distraction to let the Imperials put their plan into action. That plan, that distraction, had led to betrayal.

Jedi Master Koran Darr was distraught. Hard lines set his face, his eyes smoldered with the closest thing a Jedi Master ever felt to anger.

Still bound within carbonite when Vader betrayed the Jedi, he knew it must have felt something like this. The thousands dead had felt like a knife to his own gut. He had only learned of the betrayal moments before the blast that lit up the sky.

It had been Jedi Master Bennis' last action while alive. Using a comlink, the Master had contacted Koran, reported the Imperial attack that nearly cost him his life, and then everything had dissolved into chaos.

On the shuttle now traveling through space, bound for the cruiser that now served as the Jedi's home, tears streaked the faces of many Jedi. Including Talara Sorenne, only a Padawan but as capable as any Jedi present. Master Bennis had reported that Talara had been with the Imperials, or someone who looked like her. Something ill was afoot, and he had no sense of it through the Force. He was concerned, greatly concerned.

The Jedi had agreed to take part in the Imperial plan, and had suffered for it. They had lost one of their best, one who sat on their council and guided the affairs of the Jedi. Snuffed out in an instant. The next time the Jedi came across the Imperials, deals would not be made. The next time, they would meet as enemies. The next time, Koran did not think he would not stop Talara. The next time, he did not think he would stop himself.

---

"Double Deals"
Mordous Krull
Marsar Tilimit
A'Kin

Location: New Plouton, Yoyen District
Date: Vadris 26, 5ABY

***

Mordous gazed around the area as he approched the said meeting place... he didn't like this, meeting in the warehouse district. There was no way to tell who was watching them, or where they were. However, aginst his Droid's better wishes he had come, and was armed to the teeth with a few items from his armory. "Check in with me here what do we have going on right now" he stated "Marsar you better be on that other line."

"I am" she muttered "Not enjoying it but I am, your droid is currently shoving a blaster barrel in my back" He let out a sigh then spoke.

"Selkis let the lady have some room, the blaster is just as effective across the room as up close and personal" he stated

Able to spot Mordous ten blocks away, by his suit alone - which did not suit him, A'Kin entered the warehouse. Situated almost nine blocks from where he had met Klay, that darling little minx, where that building had been close to caving-in the current warehouse he found himself using was far different. Standing empty a voice could travel, each sound echoing across the vast open space. Windows were either boarded up, or painted over, in some places very unprofessionally leaving gaps allowing light to beam through.

He had better things than doing this for that woman, gorgeous she may be, she was still a Republic Spook. Regardless of his own reasons for coming here, his attention returned to business, eyes fixed on Mordous, and his ridiculous grey suit. "What are you wearing?" A'Kin asked, with a slight shake of the head. "Do you have any fashion sense? What was it last time? And the time before that, I'd fire your tailor, whoever he is." The large rifle held across Mordous' back was beyond stupidity. The time it would take to draw the weapon the battle would have been fought, won, celebrated and forgotten.

No accounting for taste The rifle was fine, in the right hands. Prone position, looking through a scope at a target long way off, a safe distance and the time to take that perfect shot. Sometimes A'Kin found himself missing the days of being a bounty hunter, life was damned more simple.

"The Rifle is just for looks Akin" he stated, as he smiled, "By the time you would draw your weapon...well" He smiled. "Lets just get this whole little run around overwith ok," he stated his hand still fingering the grip of his blaster pistol.

"Couldn't agree more." The Kel'Ishan ignored Mordous' hand, staying close to the blaster at his hip. The poor excuse for a man was a killer he knew, but then so was he. "The shipment is ready for pick up. I trust you have the funds available." The tracking device he'd acquired from Klay was hidden within one of the shipment containers. Among the many concussion missiles, bulkheads, fighters, generators and other fittings for the old Imperial Frigate, a chaotic maze to the untrained eye. A vast wealth for A'Kin.

"THis isn't the stuff I'm after...I'm trying to refit a fighter not a frigite Moron," he stated looking at him "The only thing you have here that I needed are the missiles," he looked over at him and let out a sigh then glared at him "The hell are you playing me for a fool" he sated

"Wouldn't be that hard," he muttered, though loud enough for Mordous to hear, and he glanced in his direction making the point he knew this. "Relax, the missiles are yours the rest is for another. Everything on your list, you gave me is there, unless you don't want it? Fine. I'll sell it to someone who will actually pay me for my services. Find your bloody missiles somewhere else, see how far you get." With a loud whistle A'Kin made a circular signal to his loaders, one brief pause, looking at each other as if unsure what to do, the loaders turned around and began unloading the shipment. "I don't have the time to waste it here, comparing dick sizes with the likes of you."

"Mordous Check the shipping crate to your right....there is movement coming from it" It was Marsar's voice over the com "I'm picking up editional heat signetures coming from them...moving fast" Mordous looked at Akin then shook his head

"Would you back me up if I were in trouble?" Marsar glanced over her shoulder at the Droid

"Do I have a choice?" she asked

"No, if I die Selkis will kill you" Marsar looked at the hunter killer droid and nodded, putting the barrowed headset on, then bent down and picked up the emergancy POS blaster that Mordous left her to use...."This will have to do," she stated as she walked out of the speeder he had commendeered

***Eighteen Seconds Later...***

"Ok fine...let me inspect the goods and I will tell you if this stuff will work....What I need though is Parts for a Mandel Motors Starviper...If I see none....I leave and take my buisness to your competitors....but I will buy your Missiles from you full price," he stated his hands fingering the quick release for his slugthrowers.

A'Kin waved him on. "By all means, but anything you break, you buy."

Mordous crouched down next to a set of the missiles and nodded in response to the quality of the half a dozen missiles that were currently looking at him. "Marsar tell me, these compatiable with the rack that I procured?" he asked low enought so that there guests couldn't hear him. There was a long pause before she spoke up

"There not the best brand missile...but they will have to work...I can upgrade them" All at once Marsar felt a small chill at the back of her neck and glanced over her shoulder to see the tip of a vibroblade resting next to her neck. "Damn.." she stated as she felt herself being pulled up from the ground then pushed along

"MOVE!!!" he ordered "Your worth more to me dead then alive!"

***

"Marsar?" he asked seeming somewhat worried at the lack of tech talk from the otherside of his comset. "Marsar talk to me whats going on....." all he got was static. Slowly he turned around the look at Akin "Is there somthing your not telling me?" he asked

"If I told you everything you currently didn't know, we'd be here until you were nothing but dust," A'Kin replied, pulling out a cigar and lighting it. It was damned cold, too cold for his old bones. "You want the missiles or not?" he asked, wanting his money. He was a business man after.

"Yeah fine...heres your credits" he stated pulling them out as he tossed to across the room to him "This is all you have that I wanted" he stated refering to the missiles, "If you get the fighter parts...then maybe...just maybe I'll do buisness with you......." he froze as she spotted Marsar being ushered into the warehouse at Knife point, a human thug behind her, leading her every step of the way "A'kin what the hell is this all about!" he demanded "That's my bounty there, if you want a bounty, get your own"

A'Kin shrugged. "Easy come, easy go..." he muttered. "There are people who wish to see Marsar, and these people wish to see her alive and unharmed, and no longer in your custody. I'm a business man, now that our business is concluded, I have more pressing matters to attend to." The creds had already vanished into one of his pockets, and with the last missile having been already loaded the warehouse district became eerily silent once the transport ship had vacated the area.

"Or are you just going to trade me to whoever paid for the bounty in the first place you jackass" Marsar stated "Fact is how are you going to stop Mordous from killing you and rescuing me." She watched as A'Kin whistled and several other armed figures surrounded the group "Well that would do it" Marsar stated plainly.

Smiling A'Kin looked over his shoulder at Mordous, though speaking to Marsar. "Your choice Marsar, he lives or dies." The armed men levelled their rifles at Mordous, all primed, ready to fire. The effect would be almost instantaneous. Cut down without a hope.

Marsar glanced over at A'Kin and then to Mordous. Both of the people had tried to use her in one way or another but both of them had also givin her a chance for hope. However something didn't seem right, why all the men if there was no reason to hurt either of them. "Mordous.... I think this is where we part ways" she stated then looked at him and winked. Mordous caught the action and nodded

"I would have to agree... however can you do me one favor...when you escape.... tell Kalista that... I'm sorry" he stated then Marsar nodded and looked over at A'Kin "I'll go with you on one condition... who put the hit on Mordous Krull, and me and Brenna?" she asked

"What hit?" A'Kin asked, eyeing Marsar suspiciously. Something definitly didn't fit with these two. Some of the men with A'Kin visibly tensed. Usually as a hostage was being handed over, that's when something happens, and that something, more often than not, tended to be bad. Pistol held at his side, hammer cocked back with a projectile ready in the breach, he watched Mordous, though keeping his other eye trained on Marsar.

"You heard me who put a contract, the man who currently stands infront out us at gunpoint, I think you own him that much" she insisted.

"No actually, I don't." A'Kin replied, stone faced. "But since you asked so nicely. Miss Volaris and Brenna Hennely, who I'm sure you know quite well. Now... move!" He'd already wasted more time than he wished, standing here idly chatting like some villain on some cheap b-movie. He wasn't the villain. And Mordous definitly wasn't the hero, if he was? Then god help us he thought.

"Doubtful" she smiled slightly then spun around and in the time it took for the knife weilding bounty hunter to blink she drew and fired a stun bolt from the survival blaster he had missed on his initial search. One of the other hunters attempted to draw and fire, possibly aiming to kill the girl, this was when Mordous made his move. Into his hand shot a small silver object, about the size of a golf ball, a flash bomb, homemade. In a single motion he lobbed it at the shooter then dove to the ground.

The bomb went out, the initial flash blinding to all not ready for it. Even with eyes closed the imense light would blind you for a few moments, long enough for any half-trained moron to take advantage. Lucky for A'Kin though his one eye was affected his implant wasn't, shielding him from the blast. Arm suddenly lifted he fired a single shot, catching the diving Mordous in the leg as he sailed through the air desperate to escape. Within seconds the attempt had backfired. Marsar, hands being tied behind her back, was being ushered out of the warehouse, A'Kin following behind. The unconscious bounty hunter was being dragged, rather unceremoniously, along the floor.

As A'Kin stepped out into the cold night air he only had one real thought. I'm getting too old for this... though his smile made this anything but true.

---

"Tularensis"
Iyika
A'Kin
Vincenzo Lapenta, neurosurgeon

Location: New Plouton, Institute for Neuroscience
Date: Vadris 26, 5ABY

***Present 2100, Local Time***

The door burst open, four Jau soldiers stormed into the room without caring who or what they barged into. A trolley holding an expensive piece of equipment toppled over smashing as it struck the ground, liquid quickly running out along the clean floor. One of the soldiers was an officer, larger than the rest, the ridge line of his head, the markings on his face clear and bright. “You!” he bellowed, pointing at a nurse. She shrieked back, a common occurrence among these puny insects, didn’t stop him enjoying it. Stepping forward, so he towered over the poor retched beast, he tried his best not to breathe through his nose. The stink of them were at times unbearable.

"Y-y-yes?" she stuttered, another reaction he liked so much.

“Where is the doctor? This one is dying!” Led by one of his subordinates, a woman, face hidden as she lay down, was hovering on a sledge. She appeared human, and she appeared dead. Motionless on the sledge.

“I-I- don’t know where–”

A fist slammed against the table beside the officer sending objects crashing to the floor all around.“I don’t care for excuses!” he ordered. “Find him or suffer the same fate!” The officer watched the insect scamper away, never really getting into a full run as she clambered into almost everything in her pace. “How these puny creatures reached the stars is beyond me,” he muttered, getting grunts of agreement from those around him.

Vincenzo had been working on some paperwork when a clearly frightened nurse called him to the Emergency Room. Remembering the incident with the last intruders, he wanted to call for the security service when she mentioned the Jau. Vincenzo knew that there was no use in calling them and he stood up. He hoped it would be a Jau, so he could have a look inside of one of these creatures. He had heard that they were almost invulnerable to blaster fire and sheer curiosity made him want to see why. "What can I do for you," he asked as he entered the Emergency Room. One thing he knew was to be polite. They were ruthless and he had already seen a couple of cases on his operating table who had close encounters with the aliens.

"Save this one!" the officer growled.

With a short nod to his soldier, the smaller Jau stepped forward pushing the anit-gav sledge towards the doctor, his newly acquired patient laid out on its surface. "Why," Vincenzo couldn't stop himself to ask. While it wasn't relevant, he was always curious about things. And it was the first time he heard about a Jau patrol trying to save someone they had shot.

"We need her for questioning," the Jau replied, the moment he realised he"d spoken out of turn he braced himself for the coming blow. Which strangely didn't happen, at least not right away. Tra"Kru had waited for the subordinate to turn, he"d would learn his place or die. His fist caught the soldier clean in the face. The impact would have snapped a human's neck like a twig, tearing through muscle like tissue paper. Even the Jau was dazed, stumbling to the side hitting the wall, leaving a dent where he"d impacted.There were words spoken between the soldiers, words the doctor or anyone except the Jau wouldn't understand.

"In training you may be, step out of line once more and your hide will decorate my walls!" With the subordinate obviously relenting to the larger, Tra"Kru turned to the doctor. Though his words were forced he spoke basic quite well. "Why we need her to live will not help you fix her!"

"Maybe not, sir," Vincenzo said as he did a quick scan of the body. "Get me two packs of whole blood," he ordered to one of his staff who had followed him, before turning to someone else, "prep surgery 1 and get a TX-75 in there."

"Can you tell me what happened, sir," he asked the Jau officer as the patient was moved towards the surgery room.Growling Tra"Kru nodded to one of his subordinates, before walking away, making an important communique. He was too far to overhear. The smaller soldier, though easier a head taller than Vincenzo, approached the doctor. "There has been an assassination attempt."

"An assissination," Vincenzo said. Now he could understand why they wanted to interrogate her.

"An attempt!" the Jau sneared, showing his teeth. "Watch your tongue hooman! This creature was responsible for the attempt, we tracked her down like dog she is, only she take poison, rather face capture. A cowards way out."

"That's important information," Vincenzo said as they reached the surgery room. He turned towards a nurse. "Get a blood sample to lab immediately," he ordered, "it seems she took poison and I want to know which one."

"You can stay here," he added to the Jau, "we don't have desinfectant gear in your size and even if we manage to save her, she can get an infection that kills her if we"re not carefull." And he didn't want them tracking every move he made.Grudgingly the Jau agreed. His superiors wanted answers and this woman held those answers. The rebellion were suspected, but without proof the assassin could have been hired by anyone. Even another Jau, seeking advancement. It was dishonourable, an unthinkable act. In hundreds of years there hadn't been such an incident, and even to think of such a thing turned his stomach. Yet without answers, all possibilities had to be imagined, no matter how painful.

"Do what you must, either she lives, or I"ll take my interrogation out on you!" That was encouraging. Vincenzo went into the surgery room where the blood sample was already taken and on its way to the lab. As there was poison, they would have to start with a complete blood filtering. He had someone bring the correct machinery. But first he had to get her wounds closed. Bacta would go a great way, but he only had very limited supplies so he had to rely on other methods first.As the Jau used projectile weapons, he would start with removing the projectiles from the patient's body.

"Get some blood," he said to another nurse, "Type O negative." Now he could get started. The scan showed that there were three projectiles. One in her left lower arm, one in the abdominal cavity and one in her left upper leg. The first and the last would be straight forward to replace, but the middle one was going to be difficult. As soon as the anaesthetic started working, he started, first with the projectile in her arm. As he had anticipated this was indeed easy enough to remove and while revalidation would take some time, she would keep all mobility in her arm.

The next one was the one in her abdomen. He choose that one because he had a hunch that it was more important than the one in her leg and he had always gone with those hunches, even more so after they had told him it was the Force. He made a midline incision in order to be able to see how far the projectile had penetrated. It quickly became apparant that she had been lucky. The bladder had been penetrated, but the uterus wasn't harmed. One of the kidneys was however and he would have to remove it. Also some parts of the small intestine would have to be removed.First of all he started with the kidney as this was the organ that, if untreated, could cause the patient to bleed out. It took an hour, but in the end he managed to get it out. The blood tranfusions that had been given would have diluted the poison a little bit, but there was little about it that he could do as long as he didn't know exactly what it was.He had just removed a small part of the intestines when a nurse came in with a datapad.

"I have the results from the toxicology lab," she said, letting him see the datapad. He couldn't take it as he was still doing surgery. He took one quick look at it and cursed inwardly. This would give complications.

"Thank you," he said, "take another sample and have them redo the test. Just as a precaution. And they should also test for HlyA hemolysin. The poison can mask this toxin."

"Yes, doctor," the nurse said. She quickly took another blood sample and walked out while Vincenzo continued to repair the damage on her abdomen. It took another hour and following that he tackled the projectile in her leg. This didn't take all that long and soon after he was finished. "Her vitals are going down," the nurse at the monitor informed him at the same time the results of the second test came in. Vincenzo looked at the results.

"Everybody full decon procedures," he ordered his staff, "she has a tularensis infection." Most staff didn't know what it was, as it was an agent that wasn't indigenous on this planet, but when a doctor ordered full decon they would obey without questions. At that moment the vital signs beeped, but Vincenzo simply flipped the switch.

Despite the surgery, the patient hadn't survived. As the staff withdrew to the decon facility, Vincenzo asked one nurse to stay, the same one who had helped him with Yelara. He gave her a couple of orders before he went out to speak to the Jau.It was taking too long! Tra"Kru wanted to burst into the surgery room and demand to know what was happening. But what the doctor had said stuck in his mind. These insects were puny and prone to succumbing to death from infection. Pathetic creatures.

"Finally!" he hissed seeing the doctor. "I must get answers! Where is she?!"

"She did not survive," Vincenzo said, "it was found that she suffered from tularensis infection. This coupled with the poison and the shooting was too much for her body. And due to the blockade we don't have bacta, which might have saved her. Which reminds me, I will need blood samples from all of you, as well as the location where she was found. Tularensis is contagious and affects many species. This can quickly become an epidemic if we let it go out of control."

Tra'Kru knew his superiors will not like this failure. Though in truth the failure was not his, he did not allow the Taka to die at the hands of an assassin. Such a disgracefull way to die. "We will make the necessary arrangements, do not concern yourself with the location doctor, it will be dealt with." With a sharpe hand gesture the Jau, and his soldiers, grudgingly left the hospital, knowing full well what awaited their return. Vincenzo hoped she was worth whatever they had in store for the people that inhabited the location where she was found. He had seen the results of the Jau "cleaning" operations before.

***6 Hours Ago, New Plouton, Yesdol District 1454, Local Time***

The two of them looked out of the window, standing side by side. Father and daughter. "You will be fine," he said, almost trying to convince himself. She reached for his hand, which he took, squeezing it."Its a good plan, and you"re sure the doctor can be trusted?"

A'Kin remained silent for a moment. "He's capable, more than capable. His whole career has been pretty much one miracle after another. My sources have vouched for him."

"I'm glad..." she whispered leaning against her father, feeling his arm reaching around her shoulders.

---

"The Attempt" (Side Part to "Tularensis")
Iyika
Taka Krull'viq (NPC)
May'ril (NPC)

Location: Arcadia
Date: Vardis 26, 5ABY 1758, Local Time

***

May’ril swallowed hard as he stood in the vast office of the Jau. The office itself was bigger than some people’s homes, lavishly furnished. The two chairs that May’ril currently stood between were worth a small fortune, each a priceless antique. The desk had been imported May’ril knew, having signed off on the documents organising its transport. Where the old pictures of the previous occupant once hung, strange Jau decorations now resided.

Taka Krull‘viq was rumoured to be next beneath the Supreme Commander’s military advisor Taka Mun’daq himself. Though of the same rank Mun’daq held the ear of the Supreme Commander, of which Krull’viq detested, privately. The General shared responsibilities with other generals but he shone brighter than the others. Where the rumours true? Would he one day challenge Mun’daq’s position?

Even working and living among the Jau for so long May’ril still couldn’t figure out their culture, their way of thinking. Duty was all they seemed to care about. It was beyond May’ril’s comprehension. They couldn’t be bribed with money, drugs or women. What was the point, if you couldn’t enjoy life?

He noticed snow was beginning to wall outside. Soon it would blanket the district of Arcadia, not that it bothered him much, kept warm in doors. Though in truth he’d rather be anywhere else at this point. “You must understand, there are always delays...” he was fighting a losing battle he knew, but he had to try.

***

Snow was indeed falling, growing heavier by the second. Not that it bothered her much, kept warm by her insulated combat suit. While stalking she used her eye-gills to breathe, her breath only fogged if she breathed through her mouth. No sense giving her position away. On the battlefield soldiers would eat snow, to dampen the affects of fogging breath. Her target was less than five feet away and didn’t even know she was there. Didn’t know his life was ticking away, reaching that point of no return.

Death.

***

“I’d don’t care for your excuses hooman!” the Jau shouted, clear even through the glass, separating the walking corpse from the outside. The Jau was large, decorative tattoos danced across his face and exposed skin. His crest showed his stature, one of power, though by no means the alpha. A Taka, by rank, or general in the Republic.

The Jau’s eyes shifted to where Iyika was perched, staring right through her at the scenery beyond. The view was quite impressive. The lights dancing like stars in the night sky, not that you could see any stars if you gazed up, the city’s light pollution saw to that. Finally the Jau turned to face the human, who looked as though he wanted to be anywhere but in that room.

“If you are unable to complete the task given, I will find somebody else.... who can.” The threat edged in the last two words knifed May’ril deep in the heart. Like a physical blow he took a step back, feeling the blade penetrating deep inside even as he stood there. What he asked was impossible! The smile said it all. The corners of the Jau’s mouth rose, revealing the slightly stained needle like teeth. The bastard knew.

“I’ll see what I can do.”

“You do that.” Bowing to the Jau, an act in itself striking a cord in May’ril almost snapping then and there. Swallowing his pride he turned leaving the office, already thinking of ways out. Not just leaving Arcadia, not just the planet, but the system.

Perhaps his mother still had space at hers.

The door closed behind the human, followed by a low click. The door had locked! Glancing up at the door the Jau rose. He never ordered the door locked. “Who locked my door?” he demanded pressing the intercom. No reply. “Someone had better answer me, or pay in blood!” he roared. Still no answer.

***

The program worked a treat. Iyika would have to thank her father for that one. If this plan of his worked. Sometimes the man just over complicated matters. Depressing the trigger the remote sent a small electrical spark in the gel, that Iyika had spread out over the glass in a circular shape, instantly causing a chain reaction.

Immediately Iyika heard sizzling as the gel began eating through the reinforced glass. Within seconds it had melted through and the large section of glass fell out, hitting the ledge before hurtling towards the ground below, spinning out of sight. Not giving the glass a second glance Iyika stepped through into the warm office. The Jau stood, hands gripping a large bladed sword, facing his attacker, who he as yet couldn’t see.

A slight shimmer and Iyika shifted into sight. In all her terrifying glory.

“A woman...” the Jau laughed, lowering the blade slightly. A big mistake. Iyika attacked with blinding speed darting past the sword making it useless, with power she struck down into the Jau’s right knee driving him down. Energy blasters were useless against the natural resistance the Jau had evolved, so she brought a little toy with her. With an expert’s grace she attached the small device the base of his neck. With a swift knee to the face, driving the Jau away from his desk, sword clanking against the polished floor skidding away.

“You’re already dead, you realise that?” the Jau spat, blood and drool dripping onto the floor. Iyika just smiled back. “You won’t make it out of here alive, they won’t even be able to identify the body once we’re done with you.” Still Iyika said nothing, content to remain sitting on his desk, legs crossed, smiling. “Why do you sit there!? Why do nothing!?”

“I’m not doing nothing,” Iyika replied, finally breaking her silence. Her words threw Krull’viq, his brain and intellect trying to calculate what she was doing. “This doesn’t work without an audience, and your people should be here soon enough.”

“My... people...?” At that point something heavy slammed against the door, followed quickly by a second. Iyika, unphased by the almost constant bombardment at the door, stepped over to the window. She returned with a small backpack, a parachute, which had been hidden away.

“Your quite right Taka Krull’viq, or should I say, ex-Taka. I wouldn’t have been able to make it, and if I did, which is more than possible, your people would have searched till the end of time for me, which I can’t allow. I have a life to live too, a life far longer than yours.” Opening the backpack she threw it away, as if discarded in disgust. The Jau’s eyes followed its path.

They'd find the discarded paracute and believe it had been damaged, making escape through the window impossible.

The far door began the buckle under the onslaught. “Not long now.”

“Who hired you? Who arranged this?!” The Jau slowly rose, favouring his left leg. Iyika kept silent. She never understood their urge to know who ordered their deaths, did it ease their passing? Not in the slightest. They were still dead.

“Time.” Eyes wide in surprise he never got the chance to respond. Iyika pressed the small remote in her hand before tossing it through the window. The device attached to the back of Krull’viq detonated, a small precision explosive blowing up severing his spinal cord and sending fragments of bone up into his brain. The Jau collapsed into a heap, dead before he even touched the ground. Blood flowed out over the polished flooring.

What happened next was a blur of screaming and shouting. Iyika dove behind the desk, as projectiles whistled past. She cried out as three struck her, though luckily her momentum carried her behind the desk. Projectiles struck the wall, and desk, around her. The computer terminal exploded showering her with sparks. “Come out, you’ve nowhere to go!” “Come out now!!” It was another minute of constant shouting until someone approached.

New Plouton, 2146, Local Time

Standing over her, the room was bathed in a green tinge, his implant compensating for the darkness. She was resting still. "The doctor did incredible work." A'Kin had only nodded as his own personal physician made his report. "The wounds sustained are healing well and aided by the bacta will be gone soon. The poison has been neutralised." Of course he knew all this. If the poison had not been Iyika would not be lying in her bed breathing softly in the darkness, she'd be a cold rotting corpse. A'Kin had picked Tularensis specifically because Doctor Lapenta knew that poison above all others. A chance yes, but it was Iyika who'd approached the subject, he'd only filled in the missing pieces.

Didn't stop him hating himself for it. How could a father send his daughter into knowing danger? It felt as if a part of him died each time. Yet this was the path they'd both chosen, the life they both led.

"Rest my daughter," A'Kin whispered warmly, bending down to lightly kiss her forehead. She moaned slightly, shifting under the covers, but otherwise remained sleeping. Smiling he turned, the light from outside flooding into the room as the door opened, only to vanished when it closed.

---

"Breakout"
By: Mordous Krull - Injuried Bounty Hunter with an axe to grind
Marsar Tilimit - Bounty Hunter Captive
A'Kin - The Betrayer

Location: New Plouton, Yoyen District
Date: Vadris 26, 5ABY

***

Having left the transport, and the mercenaries to deal with both Marsar and Mordous, A'Kin had continued to his second point of call that evening. Mordous wasn't the only one after expensive equipment. Jo'n Krissh wasn't your average arms dealer, still he was by no means part of the elite few, the multi billion credit business men (and women) who sold vast shipments that made this deal seem pointless. A middle-class, currently on the bankroll of the rebellion and in need of certain parts for an old frigate, and various other items of a more violent nature. They were currently looking at the multi-warhead missile system, the plates removed revealing the deadly insides. A'Kin was getting restless. Not only was Jo'n taking his sweetass time, but the mercs hadn't reported in yet.

How hard is it to kill an already injured man and transport a girl? he asked himself, struggling to find a reason for the relayed report. The more time past the bitter A'Kin's mood became. And how many more questions is he going to ask?

"Now, the delivery system..." A'Kin had lost interest long ago, now running through how many different ways he could kill him. Presently he was up in the high four hundreds when he finally gave in to the temptation.

He didn't kill him, though he wanted to, SO badly. "Shut... up..." A'Kin hadn't spoken for what seemed like an hour, and these sudden words, accompanied with a hand grabbing Jo'n by the neck cutting off his airway with its pressure, brought Krissh to silence. "Now I'm going to ask a question, and depending on the answer given, I'll either release you, or squeeze." A'Kin watched, with a certain amount of satisfaction, as Jo'n's eyes grew large with fear. Pupils widening, as adrenaline flooded his system. "Are you purchasing these items? or just wasting my time?"

After that the deal went surprisinly quickly. Credits were exchanged, items were transfered, the loaders earning their pay. The mechanised loaders, huge robotic machines, could carry immense weights. The items being loaded, though heavy some reaching into tons, only reached sixty percent of the loader's capabilities. They were worth double their price, not that A'Kin would tell anyone. With business concluded, Jo'n Krissh unable to leave quick enough, A'Kin, reluctantly, needed to check in with the mercs.

What he found, was not at all pleasing.

***3 hours earlier***

"LET ME GO!!!!!" Marsar Shriked as she struggled aginst the manhandeling she was currently victim to at the hands of her captors. After Akin had backstabbed the pair he had left informing his comrades to do away with Mordous and to wrap her up and bring her to his office....alive.  As of right now they seemed to be following the said parameters in question.  THe first thing the group had done was load the pair into a transport speeder then proceeded to deal with both of them.  Wrapped around her hand, ankles thighs and her shoulders were binding restraints and she was being lowered into some kind of a plasteel contain, about the size of a coffin.  Mordous on the other hand was not faring well.  While they busied themselves with restraining a trio of the mercs and hunters were busy kicking and clubbing Mordous senseless. "Is that really nessary" the men nodded then looked back at her as she was placed snugly in the casket

"it is you see, your brother has paid us more than the Crime boss and well, we like his idea better." Marsar didn't like the sound of that, language like that usually meant that someone was getting power hungrey.  THe group stopped beating on Mordous then looked down at him, one of them withdrawing his slug thrower pointing it dead on at Marsar's head.  "You guys go....I want a piece of this woman first" he stated leaning towards her.  She could hear the the man's heart virtually beating at lightspeed, could smell his sour breath, making her gag and cough.  "Well well well my pretty, it seems a shame to have to kill such a beauty as you...." she could hear the sound of the slugthrower priming as he put it to her head "I mean look you you...your body, a little thin for my taste....but well, I can make a exception in your case.  Marsar felt the man's hand running over her body, starting at her waist and slowly moving it's way up to her digust.  He slowly leaned in closer and placed his lips over hers stealing a kiss from her.  Marsar struggled slightly but knew there was nothing she could do to get loose.

"Leave her Alone!" Mordous yelled causing the bounty hunter to stop his tasteless actions then leaned up still training the weapon oh her head, ready to use it if nessary.  Marsar spotted a glint at the edge of the man's boot, reconizing the haft of a knife currently hanging loosley from it's sheeth.

"Brave talk from a dead man," as he moved away from the  inisde of the casket shaped thing, unaware that the Vibroblade was just snatched from his sheeth. Mordous watched the man approch then slowly pushed himself onto his side, glacning over at him.  He could feel pain shooting from multiple areas of his body, it's sting unbarable.  He knew that this guy was a better fighter then he currently was in his current state.  The Bounty hunter moved in kicking hard, knocking Mordous across the room and into the transport's wall. "How doe sit feel to know that when where done with you....your Daughter will be next" he hissed spitting on his face.  All at once Mordous noticed a snapping noise in the background and figured if there was a better chance to strike then now was the time. In a split second he tackled the man and taking him down.  THe pair wrestled around for a second Mordous loosing the upper hand, he was going to die if somthing didn't happen and quick.  All at once he saw it..a flash of vibrating steel drivin deep into the man's neck. For a moment he lay there frozen, the weight of the dead man pinning him to the floor.  He looked up catching a flash of Red Hair and a pair of angrey eyes glaring down at him.

"Marsar?" he stated in surprise seeing the now Blood Soaked knife gripped firmly in her hand.

"Mordous" she anwsered back coldly...staring him down her eyes cutting deep into him like a knife.

"So this is the end, All you have to do is shove that blade into me and it will all be over"  Marsar knelt down closer putting the knife to his throat then looked at him

"No...I won't" she stated moving the blade to the binders slashing it clear  "Ok what next"

***

The speeder was a flaming wreck off to the side, the front caved in from hitting a street post. It was impossible to determine whether the light itself had been working before the impact, glass now scattered across the ground and wreck. Bodies lay everywhere, some showing signs of life. A'Kin quickly scanned the surroundings, but knew both Mordous and Marsar were long gone. "What happened?" A'Kin asked, stepping up to one of the survivors.

"We-we were a-attacked." Suppressing the urge to roll his eyes at the genius the boy was showing A'Kin waited patiently, or as patiently as he could under the circumstances. "I-I... need a medic... a hospital..." A bloodied hand reached out grabbing A'Kin's boot, gripping it surprisingly hard.

"You'll get what you deserve," A'Kin said crouching down beside the man. "What happened?"

"S-surprised us... the bitch... Working with Mor-rdous, ran off together... tried pursuing..." the sentence trailed off leaving the odd moan and rustle of wind.

Rising he slowly looked around the area. Nothing else stirred. "Gone." How hard was it to look after a small girl, and kill an already injured man? With a heavy sigh A'Kin pulled out a pistol, silencer already attached. The dull black colour none-reflecting as light struck. Holding it at his side for a moment, the Kel'Ishan lifted his arm ever so slightly, the pistol aimed down at the young merc.

A whisper echoed along the barren industrial street, followed by several more.

---

"Keep Your Friends Close..."
by Mies Aune (NPC+)
Torshk Drak'klo (NPC)

Location: Thanatos
Date: Vadris 26, 5 ABY

***

Snow fell silently in a steady stream well into the morning hours, the sunlight causing the white powdery substance to glimmer like diamonds cast out from the heavens above. Zooming across the vast sea of sand on his speeder bike, Mies could definitely see how one could easily get lost without proper equipment. A tattered but heavy dark brown cloak covered his form fluttering behind him, on his head an intricate silver helmet sat; on either side a long fin swept downwards like a pair of straight horns. The faceplate hid his features, his only means of sight visible through the heavily red tinted Plexiglas that came down in the shape of an H. His body was covered in a heavy dark leather body armor. To anyone that did not know him he could very well be as alien as the rest.

He mused over how he had came to the town, the very same Bothan he had met in Gage's had approached him again with new information this time regarding a former employee of Rda's. Apparently this man, a Bothan like the one helping Mies himself was tossed out but not before Rda seen to it that he was properly punished for overstepping his boundaries. Further talks with Jaytwo revealed that this Bothan had both his hands amputated after making a pass at one of Drer's slave girls. He was convinced that the Bothan would probably like nothing more to do with Drer Rda ever again but that he was also one who was easily swayed, and maybe just maybe Mies could buy information off him regarding the elusive Twi'lek's whereabouts.

Seeing the town of Thanatos draw nearer across the horizon Mies sped up his speeder bike.

***

Shortly after entering the city it didn't take Mies very long to find who he was looking for. Huddled underneath a makeshift shanty in a dark alleyway a Bothan sat with a blanket wrapped around his form; his salt and pepper colored fur was matted and tangled from the cold snow. Under one arm sat a skin drum, a gleaming hand of bronzed metal resting atop it. Near the Bothan's feet was a pot with which Mies assumed was most likely used for dropping in credits for the Bothan's music playing; he noted that there was a small number of credits and trinkets inside the pot.

He approached slowly and stopped at the Bothan's shanty hut.

"Any requests?" He asked not looking up.

"Information." Mies voice came out as a hollowed robotic echo, distorted from the voice modifier placed inside the helmet he wore.

"Are you Torshk Drak'klo?" Mies asked. At this the Bothan looked up.

"Who wants to know? Or has that wormhead Rda finally decided he wishes to rid the world of me?"

"I was not sent by this Rda that you speak of, I do however would very much like to see him about a certain bounty."

Torshk laughed. "I should have known you to be a bounty hunter, why would I want to help out someone like you anyway? Rda has plenty of enemies as well as friends, for all I know he'll think I sent you to kill him at the mere mention of my name!" Torshk threw aside his blanket revealing the stump where his left arm once was. He gestured with his chin. "It's bad enough I lost my hands and look!! I've even lost one of my arms!! Kriffing Rda left me to lie and rot till we got to the Shipyards, who knows what else I'd lost if not for that spat he got into with the station's security!" Torshk scoffed and pulled the blanket snuggly around himself.

Gesturing with his metallic hand he continued, "I was barely able to afford this replacement for a kriffing hand, doctors say it'll be sometime and a whole lotta creds till I'd be able to even dream of affording an operation to replace my arm, even a junker at that!"

Mies looked down at the Bothan regarding him curiously, it was very clear that he was full of bitterness and hatred. "Do you know who I would speak with if I wished to meet this Rda?" He asked his voice echoing hollowly spoke.

Torshk humphed. "What's in it for me if at all nothing bounty hunter?" He jumped as a loud clanging noise filled his ears and he looked down to see that Mies had dumped a significant amount of credits into the pot at his feet. Curiously he picked a cred with his hand and studied it.

"There's at least 2500 credits now in your pot, tell me how to reach your former employer this Drer Rda and I will add another 2500 credits to your pot. That alone should be more than enough to add your recovery and get you somewhere warm to sleep tonight unless you prefer the alleyways Bothan."

Studying Mies for several moments, Torshk looked to the credit he held in his hand and pocketed the piece before hurriedly picking up the pot which he protectively tucked under his arm. He beckoned for Mies to come closer and spoke in a low tone. "There's a cantina near here called Brasko's Pit that's frequented by bounty hunters like yourself. I hear tell also a Gran by the name of Idvat favors this particular cantina as well, if anyone can tell you where to find Drer it's him."

Nodding Mies handed the remainder of the offered credits over to Torshk before he stood up, proceeding to exit from the alleyway.

"Bounty hunter."

Mies turned his head at the sound of Torshk's voice.

"This Rda, don't underestimate him, he's far more dangerous than you'd think." He stated in an almost cryptic tone.

Mies nodded again slightly and turned away from the Bothan once more making his way out into the cold snow covered streets of Thanatos.

---

"...Your Enemies Closer"
by Mies Aune (NPC+)
Idvat (NPC)

Location: Brasko's Pit, Thanatos
Date: Vadris 26, 5 ABY

***

An hour or more-so after speaking with Torshk, Mies promptly left and began to search around the city for the place known as Brasko's Pit where Torshk told him he would be able to find the Gran named Idvat that worked under Drer Rda, and from there hopefully the whereabouts of his sister at long last. It had taken some poking about town but soon enough he had managed to find the cantina, tucked away in a back alley. The only indication of its presence was a battered metal sign that someone had hammered out and attached to a metallic pole that jutted out overhead from a stone wall of dilapidated building.

Hopping off his speeder bike Mies secured the vehicle before proceeding to make his way inside the establishment snow crunching under his boots. The moment he stepped inside he instantly felt a rush of warm air coupled with the smell of alcohol and greasy food being fried up from somewhere in the back. Taking in his surroundings he could see that the cantina was of a significant size and well able to house roughly a hundred or more-so patrons, many of whom had come in from the cold and sat at a large island bar situated in the center of the room. In the far back Mies could spy a Nautolan playing an ocarina on an ample sized stage, accompanied by navy skinned female Twi'lek who played an usual stringed instrument in her arms, completing the ensemble was a short Ithorian who banged away on a pair of skin drums placed before him. If Mies hadn't known better he had sworn the hammer headed alien was smiling as he played along. That is if an Ithorian was even capable of smiling.

The sound of bubbling laughter caught his ears and looking towards the back he could spy a Gran that sat sitting in a booth with a female Rodian on one arm and a female Togruta whose skin was the color of a crimson sunset on the other. Mies proceeded towards the table in the back, cloak flowing at his feet.

"Are you the one who calls himself Idvat?" Mies asked his voice a hollow muted echo through his helmet. The Gran hardly cast a glance Mies' way. "Depends on who's asking," He turned towards the Togruta female and stroked her chin with his hand prompting a sultry laugh from the woman, "Doesn't it my dear?"

Folding his arms over his chest Mies spoke again more demanding, "Are you Idvat or are you not?" This grabbed his attention and Idvat snarled at Mies. "Sith's Blood! Who the kriffing Sithspawn do you think you are?" The Gran asked standing up and planting his hands firmly on the table. "Can't you see I'm busy?" No in the entire bar so much as batted in eye in their direction.

"My name is Kleish Vahn, and I have come to see you about a bounty put out by your employer Drer Rda." This drew Idvat's attention and the Gran leaned forward on the table his three eyes trying to see past Mies' visor and into his eyes. "And exactly which bounty are you referring to Vahn? My employer has several."

"One that has eluded you for quite some time, a man by the name of Tyris if I am correct." Mies remarked unfolding his arms and gesturing with his hand slightly.

Idvat squeezed his eyes shut and muttered a curse in Huttese under his breath. There was a name he had hoped to not hear of ever again. This particular character had caused a great deal of grief for both him and his employer after only hours of being docked at Drogen Shipyards for repairs had Drer's prized Veaseph dancer turned up missing along with that bumbling bucket of bolts. Agork the dimwitted Gamorrean should have been the one to take the blame but no, Idvat received the brunt of it what with the snout face serving under his command to begin with. Still if he actually managed to capture Tyris...

"Ladies, I'm afraid we will have to continue this at another time." Amidst the two females moans of disagreement the Gran ushered them to their feet muttering apologies. "Mee'ta, Unaara I will see you both again I promise." Waving them both off, Mies stepped aside as the pair walked past him and then Idvat gestured for him to sit. "Come, table's open now Vahn." Sitting at the opposite end of the booth Mies turned towards the Gran.

"Now tell me, what makes you think you can find this Tyris let alone bring him back?" Idvat spat out leaning on the table his three eyes studying the bounty hunter intently.

"Lets just say I have my methods, besides even a lowly bounty hunter like me needs to eat too." Mies stated.

Stroking his chin in intent thought, Idvat mused over the idea in his head. This bounty hunter did at the very least look like he was worth his salt judging from the way he carried himself. Not to mention he had kept a cool head under pressure even after Idvat reamed him, most bounty hunters that Idvat had met in the past were rough and brash go gettem types that didn't brains from brawn. Brute strength was one thing but outsmarting your enemy was another, perhaps Drer should meet with this Vahn. Couldn't hurt him anymore as it was Idvat mused to himself.

"I suppose that in itself is a good enough reason but whether you take on this bounty is for my boss to decide, come with me and I will arrange a meeting for you." Rising from his seat Idvat exited the booth and indicated for Mies to follow him outside to where his own speeder bike was parked under a heavy tarp. He was good friends with the owner of Brasko's Pit and he could pay him later twice the amount he owed for his meal if however brief it had been.

Sitting atop his bike Idvat fired up the engine and waited until Mies got on his own respective ride and pulled up next to him.

"Drer is very selective about who he lets come to see him, even business associates." Idvat stated pulling out a small circular device which he slapped on the side of Mies's speeder bike. "This device will scramble your navigational controls but still enable you to pilot the machine itself. The device will be automatically disabled once it is removed and no harm shall be done to your speeder," Leaning towards Mies he then added, "You may remove it once we reach Drer's Palace but if I catch you trying to so much as knock it off as though it were accidental I will use the device to permanently damage the machine and you along with it understood?"

Mies nodded in agreement. "Completely." The Gran humphed in agreement and sped off into the desert Mies trailing behind him...

---

"Entering the Lion's Den"
by Mies Aune (NPC+)
Mielikki Aune (PC)
Idvat (NPC)
Drer Rda (NPC)

Location: Drer's Palace, Thanatos
Date: Vadris 26, 5 ABY

***

The two speeder bikes drew to a halt as they approached a massive cliff face and Mies looked to the Gran called Idvat that had led him to this place. The area itself was nondescript and resembled an oasis; in the dead of winter anyways. A cluster of bushes sat nestled around the small watering hole, their branches stripped from the elements. The water itself steamed slightly and Mies realized it was most likely a hot spring albeit a very small one. Idvat stepped off his bike and Mies did likewise. Walking over to his speeder, Idvat removed the scrambling device and pocketed it. "We're here. Follow me." Turning on his heel he marched towards a rock formation that stood at waist height covered in snow. Idvat brushed away the snow revealing a control panel, the device itself nearly blended in with the rocks. Pressing some buttons on the device the Gran spoke, "I've returned open the door."

Mies could hear what sounded like a Jawa conversing on the other end with Idvat. Growling the Gran spoke into the device again, "He's a bounty hunter why else would I've brought company you twit, now open the door!!" He remarked punching the console. A low rumbling noise could be heard and Mies watched as the rocks shifted, the snow scattering to the ground revealing an archway that led into the rockface itself. Idvat waved him along. "Come on Bounty Hunter. I hope your visit is worth my bosses' time." "It will be Gran, it will be." Those words spoken, Mies followed Idvat into the structure. Automatically, the helmet he wore adjusted the lighting to benefit his sight better, allowing for him to still see adequately in spite of being instantly drowned in darkness. Around him stood small collected groups of Bothans and Gamorreans. The aliens eyed him warily, their weapons at the ready if the newcomer were to start trouble. Mies couldn't help but notice the one Gamorrean guard wore a deep gash across his snout, a freshly acquired scar from the looks of it too he wagered. He couldn't help but wonder if the Gamorrean was a youth; they could be ill-tempered and tended act first and ask questions later. Not too unlike the Wookiees actually.

Come to think of it he couldn't help but be reminded of Kallabow, Fiamas' shipmate. The tall and slender female Wookiee though not as equally powerful as a male of her race was still a force to be reckoned and frankly he couldn't understand why others still chose to quarrel with her. Her impressive height more often then not however seemed to be working in her favor; any man foolish enough yet to try and stare down the Wookiee warrior often found Kallabow herself doing the staring down. The light changed and Mies found himself and Idvat in a large spacious hall.

In the middle of the room on a fainting couch lay a dark purple skinned Twi'lek gazing up at the ceiling. At first glance he appeared to be sleeping, a second glance however revealed he was infact lounging. Idvat approached the fainting couch and cleared his throat, "Boss I've returned, and I have someone here who wishes to speak with you." Drer laid still on the couch his eyes still closed.

"Oh? Go on I'm listening." He replied in a semi-bored tone.

"He's a Bounty Hunter." Idvat added.

"Wouldn't be the first time one passed through now would it?" Drer queried.

"No sir, this...man, he has come to see you about the bounty you posted for the one called Tyris."

At this Rda's eyes shot open and pushed himself up from the pillows and faced the Gran. Mies could see that the Twi'lek suffered from health problems; his forehead was bulbous, and a breathing apparatus was attached to his neck and face, every now and again he could just barely hear the faint hiss of air from the device Rda wore. Swinging his legs over the side of the fainting couch Drer beckoned for Mies to draw nearer.

"You, what interest do you have in pursuing the bounty I placed on this man called Tyris? It's been several months since it was posted and I've yet to discover where the cur has slithered off to, what makes you think you can do any better than the rest who have tried?" He asked his crimson eyes scanning his features as Mies drew closer.

Standing stock still, Mies replied his voice a mechanical echo. "Let us just say I'm in need of proper funds. Also perhaps it is the other Bounty Hunters you hired in the past to catch this man are how we shall say slow-witted?" At this remark Drer let out a low chuckle and smiled. "All brawns and no brains? Yes I can certainly assure you there is plenty of that going around my humble abode." His smile soured as he finished the sentence, dark eyes falling upon Idvat. The Gran turned on his heel, lip curling as he did knowing full well who his employer's remark had been aimed at.

"So..." Rda made a gesture with his hand, snapping his fingers.

"Vahn. Kleish Vahn sir." Mies answered.

Rda smiled and nodded. "Vahn, tell me how soon do you think you can acquire this man?"

"A week or so, perhaps less, I would need time to gather Intel." He replied.

"And your reward?"

"Pardon sir?"

Rda rose from the fainting couch and slowly approached Mies, circling around him as he spoke.

"You do expect payment for your services yes? I was inquiring what you would expect as payment, be it you complete the mission without difficulties of course." He stated stopping to face him. "So tell me, Kleish, what is it you desire as payment? Credits, slaves, jewels and treasure..." Drer added gesturing with his hands nonchalantly.

Mies studied Drer intently from behind his helmet's visor trying to read the Twi'lek's thoughts. He proceeded to reply but stopped as his eyes fell upon two females in the far back, one of them was a lavender skinned Twi'lek, the other...There was no mistaking it, it was his sister. He was not certain that they had made eye-contact but she had noticed him hurriedly looking away the moment she did. The Twi'lek female gazed over in his direction and Drer glanced over his shoulder at the pair.

"See something of interest Hunter?" Rda asked. "Come let me introduce you." Drer turned and gestured with his hand calling out the pair. The two women drew near, the lavender skinned Twi'lek flashed Mies a devious smile, her eyes glimmered like onyx daggers. She was fearfully beautiful and Mies could tell from the way she walked she was not someone to be trifled with. Both she and Mielikki had been dressed in form fitting silk wraps; hers the color of midnight blue and Mielikki's the color of pure white. The garments wrapped around the upper torso near completely save for the back, shoulders and stomach which were left exposed. The skirts themselves flowed past the feet, cut at mid-thigh. In spite of the fact that they were both significantly clothed as it was winter, Mies could not help but notice their feet were bare save for anklet bracelets.

"Let me introduce you to my most prized dancers, Asal and Mielikki." Standing behind the pair Drer rested his hands on their shoulders. "This is Asal, a Twi'lek like myself, albeit she is far more graceful than I." He added with a chuckle before continuing, "And this is Mielikki, my prize jewel, she is a Veaseph, and as you can see the race is highly renowned for their unique spotted markings." He stated indicating the spots that ran along her exposed back with a long bony finger. "Beautiful are they not?"

Mies glared at the Twi'lek from behind his helmet's visor, fighting the urge to not grab his sister protectively and out of Rda's prying grasp. With each minute that ticked by Mies was getting the impression that Drer Rda valued his dancers much the way a collector values prized antiquities; plainly put property with name tags. "Indeed sir, quite unique." Mies replied his voice a hollow metallic echo.

"You should see the two of them dance, quite a pair they are, most excellent coordination skills. But alas perhaps another time would be well suited for such an event, for now however...the business at hand? I trust you will keep me informed of your progress in pursuing Tyris?" Rda asked.

At this Mies couldn't help but notice that Mielikki looked up and appeared to be chewing at her lower lip. She cared for the man, this much was clearly evident whether Drer would want to admit it or not. Mentally Mies made a note of the observation and nodded at Rda's question. "Yes sir, I will work as efficiently as possible in locating this man for you, I will understand if you wish to only pay me later after I have completed the bounty."

"Good, very good. Go now, Idvat will show you the way out, I pray you will be successful unlike the others who have walked through my doors, this man Tyris I have found has prove highly elusive...that or very, very lucky."

Nodding, Mies bowed his head, "If it's all the same time you I appreciate a good challenge, until we meet again." Their meeting finished Mies followed Idvat back outside into the cool approaching night.

---

"Progress Report"
by Taka Kon'tar

Location: Jau Ship Construction Facility, Kanus Sector
Date: Vadris 26, 5ABY

***

The Jau taka, a military leader and by the crests and adornments, a powerful one, strode the corridor accompanied by a smaller man, a human. By most reasonable standards, the man was not small. He stood nearly two meters in height. Beside the Jau warrior, he was small.

The facility was designed for starship construction, located in the outer orbit of the A'tu system deep into the Kanus sector of space. With the Resistance upon Tae'Karada and the other star systems within Tae'Remok, the Jau had determined a new location, a secure location for the shipyards a necessity.

Taka Kon'tar stopped before a large, transparex window overlooking the production facility beyond. Within the crablike berth, a large ship, the largest in the Jau fleet, was undergoing refit and repairs. Sub-bays around the facility housed the construction mechanism for the Jau fighters. Soon, the Jau would be an unstoppable force in the galaxy.

"As you can see," the human male said, waving his hand toward the ship, "construction is almost complete on the control ship. The projector placed on the ventral stern section will emit an energy field that will repel standard starship weaponry. The projector is shielded quite heavily to prevent ships from easily destroying it and dropping your shields. The fighters are being similarly outfitted. They will lack the heavy shielding of the capital ship, but it will take considerable skill for a pilot to destroy the projector array on the starfighters."

The Jau nodded. "When will the work be finished," he demanded.

"The control ship will be completed today," the human said. "The fighters are still being produced. We should have a full complement of fighters for this ship by week's end. The refit of your other capital ships will begin once the first fighters have finished."

A rare smile curled the lips of Taka Kon'tar, a frightening expression to be certain. "Sa'Taka Gal'traq will be most pleased."

The human smiled and bowed low. "As I had hoped. We will not fail the Jau. All will be ready as has been demanded. The plans supplied by the mercenary Jax were most detailed. Had we continued as we were, it would have taken another year to complete these fixes. Whoever worked the technical schematics was a genius."

"Very well," Kon'tar said. "You have served us well. You will be well rewarded for your assistance, Dargus Kandran."

---