Where… Where am I?

Blaze had awakened several hours after the fight; but he didn't open his eyes nor move: in all his years being prisoner, he had learned not to let his captors know of his awakening until after he had determined his situation. Faking to be still unconscious, he took a deep breath. Well, it seems the lungs problem has been resolved. Have they healed me? I think my left arm is also healed… It doesn't hurt… It's not normal: the Sith cause pain, they don't heal their prisoners more than strictly needed for interrogation.

It seems I'm on some kind of bed, why? Something's touching my face… A wet clothe? I hear something: there are two sentients in the room, speaking Basic.

"How's he doing?" A Human male voice, I think I remember it from somewhere…

"Well, he's still unconscious; but, when we used the kolto of the med packs to heal his lungs, most of his scratches started to close and heal as well. I haven't seen anything like that before. His leg's still broken, though…"

"Regeneration? I've heard about some cybernetic implants doing that before, but they are very expensive." No, I haven't any implant like that…

"What about the officer?" I knew it! They are waiting for they officer to interrogate me… Calm down, Blaze, or your fury will betray you. How did Bastila calm down herself? I don't remember… Something about an odd code.

"First of all, we don't know if he's an officer: all the Jedi accompanying Bastila had enough clearance level to know how to contact by DCSM" ìDCSM? Then… They must be the ones I was searching for! Stupid! You have just attacked potential allies! I have to make it up; but, how? … Hold on a sec: maybe I was the one who was the most hostile, but she was who attacked first. We're even, just a simple misunderstanding. Maybe if I behave from now on, they won't mind about our little encounter/i

"Could it be him? I mean, if he were a Jedi and could use the Force, it would explain his regeneration, wouldn't it?"

"Well, perhaps, but this guy isn't wearing Jedi robes, he doesn't carry lightsaber and his attitude back there wasn't precisely very Jedi-like." Good point. Hey… I do remember that voice: he's that guy on the Spire… Onzi? Onassi? Onasi? Yeah, that's it! Commander Onasi, the grunting man that didn't like his ship being taken by the Jedi as if it were theirs… Can't say I'd blame him. Who's the woman, though?

"This medallion of his is very strange: when he was fighting, it was bright red and now; it's gray, dark gray."

"A medallion that changes it's own color? And isn't there any mechanism to make it change?"

"No… It's a simple crystal encrusted to a durasteel frame."

"Well, I'd prefer to know who he is and how does he know about contacting in DCSM." Blaze could hear the crack of someone getting up from a chair next to him and footsteps of this someone going towards the source of the man's voice. The woman, for sure.

"Do you think he's the one who you talked to?" She's her! Hold on, Blaze. Ask first, behead later… Only if necessary

"It's already morning. I don't think a Republic officer or a Jedi would arrive that late." I suppose this is my cue to 'wake up' and answer some questions. Wish there won't be many… I hate interrogations.

Slowly, Blaze opened his eyes and glanced around: he was on one of the two beds of a very old and very dirty apartment. There was a workbench to his right and a circular table to the center of the room. There were three doors: one was the main door, another (probably) leaded to the bathroom and, the third one, judging by the scent of food he could smell, leaded to the kitchen. There were a man and a woman talking next to the table. Wow! I can see well again!

Wine was about to say something, but the sight of a man sitting up on the corner of her eye stooped her. She turned to see him well and could tell Carth had done the same.

The unknown visitor was extremely calmer than before: he was just sitting, facing them, as if trying to determinate if they were a threat or not; but he seemed relaxed, waiting for them to ask.

Carth was the first to take advantage of the situation; he started by doing some small talk, to ease the tension. Important questions would come later. "Feeling better?"

The man on the bed nearly laughed to that question."You already know the answer to that. Please, go to the important things first, both of us know there's no need or use for small talks at the moment."

"Alright, as you wish." Wine could see Carth's face tensing up a bit. "Who are you?"

"Presentations… Why not? I'm Blaze, the mercenary hired to protect Bastila. Is it enough, or do you need a complete background check, Commander?"

"Fee?"

"You get into great detail, don't you?" He sighed. "0."

"You work for free?" Carth didn't sound too convinced, and Wine knew why: this was the worst alibi she had ever heard: since when mercenaries did anything without a good pay?

Blaze trailed a hand over his head, in frustration."Ugh, not again… How'll I explain it?" He kept silent for a second. "Well, to put it easy and to save some hours of explanation: I owe her more than one, and my only and first priority right now is to find her and escort her to the nearest Jedi enclave. Is it enough?"

Wine knew Carth wouldn't let his guard down, but he seemed satisfied by their guest's explanations. "Mm. I suppose so. What do you know ab…"Carth was cut by Blaze, who anticipated his next question.

"DCSM: it means Dialing in Controlled Security Mode. Basically, the one who use it covers a T.S. conversation by putting some keywords into an, otherwise normal, random chatter. Only Republic officers or level-two clearance civilians above know how to decipher it. Applying it to this occasion, I was playing the role of a Pazaak card dealer and you were a collector."He paused to take some breath. "Before you ask it: as Bastila's bodyguard, I had access to this knowledge just in case something like this ever occurred. Can we move into more important matters?"

That seemed to bewilder Carth a bit, who obviously thought that that was a very important matter. "Like what?"

"Well, you know my name and my mission and I know yours, presentations are officially done. Now, can we center on the task at hand?"

Now, it was Wine who decided to enter in the conversation. "You came from the Lower City, right?"

The merc didn't respond. Instead, he kept watching her for a second, an expression she couldn't decipher painted on his face. After a moment, he turned again to face Carth. "Yes; but sorry, we can't go there the same way: I managed to convince the guard on the elevator that I needed doctor Zelka's free treatment and it wouldn't harm him; but it took me a while and a beer to do so. There is no way we can sneak down the same way."

Carth now seemed really interested in the info the mercenary could give to them. "Well, what's the situation in Lower Taris?"

"A big, bad, mad gang war. The Black Vulkars seem to be the worst of them: I managed to avoid fights practically all the way showing no interest in the other's business, but this gang seems to be made of berserkers: they attack everyone they find," and, in a nearly inaudible voice, he added: "had to crack some heads to come here."

Wine tried to enter into the conversation again. "Carth says Bastila's escape pod might have crashed on the Lower or Under City, what do you know about that?" Yet again, Blaze stood silent and examined her face. This time, though, his response seemed directed to both soldiers.

"I do know her escape pod is in the Under one: I was following it in the radar when I crashed. I recall it pointed it was somewhere within 3 miles round, horizontally speaking." Carth typed the info on his data pad.

Commander started to talk again, but this time he seemed satisfied enough with the answers given. "Ok, You are all healed but your leg." He wasn't: there was a question left: "Where does that regeneration come from?"

"I'm… Ahh… How did Bastila put that?" The mercenary fell silent for a couple of seconds, trying to remember the exact words. "Yeah, now I remember. I'm Force Sensitive: that is what the Jedi call the ones who haven't had Jedi or dark Jedi training, but can still use the Force."

"So, you can command the Force?"

"Not much. Even a Jedi initiated is better than me. Still, something's something." Blaze's hands trailed over his left leg, and paused over the point where it was broken. He grabbed it strongly and, a fluid movement and a harsh sound later, his face could do nothing to hide the pain he was experiencing. The expression erased from his face as quick as it came and, after trailing his hands over the leg as if massaging the hurt zone, he got up as if nothing had happened. "Where do we start?"

"Are you sure you're alright?", interfered Wine. When Blaze didn't respond, yet again, she decided it was enough. "Hey! Are you deaf or something? Why the hell don't you answer me?"

Blaze seemed a bit taken aback by her yelling, but he recovered early. "Sorry, you look… No… Nothing, I'm sorry, may I know your name?"

Wine silenced another scold. If you don't know my name, then why did you order Trask to help me, and why did you tell Carth presentations were done, you asshole? "Ensign Wine Vin-Kari, nice to meet you." She offered him her hand to shake, but he didn't comply.

"I'll remember that."Blaze slightly bowed his head towards her as he said so. He, then, directed, again to Carth. "It seems you have the highest rank in here. I usually don't accept orders from anybody, but as long as it helps to find Bastila, I'll do an exception. What's the plan?"

"First of all, use only first names: both our last names and grades are surely under Sith's knowledge; and, as there won't be any grade, all of us have the same rank. Understood?"

"Continue." The merc adopted his stoic behavior once again, awaiting for the instructions to come.

"Now, Wine and I were going to go to a nearby cantina to seek information and credits for the mission. Are you coming?"

"Of course."

To this, Wine interjected, yet again."Carth, if we take him with us his leg won't heal properly."

Carth didn't know what to do: Wine was right, but he didn't want that guy to be on his own that much time, he could have been the one to tell the Sith about the Endar Spire…"Well…"

Before anybody could say anything more, their new allie interfered the conversation "I can assure you my leg is perfectly, thanks. I won't delay you."

As the party walked out the apartment, the first thing they saw was the muzzle of a blaster.

A Sith officer, accompanied by two battle droids, was harassing a pair of aliens; Duros, Blaze saw. He knew he probably shouldn't get involved, but when the loud-mouthed officer gunned down one of the Duros in cold blood, Blaze felt a surge of anger flood through him. Looking sideways to his new allies, he decided his next move. "The Sith's mine, you two get the droids; ready?" A simple nod came from the female to his left as she unsheathed her vibrosword. Carth didn't say anything, but his hands were nearby his dual blasters, at the ready.

Blaze stalked forward his prey, using the basic stealth notions he had learned the hard way by trying to escape from his cell. He didn't expect the droids turning around to secure the area: bad mistake.

"Brzzt. Hold on right there, citizen. Sargent 1 might want to talk to you." The droid on the right's talking distracted the attention of the Sith official, who was about to kill the last Duros.

"What the? Humans in the slums?" roared the officer. "They're Republic fugitives! Blast them!"

Blaze rolled forward as the battle droids' fire started. Then, being between the three of his enemies, he tested his newly healed leg by kicking in an horizontal low swirl which tripped all of them. He didn't hesitate: after the kick, and while the so called Sargent 1 was falling, he stared at his prey like seeing a low motion scene while he was rising.

Before his enemy hit the floor (the Sith was still in an horizontal position, three feet above the durasteel floor, facing him), Blaze concentrated his strength on his right arm, tensing his muscles and adapting them to the situation. A direct, lethal punch landed on, and through, the sternum of his target, killing him instantly. Afterwards, the limp body arrived to the wall of the corridor, dead.

Two well placed shots had already destroyed the loudmouth droid to his right and Wine was cleaning her vibrosword off the left droid's oil. Before he could speak, the Duros clasped the hands of each of them.

"Thank you for saving me, Humans," the blue-skinned alien said in his native language. "Poor Ixil, he should never had talked back to that Sith officer…" Blaze simply nodded.

"It was nothing," Wine said with a gentle smile. "Just take care of the bodies… my friends and I do not wish to be discovered." The Duros nodded and set to work.

"Why'd you do that, Blaze? We could've gone in the other direction." asked Carth as they made their way towards a waiting turbolift.

"One Sith dead more, one fool less in my way." Blaze said nonchalantly and, as they stepped into the turbolift that would take them to Taris' surface, silence descended over the trio.

…….

Half an hour later, and after Blaze had bought a set of old daggers, an old-fashioned thermal inductor (like some sort of blaster, but smaller and with much less firepower) and some small empty capsules at a nearby shop called "The Equipment Emporium", they all entered into a noisy, only-Human cantina.

As they sat down on a table in the main room, Carth continued to show his suspicions about his comrade's story: "… So, tell me, if you don't get paid for your services where did these credits come from?"

"Easy one: the Vulkars that attacked me… Well, let's just say that we checked what's tougher: a durasteel pipe, or a bully's head. After that, they didn't need them anymore."

"If it wasn't because of the current situation, I'd place you under military arrest."

"Why, that doesn't work with me, Carth: I've been in worse cells than the ones your Republic has to offer."

Seeing that this could lead to an argument between the two men, the female soldier decided to change the subject. "Hey, guys, let's split up and search for info."

The other soldier eyed suspiciously to their companion, but decided he had more urgent matters at hand. "Good idea. I'll go to the Pazaak players' room: either they give me info, or money to buy it." Carth took a deck of cards out of his pocket and put it on the table and expertly selected his best cards for the first match.

Blaze knew something about Pazaak himself: luck was a too high factor for his taste. "You know the game?"

"Yes."

"Don't loose too much."

"Don't worry, I know some tricks. What'll you do, Wine?"

"Well… I've seen something about a Dueling Competition in the holoscreen back there. I think I'll take a look at it."

"Yes… Lots of people in Taris watch these duels; maybe someone'll be willing to talk. What about you?" To that, the mercenary looked around: everyone who had any glass in his/her hand was currently in a very advanced state of drunkenness; even those who had their ale nearly intact.

"Hmn… Correct me if I'm wrong: isn't the local ale a bit strong?"

Carth didn't understand the sudden change of subject, but he decided it was best to play along with it, for now. "Yes, it's one of the strongest in the galaxy, why?"

"High percentage of alcohol, perhaps?"

"I suppose so."

"Then, I'll just sit in the bar, order two Tarisian ales and wait for someone to chat. With all the recent events, somebody must be willing to drown , so I'll simply fake I'm eager to chat anything out of normal. Afterwards… I'm also interested to know more about these duels."

"It's all set, then" Wine was pleased to see that they had been able to agree to something: between Carth's seemingly paranoia and Blaze's I'm a big, bad mercenary story, even that was an advance. "Okay, boys, when we're done, we'll regroup here."

The Republic officer was having Lady Luck on his side today: it turned out that Tarisian gamblers had certain difficulties acquiring fine cards: they only had + or - cards, while in his travels he had collected a good number of the best of them: the very useful /- cards. With those, he could either add or subtract their value to his total points at will, making the task to reach 20 points without exceeding the goal the more easy.

Not to say, he had already managed to earn a very considerable amount of credits and some rumors about a very fast and nice ship docked in the planet: the Ebon Hawk.

Carth drew another card from his deck and stared it with an intelligible expression on his face. "Well, Niklos, you really should erase that grin of yours, go home and rethink your strategy from zero: I've got 16 points and I've just drawn a 5. Yet, if I use this little card of here…" Carth casually placed the +5 card on the table and a /-1 card from his hand, reaching his 20 points goal and beating his opponent, who had stopped at 19. "You lose your third match of the morning and 700 credits in a row."

With a soft laugh, Carth reached out and scooped up his winnings. Niklos sulked away, pausing only long enough to demand a rematch in the future.

After he had pocketed his prize, a stern but feminine voice called his attention. "I haven't seen anyone beat that Niklos so easily, gambler. Care to buy me a drink?"

Money earned, time to get some info. "Well, of course, miss. May I know your name?"

"I'm Sarna. Junior officer with the Sith occupation force." Bingo! And here is… The big prize.

Wine parried even another slash and hand sprung backwards, earning some distance from her opponent. When she landed, she recovered her favorite stance, with her vibrosword placed above her head pointing to the blonde duelist in front of her, her left hand extended forward, nearly taunting the woman fighter nicknamed Ice, and her weight balanced on her right foot, while her left one was tiptoeing forward, ready for everything. "Fiiu… You're one hell of a fight."

Ice, also, decided to return to her own stance, as if starting the duel again, from the beginning. Her stance wasn't as fancy as Wine's: she simply semi-crouched her legs and tightened the grip on her longsword with both her hands. Her sword was placed in diagonal, which meant Ice was used to make use of fast and fluid movements, but not too strong; and her stance and style of fighting didn't make good use of all the sword's length. Provably, that's why she uses a longsword instead of any finer one: she needs it's length to compensate her style… Smart choice. "So, honey, you're saying you surrender? Already?"

"Don't make me laugh. I'm having a really good time." While saying this, Wine taunted her rival with her left hand, with the intergalactic come here sign.

Ice charged forward and Wine experienced the relieving feeling of seeing her enemy move in slow motion. Ensign Vin-Kari had grown used to fight either in slow motion or not: it seemed as if her skill always decided by itself if it wanted to activate or not. Still, fights were a lot easier if it activated.

Both female duelists stared to exchange blows and blocks, slashes and evasions, jabs, stabs and kicks. All the way, Wine was seeing opportunities to knock her opponent out, but the fierce of the battle, and Ice's skill with the sword, made Wine want to fight a little more, to learn the other duelist's techniques.

Finally, when she saw that her rival had already started to repeat the strategies and her breathing tempo had increased considerably, she decided to end the battle: Ice had unknowingly taught her everything she knew, and while doing so, she had also tired herself up, giving the soldier a very fine present: a good fight, her skills, and the money for winning. Nice. Ok. Now, to end this, I should anger her: every time she gets angry her skills lessen. "Can't you do it better? I could dance like this all day." Ouch! That one has to hurt. Both fighters separated for a second, to catch their breaths.

Ice's face reddened as blood flowed underneath her skin. "I'll show you what I can do. You're too slow for my rithm."

Wine yawned. "Less talking, more fighting, sweetheart."

When the swirl of blows came, Wine had already predicted her opponent's backlash and every blow that would come as a result. The soldier ducked and rolled to the left, passing the raging fighter. The battle ended when Wine stood behind Ice, with her vibrosword pressed against her opponent's neck. "Give up yet?"

A gasp escaped Ice's lips at the sudden feel of the cold metal pressing against her throat. When had she gone behind her? Nonetheless, it didn't matter right then: she had been beaten and her opponent was waiting for her to admit the truth."I… I give up."

"It's over! The fight is over!" The announcer yelled as the crowd stood up and started to cheer the victorious female soldier. "The Mysterious Stranger wins!"

……

Wine had already collected her winnings from the Hutt who was organizing the duels when she saw one of her companions entering the Dueling Arena hall. It was Blaze.

"Well, how are the duels like, Stranger?"

"Tell me you weren't watching all the way."

"No, not all your matches. I came in time to see you and that woman fighting like hell, though. Have I missed something?"

"Well… Not much. What are you doing here, anyways? Didn't you say…"

"I said that I'd try to learn something from the drunken back on the bar, and then, come here."

"Yeah, of course… Well, what did you learn?"

"Not much, except that there are several Sith looking up for a date in this cantina."

"What?"

"Hey. When it's up to tell who's Sith and who's not, I'm good at it."

"It makes nonsense, why would they want to…"

"I don't know, but I've picked up a conversation between one of them and the bartender: they have ordered a whole barrel of Tarisian ale and said something about a party."

Wine began pacing back and forth, thoughtful. Motion helped her to think. Let's see… Tarisian ale… Sith party… Normally, soldiers can't afford to pay that quantity of good drink… They must be high-ranked enough to have some decent pay… And, if they are, they also have privileged info… Also, it's a long shot, but if a single of them didn't bother to return his uniform to base… They shouldn't be used to the local ale, so they'll be sleeping like angels in no-time… "Hmm. That could work for our advantage. Why haven't you coaxed your way in?"

The merc didn't take the question very well: his face reddened and so did the medallion on his chest. Ensign Vin-Kari started to think that red color on the medallion meant bad news. "Woman, I kill Sith, I don't flirt them up."

"Okay, okay, no need getting angry. I'll try it myself."

Blaze calmed down, looked at his medallion and swears and curses that Wine couldn't pick up escaped his lips. "Do as you must." He waved a hand, dismissing the subject. The soldier knew better than to continue with it, so she quickly dropped it aside.

"What are you gonna do?"

"I kind of like the idea of having a good fight and getting payed for it."

"Don't expect much the first matches: there's a classification: newcomers must fight first against the worst duelists."

"How many fights have you picked up?"

"Er… Three, why?"

"Then I won't fight more than that: no need to fight you again just yet. Later" When both allies were going to separate, the merc added: "And… Try not to drink too much ale, it's really strong."

…….

"Hi there-I haven't seen you around before," Wine nearly dumped her drink down the front of her jacket. Glancing up, she saw a dark haired man leaning up against the bar. "of course they don't give us Sith officers from the military base much time off…"

"You're from the military base?" She pushed her drink aside. So, Blaze was right. It's show time. "You don't look like one of the Sith."

He laughed lightly. "I'm off duty right now, so I'm not in uniform. My name is Yun Genda, junior officer first class with the Sith occupation force."

Wine held her hand out for him to shake. "Nice to meet you, Yun. I'm… The Mysterious Stranger." Yun pulled her hand to his lips instead.

"Oh, come on, what about telling me your name?"

"Sorry, this cantina is too public- I get my fee for not having past, history or name…"

"Yeah, I know. I've seen your duels. But, come on, I won't tell a soul."

"Well… You seem like a trustworthy man… Maybe if we were in some other place where I could be sure nobody heard us… I mean, this is pretty serious: if someone picks up my name in this cantina, Ajuur could fire me…"

"So, Human, are you too interested in dueling? This must be my day! Two new fighters in a row." Ajuur was the standard random Hutt: very fat, very slow, and with an excessively overdeveloped ego.

Blaze took what he considered his 'business voice': very mechanical and calculative, it imposed respect. "It depends. How much?"

"Ho, ho, ho. Ready to business, aren't we? I like this one. You'll get a ten percent of the stakes, but only if you win."

"Hmm. I need weaponry too…"

"Well, if you prefer it, I could exchange your winnings for a blaster, or maybe a sword… What do you have in mind?"

"Do you have any Trandoshan Death Bringers? I could use two of them."

"Ha! And what make you thing I'd give you two of my best swords, Human?"

"Tell you what: I'll fight three times today. If I win all three matches, you'll give me both of them and not a single credit- You'll have won a good considerable number of credits from the stakes. If I lose a single match, you keep your swords and your credits." Blaze paused for a second, giving the fat alien in front of him time to think about his offer."You win, either way."

"Ok, Human, I like that. But you won't be touching the swords at least until you have won a match."

"I wouldn't expect anything else."

"First of all, I'll have to check up your thermal ID"

"What!" Blaze's heart sank. It couldn't be true, but it was: Ajuur was already reading a datapad given by a nearby droid.

"Oh, don't worry, my droids have already caught it while we were talking- Oh my… This can't be tr… Who are you and who's sent you here!" It seemed impossible that the fat and greasy bug-like alien could move that fast: he slapped a button next o him and two laser turrets emerged from nowhere, pointing directly to the merc's heart. Also, he noticed that some people in the hall had casually changed their positions, provably to keep him in their blaster range.

Damn! "Hey, hey, hey! I'm just an unemployed merc looking for some extra credits in your arena."

"Nonsense, you're a…"

"Please, I'd ask you to keep my secret. The ones like me are not welcome here- If you tell anyone I couldn't even fight once and you wouldn't win any credits; it's on our best interest that this matter keeps as a secret between the two of us, isn't it?"

The Hutt relaxed again and both turrets disappeared. The disguised bodyguards seemed to be more persistent, though."Ho, ho, ho. Maybe, maybe not. But it doesn't harm me to keep my mouth shut. Tell you what… Sentient… Do you know any trick? Is there any card in your sleeve when you fight?"

"Yes, I've got lots of those, why?"

"Then I know what'll be the best nickname you could wield: The Joker."

"What! You must be kidding!"

"Yes, The Joker, it's a very rare Pazaak card that can be used as a /- of any value. It suits you very well."

"Ajuur, you'll best keep your promise about this thermal ID…"

"Don't worry, Sentient, the only thing you must do to keep my mouth shut is prove yourself resourceful in the fights. For the first I'll give you an easy shot: you'll face Deadeye Duncan- And just in case it crosses your mind, killing the opponent is totally forbidden. You can use any weapon you want: the energy suppressors will reduce it's damage to a non-killing range; but you can't end your opponent, understood?"

Blaze readopted his stoic 'business voice' again."Yes."

"That's good. Go through the gate to your right and enter the arena: the duel is going to start. You'll have only a five minutes rest between the matches: I want three in a row, not less."

…….

So, here I am. Stuck in a backwater planet I hadn't planned to land on, Bastila's nowhere to be found, and I'm now fighting for a Hutt who knows it and can finger me at any moment. Can things get worse? Blaze (now known as The Joker) was entering the arena when he saw a pitiable gray-haired man hailing the crowd from the center of it. He was clad in a very light and old-fashioned armor and Blaze could see his hands shaking millimeters due to the man's age; the duelist's hands balled into fists as he taunted The Joker, but they didn't close completely. …And now I'm facing an old arthritic fool… Point taken. Blaze, you've sank the deepest for this month. Should dispatch him quickly… No need to make the old man suffer that much.

The Joker had surely missed something because the crowd fell suddenly silent and Deadeye was now pointing at him with his… A miner laser? This guy is either fool, broke, or he definitely doesn't want to accidentally hit his opponent: M.Ls can't even hit a bantha from twenty meters.

The Joker simply folded his arms over his chest awaiting his opponent to start the laser rain that would go directly to the wall. It happened as predicted: Duncan was shooting like crazy, but between his nerves and his age, his hand was shaking too much. The zero accuracy of his miner laser didn't help much, either.

This is boring, have to knock him cold, already. Blaze unfolded his arms. The medallion on his torso turned a slight red, he stalked forwards his trembling and blindly shooting prey. The last thing Duncan could manage to remember when he finally woke up was a fist coming directly to his face before nothingness surrounded him.

…….

Again, Blaze had entered the arena and was mentally complaining again about his opponent. A crippled? First, a loser, and now, a crippled… Wine was right about the first matches… He looked at his unsheathed Trandoshan Death Bringers. Why would he need to use them on this match? He sheathed them on his back, a smirk on his face. Maybe I could check the Tarisian ale's pyrotechnic properties… It wouldn't be wise to try it the first time in a crucial battle… Blaze searched on his belt with one hand while he was looking straight to his rival's eyes. He unclasped one of the capsules from it at the same time that the announcer yelled them both to start the fight.

Gerlon Two-Fingers drew his blaster and The Joker started running towards him, eventually side-stepping either the left or the right to avoid the blaster bolts that got too close to him. Well, at least this one tries to put up a fight. His struggle won't be enough, though.

When both duelers where at short range, Gerlon tossed his blaster aside and unsheathed a shortsword as quickly as he could. He tried to stab Blaze's abdomen, but the merc parried to the right and threw his capsule's contents all over Two-Fingers.

The dueler backed from him, disgusted and trying in vain to shake off of himself the unknown liquid, only managing to get more and more of his clothes damped with it.

Satisfied with his work, Blaze drew his thermal inductor (Gerlon didn't know what was he planning, but the sight of some sort of blaster made him start running towards his own, cursing himself for having tossed it). Blaze's shot was directed to his opponent's leg, but the Tarisian ale was, indeed, a very good combustible and poor Gerlon was quickly enveloped with flames. Four automated fire extinguishers saved his live while the announcer was declaring The Joker as the winner of the battle.

"I'm actually surprised you're talking to me at all…" Sarna was pleased. "Most of the people here on Taris can't stand us Sith. It can make it a pretty lonely job."

Carth smiled. Well, You can't blame them: you've just conquered their planet. "You're just doing your job, right?" Carth leaned forward, giving Sarna his full attention. "I don't hold that against you."

"You know, it's like everyone on this backwater planet is in a permanent bad mood. Don't they know they have to make the best of things?"

"You've got a pretty positive attitude."

"Exactly!" Sarna knocked on the top of the table with her empty glass. "It's all about attitude. I didn't ask to be assigned to this backwater planet, but I try to make the best of it. It's pretty easy to get depressed on an assignment like this, but we do what we can to keep our spirits up."

"It must be tough, being stationed in a hostile world."What am I doing? I should blast myself right here. Flirting with an enemy… But she's got to have some info.

"That's true." Sarna nodded. "It's nice to meet someone who understands what I'm going through. It's good to talk about this stuff-it gets pretty lonely up at the military base." Her blue eyes wandered over Carth's steeled torso, she seemed to consider something. "I've got to get going soon… I've got a shift at the base."

"Well, that's a shame. I really was having a much better time than giving Niklos the beating of his live." Liar! I'm amazed I can still keep up the count of lies I've told since the last five minutes.

"But… Some of us junior officers are having a party tonight to blow off some steam. I'd really like to see you again. Why don't you drop by the party? I'll write down the address on your datapad." Sarna was so eager she nearly tore the datapad from the soldier's hand.

"Sounds good. I'll be there." Carth forced one last smile before collecting his datapad.

"Don't be late. We're starting right after our shifts end. Most of us won't even be going back to the base to lock up our uniforms." I can't believe it can be so easy! Going to the party previously invited, letting the Sith get drunk and stealing any uniforms present… "I look forward to seeing you there, Carth." Sarna strolled off with an air of confidence. Oh, man! She knows my name! It's on the crew manifest of the Endar Spire, the one she surely has access to… I've got to meet Wine and Blaze and tell them we're in trouble.

Wine had just said Yun her goodbyes and was now resting on the table where the team had decided to regroup. Wow! With one of those uniforms we could get into the Lower City pretty easy… Where are the boys, now? Let's see…

She watched a nearby holoscreen and saw Blaze fighting a woman. She was tall and blonde and her air was full of concentration, by her face, she seemed as if she was calculating every movement quiet carefully. By the other way, he seemed to be rather relaxed… Where those on his back Trandoshan Death Bringers? No wonder he seemed so at easy! The mercenary had proved her yesterday he could be a very tough match even poorly armed. with such a fine set of swords… He would surely rule the entire match at his will.

"You've drank all this by yourself?" It was a man's voice. She couldn't place his name… Wine suddenly became aware that she had been too focused in the holoscreen. The black haired woman quickly turned to the source of the voice, only to see her other companion sitting in front of her and counting the glasses.

As soon as she realized what he meant, she felt her cheeks burning. "Oh no, no. They're Yun's, not mine."

"Yun? Hm… I understand…" Wine was glad that he did. "So, you want me to go?"

"What?" What was Carth talking about? Wait a sec. Those drinks, my behavior absent-minded, calling that Sith by the name… Is he implying that? No. Her cheeks were burning more furiously red than before. Wine felt as if she was going to die. What kind of easy and unprofessional woman did Carth think she was? "No, no, no. You've got it wrong. I was just trying to get into that party… I mean, there's a Sith party and they aren't going to lock their uniforms. I was only getting myself invited."

"Aah…" Fine. Now, he'll either think I'm mad, or a spy from the Sith. Earth, swallow me… "Yeah, that's what I needed to talk you about."

"What? You knew about it?"

"Eeeh… Yes, I've got invited too."

"So, you agree it's a good idea?"

"Not exactly."

"Why?"

"It's… It's not the place. We've got to return to our apartment right now. I've got bad news… Where's Blaze?"

"Look at the holoscreen." Both did. They saw Blaze holding two swords enveloped with flames. His flamed blades, crossed and tangled, had now become a pair of scythes, ready to snap together; and the neck of his opponent was between them. Both figures were frozen for a while and, then, the announcer yelled The Joker's victory. The Joker? And here I had complained about my nickname… Ajuur really has to hire someone to make up better names.

Both soldiers walked to the Dueling Arena hall and saw Blaze talking with the Hutt in charge. He, afterwards, turned and saw them. When the three of them were close enough, Carth spoke up. "We've got to go."