A message issued by the Council was waiting for Nila Sohal when she returned to the Temple two days later, an hour before curfew. Not overly surprised, she checked her data pad to find that she was summoned in one of the main tower's meditation rooms.

"That Master Kenobi doesn't give up easily, does he?" she mused aloud.

A few minutes later, she found Master Windu was sitting cross-legged on one of the seats with his eyes closed. The shades were drawn over the panoramic view, isolating the small chamber from the rest of the world, distilling a softened light.

Nila stood at the entrance, silently waiting for the Master to acknowledge her presence.

"You seem troubled, Nila," he said, opening his eyes.

"The last days have been rather…bumpy, I must confess," Nila answered with sobriety.

"So I have heard," he replied, looking vaguely amused. "Master Kenobi said you are quite… atypical."

"You'll recognise here the diplomat's touch," she muttered.

The Master smiled faintly. "I have no doubt you will find Obi-Wan is indeed a skilled mediator."

Nila arched an eyebrow. "Will I, Master?"

The young woman turned her head, eyeing the room in confusion.

"Where is the rest of the Council?"

Kneeling out of view behind the balcony's railing, Obi-Wan Kenobi carefully adjusted his binoculars. In the opposite building, a few windows down, a dozen of faces became visible. Unfortunately, none of them were really familiar. The Jedi sighed in frustration and sat back on his heels. The Families bosses rarely reunited and this new agreement between Santillian and Anhkshar, head of a minor clan ruling theTenth District, was a Force-sent opportunity to do some useful observation. That is, if you knew who you were observing…

And he would if Nila Sohal had not barged in while he was memorizing the coded disc featuring the detailed portrait of each key figure of the Families on the cursed night they met…. He had bought the precious information a small fortune to one of the snitches hired by the Senate. And now he looked a right fool. Drawing a knee up against his chest, he rubbed his bearded chin pensively.

Suddenly, the Master shot out his arm behind him and snatched something crouched in the shadow of the balcony. Still on his knees, he pined down the indistinct form which gave a startled gasp. It thrashed about against his restraining grip, sending the binoculars over the edge. Both went still when the item crashed on another terrace, a few meters down. When the shock echoed loudly on the smokescreen structures Kenobi had them duck down before the clan's bodyguards rushed to the window.

He risked a glance over the railing and seeing they had not been spotted, he returned to the intruder, squinting his eyes against the obscurity and heaved a tired sigh.

"Spectacular entrance," he commented blankly.

As a groan of pain answered him, he abruptly released the young woman at his feet. Rubbing her skull where it had hit the floor, Nila Sohal sat up and eyed him cautiously.

"What was—"

A large palm clamped her mouth shut.

"Wrong," he said in a clipping low voice. "I am the one who asks questions and--"

Without warning, Nila wrenched his hand from her face and threw herself at him. Taken off guard, Kenobi was knocked off balance and fell flat on his back, with her weight pinning his upper half down. She muffled his protests and raised her eyes pointedly in the direction of a light scraping noise coming from the balcony above. Kenobi froze as he saw two feet, followed by a pair of legs dangling in the void, groping for the support of the railing. The Jedi remained very still, hidden in the shadow, watching the progression of the man as he tugged on the thin rope securing him, motioning to some invisible person above to follow. Six other black clad shapes repeated his moves. Silently, they passed one by one and disappeared under the railing, landing on the next floor down.

A prudent whisper came by Nila's ear. "What was that?"

"A problem," she murmured back and rolled off him as silently as possible. She dug into her backpack, extracted binoculars but Kenobi's hand fell on her wrist.

"What are you doing here?"

"Master Windu sent me," she said testily, trying to loosen his grip. "The bad news is the Council is not really leaving us the choice of partner during the mission…"

"What's the good one?"

"Do you honestly see anything good about this situation?" she growled.

He released her. "You refused this mission and it was your right. Now if you'll excuse me, I have work to do."

He tossed her backpack to her in blatant dismissal and returned to his point of observation. Instead of taking her leave, Nila sat back on her heels and pointed the flat he had been watching.

"Could you tell me who the man beside the table is?"

"I thought I have been quite clear, Knight Sohal."

"Please answer the question, Master."

"Anhkshar."

"Which one?"

"Which one?" he repeated blandly.

"The clan recently split, this is his nephew who obviously doesn't know what he's getting into. Undisciplined fool… Santillian will strip his clan of everything it possesses before he knows what hit him," she remarked idly, shaking her head.

Kenobi stared at her profile, a trifle ill-at ease in the face of her serene air of experience.

"You are well informed."

"Which is why you tried to contact me that night in the Archives, isn't it? What I see here confirms what I first thought. You won't last a day," she answered, ignoring his scowl. "Now as for what is happening beneath us…" She crawled back toward the edge with her binoculars without paying mind to the master's scowl. The black clad group had settled on a balcony a few floors below and was also observing the Family gathering.

"See the tallest human on the right?" she whispered. "That's Thranton, lieutenant of the Republican Anti-crime Intervention Detachment…"

"I know who he is, thanks you."

"Well, you can thank your lucky star they didn't spot us, Master."

He shrugged. "We represent the Order here."

"Do you think they care? With the whole Senate backing them?" Nila shook her head disbelievingly.

Kenobi leaned back in the shadow. "We'll have some competition here then."

Nila's face was grim. "Serious competition. For all it's legal, the RAID's methods aren't so different from the Families'."

Below them the reunion was reaching its conclusion. She sat back, absently biting her thumbnail. "The Families don't have the Scroll."

Kenobi cast her a sidelong glance. "This is a very definitive judgment for a person who has cut all connections with that circle for over four years."

"A matter of logic, Master Kenobi," Nila answered apparently undeterred. "First, the Scroll has no mercantile value, secondly only a trained Force sensitive person can wield it. And finally, they are not stupid enough to keep something that would send the whole Order after them."

"But they know the Order would do anything to recover it. Even if they don't actually have it they can use it as a lure."

Nila had to concede. "True. They're certainly using it to draw our attention on Taev."

"Who could very well be the one," he rejoined. "He's well-known for his taste for collecting rarities."

"Let's stick to proofs, Master. If we can avoid direct confrontation, we will."

"I do what I must, Sohal. He's suspect, and to speak bluntly so is your attitude."

"This is not a witch hunt," Nila shot back between her teeth.

Kenobi suddenly dropped the matter and re-angled the conversation. "I don't remember telling Master Windu where this reunion would be."

"It was not difficult to figure out. Anhkshar is not really discreet."

"You got it from Eru Santillian," he stated. "And the answers are yes, I followed you and yes, because I did not trust you. Witch hunt of not, Knight Sohal, I was right to take some precautions it seems."

Nila turned around to look straight at him. "If it can reassure you, his father wants me dead and will accept nothing from me. It's their code and Eru will not be the one to break it."

Kenobi took the binoculars from her. "I know, why do you think you're still on this balcony?" He leaned over the edge and took a look at the activities of the RAID beneath them. "So what did this Eru tell you?"

"Rumours have been going round about the Scroll lately but the Senate's snitches and informants have nothing tangible which means that Thranton is in the dark too. However, we have an opportunity to collect information directly from the Mob. Two weeks from now, a major meeting will gather most of the chieftains in the 12th District to celebrate the opening of an affiliate of Sofica Inc., one of Santillian's cover businesses. The only way to get in is to be invited. Thranton is out on this one."

"An occasion to meet Kiel Taev?"

She shook her head. "No. They are not on speaking terms since one of Taev's partners has been killed by Santillian's men two months ago. Taev is a loner anyway -- he rarely appears in this kind of public displays. Mikan Santillian will only make a short appearance at the beginning: Eru will play the host. He invited us."

This last piece of news did not sit well with the Master. "How did he know you were on this case?"

She smiled thinly. "The Children. Eru serves his clan but he owed me. As long as we remain discreet and keep our nose out of their business, we'll have an agreement."

The expression on Kenobi's face darkened. He obviously disliked the idea of being obliged to one of the Families Ardas.

"The Mob isn't exactly a philanthropic society. We are bound to turn a blind eye on some things if we want to learn something," she argued.

"The reunion is over," said the Master as the lights went out in the opposite building. "Let's move."

Once safely back in the Temple's hangar, Nila climbed down from her speeder and strode toward the exit where Kenobi was waiting.

"We will need to get the detail of the prophecy," he informed her. "I'll see you in the Archives at 0800 sharp."

He turned to leave but Nila stopped him immediately. "Let's be clear: I'm not taking orders from you. It's a partnership we have."

Kenobi did not answer and strode out toward the lifts. As they waited for the elevator, Nila let the situation sink in. She would have never thought her steps would bring her again to the Underworld. The Lower City…. Had it changed much in four years?

The Council had been clear: whatever happened, they were on their own. Nila was used to it; this job remained what she had been trained for all her life and the only thing she knew she was good at. The real question was, would she be able to stay focused facing those who had brought the Unit down?

"Despite the fact that we've been paired up against our better judgment we will have to work together from now on," Kenobi said after a moment, somewhat primly. "It means that we cannot afford to be outwardly hostile with each other."

"Are you suggesting a truce?" she inquired with fake innocence.

"Something like that," he mumbled.

"A truce during which you will refrain from openly questioning my integrity?" Nila pushed.

Master Kenobi quirked a slightly annoyed eyebrow but nodded his assent.

"It's a deal then," she said.

He was right: they would have to learn how to rely on each other without second thoughts and the sooner, the better. Nila looked for something to tell him, something a bit personal to loosen the tension. But what? She grimaced. Breaking the ice between them was a lot more difficult than what she had thought. After a moment, she cleared her throat clumsily.

"Considering what we're about to launch ourselves into, I understand why people are so reluctant to give over their children to the Temple," she started, forcing a hollow chuckle, inwardly wincing at how lame she sounded. "There are times when I would love to be a glorious nobody."

He was glancing out a large window, his attention obviously not on her anymore as he answered: "Seems to me that your wish is already granted."

The elevator chimed and opened, allowing him to step in as Nila stood still for a second, her eyebrows raising a good inch.

Ouch.

"Under the apparent urbanity you're exceptionally rude, you know that?" she said as she went to stand by his side. She glanced at him just in time to see a ghost of a smile form on his lips.

The elevator reached quickly the Main Hall and opened on the trim figure of Depa Billaba, chief healer of the Temple. As the two Jedi exited, she paused long enough to greet Master Kenobi but when it came to Nila, the Master healer's face lost all expression. Without a word, she walked past them and stepped in the cabin. The Jedi master shot a mildly curious look at his partner.

"My Master and she were compatriots and close friends," Nila said bluntly. "She holds me responsible for his death."

Kenobi did not press the matter but Nila noticed that he looked about to say something but remained quiet. The young woman chose to pick up the conversation where they had left it. "You are aware that I won't be able to assist you directly every time you meet the Mob, aren't you? We will prepare everything together and but you'll be the only one they will see. It means you will need to be introduced."

"Introduced?"

"Yes, we're talking about an official interview with the Family's Advisors. Someone who has their respect and trust has to recommend and answer for you. It's an old custom."

"Can you provide?"

"Eru has already accepted to do it for you. The assembly will judge if you are a man of honour. Only then will you be allowed to speak with Santillian himself."

Nila had a small smirk. Ah, to see Obnoxious Kenobi, ethical Jedi Master, making his debut in the Underworld… This job still had its perks.

"What about the documents concerning the prophecy and the Scroll …" he queried.

"Most of it is in the Forbidden Lore…" she stopped cold when she saw his expression. "Oh. No. no, no, no. This is not a good idea, Master Kenobi."

"You can find a way to get to the lore past Madame Nu's vigilance. I can't. Not without being seen."

The word 'Doom' distinctly echoed in Nila's head and it must have showed on her face for a sharkish grin tugged at the master's lips.

"There is no reason to be worried," he soothed. "Not if you are not caught…"

They parted way at the end of the hall. As she started to walk away, he called her back.

"Have you ever tried to escape when you were a child?"

She shook her head. "No."

"May I ask why?"

Nila hesitated then she drew nearer and rolled the different layers of fabric on her right arm up to her elbow. The master saw small white marks winding around her veins, following an imprecise pattern at the bend of her arm.

"Solicaine," she simply answered before letting go of her sleeve and resuming her walk. "Until we meet again, Master Kenobi."

Kenobi watched the retreating figure with saddened eyes. Solicaine was a substance extracted from soliculus, a pretty yellow flower no bigger than his thumbnail grown on most temperate planets for its sap's healing properties. However, once squeezed out, the essence could be modified and gave a drug which over stimulated the nervous system, sharpening the senses and enhancing strength. It explained the renowned swiftness of those Children and why they were tied to their Family as solicaine fostered a strong state dependence. He had heard how dreadful the withdrawal symptoms of that particular drug were. And if it wasn't for that, regular users were bound to die of exhaustation after a while.

He did not know what to think of this Nila Sohal but he was starting to understand how much joining the Order had really cost her.