Mace closed himself off from the Force so no other Sith enemy could sense him as he flew the speeder back towards the Crescent Star. He'd just bought new clothes to disguise himself. A regular shirt and pants. He'd even gotten new boots. The only thing he kept was his cloak.

The right side of his face still ached, but the vision in his eye had cleared up a bit. He guessed that it just needed time, like how his mind was still recovering from the betrayal of Skywalker.

He parked on the landing pad and hopped out of the speeder, hoping no one realized that it'd been stolen. He saw that the captain was gone. Must've left to see if what Mace had told him about his General was true.

Mace entered the bar and found his bottle right where he'd left it. He didn't know whether he should drink it or not. Wasn't sure if he should let himself get tricked into falling for someone. But at the same time, he wanted to do it. He thought for a moment. Then...

He did it.

Mace took a long sip from the bottle of Claing juice. He took a few more big sips before corking the bottle and putting it back on the table. His throat burned for a moment and he forced his eyes not to water. He leaned back comfortably in the seat, hearing a familiar voice.

"Hey there, handsome."

"Hello, Roxy." He forced a welcoming smile as he looked up at her.

"I was looking for you." Roxy told him, sliding into the seat beside him.

"Yeah, well, I got chased out." Mace admitted.

"I heard the shots." She told him. "Glad you came back."

"Got nowhere to go, really." He sighed. "Not safe for the Jedi anywhere." He studied his mechno-hand and shrugged. "I don't know who's dead or alive in the Order."

"What happened?" She asked curiously. "I mean, with the Senate and the Jedi?"

"We were betrayed by one of our own." He shook his head. "He learned valuable information about the Sith Lord we've been looking for. The man was right under our noses the whole time. I took a team to kill the Sith Lord, but when I was the only one left alive, Skywalker interfered. He said that he needed the Sith Lord alive. He cut off my hand and I got thrown out the window of the Chancellor's office. Skywalker's a traitor."

"What were you doing in the Chancellor's office?" Roxy questioned.

Mace shook his head and looked away. "Jedi business."

"Oh."

"The clones betrayed us too, from what I've heard. They've killed most of us off and are hunting us down. Nowhere is safe for those that remain. No one is safe. No Jedi, no citizen. This new Empire proves it. You just watch. Nothing will ever be the same now."

"Where are you going after this?" She asked after a few moments of not talking.

He gave a half-hearted shrug. "Might stay here in hiding, might go all the way to Tatooine in the outer rim. No, not Tatooine...I don't know, honestly. I can't take on this Empire alone. I don't have my lightsaber. I don't have any weapon."

Mace felt the alcoholic drink start to take over his body. He shifted into a more comfortable position, looking at his mechno-hand's details carefully. He couldn't feel the touch of the metal fingers to his palm like he did with his real hand, but it worked. He preferred it over nothing. He'd need it one day when he was to make his final stand against Sidious and the newly fallen Skywalker.

Suddenly, Roxy was on his lap. "Looks like someone needs a little cheering up."

Before he could ask what she meant, she had grabbed his head in her hands and pressed her lips against his. The drink had nearly taken full control of him now and he couldn't help but to watch her body like a hawk. He wrapped his hands around her, kissing her in return. His cloak fell from his shoulders. Her hands tugged on his shirt and soon it was on the floor under the table.

With realization and a sense of logic coming over him, he pulled away, shaking his head. "This isn't right. Jedi aren't supposed to have attachments."

In reply, she pulled him back into a passionate kiss and he couldn't help but to kiss her once more. She was the most beautiful human being he had ever seen. Irresistible.

Logic screamed at him, but he ignored it. What are you doing? Has Skywalker's betrayal killed the real you?

This is the real me, He retorted. Just come out of hiding.