shanesnest and snackfiend, thanks for the welcome. I hope I can contribute a lot to this category.

5-25-05 Edit: Changed a couple of words around to make things more clear.

Coruscant - Underlevels

Luke had been good enough to include with Jaden's message information on where she was staying. It wasn't hard to find the apartment. It was located in the residential complex of the ninth Twi'lek district.The building itself was a makeshift jumble of scavenged ship parts and metal scrap that looked as though it were about to topple over on its side. Pipes and conduits wrapped around the outside walls as if they were the only things holding the structure together. Debris lined the narrow stairway that lead to a durasteel door.

Rosh looked at the building with open disgust. "Jaden usually has good taste. Why did she choose to stay here?"

Kyle frowned. "The question is, she did she choose to live in an apartment at all? Her mission was supposed to be short. There was no need to stay here for more than a few days just to get the artifact."

"Maybe she was injured somehow," Rosh offered. "Maybe she couldn't make it back up to the upper levels and decided to stay here until she healed."

"Possibly. But let's not jump to conclusions until we find her and see for ourselves."

The two Jedi gingerly picked their way up the stairs through the rubbish to the door. It was locked. Kyle pressed a button on the wall near him.

The door slid open and a tiny old Twi'lek woman shuffled out.

"Na hti vel?"

"We're looking for a tenant. Jaden Korr?"

:No one here by that name: she replied in Twi'leki.

"Human female? Brown hair—"

:Only one human here. Fourth floor. Unit four-four-one:

"Thank you," Kyle said.

The Twi'lek returned to her room without another word.

"Charming lady," Rosh quipped.

"Let's find Jaden." Kyle led the way up to the fourth floor. He stopped at number 441 and knocked. There was no response.

"Jaden?" Again, no answer. But after a moment, the door slid partway open. There was only inky blackness behind the portal.

BONG! A frying pan came out of nowhere, aimed at Kyle's head. Kyle and Rosh recoiled at the sight. But the strike was sloppy, and it hit the doorframe instead. The attacker behind the door cursed, and the makeshift weapon retreated back into the darkness.

"I'm filled with confidence for Jaden's well-being," Rosh muttered. Kyle ignored him and moved forward cautiously.

"Jaden? It's Kyle!"

There was a gasp of recognition.

"Kyle?" The door slid open fully to reveal Jaden. "Rosh? You're here already?"

Kyle and Rosh gaped at her appearance. Her normally long, brown, neat hair was tangled. Her clothes looked like she'd slept in them for several days. Her emerald-green eyes were rimmed with red.

"We took a shortcut." Rosh finally managed to reply. He eyed her critically. "You're a mess."

"I'm glad to see you too, Rosh," Jaden replied dryly. She turned to look at Kyle, and her eyes dropped to the floor. "Um…I'm sorry for my behavior. I haven't had much sleep lately, and it's making me paranoid."

Kyle shrugged. "No harm done."

Jaden brushed her rumpled clothes, trying in vain to smooth them out. "I, uh...I'll explain everything once I freshen up." She stepped aside to let them enter. "Come in."

The two men entered the apartment only to be greeted by another surprise.

The place was neat and clean.

Jaden noticed their stares. "I had a lot of time on my hands while I was waiting for you to arrive."

"I'm impressed," Rosh remarked. "Compared to the rest of the building, this place is like a dream home!"

Jaden pointed to a table and chairs over by the window. "Go ahead and sit down, or whatever. I'll be a few minutes." She disappeared into a refresher at the back of the room.

Kyle and Rosh took the time to assess the results of Jaden's effort to tidy the dwelling. Overall, it wasn't half-bad. A fresh coat of red paint had brightened the walls considerably — that is, the walls that weren't cracked. Jaden had managed to hide the fissures near the floors by moving furniture in front of them, but the ones higher up were a little more difficult to conceal. Some stains on the furniture and carpet appeared to be permanent, but clean sheets hid the stains on the furniture and the furniture covered the stains on the carpet. The equipment in the small kitchen was worn out, but spotless and functional — barely.

Jaden walked back into the room. Her hair was now combed and braided. Fresh black pants and an unwrinkled red tunic replaced her old outfit. She couldn't do much about her red eyes, but her face and hands were clean.

They sat in the chairs by the window. Before they talked, however, Rosh had one question. "Why did you take the time to tidy this place up? You weren't planning to make a permanent residence here, were you?"

Jaden shook her head. "No. The Academy is my home now. But the landlord promised to let me stay here for free if I really cleaned it. She was desperate for tenants." She shrugged. "It seemed like the nice thing to do."

"Why did you want to stay here at all?" Kyle asked. "Your mission was supposed to be short."

"'Short' is a relative term when it comes to Jedi missions," Jaden replied. "But let me start at the beginning, otherwise I'll get confused.

"It was easy enough to land on Coruscant. Force, I was born here..."