-11-

It was dusk on Fi'ar'la. The pink sky gradually gave way to the blue, then the star-dotted black above. Ryar, one of the world's three moons, shone its pale light on the Jedi temple below. From an open shuttle on the landing pad, four lone figures emerged.

"I still can't believe it - faking our own death? How long's that gonna last?" Karta quipped.

Master Ytalha looked at her, amused. "A temporary fix, yes. But a necessary contingency plan, wouldn't you agree?

"Well, it got those Teks of our tails - for now, at least."

"Tomorrow morning, I shall have audience with the council, and propose we concentrate our efforts on bringing down their organization, and furthering our investigation of Eulian Tratzel."

"Even if that's possible, you'd still have the Hutts to deal with - they're practically one and the same now."

"But we have seen Tratzel's affinity for the Tekdaemons. Whatever link they share may yet be revealed, and bring us closer to uncovering his secret."

"Let's hope. I'll help in any way I can - you know I want Tratzel as much as you - probably more."

"You two are welcome to stay as long as you want," Vhinh offered. "In fact, I'd recommend it - once Tratzel finds any of us alive, we'll all be on the hot list. Besides, you're important to our investigation."

Karta shot him a skeptical look. "You'll say anything to get a girl to stay the night, won't you?"

Vhinh rolled his eyes, but gave a wry smile.

"Well, as tempting as that is, I'm kind of anxious to get back to NineHundred - what about you, buddy?" She looked to Nars, who smiled and nodded. "We'll be in touch, though..."

"NineHundred is your ship, right?" Vhinh asked, and Karta nodded. "Registered in Mr. Free'ta's name?"

A look of dread came over Nars, and he sunk to his knees.

Karta was quick to comfort him, knowing exactly the issue at hand. The Tekdaemons would no doubt be keeping tabs on his ship, as well. If it left the spaceport, they would be hot on its trail. "Oh, Nars..." He looked like he'd lost his best friend - well, his other best friend; she felt so bad for him.

"Don't worry, we'll figure it out, eventually. In the meantime, we'll make sure no one turns it into scrap," Vhinh promised.

With everything now fully sinking in, Karta was starting to feel a little irked. "You know, it seems like we're not really any better off than before. Thanks to your little plan, we're still on the run, plus we're out one ship."

"And you'd both be dead if we hadn't shown up on Bimissir when we did," Vhinh retorted.

"True, but we'd have never ended up on Bimissir if you'd listened to me in the first place."

Vhinh looked once again regretful. "I know." Then he gave her a half-hearted smile. "You're not gonna let me live that one down, are you?"

Karta wasn't done, though. "I don't know, Vhinh. There's other stuff, too... you tell me my days of running are over, but you have this little fake our own death plan that I'm completely in the dark about - it almost seems like once you took an interest in Tratzel, you just used me to further your own purposes."

"I'm sorry if it feels that way, Karta. I told you you'd be safe as long as you're with us - and I stand by that. As far as our back-up plan, we didn't know what we'd be up against, and if it involved the Tekdaemons and a man as powerful as Eulian Tratzel, it was better to be on the safe side, which I think you'll agree was a good call."

Vhinh was getting slightly defensive, and Sae raised a hand. "I believe we can all agree we now share a common goal. Ms. Oblith, with your show of bravery we have obtained vital clues regarding Tratzel's character, and we honor you for that. In the Jedi Order, you have made a powerful ally, and I predict the secrets we uncover together will be more crucial than any of us could have anticipated."

Karta looked thoughtful. "Man. Well, I suppose, since you put it that way..."

"I am sorry I didn't listen to you the first time, Karta," Vhinh added. "And I promise we weren't using you - I wanted to help you as much as I wanted your help."

Karta studied him. "Oh, alright. I guess you're forgiven. You seem like a decent enough guy."

Vhinh regarded her for a moment. "I could tell there was something special about you when we met. I was wrapped up in my own world then, but I still saw it. Now I see what it is."

Karta raised an eyebrow, folding her arms. "Really. What's that?"

"You have a good heart - and you have spirit. Definitely someone I want on my side." He gave her a meaningful look, offering his hand. "Friends?"

She flashed a conceding smile. "Friends." Karta met his gaze with a handshake that lasted just a little too long.

Feeling eyes on them, Vhinh attempted to break the awkward moment. "Mr. Free'ta?" He offered his hand to Nars, who rose to meet it. "Sorry about your ship. We'll get it back - I promise."

Nars nodded. "I guess if Nine doesn't remember me by then, it wouldn't be an entirely bad thing." He looked to Karta, who gave him a sympathetic smile.

Vhinh's eyes went to Karta, then back to Nars. "That offer still stands..."

Nars and Karta looked at each other. "I guess I'm game if you are, buddy. We don't really have anywhere else to go at the moment," she said. Nars shrugged an affirmative.

"I will show you to your rooms," Sae offered. "There is much to deliberate on tomorrow."

Vhinh bid them goodnight, seeing them off. Many thoughts were swimming through his head right now. He couldn't deny he was attracted to Karta. She was definitely special, and she'd awakened something in him he'd thought long dead. Only this time, it seemed more rational - more real.

It wasn't the time to be getting involved with someone in this way, however. They were on the verge of uncovering something huge - and potentially catastrophic, threatening the security of the very Republic they'd fought to protect.

He had to ready himself; he felt the calling of his ancestors, and somehow knew he would play a key role in the events transpiring around them - he may have already, in fact. Perhaps the Force had willed it - his meeting with Karta, leading to their discovery of Tratzel's hidden power. In light of this, he felt some guilt - he took pleasure in the fact that he may now have the opportunity to get to know Karta a little better, even if their thoughts and time would be otherwise consumed with more worldly affairs. Still, he smiled at the prospect.

It quickly faded, though, as he thought back to the nature of their first meeting - what had been going through his head. Jhanopellis. More than anything, he hoped the boy would find peace. They would continue searching for him. He feared, though, that if Jhan didn't want to be found, he wouldn't be. Vhinh still felt partially responsible. He'd waited to deploy Jhan, when he had already worked so hard, and was obviously above his level. It had no doubt been a rude awakening to the galaxy they now lived in - and Jhan always took things to heart. He could only imagine how the boy was dealing with something of this magnitude.

Would they uncover the forces at work behind the gradual decline of the Order? If Tratzel was indeed a Sith lord in disguise, could he be the culprit, somehow? And how did Nea fit into it all - Nea, the mother of his own son?

He'd sensed that the message he'd sent to the boy had been received, but he still worried. Was the boy safe with Nea, given her apparent connection to Eulian Tratzel? Vhinh hoped against hope that wherever Koren was, he was doing okay.

Having emerged from his ravaged quarters only moments earlier, for the first time since learning of his mother's death, Koren stepped onto the bloodstained mat on the training room floor. Taking the training saber handed to him by one of the Guard, he faced his would-be opponent. Two other guard, who had just finished a short round, began to clear out to allow them the floor.

"Stay," Koren commanded. The burning stare he shot their way jarred them to attention. He assumed his ready stance, the three guards hesitantly doing the same. In a flash, he was on them, all three quickly forced to defend against his multiple strikes, coming at them in rapid succession.

"Don't let him do that to you! There is only one of him! Hit him!" Darth Sceptaurus yelled from the side of the training area.

In between blocking the boy's blurred series of swings, the guard all in turn came at the boy with their own attacks, which he either dodged or blocked and then answered with more of his own.

But there was only one of him, so it was just a matter of time. Finally one guard was able to sneak in and make contact, a hard knock to his temple - then they were on him, as the pressure sunk in and he prepared for the forthcoming wave of searing pain. Familiar by now with Sceptaurus's training methods, they did not go easy on him, and seized the moment to inflict more damage, attacking from all sides. Muffled groans could be heard as he slowly sunk to the ground, the guard not letting up.

Just when it seemed as if he would be beaten into submission, he let out one final, emphatic yawp, forcefully rising to his feet as all three guards were thrown back by a glowing violet blaze, seemingly emerging from his entire body.

Sith lighning? Sceptaurus looked on in wonderment. In a trainee so young? This was unheard of, as far as he'd known!

Koren wasn't finished, however. Retrieving one of the guard's fallen training sabers, he hurled it at them, kneecapping the guard and knocking him off his feet, then drew it immediately back to his waiting grasp, but not before he'd sent his own saber flying toward another guard, doing the same, all in an unseen flash. Then, leaping high into the air, he caught the other saber on its way back, and, descending on the third guard, brought both sabers across the guard's neck in a scissor-like motion that would have decapitated him had it been real, but would instead leave him writhing in pain. Before the other two guard could rise back up, a saber met each of their skulls in a perfectly synchronized attack.

Turning his back now to his fallen opponents, Koren caught both sabers blindly, then let them passively fall to the ground at his feet as he stalked away. This training session had not been his idea, but he had proven his point.

"Splendid, boy. Splendid," Sceptaurus praised, perhaps the first time he'd done so in the entire course of the boy's training. "That is what I want to see more of. Your mother would have been very proud." A cruel smile played on his lips.

Koren, who normally would have been overjoyed to hear any positive words directly from the mouth of his father, or, rather, surrogate father, only continued on to his quarters. He just wanted to be alone right now; but tomorrow was another day, another day of training that would bring him closer to avenging his mother's death - killing his real father, slowly and painfully.

Darth Sceptaurus allowed him the liberty, this time. The boy would soon be ready. He would lead the Chrome Guard one day, bringing down system after system, while Sceptaurus watched his empire expand with each passing day.

True, Koren had been struck in training - his technique still needed work, but the raw potential and power he had displayed just now more than made up for his lack of experience. These would only grow, as would his own skill. Soon, he would have no match among the Jedi, possibly not even in Sceptaurus himself.

It made no difference, however, as Darth Sceptaurus had an insurance policy. As long as he lived, the Guard would answer to him first and foremost - it was infused into their very consciousness, along with other things. If anyone made a move on Sceptaurus - even Koren, the guard would take them out without hesitation. So, as Koren grew, Sceptaurus would take care to always have a few of the guard by his side, in case the boy ever had any delusions of grandeur. He could spare plenty, as new clones were being incubated on a daily basis. The accelerated growth was programmed to halt at ten years, leaving a perfectly healthy adult specimen with a normal human rate of decay.

While having the same trainers as the boy, the guard did have an advantage with their accelerated growth, but the fact that Koren's dark side power had been so carefully nurtured was now beginning to more than make up for this. Soon, Koren would be training the guard himself, along with some of the more experienced first wave of clones.

Darth Sceptaurus's army was growing before his eyes, becoming self-sufficient and numbering already in the tens of thousands. Within another decade, it would near a million, with no end in sight, as Eulian Tratzel's immeasurable wealth was growing as well. The quality of training would improve, too, as the personal attention possible with more available trainers would ensure each guard received a proper, and harsh, training experience, unlike the generic massed sessions they began with when it had only been Sada and himself in charge.

Now, with his new political affiliation, he would have license to grow his army to outrageous proportions, without fear of Republic inquisition, and deploy them where he saw fit. They would take care of his Hutt problem, leaving Darth Sceptaurus and his Tekdaemons unaccountable, and eventually, they'd take the Jedi, as well. By this time, he would have gained more political power and leverage, but ultimately he wouldn't need the Republic's consent anymore, as he could simply impose his will on them, strongarming them and appointing himself to the highest position in the Republic, the Chief of State, then finally declaring it the New Empire in his name.

He marveled at his brilliance. Building, from the ground up, a new Sith empire, and ensuring that he, and only he, would be its sole ruler. It was only a matter of time, now. This was truly the dawn of a new Dark Age.

"Do you have any idea what time it is, Karta?" Nars asked through a yawn, after she showed up at the door of the small room he occupied at the Jedi temple, waking him up.

"I do, actually. I haven't slept this whole time," she said, obviously frustrated. He stepped aside to let her in. "I was hoping you could keep me company for a little bit - I'll leave you alone after that," she promised.

He gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. Nars knew Karta hated being alone, probably because of the couple days she'd spent drifting out in open space after being driven off her home planet. "So, what's up, kid?"

Karta still liked it when he called her that, even though she was now in her late twenties. It made her feel like someone was looking out for her. Some bad-ass bounty hunter I am, she mused. "I don't know... don't really know what to make of today - pretty crazy."

"Yeah," he agreed. "Do you think Tratzel is really a Sith lord?" He'd hesitated to mention it, but figured it was out in the open, now, so it didn't make much difference.

"Who knows. He's something, though... and it's nothing good."

"Yeah."

Karta looked contemplative, and wondered if she should say what she was thinking. "So... what do you think of our new Jedi friends?" When she saw Nars's 'I knew it' expression, she instantly wished she hadn't.

"Well, I know what you think of 'Master Skywalker'." He said the name with mock fanfare.

"Shut up, Nars! I didn't mean like that!" She couldn't conceal the slight pink hue appearing on her face, though.

He stood up, now, in an exaggerated heroic pose. "Oh, Karta, don't worry, I'll protect you! I'll be your big, strong, Jedi!" He said this with the same mocking tone. Then, grabbing a sheet off the bed, he threw it over himself like a robe and began performing simulated lightsaber combat. He looked ridiculous, and Karta had to laugh.

"Okay, look, even if I thought he was an okay guy, and maybe kind of cute, I stopped looking, remember?"

"And it worked, didn't it?" he urged.

"It doesn't even matter, Nars, because all I can think about right now is bringing Tratzel down. Until that happens, I don't think I'm ready to get involved with anyone - it's just too much, ya know?"

"Yeah, I hear ya. Know what I think, though?"

"What?"

"I think we're gonna be witness to some pretty big stuff, either way. Skywalker and Ytalha seem pretty intent on bringing down the Tekdaemons. We may see either the end of Tratzel or the end of the Jedi."

Karta shuddered. "Yeah, I don't want to think about that right now."

"Me neither."

The two kept talking, though, about more light-hearted topics like which resort world they would go to when this was all over, and eventually, Karta stopped responding. She lay passed out on the bed, so Nars grabbed a blanket and pillow and made himself comfortable on the floor by her side.

"Good night, Karta."

Okay! And that was the last and final chapter of Act Two.

Sorry for the wait, I was on vacation getting some sun, good food and good drink, but I'm back in full force!

Thank you guys for your continued support, and I hope you're liking the story so far. Act Three is coming very soon, and I promise I'll start posting the chapters more regularly again.

I don't have cover art for Act Three yet, but meh. Will see you again with the first chapter of Tainted Ties - Act Three: Lost Son in about a week!