A triumphant look on his face, Luke Skywalker set something down in front of Mara Jade.

Puzzled, she looked down. It was a news story. She frowned, not knowing what was so important about it, but she began reading it.

Outspoken Senator a Hypocrite?

New Republic Senator G'n'n'al'th, outspoken anti-spice enthusiast, has been found guilty of using the illegal substance. Officials got the tip-off from an anonymous source, and—

Mara stopped reading the article, looking up at Luke. "An anonymous source, huh?"

"Yep," Luke said, eyes sparkling.

"So, you get one senator thrown in prison and expect the New Republic to fall at your feet?" she sounded skeptical.

"Oh, no, Mara," Luke corrected her, a dark glint in his blue eyes. "You forget we have Grand Admiral Thrawn on our side...This," he made a sweeping gesture at the article, "this is only the beginning. The New Republic shall crumble slowly and painfully, torn apart because of its own people, the most just way for it to go, as did the Old. It's simple for the New Republic to recover from external blows...But when the internal struggles start to bring it apart...There is nothing anyone can do to stop it."

Mara stared at him. It was just like Palpatine had done. Patiently push at rivalries and reveal real deceptions. Political maneuvering that tore the Republic apart at its core...But Luke wasn't even pulling maneuvers in the Senate. He was allowing the Senate to break itself apart.

She turned her emerald eyes back to the article. It seemed like various rivals were pointing at Senator G'n'n'al'th's system and declaring it corrupt. Luke had successfully started some fires, and what he was going to do was just add more fuel to the flames.

"It's really going to work," Mara whispered, as the fact truly sunk in. She hadn't really believed they would do it before. Sure, Thrawn was a mastermind that had nearly taken down the New Republic before, but he'd had more resources at his disposal.

Then, Thrawn had concentrated more on strategic blows than on tearing the New Republic from the inside out, though there had been a fair amount of that. He'd also had a Jedi then, but that had been an insane clone. Now, Thrawn had Luke Skywalker, the Jedi Master, a man familiar with the dealings of the New Republic and in full possession of his senses. Luke Skywalker could reach out to the Dark Side and read most beings' minds on a whim if he chose to, and now it seemed that ability was being used.

The Jedi gave a Dark smile. "Yes. Yes, it is."

Mara shivered.

A cloaked figure planted another datacard, and when finally someone came upon it, he read:

Riding high above the skies
Are stolen ships that Vif Avner flies;
If you ask he'll tell you lies,
But check their I.D.s and be in for a surprise.

The first letter was again in a bolder font than the rest.

"I've got a bad feeling about this," murmured the datacard's finder.

It was the duty of Intelligence to collect information concerning corruption in the New Republic, but every operative knew in his gut that too much information could be a bad thing. One senator had already been taken down by an anonymous source, starting several disputes. It was one thing for smugglers to be tracked down and "bad guys" to be stopped in their tracks. It was quite another for a senator to be revealed as corrupt.

Clutching his datacard, he bit his lips. This was not going to turn out very well.

As Luke looked down at yet another article, he smiled. He brought up his gaze to take in Kantasha and Thrawn. "It continues."

"Indeed," the Chiss said simply.

Kantasha was quiet. She hadn't said much ever since Mara and Luke had made their peace.

"I'm going to go fetch us some more provisions," Thrawn said, standing up. With a nod to both of them, he left, having made the decision to let them work things out on their own.

They sat in silence for a little while.

"Are you excited?" Luke asked. "Haven't you been waiting for this?"

Kantasha nodded, her eyes averted, though she seemed somewhat unsure.

"I have to admit, I have a few doubts," the young man said quietly.

Kantasha Pellaeon looked up.

"Not that the Republic will fall," he hastened to assure her. "I just wonder—how are we to keep the Empire in power? Where can we get the resources?"

"Spice exchange," the raven-haired woman mumbled, eliciting a curious look from Luke. Something about those words seemed strange, almost familiar...

"What?" he asked carefully.

She just shook her head. After a moment, she reached out and lightly began stroking his leg, clearing such thoughts from his head.

He looked down at her hand with mixed feelings. She was a beautiful woman, with a striking personality. He couldn't help but feel attracted to her; he was a human male...

And yet...

When Luke had kissed her for the first time, it hadn't been her face he had been seeing...

It had been that of a certain fiery redheaded Trader...

But who was he kidding?

One kiss, he'd almost stolen one kiss from her.

But he hadn't been able to do it. Was it because in his heart he knew that they wouldn't work together? Could it be that he had been reaching for something he couldn't have? Had he wanted to simply tame the Krayt dragon?

Surely, Mara had no feelings for him. She'd wanted to kill him once upon a time. Had she just dropped that thought?

No, Luke didn't think he needed to fear her taking his life, though he feared her taking his heart.

Friends...Just friends, he told himself. That was all they could be.

A little voice inside himself tried to protest, but he squashed it.

Kantasha was more his type. She hadn't tried to hide from the Force. She willingly touched the Dark Side to fulfill her purposes.

He smiled almost sardonically. She could be his Dark Queen.

Taking Kantasha's hands in his, Luke pulled her closer to him, enveloping her mouth with his.

What he did not see was a pair of green eyes watching closely through a crack in a barely opened door. Silently, the door closed.