A/N: Well, it would appear that whatever it is that's messing with my account (not a hacker as I was led to believe previously) is still distorting my traffic and the ability to send/receive PMs. I would like to thank the people who took the time to e-mail (which should be on my profile page if you would like to ask me something) to ask me why I haven't responded to their reviews, and I hope that this clears up asap. I have contacted the staff here to see if they can solve this problem, but I don't know how that will end up. Thank you all for your patience in this matter. Please let me know if there is anything I need to edit or change here. Thanks in advance.

Chapter 2

Froz system, Froz orbit

Malinza Thanas brought the Hindsight out of hyperspace and ordered her co-pilot—Zomil, a member of the Defel race—to take a scan of the system, ready to find the Jedi that would finally get rid of the prisoner they had captured some days ago.

Malinza stared out into the vastness of the empty space around them, seeing that her reflection was looking back at her. She had dark black hair that was neatly placed right on her shoulders, was average for a human height-wise, and had distinctive eyes, marked by the very different colors each had: Her left eye was green and the right eye was gray. Thirty-one years old now, Malinza had left her homeworld of Bakura to seek her place in the Galaxy following the day that she had allied with her adopted family to fight off a Ssi-ruuvi invasion that had almost claimed her life. Thanks to the tutelage of Jaina Solo, Malinza had decided that she needed to leave Bakura to discover what it was that she was meant to do in life. Normally Malinza would have followed the teachings of the Cosmic Balance, a religion that had been founded on Hemei IV that taught that the Galaxy worked on a system that specified that when good things happened to an individual, someone else would inevitably be plagued with horrible occurrences. Over the years she had found herself working to find and detain the scum of the Galaxy by working as a part-time bounty hunter. Unlike her adopted uncle Luke Skywalker, Malinza's connection to the Force was miniscule, and she was nothing more than a highly-advanced human who relied on her own natural abilities to help her out.

Turning to her right, Malinza looked at Zomil, who almost blended in with the darkness projected by the bleak space outside the Hindsight. Zomil was advanced in age for his species, and was beginning to show the signs that their native inability to be seen in regular light due to specialized color absorption was about to leave him, due to his time away from Af'El and the inevitability of his advanced age. Under ultraviolet light, Zomil had golden fur that was slowly fading into a grayer color, which was black under normal light, and was complemented by his red eyes that glowed with a fierceness that belied his gentle nature. Malinza had met Zomil when she had been on Bridin Anchorage in the Portmoak sector, where he had been working as one of the few beings attempting to restore order to the world following its dilapidation due to the rule of a con artist named Quarlo Bridin. Joining forces, they had successfully ousted Bridin of his role of leader of the planet, and left a friendlier ruler in his place, the sister of Purge survivor Corwin Shelvay, known as Elena to those she worked with. Once a member of the Imperial Security Bureau, Elena had been saved by her brother and moved to the Portmoak sector to redeem herself for the evils she had committed during her days as an Imperial, and had assisted Malinza and Zomil with freeing Bridin Anchorage, which was now named Corwin in honor of her brother.

Ever since then, Zomil and Malinza had been inseparable, especially as she had saved his life during the fight against Bridin, leading him to commit a life debt to her, even though his own species frowned upon such actions. Malinza had tried to get him to recall his debt to her, as she did not want him to feel that he had to remain with her for the rest of his life, but Zomil had told her that sought redemption for his past, and felt that the Force was guiding him to follow her in order to make amends for what he had done. Zomil never spoke much about his past, and never asked Malinza for her own in return, a sentiment she was happy to share.

Flipping a switch on her right, Malinza activated the Hindsight's environmental factors, which caused the YT-1300's algae cylinders to turn on and send a wave of cool air throughout the cockpit. Wishing that they had the funding for an improved C-8 life support system that would cause the cooling to be automatic, Malinza frowned, but gently touched the operating system they had anyways, as she appreciated the ship for what it was worth. Despite being one of the older ships in the Galaxy, the Hindsight was heavily modified, mostly due to the credits that Zomil and Malinza had earned during their expeditions, and from the generous donations that her adopted uncle had given them following their help during the Second Galactic Civil War for the help they had given to transport Jedi safely to Shedu Maad in a way that would prevent Darth Caedus from ever finding them. Malinza had purchased the ship on Bakura from the Ryn named Goure Conor, who had assisted the Bakurans and Galactic Alliance during the Ssi-ruuvi invasion by providing information to Tahiri Veila that helped to turn the tide of the battle.

A banging noise came from behind them and Malinza sighed. "When will she learn that she's trapped and can't escape?" she asked.

"Three-Eye is stupid being," Zomil said. "Much idiocy in her head."

Malinza smiled. "You have such a way with words, Zomil."

"Words mean much to everyone, so is better to use them in good way, no?"

"Oh, I agree with you, but I don't know if Three-Eye will."

Checking the monitor in front of her, Malinza watched Three-Eye pace in the force cage that they had sealed her in following the time that they had captured her on the normally stormy planet of Tertiary Kesmere, where the pirate had been performing genetic modifications on the native hornagaunts. This information had surprised Malinza when she had captured the notorious pirate, who didn't normally deal with scientific areas of the Galaxy, preferring instead to attack the planets that were still under the control of RePlanetHab, knowing that the fragile worlds were easy targets, especially since the Galactic Alliance's military was focused on more pressing woes than piracy. Using this information, Malinza discovered that Three-Eye's—as Galactic Alliance Intelligence and the Ryn Network had speculated—real name was Ogl'woxz, a Gran scientist that had been involved in the infamous Project Durge that had taken place on Dantooine, which had found a way to resurrect the famed bounty hunter Durge. Following an escape, Ogl'woxz had discovered that no respectable organization would employ her and slowly made the move to piracy, which she had excelled at. During the days of the Empire's eventual fragmentation, she had focused solely on hitting their worlds, as they were far easier to steal from in the confusion that had followed the Battle of Endor. However, in more recent years, she had targeted worlds that belonged to what had been the New Republic and the Galactic Federation of Free Alliances, using their constant inability to patrol their own sectors to her advantage and taking what she had wanted. Although she had little morals, Three-Eye had thought of herself as a patriot during the Yuuzhan Vong War, and had actually fought against the Peace Brigade, destroying several of their ships at the Maltorian mining belt, which she eventually used as her base of operations following the war and the onset of the Swarm War.

Now the famed pirate was being held inside of the Hindsight, waiting to be transferred to a new prison facility on Froz that had recently been dubbed the Hedda Memorial Detainment Center, named after a young Frozian Jedi Knight that had died on Ossus thanks to the efforts of Salle Serpa. Hedda was fondly remembered by the Frozians as the leader of the resistance to retake Froz during the Yuuzhan Vong War, even though she was only a young padawan at the time. The Detainment Center now held many of the most dangerous criminals that the Jedi and the Galactic Alliance was able to capture.

"Jedi taking too long," Zomil noted.

"You know how stringent they are now," Malinza said. "Due to recent events."

Zomil nodded. "Still could come here on time, no?"

"Jedi are never late, Zomil…they're just never on time either."

"Makes no sense. Jedi are—"

Zomil was interrupted by a voice that came over their com channel. "This is Jedi Knight Shul Vaal confirming the detainment of Three-Eye by utilizing the agreed upon code of THX-1138," the hologram on the left side of Malinza's body said. "Please respond."

Malinza flicked the hologram switch so that she would appear on their ship that appeared to be the Lightning Rod, an old freighter that had once belonged to the Jedi Knight Zekk. Now it seemed that it was owned exclusively by the Jedi Order.

Shul Vaal's hologram stared at Malinza for a moment, as she looked back at him. Shul was a middle-aged blue-skinned Twi'lek male who hailed from Sleheyron, where he had been forced from an early age into slavery by Ingoda the Hutt, who had stolen him from his parents. From there, Shul had been sent to Ylesia, where he had lived until 28 ABY, when a contingent of New Republic soldiers and Jedi had successfully raided the planet and freed some of its slaves, which included him. During the trip to Dac, Shul had been found as Force-sensitive by the Wookiee Jedi known as Lowbacca, and subsequently trained by other members of the Order.

Beside Shul in the hologram was the Omwati Jedi Knight Tiu Zax, a member of the Jedi who had participated mainly in intelligence gathering, thanks to her unique connection to the Force, which allowed her to conceal herself from others without being discovered easily. Tiu had pale white hair that spiked up in certain areas, as well as dark blue eyes that augmented her skin color. Malinza knew of them from her time on Shedu Maad, where she had shipped them to the safe world and learned that they were romantically involved with each other, despite Tiu being almost a decade younger than Shul.

"This is Malinza Thanas sending the code of Kettch is not the pilot, but Kolot is."

"Code acknowledged, Captain Thanas," Shul said. "Prepare to dock."

"Affirmative."

Malinza turned to Zomil, who had already begun the docking procedures, saying, "It is good we get rid of Three-Eye now. She is awful being."

"The moment she's off of here, the better, partner," Malinza said, standing up. "Do you have the stun cuffs ready for her?"

"SC-401 stun cuffs is here. Strong enough for Wookiee, then strong enough for Gran. Up to highest setting, no?"

"Works for me."

Leading him away from the cockpit, Malinza felt the Hindsight and the Lightning Rod dock with each other, as she opened the door to the room where Three-Eye's force cage was. The pirate merely stared at them for a moment before she huffed and crossed her arms.

"It took you long enough," Three-Eye said. "I was beginning to think I'd be here in this cell forever. I would rather have better accommodations."

"Well you're getting your wish, Ogl'woxz," Malinza said. "It's time for you to head into the nice Detention Center on Froz. I hear they let the thud bugs roam free to make sure that no one ever gets too far from the Center should they escape. That should be fun to hear about."

"Oh, I have no intention of ever setting foot in that Center. And the name is Three-Eye. I do not know this Ogl'woxz of yours."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Zomil, cuff her."

Deactivating the force cage, Malinza then held out her modified Crusader M-XIV rifle to make sure that Three-Eye didn't try anything foolish. Three-Eye stared at Malinza with malice in her face, but not enough to warrant any suspicion on Malinza's part.

"Alright, let's take her to the Jedi, get out reward, and head over to Onadax for that tip we got on what's his name, Durrei?" Malinza asked.

"Is Durrei," Zomil said, as he pushed Three-Eye toward the docking hatch, which opened up to reveal Shul Vaal, Tiu Zax, and a group of Galactic Alliance guards.

The Jedi bowed at them and Malinza returned the favor. "Greetings, Shul Vaal and Tiu Zax," she said. "It's been too long since we've seen each other."

"And for you two as well," Shul said, smiling. "Although it could be under better times, I think."

"Ogl'woxz of Kinyen, you have been arrested due to escaping a Galactic Alliance prison following the end of the Second Galactic Civil War after previously being arrested by the Jedi for participating in illegal pirating of Galactic Alliance worlds," Tiu said, stepping forward to take Three-Eye from Zomil. "I will now take you to your holding cell on Froz where you will spend the rest of your natural life for your crimes."

Three-Eye glared at her, just as one of the guards' comlink activated, saying, "A ship just exited hyperspace! No—Make that four ships!"

Before any of them could react, the Hindsight began to shake as a barrage of turbolaser fire hit them, causing the less stable beings in the room to fall to the ground. Malinza grabbed a pole just in time to remain standing, as she found that none of the guards were moving in the same way as the others were. Looking closely as she examined them, she found that they were wearing magnetic tractor boots, which kept them perfectly in place as they were attacked.

The same voice from the comlink cried out his discoveries, while the Jedi tried to stand back up, but were thwarted by a sudden explosion of one of the minor systems on the Hindsight, "It's a bunch of Kaloth-class battlecruisers! It's the Thalassian slavers and the Cavrilhu Pirates! They must be allied with Three—Argh!"

The voice was drowned out by the sound of blasters firing off, letting Malinza know that the young man had just been killed. Looking up once more, she found Three-Eye being taken away by the guards back into the other ship, and it appeared that they would get away freely. Pulling up her rifle, Malinza tried to send off a shot, but another wave of turbolaser fire caused her to lose her grip and drop the gun. However, just as she realized her mistake, Shul Vaal had recovered and leapt over to the guards, decapitating one with a wave of his turquoise blade. Just as Shul brought back his blade once more, one of the guards—a male Jenet—grabbed him by the lekku and caused the Jedi to scream out in pain, due to the Twi'leks sensitivity to having their lekku touched fiercely. Unable to get up to help him, Malinza tried to have Zomil assist the Jedi, but he was barely holding on to another pole, while Tiu Zax was feebly attempting to reach him with her mind. Shul fell to the floor in agony, as a stun blast knocked him out completely.

Before their foes could regain their senses, the guards locked the docking bay door right behind them, and Malinza heard the other ship begin to move away from them. Suddenly, the turbolaser fire stopped, and the Hindsight was mercifully free from danger. Running over to the cockpit the moment that gravity was restored, Malinza watched as a fleet of Kaloth-class ships fled the Froz system, and left them behind. Jamming her hand down on the control board, she felt a wave of fury overtake her mind. She barely noticed Zomil dragging the unconscious form of Tiu into the cockpit and punched the wall.

"Kriff it all to nine Corellian hells!" Malinza yelled. "What the frak just happened here?"

"Jedi must not look into crew records when they leave Coruscant," Zomil said. "Jedi make mistake and now Three-Eye is free. Worse, there is Jedi taken by Three-Eye. Three-Eye is hater of Jedi. Not good."

"I can kriffing see that, Zomil! Now what do we do about it?"

"Track ships. Contact Jedi. Say we need help, but they not give it. Too few Jedi to help out anymore. We do it alone."

"You're not inspiring much confidence in me now, Zomil."

"Malinza is tired and mad. Only natural to be angry. Track ion trails of ships and Zomil take this one to infirmary. Is good to clean her wounds, no?"

Malinza nodded and saw the gashes that appeared all over Tiu's body, the direct result of it banging against the metallic sides of her ship.

"Do damage report so Zomil can fix later, no?" Zomil asked, as he carried Tiu away.

Malinza sighed, as she tried to calm herself. None of what had just happened was good. Not only had Three-Eye gotten away, but she was now allied with the Thalassian slavers and the Cavrilhu Pirates, and had also taken a Jedi Knight with them. She could call for aid from the Jedi and the Alliance, but she wouldn't get it. No one could possibly aid her now.

Trust in yourself and know that you can make the impossible, possible, the voice of Luke Skywalker said in her mind.

Flinching when she heard it, Malinza wondered if her adopted uncle was actually talking to her, but remembered that he was nowhere near her now, and that it was an old phrase of his that he had always used to comfort her as a child. It had always helped to hear him say such kind words to her, especially after losing her mother and father at an early age.

"Alright, Uncle Luke, I'll do it," Malinza said, as she began to track the ion signatures of the fleeing craft. "I'm going to make the impossible, possible…I hope."

The computer located the destination of the ships and locked in the coordinates, allowing Malinza to begin the jump to hyperspace, as she began to wonder if even the tiny pep talk that she had just given herself would be enough to help them when they finally met up with Three-Eye and her forces.

A/N: Okay, the next chapter will focus on Danni Quee and Kunra as they begin to experience their role in future events. The next chapter should be up by maybe Friday at the earliest. Until next time...