"The Chief Manager is ready to see you," the secretary said from behind her desk.
"About time," Partner said as he and Tahiri stood up from their seats in the outer office. "I was just about ready to blow that door down myself in another ten seconds." He was referring to the door that led into Chief Manager Fledrek's office, which he and Tahiri were now walking toward.
The secretary, a dark-skinned human female in her late thirties, looked disconcerted and even threatened by what the Mandalorian said.
"He's joking," Tahiri said for the woman's benefit; the former Jedi even put on an attempt of a reassuring smile.
"Yeah, sure," Partner muttered.
Tahiri gave the Mandalorian a look that wordlessly told him to shut up. She then pressed the button that opened the door.
Inside the inner office, the portly, brown-skinned human male of middle age behind the desk stood up and spread his arms out at either side. As he did so, he greeted his two new guests with a smile that was as fake as the one that Tahiri had just given the secretary.
"Miss Veila and Mister Anonymous!" Chief Manager Fledrek said as he walked around the desk. "I'm honored to have you here today!" He shook each of their hands as he spoke; Tahiri was suitably compliant with her own handshake, while Fledrek practically had to use both of his own hands to shake Partner's hand for all of the effort that the Mando put into it. "Please, sit down!" He waved to the guest chairs in front of the desk.
"Why?" Partner asked.
"I beg your pardon?" Fledrek asked, his demeanor still cheerful.
"Why should we sit down?" Partner clarified. "You know why we're here. So let's get on with it."
"Yes, Head of State Fel did inform me that you'd be coming here to look over evidence from the research facility on Hagamoor 3, and we did collect some from that moon," Fledrek said. "But he never said what exactly you were looking for; so, before I take you both on a tour of my forensics building, I'd like to know what exactly I can help you two with."
Partner then took out the sliver of beskar from a pocket on his belt. "You familiar with this?"
Fledrek squinted down at it briefly before looking back up at Partner. "Should I be?"
"I think you should," Partner replied. "This is a piece of Mandalorian beskar steel, the same material that my armor and the armor of every other self-respecting Mandalorian would have. We found this at the destroyed research facility on Hagamoor 3; we think that the rest of it was taken."
"And since Head of State Fel told my friend and I that Gleros was the planet where high-priority forensics investigations took place," Tahiri said, "we thought you might know where the rest of the beskar might be."
Fledrek looked gobsmacked. "I had no idea that there was any of this beskar on Hagamoor 3. It certainly wasn't among any of the evidence manifests coming from that moon."
"Veila?" Partner asked.
"He's telling the truth," Tahiri said almost instantly. "He knows nothing about the beskar."
"Figures," Partner replied. "Well, then, I guess it's a good thing that Inspector Velias is coming, right?" His tone made it clear that his question was directed at Fledrek.
"Oh, yes, yes, I called him here, as you requested," the Chief Manager of the forensics building confirmed hastily. "He should be here any minute."
"When is he supposed to-"
Partner's question was cut off when Tahiri screamed, "Get down!"
She tackled Partner and Fledrek to the floor and erected a Force-shield around them right before the building was rocked by an explosion that came from the basement. In a matter of seconds, the structure of the building collapsed to its foundations, and what wasn't incinerated by the explosion was reduced to debris.
Those who were in the building, and who weren't protected by Tahiri's Force-shield, had all died either from the explosion itself or from the resultant collapse.
As for Tahiri, Partner, and Fledrek, they all lay unconscious, buried beneath a mound of rubble from which they wouldn't be rescued for another two hours at least.
However, thanks to his armor and helmet, Partner, who was on his back, was only unconscious for a scant few minutes before he woke up and immediately began struggling against the I-beam under which he was pinned; Tahiri, who lay prone, was right next to him, her breathing shallow.
"Veila, wake up!" Partner shouted as he tried nudging her back to consciousness. "You gotta wake up! You gotta use your Force-powers to get us outta here!"
Soon, Tahiri moaned, and a few seconds after that, her eyes fluttered open.
"Come on, Veila!" Partner muttered. "Use the Force! Get us outta this!"
"I'll try, but-" She groaned before she spoke again. "I'm in a lotta pain right now."
"Well, work past it then!" Partner replied with frustration. "You're a Jedi; isn't that supposed to be something you have to work past?!"
"Former Jedi!"
"Whatever, just get us out!"
"Then let me concentrate! This isn't gonna be easy!"
"Fine, fine, just do your thing!"
Tahiri closed her eyes and focused as she reached out for the Force. She shut away everything that her natural biological senses informed her about the physical world and concentrated on the I-beam that pinned her, Partner, and Fledrek down to the groaning floor.
With great effort, which put an even greater strain on the injuries that she had received, Tahiri managed to lift the I-beam a few inches of herself, Partner, and Fledrek.
"Go!" Tahiri heard herself shouting.
It didn't take long afterwards before she lapsed into unconsciousness again.
When she awakened once more, she found herself laying on a bed in a hospital room; her right arm was hooked to an IV. Sitting right next to her was Partner; his armor looked clean, as if he hadn't been among the debris of a blown-up building.
"It's been a few hours," he explained. "When you got that I-beam off us, I got you and Fledrek outta there; and believe me, it wasn't easy carrying his load with a hand on his ankle. All the good that did him, though; he was pronounced dead on the scene when we got outta there. You were lucky, though."
"Why didn't you-" She groaned as she felt a great pain in her stomach. "-continue with the investigation?"
"I let Fel know about you," Partner explained. "He told me not to leave your side 'til you got better; so that's what I'm doing."
"Did you... tell him... about Inspector Velias?"
"Yeah, I told him that he didn't show before the building blew up," Partner explained. "Fel said that he'd look into what happened to him."
The portable holocomm on Partner's belt beeped. He picked it up and saw who was calling. "Well, speak of the devil," he remarked. He then activated it.
Indeed, Jagged Fel was displayed before him and Tahiri.
"It's good to know you're alright, Tahiri," Jag said. "I'm sorry to hear about what happened to Chief Manager Fledrek."
"He wasn't in on it," Tahiri said.
"Yes, so your partner told me," Jag stated. "By the way, Inspector Velias has gone missing. He hasn't been at either work or in his home lately; no word about him since the forensics explosion. You did tell Fledrek not to tell Velias who was asking for him, right?"
"We did," Partner confirmed. "Then again, I wouldn't be surprised if Velias had figured that if he was being asked at all about Hagamoor 3, he'd probably pack his bags and skip Imperial space; probably for the safety provided by Mirta Gev and, more likely, Belok Rhal. No doubt that Fledrek let it spill that this was about the research facility."
"I hope this means the trail hasn't gone cold from here," Tahiri said.
"Not necessarily," Partner said. "If we go through the lingering residue from the site of the explosion, we might find some evidence that it was used by at least one of my own people."
"Or Velias could have planted it there, and we'd have no way to trace it back to the Mandalorians," Tahiri countered.
"Maybe," Partner said. "But still, it'll be worth a look when you're all patched up, right?"
"We should go now," Tahiri said as she tried to sit up; only the pain in her stomach caused her to lay back down.
"Listen to him, Tahiri," Jag said. "Rest and heal up. Besides, I'm sure your partner can take care of himself for a while."
Tahiri looked at Partner. "Did the doctors tell you how long I'll-"
"Few days, give or take," Partner replied.
Tahiri grunted. "Great; just what I need," she said facetiously.
"If that'll be all," Jag said, "I have a war I have to run."
"Have fun then," Partner said.
Jag looked at him with a look that said, "Really?" before he disconnected the call.
Partner then stood up and went to leave the room.
"Partner?"
"Yeah?" he asked as he looked back at Tahiri.
"I really am no Jedi anymore," she said. "Because when I find Velias, I'm gonna make him talk. And he's gonna hurt; and he's gonna die. Don't you tell Jag about that."
"Don't worry," he replied. "I won't."