Lou glared daggers at S'Ritak Vedul. He sat cross-legged across the cargo bay that was serving as her prison. He was meditating, not paying her any heed.

Not that he needed to.

She was bound and gagged. Her hands were restrained behind her back and chained to the wall. Her feet were chained to her hands. Needless to say, she was not going anywhere any time soon.

The Twi'Lek's co-conspirator, Trepur Espen, entered via the sliding double doors. His eyes swept the virtually empty room; only Lou, Vedul, a cabinet on the wall, and Espen's prized crate were present. Espen's gaze fell on the blue alien, and he grinned.

He strode over to her, saying, "Quite the predicament you now find yourself in." he knelt next to her. "You really are lovely, my Dear." he combed his fingers through her dark green hair.

The hum of a lightsabre echoed in his ear. He turned his head slowly and carefully to meet Vedul's glare. "Don't touch her, Espen. The Emperor wants her unharmed."

"I wasn't - "

"I know what you were going to do. Get back to the cockpit. We are almost there."

Espen grumbled to himself as he left he cargo bay.

Vedul replaced the weapon on his belt, watching the other trudge off, clearly displeased. The Twi'Lek turned his lopsided grin on Lou. "Comfortable?" She narrowed her eyes at him. "No, I didn't think so. But don't worry, we will be landing shortly."

Lou focused her thoughts in the Sith apprentice's direction. When Maul catches up -

He'll be too late. the other finished.

She looked away, remembering what she had seen transpire in her...vision?

Maul...

Vedul sensed the brief contact through the Force. He backhanded Lou, coaxing her out of the trance-like state, and breaking her concentration. She gaped up at the Twi'Lek, uncertain of what she had just done.

"We'll have none of that." he growled. He narrowed his eyes at her, then turned to the cabinet hanging on the wall. It opened for him, and a small needle floated toward Lou. She shook her head, trying to back away from the threat, but she had only a wall to protect her. The needle pierced her skin, and the contents were emptied into her bloodstream.

Not long after, her head thumped to the floor.


Maul...

The Sith's head jerked up at the voice in his head. "Jareena,"

Wesley arched his eyebrow. "You talkin' to me?"

"No,"

"Oh," he returned his attention to the planet looming before them. "She must mean a lot to you if you've got us all going to rescue her."

"The fate of the universe rests in her hands. She should mean a lot to you, too."

"Well, that whole concept is kinda hard to grasp, y'know?"

Maul regarded the youth before replying, "I suppose,"

"You sound as if you've been through this sort of thing before, though." Wesley chuckled at the absurdity of that statement.

"I have," the Sith walked away from the now befuddled young man.

"You - " he chased after Maul. "You what?"

"I have done things that people like you can't even imagine, Boy."

"People like me? What's that s'posed to mean?"

Lindsey's voice cut in on the intercomm. "Where should I set down?"

"I'll pilot from here." Maul announced. "I'm on my way to the Bridge now."

"Define people like me." Wesley stated, still keeping pace with the other.

"Well, I don't know any nice way to tell you this, so I'll tell you frankly. You, Wesley, are an average space pirate. I, on the other hand, am a Sith warrior formerly employed by Emperor Palpatine himself."

"And you're proud of this? Okay, so what changed?"

"My perception," Maul strode onto the Bridge. He swapped places with Lindsey, taking the pilot's chair.

"I'm having serious doubts about this whole thing." Nordat whispered to Lindsey. "We don't even know this guy, but we're taking him for his word?"

"Uh - "

"I've been reading up on his background, Kane. He's listed as deceased."

"Well, clearly he is not deceased, Clar."

"Don't you think you should - "

"It's a little late to be second-guessing my motives," Darth Maul spoke up. "Seeing as we have already arrived."

"Explain to me why every record lists you as dead, then. At least give us that much."

Maul did not take his eyes from the viewscreen, but he answered Nordat's question, "The one who was killed was a clone. An experiment that failed, much to Palpatine's dismay."

"A clone? Why would you send a clone?" Lindsey inquired.

"Because - "

"You saw your own death." Wesley finished for Maul.

"Yes," he cast a look over his shoulder at the young man. He then turned back to landing the spacecraft.


Deanna and Breckin sat in silence in Breckin's assigned room. They had not said a word in the fifteen minutes they had been together. They just sat on the bed, Deanna's head on Breckin's chest, holding hands.

He sighed, wondering what her silence meant. She smiled, sensing his distress, but still remained quiet.

Breckin gave up. "What are you thinking?"

"I'm afraid," she replied quietly.

"Of what?"

Deanna straightened, and met his gaze. "I'm afraid of losing you."

He shook his head, "You won't,"

"And I'm afraid of losing Scruffy." she leaned on him again, feeling comfort from his closeness. "He promised me he'd come back, but a promise is only words. He can't see the future. I don't want anything to happen to him. Or to you,"

Breckin put his arm around her shoulders, then kissed her forehead softly. She met his lips with hers, and his hand brushed down her back.

Deanna pulled away suddenly. "Oh, no,"

"What?" he asked quickly.

"Can't you feel it?" she got up, wide-eyed. "We're landing!"

Breckin followed her as she hurried to the Bridge.


Lou watched the ground beneath her. There was not much else she could do from her position. Slung over Vedul's shoulder as she was.

The three of them were already inside the Imperial Palace, and on their way to meet Emperor Palpatine. The Emperor knew that Maul was not far behind, but it would only take a few minutes to complete the ritual in which his heart would be replaced with that of Ongrel, the first Sith warrior.

Assuming that the Kyterian co-operated.

But he had everything ready to ensure that she did.

Two doors that extended all the way up to the ceiling opened at the Twi'Lek's will, and they entered the room where Palpatine sat patiently awaiting their arrival.

"Welcome back, Jareena," the old man smiled cruelly. "It's nice to see you again." he traced her jawline with his weathered, bony finger. She tried to pull away from his ice touch. "S'Ritak, please sit her down over there." the Emperor indicated a throne beside an ornate table, which Lou recognized from her vision.

A man wearing black robes lined with silver entered, carrying the Statue of Ongrel on a jewel-encrusted gold tray. He stopped a few feet away from the two aliens, as Vedul removed Lou's gag. Palpatine watched anxiously.

"You can't go through with this, Palpatine." were the first words out of her mouth.

"Oh, don't be ridiculous. This is the least complicated plan I've ever come up with, once you break it down : Get Statue, capture you, bring you back to Coruscant, have you open the pyramid, and then have the heart surgically switched with mine. I wish I'd realised what you were four years ago."

"I wouldn't have helped you then, just as I won't help you now."

"Oh, I think you will." the Emperor stated, narrowing his eyes.

Lou heard a door slide open behind her, and she turned on the throne to see who had entered. Vedul snickered, keeping a tight hand on her shoulder. "Morty!"

Raef Caylon elbowed Park in the back of the head, knocking him to the floor. The Imperial Guard released Jenkens, then stood at attention, awaiting his next order.

Mortimer Park raised his head, squinting through puffy eyelids. "Mi?" he croaked in disbelief.

"Yeah, Morty, it's me."

"What - what are you doing here? You can't be here, Mi. Palpatine's crazy. He wants you to - "

Caylon kicked Park in the gut to shut him up. "That's enough outta you."

Lou turned to the Emperor. "Let them go,"

Palpatine gestured to the Statue of Ongrel. "Open it,"

"No, you can't!" Park exclaimed, trying to get up.

Caylon grabbed him by his hair and pulled him to his feet. He then swung him toward a nearby pillar. However, before any contact was made, Lou managed to muster an energy ball that flattened Caylon against the far wall. he slumped to the ground, unconscious.

Lou stared in shock at her glowing red hands. "Oh, crap,"

Palpatine smiled wickedly.


Darth Maul peered up at the Imperial Palace through binoculars. He, Wesley, Breckin, Nordat, and Lindsey crouched in the bushes so as not to be seen by the patrols. Deanna had stayed behind to have the Watcher's Light - which was parked a few kilometers away - ready to make a quick escape once they had returned.

Maul made a mental note of the eight guards standing just inside the main doors, as he turned to address the others. "From what I can tell, your friend Taggart is being held in the dungeon. To get to him, you will have to go left from the main foyer to the elevators. The dungeon is sublevel six, and his cell is the third one on the left once you get off. Got that?"

Lindsey nodded, unquestioningly. He had given up trying to figure out how this creature knew so much.

"How can you be so sure?" Nordat demanded.

"Because this Palace has been my home for most of my life." Maul retorted, his patience short so near a battle.

And there would be a battle.

"Great," Wesley leaned closer. "So, how do we get in?"

"Leave that to me. Once I kill the guards, you three will go free your friend."

"But what about - "

"The others - Park, Jenkens, and Jar - Lou - are together," Maul pointed to a fourth floor stained glass window, "Up there. I'll handle that, you needn't worry."

"You can't rescue them alone." Wesley argued.

"I surely can. I have a score to settle."

"You have an ego to settle." the young man muttered under his breath.

"I heard that,"

"A score to settle with Palpatine?" Lindsey asked.

"Yes," Maul turned away from Wesley. "And my apprentice." the Sith narrowed his eyes with contempt.

"Should we find you after we get Taggart?"

"No. I will be fine. Just return to your ship, and the rest of us shall follow not far behind."

Wesley raised his hand. "Okay, I have a question : What if something happens to you, Mr. Overconfident?"

Maul allowed a mirthless smile. "Then you're all dead."

The young man rolled his eyes, throwing his hands in the air, as Nordat said, "That's reassuring."


Lou willed the red glow away, and it gradually faded out.

"You see your power now," Palpatine said, approaching her. "A power you are beginning to realize."

"How did you do that?" Park was astonished. "I mean - " he glanced at Caylon, sprawled on the tiled floor. "How did you do that?"

"I don't know, Morty," she shook her head.

"Open the Statue, Jareena," Palpatine broke in. "I'll only ask you politely so many times, and then my patience will be out."

"No, your Highness, I will not be the one to give you the universe."

Jenkens took in his surroundings, seeking an escape route. He knew he would not make it across the room to the double doors. He guessed that they were pretty high up, so jumping out the window was out of the question. Their only chance, then, was to attack the Guard behind them, and get out the way they had come in. The real problem was how to get Lou out, too.

"Last time, Jareena. Open my Statue, or you will have only yourself to blame for what happens." the Emperor was aware of what Jenkens was plotting.

Lou did not like the tone of his voice. She chose to try a stall tactic, though she was not sure what she was stalling for other than to delay the inevitable. She asked, "What's in it for me?"

Palpatine's gaze softened slightly, amusement flickering in his eyes. He did not see this for what it was, but rather as an opportunity for bargaining. Maybe he could get what he wanted without having to threaten her, afterall.