Brodey's boots clicked on the durasteel floor as he passed through the docking bay door into the open hangar. Jaina sat perched atop a large wooden crate about 10 meters in front of him, having a quiet conversation with Jagged Fel, who was leaning against the same crate, his elbows resting on its surface.

Jaina's focus seemed to change to include Brodey's presence upon his arrival. Her gaze flickered once over in his direction as their conversation came to a halt.

"Welcome," She called out, clearing her throat. "Why don't you come here and join us?"

Brodey seemed to remember Kyp describing a similar meeting, one where he was confronted for not being a part of the team. Something about the way he'd been invited to join their little gathering reeked of discord. He struggled to think of something he could have done wrong, but the worst thing he could think of was missing a sim session due to sleeping through his alarm. It was hardly on the same level as breaking a force connection in the heat of combat.

"What is this, another intervention?" Brodey mocked. "I thought we'd determined that I'm a jerk but you'd put up with me."

"Relax, Brodey," Jaina laughed. "If we were really fed up with you we'd just boot your sorry ass out the door!"

Brodey shot a forced smile back at her but otherwise ignored her comment. "So, why did you call me down here?"

"Well," She began. "It seems that somebody has been keeping tabs on you. He or she or whatever sent you this cryptic message. I don't know what it's about or what the sender's intentions are. I guess you should just check it out."

Brodey glanced down at the data chip she'd handed to him and over to the old comm unit connected to the control console. It was an older model but it would do. He wiped some of the dust from the screen and chip drive before inserting the chip and grimaced as a blue screen full of symbols was all that came up.

"When you said cryptic I had no idea you meant it was encrypted," Brodey mumbled, looking exasperated. He began to wish he had Chaser's company now instead of later. His addict friend had been a formidable hacker and could decode almost anything. It was a perfect example of how being strong in the force didn't amount to jack in certain circumstances.

"Let me see what I can do," Jag said, taking control of the console. Within a matter of seconds the blue screen vanished and a hooded figure appeared, bathed in shadows. "See, it was simple. You just have to know something about this model of comm, that's all."

"Shhh," Brodey commanded as he stared fixedly at the screen.

"Brodaeus T'naa'lichi Narundi," The figure stated, his voice altered to conceal his identity. He paused for a second, purposefully, letting Brodey's full name permeate the air and sink deeply into the young man's mind. The inflection of his voice made it seem almost like he was bragging. "Jedi Narundi, now affiliated with Twin Suns Squadron. I bear an urgent message for you and your closest friends. If you wish to see an end to the war with the Yuuzhan Vong then you will meet me out behind Sorte Ma at midnight in two day's time. Do not come with a full squadron or else I will choose not to show. The five of you will be sufficient. Until then, y'aan'dai."

The transmission ended, leaving all three staring at the screen, each of them for completely different reasons.

"What was that last word?" Jaina questioned. "I haven't been able to figure that out yet."

"Perhaps it's a dialect, or maybe even a completely different language," Jag suggested.

"It's N'aanwar. Loosely translated it means 'see you later'," Brodey said, his voice slightly panicked as he continued to gawk at the screen. "I haven't heard N'aanwar in years. It's obviously somebody from back home and they've been following me around, taking notes!"

The two watched in confusion as Brodey began to pace nervously around in small circles, running his hands through his hair in distress. "It's probably some bounty hunter, just trying to trick me into meeting him so he can kill me!"

"And you're going to let him?" Jaina asked with a smirk. "What could one little bounty hunter do to you?"

"He could do a whole lot if he brought a legion of Vong!" Brodey snapped. "He probably got some great ideas after witnessing that skirmish outside the club!"

"Well, what if this person is telling the truth? What if he has information that could help us?" Jag asked, interrupting Brodey's nervous rant. "Could we really live with it if we passed up a chance like that?"

"Jag's right," Jaina replied.

"Oh, of course Jag's right!" Brodey exclaimed sarcastically.

"Shut up, and that's an order," She said sternly and continued. "Brodey, the five of us really do make an unbeatable team. If we go in there expecting things to go wrong then we'll be prepared."

"I suppose it could be worth it," Brodey agreed reluctantly.

"Great, then get packing," Jaina ordered. "We leave as soon as we can."

"Shouldn't we inform my uncle of our departure?" Jag asked, placing a hand on her forearm.

"I'll take care of that," She said softly, standing up on her tiptoes to give him a gentle kiss. "You just go pack. Both of you."

"As your goddessness commands," Brodey answered with a bow, a smile returning to his face.

The two men left, leaving Jaina alone to struggle with the primitive comm unit.

"We should have splurged more on the equipment budget," She muttered to herself as she smacked a fist against the screen in frustration. She hoped that Wedge would understand the need for this unexpected journey. If they were successful with the mission then they would see an end to the war. Jaina Solo wanted nothing more than to see an end to the years of heartache at the hands of the Yuuzhan Vong. She desperately hoped they would find the answers they needed.

~*~*~

The walls of the apartment shook from raucous music that could be heard clearly even before entering. Brodey cringed at the loud grating sounds as he pushed open the front door, feeling pain that was close to physical. Whatever had happened when he was gone definitely had pushed Kyp off the deep end. He reached out to assess his master's condition and felt a film of resentment from the older man along with abnormally high stress levels.

"Welcome back," Anja said pleasantly from her seat on the couch. She looked up from her datapad for a second to smile at him before taking a sip from her blue milkshake and turning back to what she was reading.

"What did you do to him?" Brodey asked demandingly as he covered his ears from the noise. "Did you sing one pop song too many?"

"He's just got too thin of a skin," Anja said silkily. "He can't take a joke."

"Maybe you just know how to push his buttons," Brodey commented, raising his eyebrows slightly and crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"Maybe," She said covertly, giving him a seductive smile. There was something in the way she was seated, with her feet propped up lazily on the caf table and her long hair pulled back into a reckless ponytail. Perhaps it was the wild spark of mischief in her eyes. Whatever it was, it simply drove him wild. "Care for some blue milk?"

He stared at the glass that she held out to him, slightly bewildered with her offer. It was the last thing he thought he'd hear her say at that moment, and yet. . . He realized suddenly that she could have said anything. It really didn't matter. All he could pick up was the communication she was sending without words.

"I'd love some," He replied, breathing out sharply as stared back at her. He clumsily made his way over to sit next to her on the couch, vaguely aware that she was causing a sort of hazy tunnel vision. Brodey took a small, hurried sip from the glass she offered him and then placed it back on the table before launching himself at her in a flurry of passion.

The skin on her neck felt warm and soft as he caressed it, pulling her lips up to meet his. He inhaled slowly, taking in the scent that was distinctly hers. Strands of her hair got in his way as their lips mingled and ardent fire coursed through his entire being. There was something about Anja Gallandro, something she did to him, that he could never explain. The only thing he knew for sure was that he liked it.

"Oh, isn't that sweet?" Kyp said from the doorway, his voice dripping with sarcasm. The mere sound of his voice instantly separated the young couple. "Which one of you two should I kill first?"

"Careful, Kyp," Brodey snapped back with a sneer. He, unlike Anja, was only slightly embarrassed but more than a little pissed off. "You might get a damaging reputation if you're always threatening to kill people."

"Smartass," Kyp muttered with an accentuated sigh. "So, what kind of punishment did Jaina give you this time?"

"A two day vacation," Brodey retorted.

"Really?" Kyp exclaimed, plainly shocked. "And that's punishment?"

"Wait until you hear the entire story," Brodey replied. "I got a message from an unknown source. Turns out that somebody's been following me around and keeping track of my every move."

"That's not good," Kyp groaned, flopping down onto the couch.

"It gets even better," Brodey said, moving his hands around frantically as he talked. "Part of the message was in my native language! You do realize what this means, right?"

"Hey, as a leader of your people I think it should be your job to tell them that moving in is out of the question," Kyp laughed. "We're already overcrowded as it is."

"Sith, Kyp! I'm serious here! I've got a jedi bounty hunter after me and he's probably planning some trap as we speak. Somehow Her Holiness managed to convince me to go meet this bounty hunter," Brodey hissed angrily.

"Why does she think we should go in the first place? It's not like we can gain anything from having you killed or taken from us by some bounty hunter," Kyp said with a scowl.

"Oh, I forgot the best part," Brodey laughed bitterly. "Apparently this unknown person has information that could lead to the end of the war."

Kyp made a coughing sound into his open hands that distinctly resembled the words "bantha dung." Brodey couldn't help but crack a smile, even in his foul mood.

"My sentiments exactly," Anja agreed. "Brodey, you've got to think about what's best for the team."

"I am, kind of," He replied with a shrug. "I'm torn between doing the best, safest thing for my own squadron and taking a risk that could be the best thing for the entire galaxy. It just doesn't make sense that somebody would contact me. Why not Master Skywalker? Why not Jaina's brother?"

"It's probably a trap," Kyp said with a nod of his head. "You all know how Jaina loves walking right into those."

"Yeah, it seems that way, doesn't it?" Anja laughed, jabbing Brodey playfully in the side. "And you're not that much better with that issue!"

Brodey returned the elbow to the side, biting back a smile. "It may very well be a trap, but we have orders. I suggest you two get packing."

"Wait, I'm coming along too?" Anja cried in astonishment.

"Of course you're coming!" Brodey insisted, grabbing hold of her shoulders. "I wouldn't want you to miss out on all the fun. Besides, I need you!"

"The mission is doomed," Kyp mumbled under his breath. Brodey responded to Kyp's comment with one of Corellia's more vulgar hand signals as he leaned in for another kiss.