"When we extended our hand to offer peace, they rebuked us! When the Senate met to discuss terms, they took the opportunity to attack! Rest assured, fellow delegates, that we will not fall for their tricks again. The treachery and deceit of the Separatists must be wiped clean from the galaxy. There will be no more negotiation!"

- Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, speaking in favour of the Military Expansion Act

"The detailed analysis results have just come back from the Healers."

"Well?"

"It's just as you said." Aayla Secura smiled as she produced a small vial of blood from within her robes. "Some of them even asked me if this was some kind of trick on your part."

Her former Master smiled back as he accepted the vial, placing it on the bench between them. "They have long memories, it seems. Even my antics as a Youngling clearly haven't escaped their memories."

With news having spread of the arrival of Cadet Green at the Temple, rumours had begun to circulate amongst members of the Jedi Council that something unusual was afoot. At present, only a handful of the most senior Masters were even aware of the precise details of Cadet Green's condition, but Quinlan Vos knew it was only a matter of time before word began to spread further afield. Keeping secrets in a building full of mind-readers is always a difficult task, he mused. A study area within the Archives had become a de facto meeting room for discussing the new arrival, and throughout the day Jedi came and went, offering theories or adding to the ongoing research.

Closing his eyes, Vos tried to focus on vial, willing it to rise – yet even the simple act of lifting it a few hand-spans into the air proved difficult. The blood itself seemed to be weighing the vial down, keeping it anchored to the benchtop. In his mind's eye, the blood within was a curious blind spot, around which the background glow of the Force seemed to bend and distort.

The third Jedi in the study, Master Ki-Adi Mundi, watched intently as the vessel of blood gently returned to the surface of the bench. "Fascinating…in all my time within the Order, I have never seen such a thing."

Aayla motioned to the stack of Archive holobooks that Ki-Adi had arranged next to his seat. "Did your enquiries turn up any mention of this phenomenon?"

"There are accounts in the Archives of beings who were able to partially hide themselves from the Force, Master Secura. The Sith of old took particular interest in them as assassins and spies, as I recall." Ki-Adi held the vial of blood up to the light, turning it this way and that. "Yet they were only ever able to partially hide their emotions, and not without considerable training. This…boy, is not simply hiding his mind from the Force; it is as if he exists outside it."

Aayla frowned. "Is such a thing even possible?"

"We are not dealing with a learned practitioner of the Force, but rather a natural ability – or a disability. He may well be a product of the Force itself. An incredibly rare mutation, perhaps. To be born without midichlorians may seem like an impossibility, but in a galaxy of a hundred thousand inhabited worlds...we will need to examine him further. It may also be important to study his immediate family, to see if, in fact, this mutation is hereditary. May I ask under what circumstances he was brought to the Temple?"

"Cadet Green has been remanded in custody by the Grand Army on charges of espionage. The Krell case, specifically. He was brought to the Temple for questioning by Master Secura and myself."

"Oh, I see. That changes things. Have we been given much time?"

Vos shook his head. "I'm afraid not. Cadet Green is to be returned to Grand Army custody by this time tomorrow. From there, he will proceed into the courts, and given the severity of his crimes I cannot say when, or even if, he will ever be released. I spoke earlier with Master Yoda…ah, here he comes now."

The approach of the Grand Master was difficult to miss for any Force-adept. His presence was a strong one, and one that dwarfed his physical frame, as he hobbled into the room supported by his ubiquitous cane.

"I trust you've heard the news, Master Yoda?"

"Indeed." The diminutive Jedi accepted the vial of blood, turning it over in his claws. "Hmmm. Granted us little time, the Grand Army has."

"We must keep him for as long as we can. There is a mystery here which we must unravel."

Yoda nodded. "A means of keeping the boy here, I know of. Back to the Archives, we must go."

Ki Adi-Mundi gestured to the stack of holobooks. "I fear I have exhausted the most obvious volumes. Where do you suggest we look?"

Yoda smiled, and rapped the floor with his cane. "We must go deeper, Master Mundi. A resolution from times past, we will need."

"Now now, Blue. What did I say about wearing hats indoors? It's rude."

"Mm. I've killed over comments like that, you know."

"I bet you have, Blue." The green-skinned Twi'lek behind the bar gave a wry smile, allowing one of her hands to creep across the countertop and up the arm of the patron sitting across from her. "But isn't that why you come here so often? To relieve a little…tension?"

A bony hand shot out from under the broad-brimmed hat, catching her wrist in a strong grip. Slowly, the figure straightened up in their seat, and she found herself looking into a pair of pupilless red eyes.

"I'd be more than happy to smuggle my goods up your cargo ramp any other night, sweetie." Cad Bane flashed her a toothy grin, revealing a row of pointed, shark-like teeth. "But I've got business to attend to. A drink's all I have time for."

The Twi'lek pouted, but her winning smile returned when she saw the neat stack of credits on the countertop. Swiftly pocketing the cash, she returned a few seconds later with a bottle. The bounty hunter accepted it, and made his way over to a table tucked away in a corner of the darkened bar. As with all his prospective clients, Bane had chosen a time and place to meet. This bar, one of thousands scattered throughout the underworld of Nar Shaddaa, was his preferred place – small, tidy and out of the way, but also handy for a quick escape.

He didn't have long to wait. The door to the bar slid back, and a shadow filled the doorway. Framed by the light of the neon signs outside, Bane caught a glimpse of a massive figure, concealed beneath a cloak, who was forced to stoop as they stepped inside.

The Duros tugged the brim of his hat respectfully at the hooded figure and greeted them in his distinctive nasal accent. "Good evening. I assume you're the one who wanted to talk about setting up a job."

The newcomer paused. The only other two patrons, a pair of humans who clearly recognised Bane, picked up their drinks and moved out of sight. Bane ran a practiced eye over the newcomer, sizing them up. The cloak bulged around the middle of the figure's torso and back, hinting at the presence of more than one pair of arms. The cloak shifted slightly as the newcomer drew nearer, and Bane thought he saw a familiar object clipped to their belt. Cautiously, Bane leant back in his chair, hands drifting down to the grips of his LL-30s.

"I'll warn you right now, Jedi. Unlike you, I've got no problem with shooting first and asking questions later."

The figure remained impassive. A clawed hand slowly emerged from beneath the cloak, revealing a portable communicator. With a blue flash, the device activated, bathing the gloomy bar in a soft glow as a familiar face appeared in the hologram.

"Cad Bane. We meet again. I do hope I am not interrupting anything important."

"Count Dooku." Bane leaned back on his stool, his toothpick shifting to the other side of his mouth. "If this is about the op with Moralo, then you'll have to tell him to wait. Getting good intel isn't easy, at least not about the Chancellor."

"This is a different matter entirely. Myself, and my associate, require your services."

"Is this your associate?"

Dooku gave a gesture, and the Jedi removed their hood and took a seat at the table opposite.

"Your reputation precedes you, bounty hunter." rumbled Jedi Master Pong Krell. "As does mine, I presume."

Bane stared at the Besalisk for a few seconds in apparent shock. Lowering his voice to an angry hiss, he leaned in close to the communicator. "What kind of stunt are you trying to pull, huh? The price the Republic's put on his head makes him a walking target, no matter how many fancy lightsabers he's got. How do I know every bounty hunter in the galaxy isn't going to try to jump us when we step outside this bar?"

"That is of no concern to me, Bane. I have a mission for you. An urgent mission, which will require the assistance of Master Krell."

That caught his attention. Urgent jobs always pay the best. "What kind of job? I'm already tied up with homework for other missions, you know. Yours included."

"You will need to recover some items from a highly secure location."

"What kind of items? They'd better be worth more than your associate here."

"This mission is also time-sensitive. We have only a limited window before Krell can no longer gain access to them."

Bane sharply inhaled between his pointed teeth. "Very expensive. It'll be double my rate, at least."

"You will get more than that, Bane. Unlike some of your other missions, I will be expecting you to cause, rather than prevent collateral damage. I take it that you are still familiar with the layout of the Jedi Temple?"