"It's been a while, Head of State Fel," Galactic Federation of Free Alliances Chief of State Natasi Daala addressed to the hypercomm representation of Jagged Fel. "I take it this isn't a social call." A hint of glibness was added to her formal tone.

"You know exactly why I'm calling, Daala," Fel replied curtly. "The Jedi don't pose any threat to you anymore. They've all but left GA space and are now protected by the Imperial Remnant and the Hapes Consortium. So stop sending out your Mandalorian death squads for them."

Daala raised an eyebrow. "While it is true that I did hire out Belok Rhal and his Mandalorian mercenaries to raid the Jedi Temple, I can assure you, Fel, that whatever encounters that the Jed are receiving in Imperial and Hapan territories are-"

"Occurring under circumstances not related to you or the Galactic Alliance government?" Fel interrupted. "Please don't insult my intelligence, Daala. While I may not have had as much experience in politics as you did when I took the job as the Remnant's Head of State, I know how the game's played. So I'm only calling to warn you to back off; is that understood?"

Daala was silent for a while before she finally spoke. "Are you implying, Head of State Fel, that you would be willing to go to war with the Galactic Federation of Free Alliances over the Jedi Order?"

"Are you?" Fel retorted.

Daala smirked. "What hard evidence do you have that these attacks are linked to me? Aside from the circumstantial evidence that I've hired out Mandalorians against the Jedi in the past? It's not as if the Order doesn't have any enemies in either the Remnant or the Consortium."

"True," Fel conceded reluctantly. "Mandos are mercs who'll go after anyone if the price is right, no matter who the client is. But you know what's interesting about the Mandos who were killed and captured in their failed attempts on their Jedi targets?"

"What?"

"They're all linked to Belok Rhal, the same man who led the raid on the Jedi Temple."

Daala chuckled. "Is that your smoking gun, Fel? Rhal may have worked for me, but that doesn't mean he can't work for anyone else in the galaxy. I can't be responsible for all the jobs he takes, especially since I still have a government to run and losses to recoup after that Abeloth fiasco. And besides, why don't you simply ask Rhal yourself?"

"You know why," Fel intoned. "It's the same reason why Queen Mother Allana can't get into contact with any of the Mandos: they don't seem to be responding to any formal or informal outreaches from either the Imperial Remnant or Hapes Consortium. Yet they still seem to be on good terms with the Galactic Alliance; we know that Mandos roam Coruscant and other GA planets and stations freely, working closely with local authorities to hunt down even minor criminals."

Daala shrugged her shoulders indifferently. "Again, I can't say I'm responsible for everything the Mandalorians do; who they work for is their business, even if it is with local Galactic Alliance authorities. I can only say that I'm responsible for the Mandalorians who work for me."

"You have more pull on Rhal and his Mandos than you let on, Chief of State Daala," Fel replied. "Which is why I demand that you speak to him right away and relay a message to him: tell him and his mercenaries to stop accepting Jedi-related jobs permanently."

Daala looked perplexed. "You demand this of me, Head of State Fel?" she asked incredulously. "I'm not one of your Moffs that you can just order around. Moreover, you can't make any demands of me anymore than I can of you; since we're both heads of state of our respective governments."

Now Fel was the one who let silence hang between him and the Chief of State. "Fine, Daala. Have it your way."

"And just what is that supposed to-"

Before she could finish that sentence, Fel had cut off the transmission.

Daala allowed herself to breathe in and out to purge even the mild annoyance she held toward Fel for that slight. As for the implied threat that served as his last words in that transmission, she knew that she would have to do more than breathe in and out.

Of course, she also knew that she couldn't just preemptively go to war with the Imperial Remnant over the Jedi; even if the GA was back up to its full strength in terms of military craft, Daala knew that she would face heavy resistance in the Senate over going to war with Fel.

No wonder Palpatine had turned the Old Republic into the Empire, Daala mused. So much less internal resistance with an autocratic regime, even if it meant a full-blown rebellion might ensue. Alas, the Mandalorians were the only option that Daala had against the Jedi.

Daala's desk intercom then buzzed. "Chief Daala, your three o'clock appointment is here," the voice of her secretary said. Her tone was that of being in a dreary, dazed state.

The Chief of State looked at the intercom in askance before she replied with, "But I don't have an-"

The door to her office opened up. And there, standing in dark robes and his hood pulled back, was a wizened, light-skinned elderly human male.

Daala was about to push the button to call for security when the man lifted a hand toward her. Immediately, Daala's hand involuntarily seized up, poised over the security button.

"Do not be alarmed, Chief of State Daala," the man intoned. "I've not come here to harm or kill you; if I wanted to end your life, it would be ended by now. And if I wanted to harm you, I would begin already."

"Who are you?" Daala asked, gritting her teeth as she struggled to push the security button. "How did you get past security?"

"The dark side of the Force renders obstacles like your security a non-issue for a Sith," the man answered as he moved to sit down in one of the guest chairs across from Daala. "Especially for a Grand Lord such as myself."

"Sith?" Daala asked in panic. Her attempts to reach for the security button ceased even as her hand was still seized up.

The man nodded. "That is correct; I am as much an enemy of the Jedi as you are. Which is why I came here to propose an alliance; unofficially, of course."

Now Daala's fear was replaced by her curiosity. "I'm listening."

The man smiled. Daala's hand was then released from his invisible Force-grip, now that he could sense that she no longer had any intention of pressing that security button.

"My name is Grand Lord Darish Vol of the Lost Tribe of the Sith," the man introduced himself. "The face you see is one covered by makeup to conceal my true visage; there are no purple-skinned Keshiri in any other part of your galaxy, so I had to take precautions to keep myself inconspicuous.

"Anyway, here is my proposal to you, Chief Daala," Vol continued in a polite and conversational tone. "You lend the Lost Tribe of the Sith some of your resources, in secret naturally, so that we can finally wipe the Jedi from existence. Those resources, by the way, include those Mandalorian mercenaries that you deny working for you.

"In return for your cooperation, not only will you live to see the Jedi finally go extinct, but you will have something that they and the Sith have: the Force."

"The Force?" Daala asked.

Vol nodded again. "You see, the Lost Tribe recently discovered a planet in the Maw that contains two sources of water that grants great power in the Force. We have already tested it among some of our non-Force-sensitive members; it has worked. If you give us what we want, you will have the ability to tap into the Force; you can even become a member of the Tribe, if you so wish."

Daala hesitated in her response. "I want to see this planet."

Vol chuckled. "Of course you do. You want to find out whether or not I am lying, do you?"

"The Sith have had quite a reputation for deceit," Daala countered.

The Grand Lord chuckled again. "That, we do. It has helped us survive in our millennia-long war against the Jedi. But I suppose that, in this case, you would want to verify my claim against our reputation; after all, I do offer you a power that you cannot hope to claim otherwise.

"Of course, would your absence from Coruscant not be noticed?"

Daala smirked. "I suppose you were hoping that my duties as Chief of State of a recuperating Galactic Alliance would keep me away from a much-needed vacation?"

"Oh, you are good, Chief Daala, you are very good," Vol responded with a laugh. "Perhaps you would make a valuable addition to the Lost Tribe after all."

"I can schedule my vacation right away," Daala said. "We can be out of here for the Maw by mid-morning tomorrow."

"Very well," Vol said. "I hope you have a good day, Chief Daala." He then stood up and left her office.

Once Vol was kilometers away from the Chief of State's office, he made an encrypted holocomm call to High Lord Ivaar Workan on Kesh.

"Lord Workan," Vol said, "we need a few more sacrifices for the Pool of Knowledge and Font of Power. But we will need them alive long enough for our new ally to view them."

"We still have several non-Force-sensitive members of the Tribe's scouting party on Abeloth's homeworld," Workan stated. "I'm sure they would like a drink, Grand Lord Vol."