Beula was trembling as she and Roth stared at each other. She knew she was on the verge of something -- the first layer of a planet's surface; once she peeled it away, she'd eventually get to the core of it. She had one theory that might tie all of the loose ends into neat little bows.

"Well?" Roth prodded. "What are you thinking?"

"Sabé is a Jedi, but she was never sent to the Temple," Beula began slowly. "And I doubt that she can be the only one in the whole galaxy who that happened to. What if . . . what if Zoilo was also a Jedi?"

Roth looked confused. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"He has something to hide!" Beula insisted. She paused, trying to gather her thoughts. "This is it, I know it, Roth."

Roth closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them, he nodded reluctantly. "So it would appear. Do you think Zoilo is from Lark?"

"Well, it's not as if we had enlightening conversations about our past while we worked together," Beula snapped. "How should I know?"

"Okay, okay," Roth said patiently. He put his hands on his head. "I have a feeling that we've almost got it. But if we go in the wrong direction, we could lose all of this perception."

"I have the same feeling," Beula said softly. "Lorcan mentioned that he's been researching in a library, records and such. We can just walk in, type in Zoilo, and see if anything comes up."

"Sounds simple," Roth said. "What if we get caught?"

"Who cares?" Beula said. "We're Jedi. They're not going to mess with us." She smirked. "After all, they did see hands on what we can do with our little badass light sabers."

Roth gave her one of his rare *true* smiles. "This is one of those moments when I'm glad that I took you on as my apprentice."

Beula smiled back, but she had no idea what to say back to him. Roth settled it because, before there was enough time for an uncomfortable pause, he clapped his hands. "All right, then. Let's do this."

A few minutes later, they both walked out of the room they'd been assigned. Using the Force, they quickly located the library . . . and several beings inside of it. Roth and Beula exchanged a look that clearly read "Lorcan" and hurried down the corridors.

They swept into the library, startling the four people looking through disks and pouring over computers. Lorcan, Yrrk, and the Fluhartys. Without giving them a chance to panic, Roth announced loudly, "We have a lead."

Beula walked directly to the King, who was on a computer. "A theory, at least," she corrected. "I assume you have all records of birth in here?"

The King nodded numbly. "Why?"

Roth was looking directly at Lorcan. "You've encountered Zoilo. The hulking creature you described."

"You think he could have done this?" Yrrk butted in. "Why?"

"I don't know," Roth admitted. "The Force is trying to tell us something."

"It's on your side," Beula added. She shrugged. "Something here isn't right, and we acknowledge that. We're going to help you until we find out what that is."

"Does everyone agree with you?" The Queen asked. "How are you going to stop anyone else from arresting Clem?"

Roth looked at his feet. "Well, we kind of might've exaggerated a little bit about that backup."

"What do you mean?" Lorcan asked, looking like he'd just been offered a gift.

"There's no backup," Beula said bluntly. "We said that to scare you. There are only three people who know we're even here. Well . . . I'm sure they told Palpatine."

"And what if Palpatine told this Zoilo guy?" The King questioned. "What if he takes it upon himself to send backup. Or worse, to come here as backup. Finish Clem off and everything."

Beula snorted. "No. He's too stupid for that."

"If he's too stupid for that, then how could he have put this all together? Where would he get the material?" Yrrk pointed out.

Beula sighed. "I don't know. I don't know everything. I just know that you're telling the truth. Someone at the Senate switched those tapes because they didn't want help sent to Lark. Roth and I saw the destruction when we came here. Why would you lie to the Senate about something like this when so many people are in danger?"

"That's what we've been saying!" Lorcan burst out. He was filled with obvious relief though. "You actually believe me?"

"We don't know," Roth put in before Beula could speak. "We just know that something else is going on here. We're going to find out what."

"All right. What's your theory?" Yrrk asked.

"Obi-Wan Kenobi, I'm sure you've heard of him, has this friend--" Roth stopped to smirk for a second. "You know. Anyway, she has Jedi powers according to him."

"What's so extraordinary about that?"

"You see, the Jedi Temple works in a certain way. Every baby is tested for midichlorians. If they have more than seven thousand, I think it is, then they're sent to the Temple for training. *Every* baby is tested on *every* planet."

"Then how did they bi-pass this woman?"

Roth shrugged. "That's what we're trying to figure out. Obi-Wan found out that on Sabé's home planet, Naboo, there hasn't been a Jedi for a millennia. They gave up on checking the children, because that gene is dead there."

"There are planets that the gene is dead on?" Yrrk asked. "Do you know where this Zoilo guy is from?"

"We're thinking from here," Beula put in. "Can you look him up on the computer."

"Why here? Children are still checked for midichlorians," King Fluharty said, moving his fingers over the keyboard as if about to type on their cue.

"Maybe they skipped over him. But whoever released that biological weapon has to have a motive," Beula said. "What if he's from here, but he has to hide his Jedi abilities. I'm sure the Council would check him out at the very least."

Roth was pinching his chin slightly. He began to pace. "Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon . . ." he said, more to himself than anyone else. He stopped suddenly. "The Sith Lord."

"What about it?" Beula asked, turning around to look at her Master curiously.

"Did you pay attention at all during your Temple education?" Roth asked exasperatedly.

"Hey! Look who's talking," Beula interrupted.

"Sith Lords always travel in twos, just like the Jedi," Roth said, each word coming out faster than the one before. "Obi-Wan killed one Sith. The Council was concerned about another one, but I think it's been so long that they've just become wary. What if there was another Sith? What if he took on an apprentice? Hell, what if Zoilo himself was that other Sith? He'd have to have Jedi powers to be a Sith."

Beula closed her eyes suddenly. She froze in place. All of the Larkians were looking at her with concern, but Roth waved his hand at them, as if to tell them to let it go. "She's using the Force for answers," he whispered so as not to disturb them.

When Beula's eyes snapped open again, her face was twisted into an elated expression. "You *are* good for something, Roth!"

"Gee, thanks."

"This has got to be it. I-I remember . . . I had brushed it aside, not even thinking about it, but now I remember. I walked into Palpatine's office. He and Zoilo were talking . . . and *the word Sith came up*. Not in a curse form either. They were talking seriously. I don't think they know that I heard them."

Everyone in the room was still. Even those that weren't perceptive felt the Force sizzling around them, growing with each truth that was spoken.

"That would explain why he'd have to quiet Lark," Lorcan said, his voice soft so that he wouldn't completely break the spell upon them all. "If he's one of these Siths, then obviously he wouldn't want people to know about his identity."

"Look," Beula commanded the King, her voice barely audible as she pointed to the screen of the screen. "Look for Zoilo."

"No," Lorcan said. "That's his first name."

"Really?" Roth said, looking surprised that this man knew more than him.

"Yes. He introduced himself to us," Yrrk said. "His last name . . . it starts with a 'P'. I remember. He told us that he goes by Zoilo."

"Wow. You guys had a longer conversation with him than we ever had," Beula said sarcastically. She snorted. "Can't say I'm too jealous."

"Pollock," Lorcan said suddenly. "That's his name."

The King's fingers moved across the keys, typing in Pollock.

* * * * *

Light years away, Obi-Wan felt that same sizzle in the Force as he and Sabé sat on the couch after their date. They were in the process of making up for those three years they were apart, and all of the time they were together when the couldn't really be together.

Obi-Wan broke away from Sabé suddenly. "Do you feel that?"

Sabé twirled some of the hair at the back of his neck. She smiled at him. "I can feel it all right."

Obi-Wan shot her a mirth-filled look, but then he was serious again. "No. The Force."

Sabé pulled her arms away from his neck. She tried to quiet her pounding heartbeat so that she could hear the Force beyond her. She closed her eyes and dived deep into her center, as Obi-Wan had taught her back on the Nubian.

When she opened her eyes, Obi-Wan exchanged a look with her. "Do you feel it now?"

"Something's happening," she said. "What?"

"It's Roth," Obi-Wan said with conviction. "I know him better than you do. We have a bond." He shook his head. "You heard what he said over the comm. What if Lorcan escaped? Or they tried to overthrow him?" Obi-Wan shuddered.

Sabé shook her head. She took Obi-Wan's hand in hers to offer comfort. "No. It's not that kind of Force message. Something important is happening."

Obi-Wan stood up, yanked a hand through his hair. "We shouldn't have let them go to Lark by themselves. With no backup! What if . . . Force." He looked at Sabé again, his hand on the back of his neck. "Did Palpatine say anything about sending anyone after Roth?"

"No." Sabé ran the conversation with Palpatine over again in her head. "He was acting weird though. I got a . . . a cold feeling from him. Strangely enough, I think he was majorly pissed at us."

Obi-Wan smiled slightly and very quickly. "Why didn't you tell me before?"

"I forgot." She chuckled. "It's easier than I'd like to forget things when I'm with you."

"Can we have a romantic interlude later? We'll get back to the sweet nothings." Obi-Wan paused. "Why would Palpatine be mad at us? What was it exactly that we did?"

"It was probably just that we did something without consulting him first," Sabé said, brushing the scene aside.

"Well, we're about to do something without consulting him again. Go pack your bags, Sabé."

Sabé stood up warily. "What are you planning?" she asked cautiously.

"We're going to Lark," Obi-Wan said matter-of-factly. "And you're coming with Anakin and me too. I don't want to have you here if something happens."

"What about Palpatine?"

"He won't mind. He practically dismissed us anyway."

"All right. But if I lose my job because of this, then you're going to support me financially until I get a new one," Sabé said reluctantly.

"No problem. I'd be happy to let you live at the Temple with me. We'll make Anakin sleep in the gym."

Sabé laughed shortly. "You always manage to get one of your comments in at a situation like this, don't you?"

"I think it's a defense mechanism," Obi-Wan admitted. "Hurry up though. Go get a few things while I wake up Anakin."

* * * * *

The silence was tangible as the two Jedi and three Larkians crowded around King Fluharty, holding their breath as he searched through file after file. The clock ticked on, minute after minute after minute. For Roth and Beula, the Force seemed to become more palpable with the time. They knew they were on the brink of something; they just had to find proof.

King Fluharty pounded on the table suddenly, his eyes fierce. The Queen quickly put her arm around his shoulder. "What's wrong?"

"That's it," the King said. "There's nothing else to look through."

"Are you sure?" Beula couldn't help asking.

The King turned around in his seat to give her a look. "If Zoilo Pollock was born on Lark, then we would know by now. Your theory doesn't hold out."

Beula let out a string of curse words that Roth guiltily wondered if he'd taught her. "What happened?" She turned around to look at Roth. "We had it. I know we had it."

Roth shrugged. He, too, was as strung out as Beula. "Maybe the Force was wrong."

Beula gave him an incredulous look. "Yeah, I'm sure that's it." She turned back to the screen. "We did something wrong. The Force is still here. It's trying to tell us something."

"I don't know what kind of Jedi crap you believe in, but you're Force is wrong," Yrrk spat.

In a flash, Beula had her light saber out, tilting it menacingly at Yrrk. Roth grabbed her arm and pulled her back while Lorcan put a protective arm around his lover. "Beula, stop, this won't work," Roth whispered into her ear. "Close your eyes and be one with the Force."

"Encouraging me to meditate," Beula muttered, but she obeyed anyway. The Larkians seemed to sense that they shouldn't break the silence, and they all stood stock-still, staring at the Jedi, waiting for them to come up with an answer.

"This isn't going to work," King Fluharty scoffed. He stood up abruptly. "I want to know what happened and why it happened!"

"Andy," the Queen said worriedly, trying to calm him down. "Maybe we aren't supposed to know the answers."

"Why? So this can continue to go on?" the King shook his head fiercely. "Never mind. I'm going to go to sleep. You can keep trying to get this supernatural Force thing to give you answers. Personally, I wouldn't waste my time."

The King started to leave; the Queen following after him quickly. Roth felt just as frustrated as they did. He'd just had years of training in the Temple to keep his face and attitude placid. He still had a restraining arm on Beula. Her eyes were closed, and he could feel the Force gathering around her. He was just about ready to scream, to let all of the tension out.

The scrape of a chair turned everyone's head to the computer Fluharty had been on. Lorcan was sitting down slowly. He didn't acknowledge anyone as he began to type. Roth held his breath as he watched the screen. Slowly, shakily, Lorcan typed one name into the little search box.

"Palpatine," Beula said breathlessly from beside Roth. "Palpatine."

The King and Queen softly padded their feet to the edge of the computer. The wait went on again. The silence still and growing. But this time there was a difference. After only a few minutes, the screen filled up with information, filled up with files. Beula and Roth exchanged a flabbergasted look, unable to even begin to comprehend what was obviously in front of them.

"There have been Palpatines on Lark for hundreds of years," Lorcan's voice, soft and rough at the same time, interrupted the silence. "Farmers, it looks like."

"Look for any disappearances," Beula said quickly, leaning over the back of his chair to get a closer look. "Anything about forty or fifty years ago."

Lorcan's voice began to waver. "Fifty three years ago, the young wife of a Palpatine and their son vanished from the face of the planet."

"Force," Roth breathed. "This is it. The day that they disappeared, look at the flights, if you can."

"Why?" Lorcan asked.

"I want to see if there were any going to Naboo that day," Roth said. "Palpatine's supposed home planet is Naboo. Of course though . . . Palpatine isn't a common Nubian name, is it?"

"But he became famous," Beula pointed out. "For Force's sake, he's the Chancellor of the Senate! Wouldn't any of these Palpatines put two and two together?"

"Even if they did, they wouldn't have enough money to do something about it," Lorcan said. "They're not the richest people in the world. And, yes, there was a flight to Naboo."

"I want more information on the young wife. She had to have money, right? To afford a trip to Naboo," Roth rationalized.

Lorcan began working again; a second later he had a few more data files up on the screen. "As a matter of fact, she came from a well-to-do family. Only her sister was alive at the time that she left."

"Is her sister still alive now?" Roth demanded.

"Yes. She lives far away though. Practically the other side of the planet."

"Then we'd better leave as soon as possible."

"Not with that plague," the Queen said worriedly. "I already have all of Lark's deaths on my conscience. I can't add you two."

"We're Jedi, Your Majesty. I think we can make it okay," Roth said. "Lorcan, is there anything else we need to know about this?"

"I'll download all of this for you," Lorcan promised.

"You do that. Beula and I are going back to our room to comm Obi-Wan. You guys had better be ready in about ten minutes. If we leave now, we can get there by tomorrow afternoon."

"And we're taking our ship too," Beula added with authority. "Don't bring any of your bodyguards though. There's no need, and we don't have enough room."

Beula and Roth left the still-dumbfounded Larkians in the room.

Back in their room, Roth immediately turned on the comm to dial Obi-Wan's frequency. Luckily they hadn't unpacked yet, expecting to leave the next day. After a few minutes, Roth realized that nobody was home.

"Do you think he's over at Sabé's?" Beula asked, the name sounding vicious in her mouth.

Roth shook his head. "No. It would have woken up Anakin." He sighed. "Where do you think they are?"

"Maybe they went out to eat," Beula suggested.

"At this time of night?"

"I don't know then."

"I only have one thing to say." Roth turned around to look at Beula. "I've got a bad feeling about this."

* * * * *

AN: Sorry that this update took months. I finished this a long time back, but I lost the floppy disk. I found out my friend had a copy of it, so here it is! There are two other chapters after this, maybe three. I'm going to have them all up within the next week. Then I'll work on finishing the whole Chained to You series. The next one will also have a lot of Ani/Pad in it, so you Padani fans look for some fun.