Divergence

by Shadow Master

BtVSStar Wars It was a night of chaos and change when Glory attempted to use DawnThe Key to tear down the barriers between dimensions. Amidst such chaos unpredictable things can happen both here and in a galaxy far, far away.

4. Harris luck on Muunilinst

Two and a Half Years Later,

The Elevator Leading to the Jedi High Council Chambers

Well today is the day! Xander thought to himself as he rode the elevator to the High Council Chambers, The day I go on my first off world mission as a padawan!

He had been here on Coruscant among the Jedi for roughly three years both learning about this new world he had been dropped in as well as learning how to wield the Force as a Jedi. It had certainly been a rough three years but over the last couple of months he had finally begun to feel like he belonged here rather than seeing himself as a stranger in a strange land. While he was by no means familiar with everything he was no longer uncomfortable holding a conversation with his fellow padawan learners about day to day topics like the state of the Republic and the latest gossip from the High Council. He also had a good grasp of the more common gadgets and doo-dads that were used in this dimension so all in all he would have to say things were finally starting to smooth out for him. The moment he thought that he had the urge to slap himself as he realized that was the exact sort of thought that certain mischievous beings waited for before acting. True as far as he knew no demons or supernatural beings existed in this dimension, at least not like back in Sunnydale, but that didn't stop him from suspecting that some otherworldly presence would choose to go out of their way to change smooth to rough for him. It was like someone saying 'well things sure are quiet tonight' which of course back in Sunnydale meant that within the hour another apocalypse would be sure to hit the town. In this case however his comment about how smooth things were going would probably result in his off world mission with a Master resulting in a civil war with everyone pointing fingers to him as being the cause.

Now, now let's not get ahead of ourselves! , Xander thought as the doors of the elevator finally opened to admit him to the Council Chambers, I'm sure that whichever Jedi Master I get paired with for this mission will be skilled enough to keep any trouble I cause down to just a feud between two rich and influential families or businesses.

With his concerns about his first off-world mission put to the side for the moment he did a quick Jedi calming meditation to cleanse his mind of any remaining anxiety. Shortly thereafter the door of the lift opened to admit him into the presence of the Jedi High Council just as it had almost three years ago. Fortunately this time he was properly dressed and could speak Basic well enough that unless he tried to use some big words he would be understood by each and every member of the High Council. Master Galia, or grandma as he called her when he was certain that she wouldn't find out about it, suggested he try to learn as many languages as he could as soon as possible as the different species he would meet might be more receptive to his suggestions if he conveyed the ideas to them in the species' own language. Unfortunately for him the number of languages spoken in the Galactic Republic somehow managed to outnumber the number of species that were a part of it by a fair margin. In some cases there were over twenty dialects for a single continent alone and the number only got bigger the further abroad the planet you went. While he didn't believe the High Council expected him to learn every language he was pretty sure that they wanted him to be able to pick up a language fairly quickly. Fortunately if he needed to speak to a race whose language he didn't know it was permissible to have a protocol droid present during negotiations.

Of course that's only if one of the parties involved in the negotiation don't hate droids or object to them being present for some reason. Xander thought to himself as he proceeded to the middle of the Council chambers, Master Galia didn't really elaborate on that point other than to say that sometimes mercenaries snuck bombs into them to disrupt or destroy the mediation process.

"Padawan Xander, that you for coming so swiftly." Master Windu said with his usual confounding tone that defied description or definition.

"It was not a problem Master." Xander said politely while at the same time restraining himself from falling back on Earth American slang.

That had been one thing that he had experienced the most trouble changing over the past few years, eliminating the slang and pop culture references from his speech. Both elements that had been so natural for him before coming here only served to both confuse and in some cases irritate the rest of the Jedi in the temple. He had made a few attempts early on to explain some of the more basic terms and phrases to the people he'd be interacting with on a regular basis but half the time it only increased their confusion. Add to that the few times when he had accidentally broke through their Jedi calm with a word or phrase that for a particular species was offensive and he had resigned himself to conforming to the local's way of speaking. He still thought using slang terms and pop culture references but that wasn't a problem unless a Jedi capable of telepathy made an actual effort to eavesdrop on his thoughts. Fortunately it was considered against the code to do such things so the only way anyone could spy on his thoughts would be by accident. That however didn't keep him from clearing his mind or only thinking happy thoughts when certain important or influential Jedi got to within a certain distance of him.

"The time has come for you to gain experience to go along with the knowledge you have gained here at the temple. In most cases a Master would select a padawan from among those thought to be ready for such an assignment but you are unique." Master Windu explained in an authoritative manner, "Due to the method we selected to use to instruct you in the ways of the Force and the Jedi you have been under the guidance of five members of the Council. This is a problem. When a Master is asked to select a padawan learner to teach, it is preferred that they know nothing of the learner aside from their file - do you know why this is?"

"So that the Master chooses his padawan as objectively as possible, basing his or her choice on the padawan's talents and abilities rather than personal preference?" Xander replied as confidently as possible but with a little uncertainty at the end.

This unfortunately caused a round of 'Master looking at Master' between the various High Council members that only increased the green padawan's unease. When several small smiles appeared on some of their lips, though, his unease was dispelled as he took that as a sign that he had answered correctly.

"Exactly padawan. As such though we have been left with the issue of which Master would be able to remain objective enough in instructing you to take on this task." Master Windu said confirming Xander's suspicion, "Do you know of any Master who could meet these requirements?"

Great! Leave me with the tough choice! Xander thought to himself as he kept himself from adding any visible illustrations of his thoughts.

There were many notable Jedi Masters that he had come to admire for their various skills and abilities after watching them in the training room or in the classrooms. Djinn Altis was a wise Master who also seemed to be something of a rule bender when it came to the number of padawan learners a Jedi Master could have as well as the topic of emotional attachments between Jedi. It was said that he even supported the idea of marriage within the Order even though others thought it too dangerous because of the memories it would induce in the Jedi. Xander could understand both sides of the argument from the Council's concern over the emotions caused by such relationships being possible paths to the Dark Side to his own belief that it would only strengthen the Order. Then there was Jedi Master Juhani, who much to his surprise was a direct descendant of the Juhani who fought alongside Jedi Knight Bastilla Shan against Darth Malak, whose loyalty to the Order and those she called friend reminded him of the Scoobies. Jedi Master Shaak Ti was also a fine choice as she was seen as being among the most cunning members of the Order and according to rumor was without a padawan at the moment. There were other choices of course but from the look on the faces of the High Council they were not going to wait for him to think each one through thoroughly.

He was about to deliver his answer when a thought hit him that caused him to hesitate. What if this was a trick question? According to the code a Jedi was forbidden to have either possessions or attachments of any kind. This was done as a preventative measure as such things could lead one down the dark path if they were lost or taken from the Jedi. That being said if he spoke up and mentioned the names of the Jedi Knights and Masters he would like to accompany him on his first off world mission would his preferences be construed as preference? Would they think he was 'attached' to these specific members of the Order? Mentally he shook his head to clear his mind of doubt and hesitation as he decided that it was useless to let his anxieties affect him like this. He would just reply honestly and hope for the best.

"While there are a few Knights and Masters that I would like to accompany me on this mission I believe I will leave the decision up to you and the Council Master Windu." Xander replied with a straight face and a calm voice, "After all you and the others are more likely to see a complete picture of my strong suites and my flaws than I would. A wise friend of mine once said that no matter how honest we try to be with ourselves we almost always look at ourselves with distorted eyes. So it's probably wiser to let someone who sees me more clearly to assign a Master or Knight to this mission with me than to allow me to make the choice."

There! A large helping of honestly mixed with a kernel of wisdom from an old TV show from home! Xander thought to himself as he took in the varied reactions of the members of the Jedi High Council, Let's see them try and twist that into me having an 'attachment' to anyone or letting my emotions cloud my judgment!

Unfortunately at least three members of the Council seemed to have thoughtful frowns on their face while the rest didn't seem to think anything of his little 'words of wisdom'. Apparently they either saw it as a transparent attempt to impress them or as an attempt to dodge the question and that would imply fear and indecision on his part. He was beginning to believe that there really was no point in attempting to either mislead or impress a member of the High Council as they could see right through you to the truth. So there he stood and waited for their judgment as they went through another round of 'give meaningful looks to one another' which really was making him think they were communicating with each other telepathically. After all while it was true that between people who have known each other for a long time a look was sometimes all it took to convey an idea or an opinion there was still a limit on what a look could contain. They had to be talking to each other mind-to-mind when they were like this. When their eyes returned to him he knew that they had made their choice and he hoped it was 'we have decided which Jedi we will assign' rather than 'maybe padawan Xander isn't ready for his off world mission after all'.

"While it is true that we might be more objective in the choosing of a Master or a Knight to go with you on this mission it is also important that you be comfortable with that person." Master Galia stated from her position on the left side of the room, "Therefore the Council has decided that Master Windu will be assigned to accompany you on this mission."

For a moment he was genuinely surprised at this pronouncement given Windu's status and reputation among the Order but he quickly locked that feeling up. He had to remain composed and professional about this or they'd probably do something when he got back to put even more emphasis on emotional control. Probably have him stand atop a metal pole with a bucket on his head with instructions not to let a single drop of the water that was within the bucket fall to the floor. They'd even imply that he would only be successful if he retained complete control the entire time of his emotions. Whatever the result of this mission, there would be talk of his being partnered with Master Mace Windu within the temple for a long time and Rreya would bug him about it for weeks. Therefore he may as well take this all in stride and enjoy it as much as he could before the problems and drawbacks became noticeable.

"I'm sure that this mission will be quite the learning experience with Master Windu there with me." Xander stated honestly before his mind caught on something, "So what exactly is the mission anyway?"

After complying with Master Windu's gesture for him to move off to the side of the room he watched as the circle design in the middle of the room slid away to reveal a large holo-projector. A few moments later it activated and an image of a planet was displayed in the center of the room.

"The mission, as you put it, is on the financial world of Muunilinst which is one of the most important economic hubs in the Republic. A zoning dispute has manifested in the storage district between the Intergalactic Banking Clan and an up and coming Falleen business man Prince Xizor." Master Windu explained before the image displayed by the holo-projector changed from a planet to a short bio-file on Xizor, "From the information that has been provided for us Prince Xizor has been accused of arranging for building code violations to 'appear' in structures belonging to prominent members of the Banking Clan. Prince Xizor denies any part in the violations but is moving aggressively to have the Banking Clan's rights to the buildings revoked so he can claim them for himself."

"Is there any indication as to who is telling the truth?" Xander asked as his mind went to work on determining who the guilty party was, "The scheme that the Banking Clan is proposing Xizor is responsible for does seem plausible and the fact that he is making such an effort to acquire those buildings does make him look rather suspicious."

"Based on the preliminary intelligence we have gathered there is nothing significant to imply one party or the other is telling the truth. It may be the case that both of them are innocent and the sabotage is being committed by a third party to stir up conflict between them." Depa Billaba replied confidently, "In any case it will be the job of Master Windu and yourself to determine what the truth is and resolve the conflict."

Xander only nodded as he took the information provided and began to run scenarios of his own in his mind to determine which group was telling the truth and how best to solve the problem.

"We will be leaving tomorrow morning in a Jedi transport. I expect you to spend the time you have until then familiarizing yourself with both species as well as the organizations the represent." Master Windu said with the seriousness the matter was due, "While I will be the official mediator for the two parties you will be expected to watch the proceedings carefully and learn what you can about the negotiation process between two different species and cultures. It is one of the necessities of the Jedi's positions as mediators to be familiar with the customs and beliefs of both parties and to base our strategies around them."

That makes sense. Xander thought as he nodded to Windu, It must be quite a bit different from the way things are done back on Earth. Back home at least we were all humans with the same basic features but here the differences are as numerous as the similarities.

"Then if there is nothing more Masters I would like to begin making preparations." Xander said formally as he knew he would have a lot of reading to do between now and the moment they arrived on Muunilinst.

"Then you are dismissed Padawan Xander." Master Windu said with a nod.

Bowing slightly as a sign of respect and the equivalent of a wave goodbye Xander turned and re-entered the lift. Pressing the button that would take him to the floor his room was on he began to make a list mentally of both the things he would need to take with him on the trip as well as what to download from the Jedi archives. He'd definitely have to download the complete biographies on both Prince Xizor as well as the members of the Banking Clan that would be present at the meeting. From there he would branch out to the customs, beliefs and histories of their respective races to ensure he didn't insult them without knowing he was insulting them. He knew he wouldn't be the one to actually get the two parties to make nice with one another but he was pretty sure that any bad behavior on his part would only make Windu's job that much harder. He just hoped that there wasn't too much information for him to memorize otherwise he'd either lose a lot of sleep reading it all or he'd have sizeable holes in his knowledge of the two groups.

Looks like an all-night cram sessions just like back on the Hellmouth. Thought Xander as he looked out into the cityscape visible through the elevator windows.

The Next Morning, Jedi Hanger

"Master Windu? I think it might be a good idea if I sit these negotiations out and stay here in the Temple until the next assignment comes up." Xander said to the member of the High Council.

"What's wrong?" Master Windu asked with some confusion along with concern on his face.

"Well after the meeting with the High Council I did research on both parties just like I said and from what I found out I don't think it would be a good idea for me to be present during the negotiations." Xander replied as he began his prepared explanation, "From what the Jedi Archives had to say about the Banking Clan's 'ambitious' nature and the superiority complex the Falleen have putting me in the same room as them is a recipe for trouble."

It was the honest truth as Xander saw it and he had made sure of his position before coming to the hanger. He had gone over the information on the two races as well as the specific people that would represent both parties in the dispute. On the one side they'd have the members of the Banking Clan that from the information he had read were worse than the Ferengi of Star Trek fame back home. The only thing they were concerned with was profit and the only thing keeping them from robbing the galaxy blind was the fact that they weren't big on taking unreasonable risks. While there were plenty of projects all around the Republic that they funded and ran themselves they seemed to prefer working in partnership with another party for stability's sake. Still anyone who put the almighty dollar, or in this case credit, ahead of people's lives and futures were not very trustworthy to say the least. If he had to sit in on the mediations with them in the room there would doubtlessly be at least a few instances when he would get angry with how cavalierly they treat the people working under them or the people who would be affected by the outcome of the negotiations. As for the Falleen he figured it would be a double whammy as on one side they apparently believed themselves to be the only civilized race in the known galaxy with everyone else being undisciplined savages. On the other end of the problem their potent pheromones the records stated made them irresistible to the opposite sex regardless of whether or not the opposite sex was also another species. In summary if didn't end up disgusted with the greed of the Banking Clan he'd probably get angry with the Falleen's superior smug attitude as well as any attempts by the reptiles' attempts to mess with his mind using their pheromones.

"While I appreciate your concern for the mission's well being you will not be able to avoid interacting with species you find aren't to your liking forever." Mace Windu said wisely as he placed a hand on Xander's right shoulder, "Think of this as a chance to test your mental discipline. I have heard from Master Yoda that you have come quite a ways since you first arrived here."

Ain't that the truth! Xander thought as he remembered how things were in the beginning.

It had been a big problem for him when he first started his training to become a true Jedi to keep his emotions in check and exude this peaceful calmness that all Jedi over the age of ten seemed to possess. While he hadn't been completely lacking in control it was clear that the level of emotional discipline he had been used to employing back in Sunnydale was much looser than what was expected of a Jedi. It had taken many hours to say nothing of months before he had enough control so that he wouldn't stand out too badly amongst his peers. From there it had been steady but slow progress until it took something pretty serious to make him act in an emotional manner like Rreya messing with his head to see how long he could last before losing control. At present he was fairly confident that he could keep his cool here in the Temple but that was mostly because a rude or offensive Jedi was practically unheard of and so there was no one to really push his buttons. However dealing with people outside of the Temple would be different and while he knew he couldn't spend the rest of his life in the Temple putting him in the same room with such distasteful people was like locking him in a room with Deadboy. The next time the door opened one or both of them would likely be dead and that was what an optimist would expect. A pessimist would expect … well … he didn't even want to speculate what would happen from a pessimist's point of view but he doubt it would be pretty. So while Master Windu and Master Yoda might be optimistic concerning his mental discipline years in Sunnydale had made him more prone at giving situations a look from a pessimistic person's point of view. 'Hope for the best but plan for the worst' was the motto he had followed after a year as a member of the Scooby gang. In this situation though his inner pessimist predicted that he'd probably wind up causing the situation to escalate on Muunilinst and maybe dragging the Jedi into it as well.

"Perhaps so but I do not believe it would be wise to put my control to such a difficult test." Xander stated honestly, "After all I may just make matters worse if my control slips."

"Have more faith in yourself my young padawan. While you do still have much to learn of the Force I am confident that you will be able to retain control during this mission." Master Windu declared reassuringly, "Besides I think it would be safe to say that if you decline to go on the mission now it will not take long for Padawan Rreya to find out."

Xander blanched for a moment at the possible ways Rreya would use this against him before saying "That was a low blow Master."

To this all Master Windu did was look at him with that composed look of his but Xander could see a distinct twinkle in the man's eyes. It was the same twinkle that Rreya often had when she had successfully maneuvered him into a corner verbally without him realizing it until it was too late to do anything but growl at his predicament. So here he was left with two potentially bad choices: either he a) went on the mission with Master Windu and possibly start a small war or b) stay here and endure Rreya's taunting for the next month.

Gee, tough choice! Xander thought sarcastically as he briefly contemplated sending a dirty look the Jedi Master's way before deciding against it.

"Fine. However you will be the one to tell the High Council how a simple property dispute escalated into full blown clan warfare when we get back." Xander stated with resignation as he began to walk towards the transport they would be taking as it had been noted in the briefing materials that he had downloaded into his PC.

"Of course my young padawan." Was all Master Mace Windu said as he fell into step behind the annoyed padawan towards the transport ahead of them.

A Black Cruiser, Unknown System, Two Hours Later

"So he has finally left the Temple. Excellent." Said Lord Tyrranus as he terminated the connection between his ship and his spy on Coruscant.

A time he had waited for patiently for almost three years had arrived and he would be lying if he said that he wasn't interested in how things would develop from this point onward. At his Master Sidious' bidding he had carefully culled information from his various sources on Coruscant in an effort to learn all he could about any new arrivals at the Temple. Despite the efforts of the naïve High Council it had not taken him long to learn of Master Yoda's 'son' or of the special treatment the boy was receiving. Being taught by no less than five of the High Council's Jedi Masters and being admitted even though being ten years over the age limit as described in the Jedi Code. From there it was simple to follow the progress he made in his training and arrange a few subtle tests of his own to determine if Padawan Xander had certain traits he could use to his advantage. In terms of power it did indeed appear as though the young lad had the potential to rival his old Jedi Master and with Master Windu instructing him in the use of a lightsaber his skill in that area should become impressive as well. However the fact that the young padawan had remained in the Temple up until now limited what he could do to lay the foundation for the one who would hopefully become his newest apprentice. He could not make many visits to the Temple himself since it would risk at least some of the Jedi sensing his new devotion to the Dark Side and thus spoiling his plans. He also could not arrange for a problem to occur away from Coruscant as it would not necessarily result in the boy being assigned to the mission. Thus he had been forced to watch and wait for the chance to properly test the boy and determine whether he was truly worthy or if his informants had merely exaggerated his potential in order to reap the rewards of finding something so valuable.

This conflict on Muunilinst should be perfect in determining the padawan's emotional tendencies. Tyrranus thought as he instructed the droid piloting the ship to set a course to the economy planet.

The informant who had just told him of Xander's leaving Coruscant had also divulged the details behind the mission based on the Learner's inquiries at the Archives. He had of course already been aware of the dispute between the Falleen and members of the Banking Clan because the latter was a potential tool for his Master's plan. While he had also considered including the Falleen he believed their intrinsic belief that their race was superior to all others would only hinder the plan in the end. Forming such a wide alliance required that each component be of one mind concerning the overall objective even if their own respective vices played a major part in their agreeing to the plan. If the Falleen became involved it would likely create friction among the various members of the alliance with the potential of breaking it apart completely. No it was better that the Falleen remain in the dark along with the rest of the pathetic Republic about what was slowly taking shape around it.

Hmmm, perhaps I should take this as an opportunity to encourage the Banking Clan to join my alliance. Tyrranus pondered as he stroked his beard in thought, With some 'convenient coincidences' I might be able to both thwart Xizor's plans, earn the gratitude of the Clan and test my potential apprentice all at one time.

With that he left the bridge of the cruiser to spend some time in his personal chambers to meditate on just what form his plan would take and how to achieve his goals right under Master Windu's nose.

Two Days Later, Muunilinst Space Port, Main Continent, Noon

"Well this is certainly different from what I expected." Xander said as he took in the structures of the capitol of Muunilinst from the outside of the main spaceport.

It had been one thing to see the holo-pics and read the various descriptions of the capitol city of Muunilinst but it was another thing entirely to actually see it firsthand. It was like a glimpse of how the world might have turned out had Rome not fallen but instead rather had risen up to dominate the Earth right through to his own time. Before him stood skyscrapers as tall as, if not taller than, the ones back home but with elements such as columns and pyramid-like roofs that looked like they belonged in ancient Rome.

It was on odd combination to say the least.

"How so Padawan Xander?" Windu asked with genuine curiosity.

"Well there are certain elements to these buildings that remind me of structures that once existed back in my home dimension." Xander replied as he looked around for the Banking Clan speeder that was supposed to take them to the Clan's HQ, "However we are most definitely a long way from ancient Rome so it was kind of odd to see something like this."

"The Force works in mysterious ways my young padawan." Master Windu stated as they finally spotted a droid holding a sign with their names on it, "You will find more often than not that it will surprise you with what it is capable of if you give it a chance."

The young padawan from Earth took those words under advisement as they slid into the backseat of the speeder and were whisked away into the flow of traffic. According to the schedule that both he and Master Windu had hammered out they would first check in at the hotel that they had a room at and then move on to the commerce building. It was there where most of the mediation would take place between the two parties and it was also there that both the Falleen Prince Xizor and the representative of the Banking Clan worked. It was the equivalent of city hall or a federal building back home in that all the major players had an office there or conducted the bulk of their business at that location. Master Windu would then here both sides of the story in person from both parties before they would retire for the night and begin negotiations at nine AM in the morning, sharp. The Jedi Master had wanted to do more but the transport had suffered some kind of engine trouble along the way here and had forced them to reduce speed so the problem could be fixed. It had been Windu's intention to arrive in the morning so that he could get an early start on the negotiations but now any serious talks would have to wait until tomorrow.

Oh well! It'll give me more time to go through the files I downloaded from the Archives. Xander thought as he watched the various buildings and people fly by.

He had made a decent dent in the various files he had downloaded on the trip here but he still had the last twenty-five percent of them to go before he could say he was ready for the negotiations. With a little luck he would be so well versed in both species, people involved and the situation that he would be able to be a big help to Master Windu or at least supply any information that might have temporarily slipped the Jedi Master's mind. Not that there was a very big chance of that happening since this was Jedi Master Mace Windu of the Jedi Order's High Council he was talking about here. While not flawless the members of the High Council were considered the elite of the Order and Master Windu was at the top of the list of elites. The very idea that he might forget something important to a negotiation like this was ridiculous. Sure, if Master Windu was as old looking as Kai Adi Mundi or Yoda he might expect the forgetfulness that comes with old age in humans. However Windu was still relatively young for a human being in his fifties when according to the medical droids in the med-bay most humans lived to be three times as old before old age claimed them. So while he would most certainly be tested during the course of this mission by Master Windu to ensure that he had indeed studied up on the important things he would likely be just observing the negotiations quietly.

From what he had managed to read so far this would not be an easy mission since both sides would be willing to use less than ethical means to get what they wanted and might very well disregard the terms Master Windu set down at the end of the negotiations no matter how fair they might be. The Falleen's superiority complex would make them look at Master Windu was though he were merely a child at best and at worst a dimwitted caveman barely capable of coherent speech. While they were apparently willing to entertain the notion of the Jedi mediating this dispute they would still view any suggestions made as being rather pathetic. On the other end of the issue the Banking Clan might be willing to abide by some of Master Windu's suggestions but would likely disregard the guidelines/rules that might hinder profits. Then there was the conundrum of whether the Banking Clan was really letting the buildings under their control slip up or if Xizor was making sure that problems would be found. He was still firmly behind his original position that if there was any wrong doing happening than Prince Xizor was behind it. At first it had only been his aggressive attempts to get the Banking Clan into trouble so that they'd loose the rights to the property in question. However after reading up more on his race and Xizor in particular he was more certain than ever that Reptile Boy was up to something. If it wasn't because he seemed to be even snobbier than the majority of his people then it was the intelligence reports hinting at a new criminal organization forming in the same neck of the woods as the Falleen homeworld. True there was nothing concrete to connect Xizor to this 'Black Sun' group but the fact that there had been a suspicious amount of money being funneled out of his accounts was too much to be simple coincidence.

'Like I always used to tell the girls back home 'we don't believe in coincidences, just catastrophes'.' Xander thought with a small smile as he saw their hotel getting bigger and bigger as they got closer.

He would have to do some 'discreet' digging around on his own time between negotiation sessions to see what he could dig up. He knew that Master Windu would most likely want to give negotiations a chance and learn which of the two parties was telling the truth based on their behavior. Still that would be difficult given the emotional control and facial discipline that the Falleen people had and he doubted that the Banking Clan would have anyone connected to the 'violations' present in order to keep the Jedi from picking up anything underhanded. Therefore he believed it would take some 'after hours' investigation to determine if there was anything that either party was trying to conceal or something they were trying to do to gain an unfair advantage. He would likely approach Master Windu first with the idea of snooping about but he was not sure the Jedi Master would approve of such tactics. After all, the Jedi were supposed to be the most honest and most trustworthy people in the Republic and that was exactly why many sought out their help to settle disputes. Sneaking around at night and 'investigating' people who, at least in their files, appear to be perfectly law-abiding persons was not exactly honest and trustworthy behavior.

I'll wait to see how the negotiations start and if it looks like there won't be any trouble I'll just stay out of it and let Master Windu do his job. Xander thought as the speeder came to a stop in front of the hotel.

Outside the Negotiation Room, The Next Day, Sunset

"Well that went well." Xander said while trying to reign in his sarcasm as well as the impulse just to go back in there and kill both parties with his lightsaber.

"Disputes such as these are rarely solved in a day my young padawan. Some take anywhere from a week to an entire month to be resolved depending on the flexibility of the two parties." Master Windu said patiently as they walked to the front entrance of the building, "Although I will concede that this will be a much more difficult assignment then I had first anticipated. Still it is important that a Jedi be patient."

"Something tells me it will take more than patience to get those two groups to agree to anything." Xander said and this time failing to keep his dislike of both the Banking Clan and the Falleen out of his voice.

"Try not to let your personal opinions influence your behavior Xander." Windu said sagely as they stepped out under the crimson skies of Muunilinst, "A Jedi must strive to remain impartial in his duties and face each mission objectively. Besides which, letting either the Banking Clan or Prince Xizor see your opinions on your face will likely make them more resistant to compromise."

"Yes Master." Xander said as he tried to lock up his feelings within a titanium safe, surround it in a shield grid and toss the whole thing into the nearest sun.

To say that his mental and emotional discipline had been put to the test that day would have been a gross understatement. Almost from the get go he was on edge as he felt the effects of the pheromones being released by the female Falleen that was Xizor's 'personal assistant'. It was an obvious attempt to get both he and Master Windu to act in a way more favorable to Xizor's position rather than be neutral like they were supposed to be. His control had almost slipped a few times during the negotiations but determined use of Jedi techniques meant to clear the mind and reinforce emotional control kept things relatively peaceful and allowed the discussion to proceed uninterrupted. As for the Banking Clan they reminded him of Ferengi every single time they opened their mouths and attempted to 'grease the wheels' of Master Windu's mind to tip things in their favor. It was clear that there motto was either 'everything can be bought' or 'there is no problem money cannot solve' because they didn't seem the least bit discouraged the first few times the representative of the Banking Clan politely offered 'compensation' for all Windu's hard work. They had seen the first signs of this compensation when they had entered their hotel to find their modest room upgraded to an expensive top of the line suite. When Master Windu had attempted to decline the offer and request their old room the receptionist droid had informed them that the room was no longer vacant and that all that was left was the suite. With his usual Jedi composure Master Windu accepted the room but did not avail himself of the luxuries that were installed throughout the room. He had even frowned when Xander had taken something out of the snack bar and mini-fridge but had said nothing about it. Not that he needed to since it was a well known fact back at the Jedi Temple that one look from a Master on the High Council was the equivalent of an hour long lecture on proper Jedi behavior as far as padawans and knights were concerned.

All this told him that both parties were as sleazy as they came and neither could be trusted to divulge the truth either on purpose or by accident while in the presence of a Jedi. Therefore it seemed that the plan of snooping around that he came up with yesterday would have to be implemented after all. He'd just have to run it past Master Windu first just to see if there was a chance he might support it. He wouldn't say that he was going to go snooping but rather that he was wondering if some snooping might be called for in this case.

"Master Windu?" Xander said while he watched the city pass them by.

"Yes Padawan Xander?" asked Master Windu as he turned to look at the learner sitting next to him.

"I do not believe we can trust either party to divulge the truth about the situation. Neither of them respect the Jedi very much and both believe it is perfectly reasonable to break the rules so long as they don't get caught." Xander replied as he put his thoughts in order, "If we want to get to the bottom of this we may have to do some 'creative investigating' while neither Prince Xizor or the Banking Clan is looking. Maybe a night excursion to the buildings in question might shed some light on the subject."

"Perhaps you are correct my young padawan." Master Windu said with genuine honesty, "However I still believe if we are patient we may yet see some improvement in the behavior of both sides of this conflict. It is only natural that they would try and influence our opinions of them starting out. Once they see that their efforts have been in vain though they should become more reasonable if only to resolve the situation quickly."

"Yeah. 'Time is money' is probably what they're thinking." Xander said as he realized that while not completely against snooping the Jedi Master didn't want to resort to such actions just yet.

"Indeed. These negotiations require a great deal of their personal attention and time which has to be taken away from their respective businesses." Mace Windu said wisely, "Once the 'pleasantries' are out of the way they will most certainly want to resolve the conflict quickly in order to return their attention to where they believe it belongs."

"Well then I hope they get it through their thick skulls soon that burying us with gifts and luxuries won't tilt the scale in their favor." Xander said as they pulled up to the hotel, "There is only so much oily arrogant posturing I think I can take before I decide to be a little too honest with my opinions of them."

To this comment Master Windu only let out a chuckle of amusement.

Midnight, Xander's Room, Emporer Suite, Hotel, Muunilinst

Well counting Jawas is getting me nowhere fast! Xander thought as he stared at the ceiling of his room.

For the past two hours he had been trying as Master Windu suggested to get some sleep but without much success. His mind continued to return to the fact that neither the Falleen or the Banking Clan were going to tell either Master Windu or himself what they needed to know in order to settle the dispute. Without the truth it would likely be weeks before an agreement would be hammered out that would satisfy both sides and even then it would likely be cast aside within a year when one side's profits failed to meet their mark. The only way this conflict could be settled properly and permanently was for the guilty party to be exposed and then forced to give up their claim. That guilty party of course was Xizor in his mind since Reptile Boy seemed just the type to use such scheming tactics and also apparently wanted this to be done and over with before anyone figured out what he was up to. In order to find out what was going on he would have to either sneak into the Falleen's apartment to try to record him saying something incriminating or go to one of the reptile's buildings near the disputed area and look around. If the scale face was planning on ordering his goon squad to plant any more 'building violations' during the negotiations to stack the deck in his favor that is where the thugs would likely be waiting for their orders.

The problem lay in two things with the first being slipping out of the hotel without Master Windu noticing and the last thing being getting inside one of Xizor's buildings without leaving evidence to implicate the Jedi Order. Mace Windu was a Master Jedi and despite the fact that the green padawan had improved in his understanding of the Force he didn't think he was good enough to slink past the bald man's senses. Just like a Jedi could sense where in a room that a training remote was without using their eyes, he knew that Windu would be able to sense him sneaking out the door eyes or no eyes. The second problem was that he was sure that, while a penny pincher, Xizor would most certainly have a fairly efficient security system in place at all of his important buildings. While he might be able to circumvent this system by using his lightsaber to cut a hole in the wall, hopefully into an empty room, the signs of lightsaber use were too recognizable even to non-Jedi for he and Windu not to be implicated later. Such implications would be bad press for the Order even if he did wind up exposing Xizor's actions with what he found or recorded inside the building. In the end he was short on ideas of how to both sneak by Windu and expose Xizor without it almost certainly backfiring on him in some way.

He was about to resign himself to sitting through another few weeks of listening to two people try to be more pompous that their opponent when something hit him on the side of the face knocking him back to full alert. Doing the obvious thing and picking up the thing that had hit him in the head he discovered that a rectangular metal container was the object that had hit him. It wasn't overly big or thick. It was no thicker than a data-chip that the Jedi Archives had when you needed to take something out of the Archive on a trip without you. As for size he would liken it to a rectangular cigarette container that all the high falooting guys back on Earth kept in their inner blazer pockets. However once he had finished determining what it was he was left wondering two things with them being 'why would someone hit me in the head with this' and 'where did it come from'. Looking along the edge of the container he did indeed find a seam and that implied that this was a case for something rather than just a flat piece of metal. Using the claw like fingernails he inherited from Master Yoda he opened the case and was somewhat puzzled to find what appeared to be some kind of keycard. Taking it out he examined it from all sides before he finally spotted what he recognized as Falleen script running along one edge.

"No way am I this lucky!" Xander muttered to himself as he connected this keycard to his earlier intention of sneaking into one of Xizor's buildings.

Getting out of bed he looked in the direction the case had most likely come from and found that a window in his room was opened all the way. Going quickly to the window he looked up down and all around trying to detect a sign of who might have sent him this keycard. Unfortunately whoever threw the case through the window was long gone and judging from how far away the nearest building was he doubted he'd have been able to make the person out very well. That fact made him wonder how the person had managed to shoot the case so accurately through his window so that it would hit him just right. Could it have been a Force user? Could it have been a Sith? He immediately disregarded both possibilities as he was sure he would have sensed someone using the Force to levitate the case over to him even if the person was a block or two away. After all it took quite a bit of effort just to move something across the training room back at the Temple. To move something even as small as the keycard case the distance it would have needed to travel in order to reach his room would definitely have been enough for even a padawan like him to notice and he had felt nothing. Put all the facts together and it added up to one big mystery that both implored him to take advantage of this bit of good luck and warned him that something fishy was going on.

Just then the door chime on his room beeped indicating that Mace was asking permission to enter.

"Enter." He said in a voice loud enough to be heard through the door.

The door slid aside to reveal Master Windu in full Jedi gear with a serious look on his face.

"I have just received an anonymous tip that indicates a possible break and enter at one of the Banking Clan's warehouses within the hour." Master Windu explained apparently not thinking anything odd was going on with Xander by the Window at midnight, "It might be nothing or it might be an chance to resolve this conflict sooner rather than later. I will go and investigate. While I do that I expect you to get ready to meet me there should the information prove accurate."

"Understood Master Windu. May the Force be with you." Xander said as he mentally wondered how in the Force things could be sliding into place so smoothly for him.

"Likewise padawan." Master Windu said before leaving the room and then a few moments later leaving the suite.

Now here was a conundrum that was almost as trying as him attempting to maintain his composure in the presence of the Falleen and the Banking Clan. On the one hand he was now somehow in a prime position to go and do the snooping he had wanted to do at one of Xizor's buildings. On the other hand it wouldn't be long before Master Windu either contacted him to rendezvous at one of the Banking Clan buildings or returned to the suite empty handed. However if he didn't take this chance to get the dirt on Xizor now it was quite likely that by tomorrow night the missing cardkey would be noticed and its authorization revoked. However if he wasn't here at the suite when Windu returned he would most likely be restricted to the suite for the remainder of the trip when he got back from his snooping. That was assuming of course his looking around actually produced some kind of results and he left no trace that he was at the building ever. Still he really felt like he would find something big if he went and looked around the building the keycard was assigned to and being restricted to this room wouldn't be that bad. So by the time he finished his deliberations he decided that it was worth getting lectured and punished by Master Windu if it wound up exposing that lizard.

Besides for all I know this is the will of the Force. , Xander thought to himself as he began to get his clothes on and his gear together, If that is the case then who am I to stand against it?

Forty Minutes Later, Alleyway Across from a Xizor Warehouse

Now according to the numbers and words on the keycard this should be the warehouse it'll work on. Xander said as he stood in the shadows with his robe and hood on.

It was slightly more modern in appearance than most of the buildings he had seen up close but it still had some Roman odds and ends on it to allow it to kind of fit in with the surrounding architecture. However he noticed something odd almost immediately when he began to examine the various sections and bits of technology that were incorporated into the structure itself. For one thing the security cameras mounted every five feet or so were equipped with some kind of transceiver. Those transceivers followed the movement of each camera which made certain that no area was left unaffected by one of them. The cameras he could understand as they would keep thieves out and make sure no employees walked off the premises with any merchandise. The transceivers on the other hand were a bit more suspicious since aside being used for remote control of each individual camera he couldn't really see a purpose to them. Perhaps they could be used to set off an alarm of a tagged piece of merchandise ever left the premises but you'd think that once the thieves had gotten this far it would be too late to stop them. Other possibilities for the transceiver ran through his mind ranging from triggers for a merchandise self-destruct to the activators for tracking beacons hidden in the shipping crates. Whatever they were though he doubted that they had much of a range. That would imply that they were meant to just cover the area immediately around the building.

What are you hiding Xizor? He thought to himself as he prepared to put his entry plan into action.

First he stretched out his senses with the Force in an attempt to discern if there was anyone alive on the other side of the front door of the building. After all it wouldn't mean anything for him to have the keycard to get inside if there were guards waiting for him on the other side of the door. Fortunately sensing objects that are alive and organic is much easier than sensing a droid or training remote since such objects are connected to the Force. Thus he searched the other side of the door and a little ways around it to make sure he'd be able to sneak in without too much trouble. Lady Luck definitely seemed to favor him since he could sense nothing within ten feet of the door he would use to enter in any direction. With his entry point clear of any living problem it was now time to temporarily disable the technological problem. Reaching out with the Force he grasped the two cameras covering the door and held them firm while their lenses were pointed away from the door. It was something of a strain to hold the cameras in this manner while making sure not to use too much of the Force as it would leave dents in the cameras or even outright destroy them. If that happened someone, perhaps Master Windu, would catch on that only someone using the Force could have damaged or destroyed the cameras in such a manner. Add to that the possibility that there was a central security room somewhere in which a security guard was monitoring everything. If one or more of the security cameras went down he would likely inform Xizor or the local authorities or both depending on his own judgment. As it was he was taking a risk just holding the cameras in place and keeping them from panning back in the direction of the door. However if he did this quickly the security guy watching the monitors might just think it was a temporary glitch in the servos responsible for the panning function of the camera. After all if there were no physical signs of someone holding them in place and the anomaly didn't last for very long then they would have no reason to think of anything else.

So without wasting time he ran across the open space between the alleyway he was in and the door that was his objective. Taking out the card that had been dropped in his lap he slid it into the right slot next to the door and was quite grateful when the door slid open just as he hoped it would. Darting in quickly he waited until the door had slid completely shut before he released the cameras outside from his grip and allowed them to continue their normal function. When he listened and heard no alarms ringing nor any security fields snap into place he breathed a sigh of relief that nothing had been screwed up so far. However when he looked at the interior of the building a foreboding feeling came over him as there was far less room to move around in here than he had originally expected. There was a hallway and it did look like one you'd expect to find in a place like this but it was as if there was so little space to move around because all the rest of the building was needed for something else. Something secret that needed to be hidden from prying eyes and unauthorized people. Compelled to find out what the secret was he walked carefully down the hallway, keeping all his senses on maximum, so that the moment the danger of being discovered began to manifest he could avoid it somehow.

Step by step he moved down the hallway and with each minute that passed he tried to scan past each door he came to both to keep from being discovered and to see how many people were actually present in the building. However he was having an unusual amount of difficulty in using the Force to sense past the doors. That was odd because according to Master Yoda there should be nothing in the Republic capable of blocking his powers even a little. It would certainly make this snooping more difficult but it also heightened his suspicions concerning Xizor and made him sure that something was being hidden here. After all why put special shielding in place to keep Force sensitive people from scanning past the doors unless you wanted to hide something from the Jedi. However it also meant that if he wanted to get the dirt on Xizor he'd have to actually open one of these doors with the keycard. That of course would be a serious bit of gambling since he'd literally have no way of knowing if someone was behind the door he chose or not. Still his luck seemed to be pretty good tonight despite his Sunnyhell paranoia telling him that something was wrong.

As he reached a three-way intersection of hallways he caught the sound of people talking a short distance away and so after pressing himself up against the wall nearest to the sound he used the Force to enhance his hearing. Fortunately enhancing his body's natural senses was among the most basic skills a Jedi had and while it was true that the level of enhancement possible depended on the species of the Jedi it was still pretty impressive.

"…ear about the Jedi the boss is dealing with?" came one voice that reminded him of your typical gangster.

"Yeah. Some big shot and a baby Jedi from what I heard." Replied one that sounded like a cocky businessman.

"Ya think they'll catch on to all this?" Gangster asked with a little concern in his voice.

"I doubt it. Prince Xizor may not have as much experience as some of the others on the market but he doesn't go halfway when it comes to keeping a tight lid on things." Businessman replied with confidence.

"Yeah I guess you're right. Still I'll feel safer once they've entered hyperspace and on their way back to Coruscant." Gangster said with his concerns dispelled for the most part.

They must have something pretty illegal to want us gone so quickly. , Xander thought to himself, I wonder what it is? Spice? Weapons?

"Hey! Don't worry so much." Businessman said encouragingly, "How about we head down to the main storage room and use some of the merchandise? I'm sure Prince Xizor wouldn't mind so long as we don't leave any scratches."

"Sure. It'll definitely make me feel better!" Gangster said in an amoral voice.

That was the last bit of talking Xander was able to hear as they left the range of even his Force enhanced senses could reach. However that was alright as the two morons he'd heard had just told him where to go and would be nice enough to lead him there themselves. He just had to be sure not to get caught in any exceptionally long hallways where all they'd have to do is turn around and they'd have him dead to rights. Wrapping his robe and hood tightly around himself to prevent any sound of ruffling fabric or other sounds that might give him away he followed the two fools down a series of hallways and staircases. A few times he was almost sure one of the two hired thugs had heard him but any pause in their movement didn't last for more than a few seconds before they resumed walking forward. This could mean that at least one of them was smart enough to know how to sense someone without letting that person know they've been spotted. On the other hand these two might just dismiss anything odd they might have heard as nothing given how Businessman sounded concerning Xizor 'keeping a tight lid on things'. Still until he saw a more positive sign that he had been spotted he'd continue shadowing them until they arrived at the main storage room.

It took about ten minutes for them to reach their destination but when they did Xander had a feeling he was going to need a little more than the mysteriously delivered keycard to go any further. This room was definitely more secure than the other ones as it apparently had some kind of retinal scanner and palm print scanner positioned next to the only door. He supposed that in the other legal buildings they used such places to store the truly valuable merchandise and probably some of their credits when necessary. If whatever Xizor was hiding down here was important enough to rate that kind of security then it would be seriously damaging if Xander could manage to get it out or at least get undeniable proof outside. However unless he could figure out a way past the retinal and palm print scan he'd be stuck out here and have nothing to show for his little excursion when he returned to face Master Windu's wrath. Well, that is, as close to wrath as a Jedi Master ever really got.

The two goons were soon granted entry by the security on the door and in watching the door slide from the right side of the wall where the scanners were located to the left side a flash of insight provided him with the solution to his current problem. If he was right the security on the door would only re-engage once the door finished sliding shut. If he could somehow stop it before then without the thugs realizing that the door hadn't fully shut he might able to slip inside. Reaching out with the Force he grasped the edge of the door just as it was about an inch from shutting completely and held it in place. Then while not making a sound he rushed to the door, all the while hoping the sounds of the protesting door didn't alert the idiots, and then pushing the door further to the left so he could slip through he squeezed between the two pieces of metal and got inside. Taking a moment to look around he could only see a fancy looking stain glass wall across from the door that was too darkly tinted for him to see through. Fortunately that was not what he was concerned with at the moment as he looked to his left, then right and then up as well as down to make sure the two goons hadn't been in a position to see that the door hadn't closed all the way or that he had slipped inside. However according to what his eyes could see and what the Force could tell him his prey had moved on shortly after entering and hadn't noticed a thing.

Ya know if this were Sunnydale I'd start to get worried about how smoothly things have been going up until now. He thought to himself as he did his best to move silently around the stain glass wall so he could look at the rest of the room.

What he saw gave him an instant case of déjà vu while at the same time making him dislike Xizor even more than before. All throughout the rest of the room, some on couches while others on areas covered in pillows, were humanoid females of a variety of species and all of them were wearing clothing that made their intended purpose obvious. Their clothing reminded him of some of the things he had pictured Buffy or Faith wearing when he was in the middle of Math class and needed to go to a happy place. The major difference though was that his imagination had at least come up with something that enhanced their beauty and allure. What these women were wearing was only meant to do one thing: push a male's sex drive through the roof and make sure he walked away satisfied. Humans, Rodians, Utapauns, Twi'lek and Catharian females were arrayed around the room dressed in clothes that almost locked his face in a state of permanent blushing. Add to the clothing that not even Faith would be horny enough to be caught dead in was an assortment of what he presumed was a selection of sex toys and he quickly made a mental note to swear Windu to secrecy whether this panned out or not. If ammunition like this got back to Rreya it'd be a whole year before he would get any sort of peace.

Just then sounds reached his ears and he looked up to see the two morons he had followed coming into the 'leisure area' from the opposite side of the room. Knowing that if he didn't take care of these guys immediately they'd sound the alarm and bring every henchman and guard down on him he thrust his right hand out and threw them backward with the Force slamming them hard against the nearest wall. As the two goons slumped to the grounds the entire group of slave girls started screaming their heads off and acting like a pack of hellhounds had been set loose in the room. He groaned as he knew that their screams alone would likely reach the rest of the goon squad in the building just as well as any alarm would have. Which meant that whatever he was going to do he was going to have to do it quickly or else he'd either wind up dead or captured and used against the Jedi Order in some form of extortion. Making his way quickly through the crowd of women, who thankfully parted for him as he approached, he quickly checked in the direction that the two goons had come from. He was hoping that at least one of the two had something he could use either to calm the women down or perhaps get them to work for him rather than against him. He quickly found the room where they had changed from their work clothes to those horrible silk robe things and began to rifle through their pockets for something useful. He found a few blasters hidden in secret pockets and a few mini-detonators as well along with a vibro-blade but aside from giving him some alternatives to his lightsaber these items weren't overly helpful. However it was when he was feeling around Businessman's jacket that his hand brushed up against something hard where there shouldn't have been anything to touch. Taking a risk he used one of the vibro-blades he had found and cut away the fabric around the object and as soon as enough of the jacket was cut away out plopped a metal instrument of some kind. It looked kind of like a cross between a fancy pen and one of those cylinder-like mp3 player things that had started to become popular before he got zapped into this dimension. On the top was a digital display showing scrolling text written in some kind of Falleen language and while he was able to read some of it the rest was incomprehensible. Then to the left of the display was a series of multi-colored buttons totaling seven in all but that wasn't overly helpful. It was just then that he noticed that one of the cylinder's ends was semi-transparent and when he examined it carefully he confirmed that there was some kind of energy transmitter inside.

Looks like some kind of remote control or something. He thought absentmindedly before the predicament he was in clicked back into place and he decided to hurry up.

Looking back at the display on the device he decided that he would read the words he could understand and then from them try and determine if this do-hickey was anything he could use. The first word that was apparently the beginning of a sentence was 'active' then three words scrolled by before he recognized the number '5' displayed in the Falleen's language. It wasn't until the word 'control' slid by that he had his first hunch about what the device was for and with that hunch came feelings of excitement and a glimmer of hope. Using Businessman's coat as a makeshift sack he carried the things he had found including the device he was so excited about back into the main room where the slave girls were still screaming somewhat and looking at him in fear. However if his suspicions were correct he believed he just might be able to stage a little rebellion among these women and stick it to Xizor really good.

"Can any of you ladies read Falleen? Falleen? I need one of you to translate something for me!" he said as he tried to use his voice to cut through the screaming and the fear they were no doubt all experiencing.

Unfortunately his loud and demanding voice only seemed to heighten the terror they were feeling and push the screaming back up to the decibel level it had been at the beginning. Sighing with frustration he decided to try a different tactic by closing his eyes and immersing himself in the Force. He had heard both from his teachers at the Temple and written in the Jedi Archives that is was possible to take the calmness he himself was feeling and broadcast it to other sentient beings using the Force. If he could do that himself now he just might be able to calm them down enough to get at least one of them to co-operate and translate what the digital display was saying. With a cleansing breath he let all tempest-like emotions vanish from within him until only the calmness that came with meditation was left. Once that was complete he tried to picture the calmness leaving his body like a sentient fog and see it cross the room to be breathed in by the slave girls. With every moment that he kept this meditative state up he continued to channel more and more calmness into the young women and as the seconds passed he could hear their screams beginning to cease. He continued for about a minute before he stopped and opened his eyes but he was pleased to see that while the majority of them still looked at him with some fear they didn't seem as hysterical as they had before.

"Okay let's try this one more time." he said as he held up the control device and asked, "Do any of you know how to read Falleen? I need your help to translate what this display is saying."

For a moment the women seemed dumbfound by his request but he figured that their 'master' had probably pounded into them that the only thing they were good for was 'servicing' the men they were told to 'service'. For him, a male, to ask for their help was like God Almighty asking a caveman to help him create a galaxy in that it appeared completely impossible. However eventually one of the Catharian women stepped forward and reached out with her right hand obviously asking if she could hold the device to get a better look at it rather than approach him and look at it while it was in his hands. Deciding that she was probably using whatever scraps of courage she had left from her race to just bring herself to do this much he decided not to push his luck and handed her the device. For a time it looked as though she would have no more luck fully translating the Falleen text than he had but began to think otherwise when he thought he saw a glimmer of fire sparkle in her eyes.

"T-the d-display is saying that all the control chips are active and functioning within normal parameters." The young Catharian woman said as she handed the device back to him with a slightly trembling right hand.

"Then I was right! This is the device that controls the chips implanted in your bodies!" , Xander said as the glimmer of hope he had felt earlier expanded into something size of a flashlight's beam, "Now if I can figure out how to use this thing to deactivate them we all just might be able to get out of here in one piece!"

"G-get o-out of h-here?" the Catharian woman asked with a mixture of confusion at the concept of 'out of here' and hope at the possibility of finally being free.

"Yes but it won't be easy. Thanks to that screaming you and your friends made I would wager that if there were any more of Xizor's goons in the building they just might have heard you." he explained while trying not to extinguish the hope that had ignited in her eyes, "However once the control chips have been deactivated and you arm yourselves with some of this gear I took off of those piles of bantha poodoo we'll just have to make it out the front door. Once we're outside there's no way that Xizor's men will risk chasing us or they'll risk exposing Xizor's illegal slave trafficking which is something I doubt they have the courage to do."

After saying his bit he waited to see what would happen to the fire and the first inklings of courage that he had inspired in her eyes. If they flickered out he would have to settle for getting back to Master Windu and having him bring the authorities down on this place before Xizor could cover it up in some way. Knowing that snake face he'd probably blow the place up and then call it a terrorist attack perpetrated by agents of the Banking Clan so he could gain even more leverage to get a hold of the buildings he wanted. He wouldn't care one bit about the lives he'd destroy or women he'd kill in the process so long as all evidence of wrong doing on his part was eliminated. Which meant that arming these ladies and getting them to fight their way out was the best chance for both Xizor to be exposed and for them to be free. As he felt a growing sense of danger through the Force he decided that the time for delays was over and the choice these women had to make need to be made now!

"I'm sure that with your help I can figure out which sequence of buttons is necessary to deactivate the control chips. You must have seen one of Xizor's men deactivate them before when one of your comrades was killed by a client of his." Xander said as he decided to move things along, "I doubt ol' lizard brains is generous enough to want to spend extra money on new control chips when he can just cut the old ones out of dead slaves. Please, all of you, try and think! What sequence of buttons on this device deactivates the control chips?"

The women looked amongst each other at a loss for both words and a direction as to what to do with the choice that they were now faced with. However it was the Catharian woman who decided things for the girls as she went over to a green skinned Twi'lek girl who looked to be a little younger than he remembered Dawn was before he arrived in this dimension. The young Twi'lek was clinging to the arm of a blue Twi'lek woman in obvious fear and almost shrunk away at the Catharian's approach. Noticing the girl's fear the Catharian woman went down on one knee in front of her to diminish the terror her height might cause in an attempt to appear less frightening. She then said something to the Twi'lek girl but she spoke so softly that he couldn't hear a thing but eventually the girl said something back that apparently was what the Catharian was after.

"Sseron said that she saw the man in charge press the dark green button first than the bright red and then finally dark black." the Catharian stated a bit more calmly than the last time she spoke to him, "She said he pressed the buttons in that order while pointing it at .. at her body."

Looking down at the seven buttons on the device he had no trouble picking out the buttons that deactivated the control chips. However while the Catharian had been telling him the sequence he had begun to wonder if there was a different sequence for every control chip. If that was indeed the case then his plan was doomed to failure and these girls along with it if inputting the wrong code caused the chips to explode inside the slave. Still he had a feeling that one way or another if he didn't at least attempt to free these girls and get them away from here Xizor would make sure none of them left this building alive. With time being of the essence he asked the slave girls, beginning with the Catharian, to form a line in front of him and he would begin deactivating the control chips implanted within them. Things went quickly from there on in as he made sure with each young woman that came before him that he aimed the device directly at them and that he didn't press the wrong sequence of buttons. As he did this he could feel the sensation of approaching danger getting closer and closer but made sure that his feelings of anxiety didn't affect his body in an adverse way. The last thing any of them needed was a Jedi with trembling hands or impatient fingers since either of those two things would result in the wrong sequence of buttons being pressed.

Sensing that Xizor's goon squad was arriving at the door he ordered the girls once they were armed to stand on either side of the door with their backs pressed up against it. When it looked like they might have mistook his intentions he told them it would make them less visible to the men when they came in. Taking the position to the right of the door he held his lightsaber at the ready but not with the blade ignited as any sound or unfamiliar light might ruin his makeshift strategy. Basically it was his plan to let the first few men enter and then order the slave girls with the blasters on the other side to attack from their side while did the same with his lightsaber on the other side. With luck they could kill the bulk of the men gathered outside and then charge those that remained while they were still recovering from seeing their friends die so quickly. Hopefully once he and the girls made it past that group it would be more or less clear sailing to the front entrance of the building and freedom. He knew he was being a tad optimistic with that prediction which was why he was going to take point and hope that his skill level with the Force and a lightsaber would be enough to handle any surprises.

Hearing the distinctive hum of a scanner being used he pushed all unnecessary thoughts aside and indicated to the girls with the blasters to get ready to fire while he prepared to ignite his lightsaber. It took a few moments but eventually the door began to slide open and just as he had predicted the men on the other side rushed right in without doing anything to clear the area around the door first. Pressing the activation button on his lightsaber a blade of gold and white light sprang to life and before the guards to put a name to the sight before them he was upon them. In a diagonal slash from upper left to lower right he took out the first goon and then with a spinning move he swept his blade almost completely vertically to chop off the front half of a blaster rifle being brought to bear. The distinctive sounds of blaster pistols being fired met his ears and he was glad that it appeared that the slave girls he had entrusted them could use them rather than dissolve back into broken slaves at the sight of their potential tormentors. Still they would not be able to handle these guys if the men were allowed to recover from their shock and actually formulate a plan or bring any skills they had into use. Using skills born of long hours sparring with either the wise Mace Windu or the graceful but annoying Rreya he continued to disarm or kill the men as efficiently as he could. When he could do so safely he used the Force to throw some men into the others behind them knock all of them to the ground in a heap. It wasn't much but anything that kept the enemy from mounting an offensive was of the good in his opinion.

Eventually it seemed that his plan had succeeded and the bulk of the forces of Xizor sent to investigate the girls' screaming had been either rendered unconscious or killed. Looking down the hallway to the stairs at the other end he could see three goons trying to make a run for it but with a quick thrust of his hand as well as application of the Force and they went to la-la land after being introduced to the wall. Checking the immediate area to make sure he hadn't missed any thug or goon he then turned to the in-the-process-of-being-freed slave girls to find them looking down at the goons on the floor with varied expressions. Some were shocked that they had done what they had while others appeared to be gaining courage and confidence in leaps and bounds. A few though had a slightly darker look in their eyes and he was worried that they might decide to stick around here a little longer than was prudent to deal out some extra payback to the unconscious guards. Such action however would seriously mess up his timetable. That meant he had to get them moving before such thoughts gained any more influence over their minds.

"Come. We need to get to the front door as soon as possible before whoever is waiting for these guys' to report in gets nervous." he said with a friendly urgency, "Catharian you and the ladies with the blasters take point while I cover us from the rear and make sure no one sneaks in from some alternative entrance."

Most of the women seemed okay with this but a few looked at him with suspicious looks and he knew why.

"Look, I know you're thinking that I chose to take the rear in some cowardly attempt to make you take the brunt of any attackers coming from the front." he said in a tone Master Windu had used during negotiations yesterday, "However if I said I would take point you would likely misinterpret that as me wanting to be the first to get out of this building so I could run away and leave you to fend for yourselves. So I'll let you decide Catharian, since you seem to be the pseudo-leader of your friends. Do you want me to take the lead or cover our escape from the rear?"

"My name, Jedi, is Sarahari and while I do not know if I can trust you I believe your earlier choice to protect us from the rear is the wiser course of action." Sarahari replied with the passion and fire that Knight Juhani epitomized to him, "I will take the lead position."

Nodding to her in acceptance of her choice he stood by the door and waited until the last slave girl passed him before taking his appointed position at the rear of the group being watchful of the walls for surprises of any kind. They were surprisingly organized in their journey to the front entrance and he only had to tell Sarahari which way to go a few times. He figured his scent must still be strong enough in the air ahead of her for her to be able to know which way he came and which way she had to go. The rest of the girls with their vibro-blades and blasters, some of which had been taken from the downed guards, while not handling them like professionals at least knew how to use them decently enough. In a way one could say that they were handling them like he and the Scoobies used to handle crossbows and swords. Not so much with the skill as with the determination not to die while they could defend themselves. It was both heartwarming and heart wrenching to see a reminder of home especially since with a little imagination he could see a resemblance between some of the slave girls and his girls from Sunnydale. Still it increased the optimism that he had concerning whether or not they'd actually get out of here in one piece.

As they reached the front door he got the Catharian's attention and tossed her the keycard that he had used to gain entry in the first place. He then took up a guarding stance facing the opposite direction ready for any last minute goons terrified enough of their boss finding out they had done nothing to scrounge up the courage to do something. He was also wary of the doors they had passed every so often on the way to the entrance he had made use of with the keycard. None of them had opened the entire time the group had been on the move which made him think that either they were merely for storage or Xizor had some sort of way of disintegrating everything in the hallway and the only way to survive was to take shelter in one of those rooms. In which case he and the females he had saved were probably mere seconds away from being turned into smoldering skeletons or ashes depending on the weapon used. Fortunately that didn't happen and a few seconds later he heard the front door open and the slave girls began to rush out to their newfound freedom. Moving with them and making sure they didn't get too far ahead of him he continued to guard the rear of the group.

When they were all outside it was still night and near as he could tell they were alone in the street. What made him overjoyed however was that none of the girls exploded as he had feared they might have if he had been right about each control chip requiring a different sequence of buttons be pressed for each one. Now though they had almost certainly been picked up by the video cameras outside of the building and if they provided a direct feed to anyone other than the goons inside they were going to have company. That meant they'd have to pick their destination quick and move even quicker to get there before any more trouble came their way. He could take them back to the hotel with him but he thought that he'd have a little problem explaining twenty scantily clad females to the hotel staff, the other guests and more importantly Master Windu. Another possibility was to get them to a Republic embassy somewhere here and seek sanctuary there. Unfortunately that was a fairly long distance to run on foot and he doubted all of these young ladies were in much of a condition for a long distance run. That left the spaceport where the Jedi transport he had come in had been docked when they arrived. He doubted the crew of the ship would be there as Master Windu had granted them permission to enjoy the nightlife of Muunilinst so long as they behaved themselves. Seeing as how they were not Jedi but simple ship crewmembers they'd likely behave about as well as he and the Scoobies had at the Bronze so they'd likely still be partying at this hour. He could get these ladies there and hide them inside until he could contact Master Windu and hopefully gain his help in resolving everything. After all it wasn't like he had planned all this and for the most part he was flying by the seat of his pants as far as this situation went so getting some experienced help would definitely be nice.

"Alright. I think we should make our way to the spaceport. I have a ship there where you should be safe until my Jedi Master and I can get things moving with the Republic and locking Xizor up for slavery." Xander said as he began to move in the direction of the spaceport, "We'll maintain the organization of the line and when … "

It was then that he heard the sound of metal on concrete and began to have a very bad feeling that things were going to take a turn for the worse. The sound was coming from the direction the slave girls were moving in so with a judicious use of the Force he leapt over them to ensure that he took the brunt of whatever came their way. Closer and closer the sound came until he could tell that it was in fact three separate objects making the sound and that they were simply making the sound so much in synch that it just sounded as if there was only one. Not being entirely certain what it was that was coming their way he decided it would be best to at least get the people he was rescuing out of the direct line of fire. With this in mind he did his best to usher them as quickly as possible into the alleyway that he had cased Xizor's building from before returning to the middle of the street. Hopefully this would make him the primary target of whoever or whatever was coming this way. He didn't have long to wait as less than a minute after he had taken up his position in the middle of the street the sources of the sound rolled around the corner.

"Oh MAN! Now that's just plain overkill!" he said to no one in particular as three droidekas rolled to a stop twenty yards away from him and began to transform for combat.

Taking a running leap he dived into the alleyway opposite the one where the slave girls were now cowering and even the Catharian who had recovered so much of her inner strength looked like she was about to crumble. Deciding he had to get them out of there now or all his efforts would be for nothing he searched through his belongings in his pockets before finding what he was after. It was a data-chip that he had brought with him from the Temple on Coruscant in order to study up on the Falleen and the Banking Clan. It was true that data-chips were hardly unique to the Jedi Order the Jedi did have a type of chip that was almost completely unique to them because of the way data was stored in the Archives. If anyone who had been to the temple or even had some dealings with the Jedi in the past they would recognize the chip instantly.

"Sarahari! Catch!" Xander yelled out before he used the Force to guide the data-chip over to her as quickly as he could without having to worry about it moving too fast for the receiver to see, "Take the girls and lead them to the spaceport. Go to the Jedi transport in hanger blue 23. The entry code to the access ramp is 051905. If you run into anyone around the ship or in it give that chip to them and say that Padawan Xander has granted you all sanctuary inside. Do you understand?"

"Yes." Sarahari replied with a little of her strength returning at the thought of getting away from the droidekas.

"Then GO! Now!" he yelled as he prepared himself mentally and leapt back into the street to once again focus the droideka's attention on him.

Not sparing the slave girls any more of his attention he focused it all on his three metallic opponents who from the stories at the Temple were good enough to send a Jedi Master running. Deciding to make the first move while he could he reached out with the Force and ripped one of the security cameras from Xizor's building and hurled it at the lead Destroyer droid. As he expected the droid was quick to destroy the incoming projectile with its laser cannons but that did not deter the green padawan at all. Instead the former Zeppo grabbed another camera and repeated his previous attack continuing to repeat it but each time choosing another of the droidekas as the target. After all if they were too busy destroying incoming objects then they wouldn't technically be able to turn their fire on him and that in his opinion was a very good thing. Sadly the supply of cameras eventually went dry and now he had to deal with the droids in a more direct manner than he usually liked. Using the brief time between the destruction of the final camera and the droids beginning to fire on him he reached out with the Force and attempted to bend if not break one of the laser cannons on the lead droid's arms. Unfortunately he discovered that while his knowledge and control of the Force was improving it appeared that crushing things from a distance was still somewhat beyond his reach. It was like trying to bend something while wearing thickly padded gloves in that while you could get a grip on the object the padding prevented you from putting enough pressure on the object in order to bend or break it.

Damn it! This is NOT good! He thought to himself as he used a combination of lateral dodging and his own rudimentary laser deflection skills with a lightsaber to keep from being turned into smoking Swiss cheese.

His move was something of a gamble but he figured that the droids would wait until they could positively lock onto a target before firing and even though they could likely hit a moving target he had hoped that the enhanced speed he was drawing on through the Force would make him slightly harder to hit. It was temporary he knew as it would only be a matter of time before one of them got a lucky hit in and then it would pretty much be over. What he needed to do was find some real cover to duck behind that was strong enough to stand up to laser cannon fire for at least a little while. Looking to the left and right he tried to find something that would meet his needs but aside from alleyways, which would hinder him more than help, all that was there were buildings. Storage buildings like the one he had just helped the slave girls flee from and he didn't want to back into Xizor's building if he could help it. That left the one on the opposite side of the street. To his knowledge belonged to the Banking Clan and probably one of the ones Xizor had planted 'building violations' in. With his choices limited to two he decided that the Banking Clan building would have to be it but first he would have to use his lightsaber to cut open the door so he could get in and that meant he'd have to distract the droidekas first. Grabbing a Force handful of concrete debris that the droidekas had made by tearing up the road with their missed shots he flung it at them with everything he had. However once he was sure that the debris had enough momentum behind them he let go of his Force grip on them and turned towards the door to the Banking clan building and began to cut through it. It wasn't easy because the doors in these storage buildings were built to be incredibly resistant to break and entering scenarios. Even with a lightsaber, which according to all the Jedi back at the Temple could cut through anything save another lightsaber, it was tough and so the cutting process was slower than he would have liked given the situation. Just as he had finished making the first vertical slice and was beginning the top horizontal slice laser cannon fire tore into the wall just to the right of his position making sizeable hole in it.

Looks like the intermission is over! He thought to himself as he briefly looked at his attackers.

Somehow it appeared as though some of the debris he had sent the droidekas' way had made it through their impressive shields and that made him wonder about the nature of said shields. After all why should blaster fire bounce off of it but allow chunks of concrete to make it through. His mind flashed to an old episode of 'Stargate-SG1' where the personal shields of the snake heads was designed so that the strength of the shield was directly proportionate to the kinetic energy of the object being thrown against it. Basically that meant that the shield's strength depended on the speed at which the object being sent against them was traveling. The greater the speed of the object the stronger the shield would be. However the rest of his operating mind didn't give more than passing thought to the problem as it had the more immediate concern of keeping itself as well as the rest of Padawan Xander's body alive. Knowing that he wouldn't be able to finish cutting his own entrance he decided to take advantage of the one that the destroyer droids had made. Deactivating his lightsaber rather than take the time to withdraw it from the door he used all the speed and agility he could muster to jump through the hole in the wall of the building and into its interior. Unfortunately for him he should have been watching where he was jumping because he collided with something just as his feet finished entering the hole ahead of two laser cannon shots. It took a few rolls before the momentum from his jump ran out but when it did he sat up and almost immediately winced at the bruise he knew was forming on his right shoulder. Whatever he had collided with had been seriously solid leading him to believe it had to have been either stone or some metallic contraption. Knowing the Banking clan it was probably some high tech computer they used to calculate how much money they had made that week. However when he looked back the way he had come his eyes settled on something that was the last thing he had expected to see in a Banking Clan storage building.

There laying horizontal on the ground appeared to be a young woman, a very beautiful young woman if he was any judge, wearing a one piece bathing suit and not much else. Roughly five foot six inches in height by his estimate and athletically built as well with … ahem … the right proportioned curves in all the right places. With long brown hair she was quite close in appearance to the actress Erica Durance he had seen on a few TV shows back on Earth before he took the Dawnie express to Coruscant. However there was something off about her because when he reached out with the Force to determine if she was alive and relatively unhurt he felt no connection between her and the Force. All living things had a connection to the Force whether that connection was as thin as a thread or as thick as a starship but this young woman had none. It was then that he finally clued into what she was. She was some kind of droid. It was hard to believe because from what he knew of the Republic almost all droids were completely metallic in nature and any flesh that was put over the metal was obviously synthetic to the average person's eye. It was like telling the difference between your own hand and a hand that was made from a mould of your hand and painted to look like a real hand. No matter how good the painter who worked on it was you could never really mistake a artificial hand for a real one. At least not yet but he remembered seeing something on a holo-billboard on Coruscant about new medical advances being made in creating authentic looking synthetic skin. It likely wouldn't be put into full production for about four decades or so but it was still considered a significant achievement. Anyway, from what he could tell of the 'woman' in front of him the synthetic skin she had was at least in terms of appearance perfect. He bet that unless a person got up close and actually touched the skin to test for body heat they would assume it was real flesh. The rest of her was also likewise authentic looking with the only signs of her nature being latches on either side of her face disguised to look like hair clips.

That of course leads to my next question as to what she was made for and why she is here. He thought to himself deciding to label the droid a she instead of using the usual it most people in the Republic used when referring to droids.

As if by divine signal the young female droid's eyes popped open and then a second later she sat up in a surprisingly human looking sitting position rather than the 'rod-up-your-butt' position most humanoid droids used. She looked around the immediate area for a moment as if to familiarize her system with the environment and everything in it. When she laid her eyes or optics on him though she seemed to take a rather unusual amount of time studying him as if she were memorizing all of his facial features as well as scanning him. Just as he was about to ask her what she was doing the portion of the all that was still intact beneath the hole he had dove through exploded inward pelting both him and the female droid with stone. When the dust from the explosion cleared he could see the cause had been three droidekas using their laser cannons to blast a bigger hole in the wall so that they could make it through. Kicking up to his feet he ignited his lightsaber again hoping that the presenting of another potential target would make things easier for him. However what happened next most definitely had not been on his list of things that could or ever would happen in a situation like this. Without any hesitation the female droid reached over and wrenched a metal support beam out of the middle of the room like she was uprooting a newly-planted sapling. Once freed from the restraints of the concrete building the female droid brought it back and in a mode reminiscent of many home run record holders swung the beam hard into the Destroyer droids. While it may not have done much damage to the droidekas because of their deflector shields it did knock them to the other side of the street and apparently knock their CPUs out of whack for a moment or two.

"We should leave immediately. The droidekas' command functions will not remain disrupted for very long." the female droid said with a surprisingly human voice before turning to face him, "Do you have any ideas, Master?"

Now his mind was currently running at full tilt trying to comprehend everything he had seen since he had left his hotel room a few hours ago. For the most part his mind had been doing a fairly admirable job all things considered. However in the moments between him jumping into this room and the femme 'bot talking to him there was only one question that he believed needed answering right at that moment.

"Excuse me? Master!" He asked in disbelief as he looked at the perfectly built and beautiful female android with the strength of a superhero.