Geebus. Sorry for the wait guys, but it's been VERY hectic around my house lately. This is an update that is quite overdue, and I'd love to clean it up more, but so I won't drive you insane with waiting, here it is.
Midterms...basketball tournament...ski trip in a few days...we PARTY man! If I don't get a new chapter up in three to four days, it'll be another looong wait b/c I'll be in Steamboat, CO skiiing. I need a laptop...
Vincent was on automatic pilot, navigating the streets of Manaan by pure memory; his mind was a jumbled mess of questions and frustrations.
Why was Bastila lying to him? And just what was she lying about? He wondered what was so important that the Council would not let her tell him, no matter how much he begged or pleaded. Obviously, it had something to do with him, as his question to her had been quite personal. Vincent didn't think that "Why are you afraid of me?" qualified as a generically studied question during Jedi training. Abruptly, he realized he was in front of the Republic Enclave. Vincent debated turning back, but his pride squashed that idea as quickly as it surfaced, leaving him with two options: Enter the enclave, or stand outside in the frosty wind. He opted for choice A.
Blinking as his eyes were met with the harsh fluorescent lights of the building, Vincent was keenly aware of the thick blanket of silence that was broken only by the sound of his boots click-clacking against the metal floor. He was only marginally surprised to see Roland Wann still sitting at his desk, poring over some report from the Hrakert Station.
"Putting in overtime?"
Roland glanced up and regarded Vincent with a wary eye. "What can I help you with?" he inquired curtly.
"You owe me," Vincent stated slowly, making sure that Roland heard him clearly. The black man stopped reading, placed the report neatly on his desk, and gave his full attention to the Jedi standing before him.
"Yes, I suppose I do," he admitted with some reluctance. "What is it that you need?"
"I want to go down to Hrakert Station."
Roland looked surprised. "What? By yourself? What would you want to go down there for?"
"Well, seeing as I could probably find out why you've lost contact with the base. But the fact that you already asked me to go down there should be a good enough reason for you. I have my own personal reasons as well. And yes, alone," Vincent answered calmly.
Roland face registered a remembrance of his request at Vincent's reply. "Well, I don't see how this is repaying any debt I owe you; I asked you to do this in the first place. If anything, I'll be even deeper in your debt after this."
"True, you'll still owe me one, but you can do me a favor right now."
"And what would that be?"
"Let me be the arbiter for Sunry's case."
Roland stared at him for a good ten seconds before responding. "I still fail to see how that's doing you a favor. If you get him off...I'll be racking up quite a tab with you."
"I'm doing this for a good friend of mine, so I would consider you letting me handle the trial a favor," Vincent explained.
Roland simply shrugged, baffled as to why the Jedi wanted to be Sunry's arbiter. "Sure. If anyone can prove him innocent, it'd be you."
Vincent sensed that Roland was being sincere and thanked him.
"Good luck. You've already helped us out more than any one person ever has, and I can't tell you how grateful the Republic Enclave here on Manaan is for your assistance. I hope you find whatever it is you're looking for – that Star Map. Wasn't kidding when I said there was something like it down on the sea floor. Look into it whenever you go down to Hrakert Station," Roland finished.
"Am I able to see Sunry right now?" Vincent inquired.
The diplomat circled back behind his desk and checked a file on the computer, typing something for a few seconds and then regarding Vincent with a smile. "Now you can. I just told the warden down at the cell block that you're Sunry's arbiter. He'll let you in."
Vincent raised an eyebrow. "He's still there?"
"It's actually not that late, maybe nine, ten o'clock. Manaan just gets dark really fast."
The Jedi shared a few more words with Roland before re-entering the harshly cold weather outside. Sure enough, when he reached the cell block, the guard let him in and the warden indicated which cell Sunry was in. The Republic war hero didn't look too good.
"You Sunry?" Vincent asked.
"Yeah. Who're you?"
"Your arbiter. I'm a friend of Jolee's and I want to help you out, so work with me on this, okay?"
Sunry's eyes lit up at the mention of Jolee's name. "So you're the guy that he was talking about. Well Vincent, pleased to meet you. I sure as hell hope you're as good as Jolee says you are."
"For the Republic's sake, so do I," Vincent muttered to himself. "So," he raised his voice for Sunry to hear, "you can start by telling me your version of what happened."
"Don't you wanna write this down or somethin'?"
Vincent shook his head. "Don't need to. Just talk."
Sunry looked doubtful but began to speak nonetheless. Vincent listened objectively; knowing next to nothing about the prisoner in the cage in front him made it impossible to know if he was an honest man, or if he was practiced liar like so many others. What he was hearing, however, he didn't like. He had been having an affair with a Sith woman, and on the day of the murder, had gone to the hotel where they always met to break off the relationship. Sunry had informed her that it was over, they had a brief argument, and then he had left. The Sith woman was found dead not too long after that.
The warden had given Vincent a data pad containing facts about the case: testimonies, alibis, murder weapon, and the victim. Vincent was surprised to see an attractive young woman's face when he pulled up the "Victim" file. Glancing at Sunry, he shuddered. He didn't even want to know why – how – Sunry was even having an affair at his age...with a much younger, much more attractive woman at that. He figured that the Sith woman was using him to get information and had no interest in Sunry at all. As for Sunry...
Vincent sighed. "Can you tell me why you were having an affair with this woman?"
"Why would you have an affair?"
"I wouldn't," he responded. "I have too much pride for that."
"Yeah? Well some of us aren't as perfect," Sunry said with a glare. "I made a mistake."
"Understandable," Vincent mused. "But I'm still trying to comprehend how it's even possible."
"Just who the hell do you think you are? You're supposed to be my arbiter, and here you are practically condemning me before you even try to help me! And insulting me while you're at it!" Sunry exclaimed hotly.
Vincent merely stared. "Are you done?" When his charge didn't respond, he continued. "Just because I'm your arbiter doesn't mean I'm your friend. The fact of the matter is I don't like you. At all. But it doesn't matter, because all that matters is that I convince the High Court you're innocent. So drop the attitude, answer my questions, and then shut up. I haven't slept in three days. I am in no mood for your crap."
Sunry swallowed and nodded. "Fair enough. I've told you everything that I can, though."
"I know. I'm going to go to the hotel and interview the people I have on my list here. Don't take off while I'm gone," Vincent replied, knowing full well that Sunry couldn't go anywhere but his cage.
Silently, he asked himself why he had agreed to help Jolee get this guy free. Vincent berated himself as soon as he realized what he was thinking. Jolee was his friend, and he was doing this for him. This meant something to the older Jedi, and for some reason, Vincent felt compelled to help him out. Entering the hotel, Vincent approached the man at the front desk.
"Can I help you?" he asked in a friendly manner.
"I hope so. I'm involved in the Sunry murder case, and I'd like to ask you a few questions," Vincent said.
The man's countenance immediately darkened. "Oh. Well, I suppose I can try and answer whatever questions you might have."
"Thank you. You're..." Vincent glanced at his data pad, "Ignus, right?" The man nodded. "Alright. What happened, from your perspective, on the night of the murder?"
Ignus frowned. "Well, this Sith lady comes in and rents a room, nothing to unusual. Sunry comes in a while later, goes to the same room. He could've been a little more discreet, you know? Just for his wife's sake." Ignus shook his head. "Well, I hear a blaster shot, and then Sunry comes high-tailing it out of that room as fast as his crippled old legs could carry him."
"You heard the blaster shot before Sunry left?"
Ignus looked at him suspiciously. "Yes, before. I'm positive."
"Do you think that Sunry could have killed the woman? With his injuries, I mean," Vincent asked.
"Well, not with his hands, that's for sure. But if he shot her, that doesn't take much effort, does it? From point-blank range, it's kind of hard to miss," the hotel manager said with a shrug. "But nobody saw it happen, so for all I know, she could've been shooting at him, or the real murderer. Who knows? All I know is that a shot was fired, and Sunry busted out of the room as fast as he could."
"Are the other witnesses still in here?"
"Yeah," Ignus said, pointing to the rooms behind Vincent. "They're in those rooms over there. Firith Me and Gluupor. Don't know how much you'll get out of those two though."
The corner of Vincent's mouth turned upward in a tired smile that still managed to exude confidence. "I wouldn't worry too much about that."
The first witness was a human man who looked to be anywhere from his mid twenties to early thirties. He became guarded as soon as Vincent drew near.
"Who're you?" Vincent asked without much emotion.
The man looked wounded. "I'm Firith Me, the famous Pazaak player," he stated pompously.
Vincent gave him a stare that indicated he thought the man was dumber than a Coruscant granite slug. "Never heard of you. What did you see or hear during the night of the murder?"
"Nothing that you probably haven't already heard," Firith said shrugging.
"Humor me," Vincent shot back.
Firith took a breath and scratched his head. "Well, I'm sure Ignus has already told you that everybody heard a shot, and then Sunry came hauling ass out of the room." Vincent nodded. "I peeked around the corner about a minute after the shot happened, didn't see anybody else. Boy, do I remember that Sith chick he was with though."
Vincent's curiosity awoke. "What was so special about her?"
"What? Oh...uh, nothing. She was a Sith, you know? Scary...beautiful, but scary," Firith replied nervously.
"Look, I don't have time for this. So, you can either tell me what you know, or I can bash your head against that wall over there..." Vincent threatened.
"Hey man, if I'm brain dead, you can't get any info out of me, now can you?"
Vincent rubbed his temples. This schmuck had more backbone than he originally thought. "Alright, how about a hundred credits?"
Firith's eyes lit up. "You serious?"
"No, I just felt like saying that. Yes. If you tell, I'll pay you."
"Isn't that, like, illegal or something?"
Vincent was beginning to get annoyed. "Probably, but you'll be getting a hundred credits, and I'll be getting info. Win-win situation. I would suggest taking advantage of it."
"Show me," Firith ordered. Vincent produced a hundred credits from his pocket and let Firith examine the money. "Good deal." He pocketed the credits. "Well, one day, I uh, "accidentally" bumped into the Sith chick. Turns out, she ain't just a Sith – she's a Dark Jedi. Lightsaber and all, man."
Vincent had to admit that he wasn't expecting that. "And you're sure of this?"
"Positive. Scared the crap outta me too. Stayed clear of her after that."
Vincent thought for a moment. If she was a Dark Jedi, then there was almost no way Sunry could've killed her. Not in his physical condition. "Hey, thanks man. I'll let you go now." He added, almost as an afterthought, "Oh, hey. D'you know anything about a war medal that was found on the body?"
The Pazaak player looked blank. "War medal?" He shook his head. "Why? Do they think it's Sunry's?"
"Yeah. But if you don't know anything about it then I'll go."
Firith nodded and sat down on his bed as Vincent exited the room. According to his data pad, a Rodian named Gluupor was next. Without even knocking, the Jedi entered the room, much to the surprise of the Rodian.
(Who...who you?) he squeaked.
"Name's Vincent. You're one of the witnesses for the murder case, and I'm here to question you."
(Oh. You ask questions, Gluupor answer. Be helpful.)
"Right." Vincent blinked and looked away. This one was odd. "Okay, what did you see on the night of the murder?"
(Sith lady go in room, Sunry go in after her. Gluupor hear shot; see Sunry running down hallway out of hotel. See Sith lady dead in room. Gluupor stay in his room, not come out.)
Vincent immediately noticed the agitation in the alien's voice near the end of his testimony. Deciding to let it be for a moment, he moved on. "What do you know about a war medal found on the body?
Gluupor's already huge eyes went wider. (Gluupor knows nothing! Gluupor stay in his room whole time!)
"You will tell me what you know about the war medal," Vincent said with an almost imperceptible movement of his right hand.
The Rodian's features relaxed and he nodded. (Gluupor tell you what he knows. Gluupor paid to plant medal on body, frame Sunry. Sith say not tell anyone or they kill Gluupor.)
He had heard all he needed to. "Alright Gluupor. Take it easy."
Vincent thanked Ignus again and left the hotel deep in thought, not noticing the man lurking in the shadows. Suddenly, a hand shot out and grabbed his shoulder with just enough force to halt his progress.
"What the hell!"
"Shh..." the man cautioned. "There's more to this murder than meets the eye. Check the Republic Enclave if you don't believe me."
And with that the man disappeared into the shadows once again without so much as a rustle of clothing. Vincent stood, rooted to the spot and staring at the place where the man had just been.
"That was..." he made a displeased noise and shook his head slowly before continuing to walk. Check the Republic Enclave? Does he mean the files? I have access to them...maybe I should search their database.
Vincent contemplated returning to the Ebon Hawk, but he really wasn't in the mood to have another showdown with the Ice Princess just yet. Guess that leaves going back to the Republic Enclave then. Joy. Roland was still present when Vincent came back and greeted him with a nod. The Jedi made his way to the computer room and worked quickly, trying as many ways as he could think of to get access to Sunry's files.
All turned out to be dead ends.
There was nothing on this guy. Nothing criminal at least. He was a bona fide war hero, decorated with numerous medals, respected among his peers. Absolutely nothing incrimi –
"Wait..." Vincent breathed. Something was there. Something that someone didn't want anybody to see. It was a heavily encrypted file and practically invisible, like a ghost in the shell. Traces of it occasionally showed up as he was searching, but they were so minute that an everyday tech worker would have simply ignored them as programming glitches or some such thing.
"What is it that you don't want me to see?" he muttered, concentrating fully on cracking the file's encryption. It was a clever device, one that looped back on itself in a manner that gave it extra protection, but Vincent had far too much experience with hacking to let it faze him. All codes were breakable; it was just a matter of how long it took to break them. It set Vincent back nearly two full minutes before he finally disabled all of the security and protection around the file – a formidable amount of time. Whoever had hidden this thing really hadn't wanted it found.
"We'll just pop you open and –" he stopped as a video began to play. Vincent saw a hotel room, the Sith woman, Sunry...
"Oh no...please tell me..." His fear was realized as the video continued. "Damn it all to hell!"
Vincent quickly pulled the file from the computer, storing on his own data pad and erasing all traces of his hack job from the database. Walking as swiftly as his legs would carry him, he hurried back to the cell blocks to find Sunry.
"You are possibly the dumbest ass I've ever met!" Vincent yelled at Sunry through the cage's metal bars.
Sunry looked surprised, but otherwise nonplussed. "What?"
Vincent got as close to the cage as he could and whispered to his charge, "You killed her! Shot her right in the back, and it's caught on tape!"
The war hero paled faster than Vincent thought was humanly possible. "Please, you have to understand! She was a Dark Jedi! I had run out of "information" to tell her, and she was going to kill me. I had to do something!"
Vincent looked at him dubiously. "I don't believe a word of that. Luckily for you, I need to prove you innocent. The Republic could lose the war if you're found guilty; Manaan might put kolto restrictions on us." He was whispering again. "So I won't bring this up."
The Jedi stepped back and stretched, cracking his spine and neck to release all of the tension that had been building in his body. Thinking for a long moment, he turned to the Selkath that was behind the desk.
"I have all the information I need. We're going to trial. Now," he said to the warden. The Selkath nodded and said that he would inform the judges of his wish to go to court immediately.
"Hey," Sunry called out, "you sure about that?"
"Yes," Vincent replied. "If I can't get you free...well, then you're screwed my friend."
"The High Court will receive you at the earliest possible time tomorrow morning,"the warden notified him.
Vincent sighed and resigned himself to the fact that he couldn't get the trial over with tonight. "Alright, thanks." He turned to Sunry. "I'll see you tomorrow morning then. Oh, and don't try and kill yourself. I would hate to have done all this work for nothing."
The headstrong young Jedi left a spluttering and frustrated Sunry behind, his destination once again: the Republic Enclave. He entered through the large metal doors and greeted Roland for the somewhere close to the fourth time tonight.
"Aren't you supposed to be working on that murder trial?" the black man asked.
Vincent shook his head. "The High Court won't take us till tomorrow morning. I came back because I want to go down to Hrakert Station now."
"I'll show you to the submersible then. It's the only transport we've got to and from the sea floor," Roland explained as he got up from his desk and they walked through the base. "We've already sent down the other one, and it hasn't come back up. It had a full team of mercenaries, and none of them have contacted us since their initial transmissions when they docked at the station."
They entered the mammoth hangar, both men regarding the large aquatic vessel bobbing gently in the water with a silent respect.
"Be careful," Roland warned, handing Vincent a card key. "This will get you back through these hangar doors, if you come back up."
Vincent took the card key with a slightly self-confident smile. "You mean when I come back up." He hopped into the waiting arms of the submersible. "See you in a few," he said before the ship closed him off from the outside world. Vincent found himself in a familiar environment, sitting in the pilot's seat of a vessel, bathed in a red glow from all of the lights, switches, dials and data screens. Pressing a button on one of the various screens, he initiated the automatic navigations system and felt the craft lurch backwards and begin it's descent to Manaan's uncharted sea floor.
- - -
Bastila threw herself roughly against her small bed, exhaling as she bounced to a halt in a tangle of sheets. Of all the questions, he had to ask that one. Bastila cursed his intuitive and discerning mind.
A soft knock on her door caused her to start.
"Who is it?" she called out as she plodded to the door.
"It's Carth," the Republic Officer's voice said through the layers of metal. "I just wanted to check and see if you were alright...you didn't come out for dinner, and we were starting to get worried."
Bastila blinked a few times in confusion. She had missed dinner? Pressing a button on the panel next to the door, she watched Carth's troubled frame appear just beyond the doorway.
"I hadn't realized I missed dinner," she admitted. "I'm not very hungry at the moment."
Carth's expression turned soft, and he placed a fatherly hand on her shoulder. "I know you're worried about Vincent, but the man can take care of himself. Now, if you've injured his pride or his self-esteem, it might take a while for him to come back around." He paused. "Sometimes I don't think you realize the effect that you have on him."
"You're right," she sighed. "Often times, I don't think before I speak, and with him, it seems even worse. It's like I lose all discipline over myself...I don't understand it. I don't talk right, I don't act right...hell, sometimes I don't even think properly."
Carth smiled. He remembered when it had been like that with his wife during the early stages of their romance. It was an interesting realization, finding out that you just don't function properly around the person you care for. The Republic Officer's grin widened even more at the thought of what conclusion the two would inevitably come to next. Oh, he hoped he was there to see it on both of their faces when that day came...
"Carth, please explain to me what is so incredibly amusing about this situation that requires you to stand here, grinning from ear to ear like a Cheshire cat!" Bastila exclaimed, her frustration half-real and half-feigned.
"I was just remembering something about my wife, sorry," he apologized truthfully. No need to tell her all of what he was thinking. "Anyway, he'll be back soon, just wait. Vincent's not stupid enough to go out and get himself killed."
Or so they thought.
- - -
Vincent had his lightsaber off of his belt clip and in his hand as he climbed cautiously out of the submersible. If an entire team of fully-trained mercenaries hadn't even made transmission after initial contact...
He shook his head. There was no possible way they could have simply forgotten. Rule number one of any militarily based operation was to always stay in contact. Regular transmissions at regular intervals, no excuses. Something must've gone wrong. Vincent only hoped it wasn't the Sith. Even before he could see anyone, Vincent sensed the presence of someone else close to him in the base. The person's life signature was fading quickly, and the Jedi knew that whoever it was, they would soon be one with the Force. He quickened his pace, letting the Force guide him to where they dying man lay.
"What in the name of..."
Vincent stood rooted to his spot on the floor. He could only assume that the man lying before him used to be a Twi'lek, but he couldn't be too sure. Chunks of the alien's flesh had been eaten away; his eyes had been ripped out, leaving only bloody and hollow sockets. His arms and legs looked as if they had been gnawed on – bite marks and missing fingers were visible.
"Can you speak?" the Jedi asked in a tightly controlled voice, walking over to the living corpse.
It managed a rasping, "Yes."
"Who did this to you?"
"Sel...kath. Insane...all of them..."
Insane Selkath? Vincent thought to himself. What is going on down here?
"How many people were with you?" he asked.
No response.
Even as he reached out with the Force, Vincent knew the man was gone. The Jedi ignited his violet lightsaber, and as he stood an eerie feeling washed over him. Keeping his weapon gripped firmly in his hand, he ventured deeper into the base at an almost agonizingly slow pace; it was hell to go at a crawl, but he refused to let himself be ambushed.
The lighting was dim, cutting visibility by at least half, and Vincent had yet to see a single living soul. The remnants of droids, broken machinery and the occasional body littered the floor, making the already slow going grind to a near halt. He had no way of knowing if any of the piles of scrap contained a booby trap or timed explosive. Briefly, he wished he had brought along at least one of his companions but quickly shoved the distracting thought out of his mind.
Shuffle...scratch...
Vincent's head snapped around in the direction of the noise, his lightsaber casting a hauntingly purple glow on the metal flooring and walls. Cautiously, he inched forward toward a door, reluctant to find out what was behind it. Pressing the "open" button on the panel, the door slid aside.
CLANG!
Vincent threw himself out of the way of a deadly vibroblade in a most ungraceful manner, landing roughly on his right shoulder. A fiery pain lanced through it in protest as he struggled to get to his feet and face his adversary. Vincent's gaze was met with a pair of wild, feral looking eyes and a stream of foaming saliva coming from the alien's mouth. He hadn't believed it, but the proof was standing in front of his eyes, desperately trying to kill him.
The psychotic Selkath lunged at him with a mad roar, swinging blindly. Vincent sidestepped his attack and cut him down easily, only to feel another blade slice into his Achilles tendon, causing him to drop like a dead weight. He twisted as he fell, catching his newest enemy's forearms with his plasma blade and severing them with a flick of his wrist. Cursing, he managed to pull himself up into a sitting position and scoot back to lean against the wall. Keeping his lightsaber in front of him, Vincent watched as the Selkath he had injured writhed on the floor. Shifting his gaze upwards, he eyed the other alien warily, waiting for the Selkath to make a move. As soon as the Selkath began to lunge at him, Vincent froze him in place with the Force. Vincent switched his blade off and pulled one of his blasters from its holster. Taking careful aim, he pulled the trigger once, sending a plasma bolt through the air to burn a sizzling hole directly between the alien's eyes.
Grabbing a small medi-pack from off of his belt, he removed the kolto-filled syringe and set it aside; Vincent gingerly grasped his ankle, watching as it dangled uselessly while in mid-air. He took hold of the syringe and inserted it directly into the back of his ankle, pressing down on the small plunger and making sure that the entire healing cocktail went into his body. Removing it and tossing it aside, he closed the med-pack back up, re-hooked it onto his belt, and waited.
Already, he could feel his tissues repairing themselves, knitting back together and re-attaching. Within a minute, Vincent was up on his feet again, his ankle fully functional and able to support his weight. Entering the room in which to two Selkath had come out of, he was met with a scene of carnage. Every single human scientist lay dead in a cold pool of their own blood on the floor, their bodies mangled and desecrated almost beyond recognition. For the most part, Vincent ignored this; the Mandalorian Wars had been much worse, and he had quickly grown accustomed to seeing dismembered and mutilated bodies.
Lockers lined the far wall of the room, and Vincent immediately picked his way through the bodies to get to them. He found a sonic emitter in one of the lockers and a life support pack, but nothing else. Pocketing the emitter and attaching the life support pack to the back of his belt, he continued his explorations of the base, exiting the room and heading down the hallway. Upon reaching another room, Vincent could hear the sounds of more Selkath inside. From the amount of noise and from what he could feel through the Force, he guessed there were about four of the fish people inside.
Palming a frag grenade in his free hand, he pressed the button to arm it and opened the door, tossing the grenade inside. A satisfying BOOM! met his ears and he charged into the room, which was now filled with a haze of smoke. He planted a vicious roundhouse kick in one remaining Selkath's face, snapping the unsuspecting alien's neck; swinging his lightsaber in a low arc, he cut removed the other Selkath's legs to the knee. Before the fish could hit the ground, Vincent brought his blade up in a swift, diagonal slash, cleaving the Selkath in two from right hip to left shoulder.
Finding nothing else of interest in the current room, Vincent entered the adjacent one. It was a circular room, every wall was lined with lockers, and a single Enviro Suit sat in a corner. The Jedi surveyed the room carefully, noting that one of the lockers seemed to be shaking. Approaching it silently, he leaned in close to listen and heard the rapid, shallow breathing of one very scared individual.
"You plan on coming out of there?"
The man in the locker let out a frightened yell. "Who are you? No, no...never mind. It doesn't matter. Go away!"
Vincent raised an eyebrow. "If you're afraid of the Selkath, I've killed all of them in this area."
"Fishy? Fishy fishy! They'll eat us all alive, just like the others! Mm hm! That's what we'll be – fish food!"
This guy was a nut. "Okay, look. If you come out of there, I can get you to the surface safely."
"No, no, no, no! Please, just go away!"
Vincent sighed. "Alright, have it your way." If the man truly didn't want to leave that locker, he wasn't going to force him out. Turning his attention the Enviro Suit, he examined it and was pleasantly surprised to find it in perfect condition. Leaving it be for a moment, Vincent ventured back out into the base to find the airlock room he knew wouldn't be far. Sure enough, two rooms down, he found it. Returning to the Enviro Suit, he clipped his lightsaber onto his belt and proceeded to begin the long ordeal of getting himself inside the suit.
Once he was fully within the Enviro Suit he returned to the airlock room and activated the sequence to go outside on the ocean floor.
"SEQUENCE WILL FINISH IN 5...4...3...2...1...PLEASE PROCEED THROUGH AIRLOCK DOOR," the computer's mechanical voice said, filtering through his helmet.
Vincent was struck with the thought that he had never seen anything so beautiful before in his life...except for maybe the person he wasn't talking to right now. Vincent attempted to concentrate on the task at hand, but to no avail – Bastila kept returning to his mind no matter how hard he tried not to think of her. He was so lost in his own thoughts that he almost didn't see the Firaxa shark heading straight towards him. As swiftly as his Enviro Suit would let him, Vincent pulled out the sonic emitter and blasted the shark with a wave of pure sonic energy, killing it instantly.
"That was close," he muttered. "Pay attention, idiot."
"Oh my God! Somebody else made it!"
Vincent turned to see another human in a matching Enviro Suit, shuffling towards him as fast as he could.
"I thought I was the only one!" the man exclaimed when he reached Vincent.
"Are you a mercenary?"
"Yeah. We got down here, and all we found were a bunch of psychotic Selkath. The rest of my team got...eaten..." The man visibly shuddered through the Enviro Suit.
"I'm trying to get to the Kolto Control center. We should stick together," Vincent suggested.
"I'm not waiting around any more man. I'm outta here!"
Vincent's protest died in his throat as he watched the mercenary venture out into the open waters. He hadn't made it twenty feet before a huge Firaxa shark came out of nowhere and attacked the merc relentlessly, finally grabbing the defenseless man in its jaws and carrying him off. The man's screams echoed in Vincent's head as he stepped cautiously out into the vast expanse that was Manaan's sea floor.
The agonizingly slow pace in which he had explored the base was nothing compared to what he was doing now. Not only did the Enviro Suit restrict movement, but the water he was in slowed him down even more, causing to move at an infuriatingly, insanity inducing crawl. Thus, Vincent took great pleasure in blasting each Firaxa shark as they came near; he soon spotted a door in the massive building that loomed over him.
Moving to the door as fast as his suit would allow, Vincent felt a flood of relief when his feet touched the metal grating of the building's floor. He peeled off the Enviro Suit and left itagainst the wall, unclipping his lightsaber and switching the weapon on. As soon as he stepped through the door and into the base, Vincent was ambushed by four more insane Selkath, two of which were armed with guns that looked unfamiliar to him.
Making a quick calculation, Vincent tossed an adhesive grenade at the two Selkath who were equipped with melee weapons and began to run at them. Suddenly, a deafening BOOM! met his ears and Vincent felt himself thrown backwards.
THUMP!
The Jedi slid to the floor in a daze; struggling to get back on his feet, he barely dodged another blast, feeling the shockwave as it impacted the wall behind him. Using the Force, he propelled himself toward the furthest Selkath with a gun, flipping in mid-air and bringing his lightsaber down with as much strength as he could. Turning, he threw his weapon at the only other Selkath with a firearm and armed a frag grenade while his saber flew toward the alien. Tossing the grenade at the two Selkath whom he had anchored to the ground with an adhesive grenade, Vincent called his lightsaber back to his hand dove out of the area seconds before an explosion ripped through the room.
He grunted in pain as he hit the ground; the shockwave that had sent him crashing into the wall had cracked a few ribs. Picking himself up slowly, Vincent gingerly took a few breaths. The pain was intense, but nothing he couldn't handle; he didn't want to waste healing himself with the Force and then exhaust himself later on when he really needed it. As Vincent walked through the base, he came upon a room containing a force field with two people behind it. Entering the room, he made it two steps before the humans on the other side of the energy field lost it.
"Stay back!" the man warned. "I'll depressurize the chamber!"
Vincent attempted to pacify him. "Look, I'm just trying to find a Star Map. I came here in a submersible...I can get you out."
Now it was the woman's turn. "No! You'll just let the Selkath in! Hurry Kono, depressurize it!"
Vincent watched the man, Kono, go to a panel on the wall and press a few buttons. Then:
"DEPRESSURIZATION WILL BE COMPLETE IN 60 SECONDS."
"Well damn," he muttered. Looking around, he spotted another console, similar to the panel that Kono had just been at. Going over to it, he used a spike to slice into the computer's database and shut down the depressurization sequence and disable the force field. Moving quickly, he closed the distance between himself and the two humans.
"What was that for?" he asked, anger evident in his voice.
The woman answered first. "I'm sorry. We...we overreacted. We're scientists, and when the base was taken over by the Selkath..."
Kono spoke. "We saw our friends get eaten alive. It was horrible. I guess we didn't think about what we were doing – when we depressurized the room, I mean."
"Please, forgive us. I'm Sami," the black woman said, "and this is Kono Nolan. We're scientists, as we've already said, and we've been studying the Hrakert Rift. We built a kolto harvesting machine, and when we activated it, it must've awakened something."
Vincent stared at her, puzzled.
"What she means," Kono explained, "is that the machinery awoke a giant Firaxa shark, one bigger than anything ever been recorded. When it came up from the Rift, we heard this terrible screeching noise...it must've been what drove the Selkath insane. It seems to be guarding an ancient artifact that we recently discovered, and it won't let anyone pass. Sami and I have been trying to come up with a way to get rid of the shark, but we can't agree on how to do it."
"I think we should destroy the machinery. It's what brought the monster up in the first place," Sami said defiantly.
"But if we destroy the harvester, we could lose the war! Our best bet is to release this poison into the water, and use it to kill the shark," Kono shot back.
"We have no idea what effect it will have on the kolto! We've only tested it in a controlled environment."
"But we know that it kills the sharks. It may not affect the kolto at all!"
"Wait," Vincent interrupted. "I'm the one who's going to be risking my butt out there, so I'm going to make the decision."
"Here's the poison to feed into the harvester. It should do the trick," Kono said handing him a vial.
"Don't listen to him. Please, get rid of the machine. All you have to do is overload the chemicals in the canisters," Sami pleaded.
"I'll do what I think is best," Vincent said as he spotted another Enviro Suit and began to put it on.
"I hope you make the right choice," Sami said quietly. Vincent didn't respond immediately; he was too preoccupied with getting into the Enviro Suit. Once in it, however, he turned back to her.
"That all depends on how you look at it."
Vincent entered the airlock and waited for the sequence to finish before venturing out into the depths of Manaan's sea floor. As soon as he stepped outside, he spotted both the harvester and the giant Firaxa shark that Kono and Sami had spoken about. Two normal Firaxa stood in his way, but he dispatched them easily with a few shots from his sonic emitter. As he approached the harvester's control panel, both Kono and Sami's words came to his mind.
He had two choices: 1) Poison the shark and possibly contaminate the kolto supply, or 2) Destroy the machine, thereby slowing harvesting by a large amount, but appeasing the monster and guaranteeing that there would still be kolto to harvest. Vincent decided that he would destroy the harvester and hope that it didn't drastically affect the Republic War effort. Accessing the menu for the canisters, he paused.
"Blowing up this hunk of metal might not be as easy as I thought," he muttered to himself. "Well, here goes nothing."
Five minutes, various curses and button combinations later, the control panel informed him that a volatile mixture of chemicals had been achieved, and that he had 15 – only 15 – seconds to clear the area. The Jedi knew that there was no way he was going to make it far enough away in that short amount of time to avoid the blast, but he was determined to try. The seconds stretched on for an eternity, but Vincent finally heard the muffled explosion, and felt a huge shockwave sweep him off of his feet and slam him into a large outcropping of rock.
A loud hiss told him that he had severed his air intake hose, and the rapidly flashing red lights in his helmet seconded that belief. His screaming ribs reminded him that they were broken, and his breathing began to come in short gasps. Glancing back to where the giant Firaxa had been, he watched the monster swimming slowly back into his home in the rift, hopefully never to be disturbed again.
And that's when he saw it.
The Star Map, illuminated by five underwater lights, waiting patiently for its secret to be discovered. Vincent checked his air gauge and estimated that he had at most, two minutes of air left. Including the fact that his air was leaking rapidly out of his suit, that time was down to about one minute if he was lucky. Twisting his body, he planted his boots on the rock behind him and shoved off as hard as he could, holding his breath in an attempt to conserve air, though his ribcage protested mercilessly.
His aim was perfect, and he reached the Star Map in mere seconds. Grasping one of the prongs, he pulled himself down and activated it, downloading the information on his data pad as quickly as the technology would allow. Repeating his earlier procedure, Vincent planted his feet on the Star Map and shoved, rocketing back toward the outcropping of rock he had just come from. His lungs were screaming at him to take a breath, and he finally relented, gasping for air as he shambled toward the Kolto Center.
He made inside the airlock just as his air ran out, and he fumbled with the helmet before ripping it off of his head and hurling it across the room. Vincent hadn't realized it, but water had been steadily leaking into his suit, and he was soaking wet. He didn't move from his position – lying on his back, staring up at the ceiling – until Kono and Sami came running into the airlock.
"I saw it on the view screen. You did the right thing," Sami said as she kneeled next to him. Kono stood sulking in the corner, obviously not pleased with Vincent's decision. "This could cost us the war!"
Vincent coughed, a spasm of pain gripping his ribs. "You can rebuild the harvester. If I would've poisoned the kolto, who knows how long it would've lasted."
Kono nodded. "I guess you're right. At least this way, we still have kolto to harvest."
"Here," Sami said, handing Vincent a kolto syringe, "you look like you could use it."
"Mm...thanks." He grabbed the syringe and inserted it into his wrist, injecting the kolto into his bloodstream. Vincent exhaled as he felt the substance begin to try and heal his cracked ribs. He would feel like hell tomorrow, he knew that for a fact. Extricating himself from the Enviro Suit, Vincent was helped to his feet by Kono and Sami
"Now that that giant Firaxa shark's gone, the Selkath should be back to normal," Kono mused.
"I can take both of you back up to the surface," Vincent suggested.
"No, we'll stay here and try and fix up the base first," Sami said, gently rejecting his offer. "Besides, I'll bet you have one heck of a time with the High Court after this."
Vincent groaned. He had forgotten about the High Court. "Yeah, I bet you I will. We're old pals, me and the Selkath judges. Maybe they'll let me off easy," he joked weakly. "D'you know of any quicker way to get back to Hrakert Station? I refuse to get back into another Enviro Suit..."
"Yeah, there's a transport that'll get you between the two much faster. Here I'll show it to you," Kono said as he led Vincent away.
- - -
SLAM!
"Where the hell is he?" the woman muttered to herself as she smacked a hand against the wall next to her.
"Bastila?"
The female Jedi turned at the sound of her name.
"It's two in the morning...why are you still up?" Mission asked, the last vestiges of sleep still clinging to her speech and movements.
"Because Vincent is still up. He's off somewhere doing who knows what," she responded bitterly.
"So if one of you's up, the other can't fall asleep?" the young Twi'lek asked curiously.
"No." Bastila sighed. "I'm still up half because he's up and in a state of emotional turmoil and half because I'm in my own state of emotional turmoil."
"You care about him a lot, don't you?"
Bastila was taken aback by the innocence in her voice. It was an honest question without any ulterior motives, something the Jedi was not used to. "I...I worry about him. He's got a good heart, but sometimes I wonder what goes on in that head of his."
"Would you like to find out?" a deep, smooth male voice asked, inches away from her ear.
Bastila felt a shiver go up her spine; she knew that voice. "Vincent...when did you get here?"
"Hmm...long enough to hear your little conversation. Mission, if you'd be so kind as to give us some time alone."
The young, blue-skinned Twi'lek nodded and left silently, disappearing down one of the hallways of the Ebon Hawk. Bastila felt Vincent shift behind her.
"If you really must know, I can show you what goes on inside my head. All you have to do is ask," he said softly.
"And just what would I find?" she inquired, not wanting to turn and face him.
"I don't know," he answered honestly. "I couldn't tell you for sure."
Bastila finally turned and found herself staring at a tired, wet and bloodied face. "What happened to you?"
He brought a hand up to his face and wiped some of the blood from his jaw. "The Selkath down at Hrakert Station were all insane."
"You went down there alone?" she asked incredulously.
Vincent shrugged. "There was nobody to go with me. I would have been alone most of the time anyway," he explained. "There was only one Enviro Suit in the main base."
"You were trying to get yourself killed," she muttered shaking her head.
"Look, I found the Star Map, and that's all that matters."
"No, what matters is that you did something incredibly idiotic by going down there by yourself!" she exclaimed.
Vincent's eyes narrowed. "I am tired, dirty, and in a lot of pain. Is it too much to ask to just let me be?"
Bastila turned to him slowly, her movements stiff. "Let you be? Let you be? So I'm a nuisance, am I?"
"Yes," he growled.
She raised her chin defiantly at his answer and gave a haughty sniff. "Well then, far be it from me to bother you any longer. I'll just "let you be.'" Bastila said in a voice that couldn't conceal her offense.
"You do that," Vincent replied scathingly, waiting for her to leave. She hesitated, hoping that maybe he was being sarcastic, but inside she knew that he wasn't joking with her. Swallowing and blinking away a wave of tears that sprang up suddenly, Bastila turned and stalked off, though her steps were not as forceful as Vincent had expected. Snorting softly, he turned and found himself staring at a pair of hard, angry brown eyes.
"You are the biggest jackass I've ever had the pleasure of knowing," Carth said in an even voice.
"Thank you. I try," Vincent replied flatly.
Both men said nothing, standing and staring at each other for a long time. Finally, Carth sighed, rubbed his chin and spoke.
"She's just concerned for your safety. It's the only way she knows how to express it, and you realize that. I know you do."
Vincent blinked and looked down. "You're right. She just...she picks the worst times." He exhaled. "I still shouldn't get mad at her though. I'm being stupid..."
Carth made a noise that sounded like "You got that right," but Vincent ignored it.
"Well, guess I better apologize for that...eventually." Carth nodded. "But only that," Vincent finished.
"What do you mean?" the Republic officer inquired.
"She said something..." Vincent offered vaguely. "Don't wanna talk about it. I just want to take a shower and go die in my bed. I really could use some drugs right now."
"As in the medicinal kind or the illegal kind?"
"Hah. Both if you've got 'em. I need a painkiller. Kolto doesn't work, I already tried."
"I'll set up the med bay then," Carth said as he exited the main hold and walked in the direction of the Ebon Hawk's medical bay.
"Yeah, thanks," Vincent muttered softly after him. Dragging himself wearily to the refresher in his room, he stripped out of his wet, dirty clothes and turned the shower on as hot as it would go. He winced as the stinging water buffeted his flesh, letting the stream massage his aching shoulders and neck. Bastila's words came back to him as he tried to relax in the shower, echoing in his head.
"What do you want me to say to you? That you scare me? Fine. I'm afraid of you!"
She had no idea how much those words had killed him inside when he had heard her say them. His fear hadn't been unfounded...to her he was frightening, uncontrollable. Vincent slid down the wet wall and brought his knees up, resting his forehead on his arms. He didn't want her to be scared of him, but she hadn't given him a true reason why. Sure, she had given him excuses, but deep down, he knew that she still hadn't told him the truth.
Washing himself thoroughly with his soap, Vincent winced as a fresh cut stung unmercifully. He rinsed the body wash off then shut down the water, grabbing a towel and wrapping it around his dripping wet frame. Entering his room, drying himself off and disposing of the damp towel, Vincent grabbed a pair of baggy grey pants and a dark green long-sleeve shirt and dressed himself. Collapsing onto his bed, he stared up at the ceiling for a long time, slowly drifting into the void of unconsciousness.
"Commander," an ensign said respectfully.
Revan turned his attention the man standing before him. "What is it?"
"I have just received news that we have found the Star Forge sir."
Revan allowed a small smile to grace his features beneath his mask. Finally, after nearly a year of avoiding the Republic's prying eyes and gathering information, they had discovered the location of the Star Forge. This artifact of immeasurable power had been the driving force behind the soldier's every thought and action since he had first heard of it. His calculating mind had seen the trouble that was brewing in the Republic after the Mandalorian Wars, and Revan had come to a painful decision: if he wished to keep everything he had fought for as a soldier, he would have to destroy it. He had yet to reveal his affiliation with the Sith to anyone in the Republic; only a select few of his most trusted officers knew at the moment, but he had faith that the rest of his men would follow him without question.
"Sir?"
Revan's head snapped around. "What?"
"Your orders, sir?"
"Tell all ships to proceed to the Star Forge's location and set up a perimeter. The only two ships that I want docking are mine and Malak's. Is that clear?" he ordered.
"Yes sir." The ensign saluted smartly and exited the command deck. Revan gave the signal for his second in command to take over and exited the command deck as well, striding purposefully to his private quarters. Once within the safety of his own four walls, Revan removed his mask and rubbed his eyes tiredly. He was so close to the solution, yet he felt as if he had a lifetime ahead of him. Something wasn't right here...
Someone was gently shaking him, and Vincent rolled away from whoever it was - right onto the floor.
"Oof!" He picked himself up gingerly, rubbing his head. "What?" he asked irritably.
"The warden says the High Court is ready to hear Sunry's case."
It was Bastila. Vincent tried to avoid looking at her but failed miserably. "Oh...right. I'd better get down there then."
"Were you having a vision again?" she asked quietly.
"Yes...why?"
She became very withdrawn at his response. "No reason," she said in a noncommittal tone.
Vincent grabbed a pair of boots and began to lace them up. Bastila watched him with a neutral expression, not moving from her spot leaning against the wall.
"Is there something else you need?" Vincent asked and immediately winced. He hadn't meant that to sound as acerbic as it did.
Bastila stiffened. "No." And with that, she turned and exited his room. Vincent sighed and stared at his open door for a moment before walking through it. Part of him wanted to apologize for being such a jerk to her, but part of him wanted her to be the one to apologize. It wasn't even an apology he wanted; Vincent simply wished she would open up to him. She was always so uptight, so afraid to share any of what she was feeling with him. He realized in hindsight that he had been much the same way – and was being guarded at the moment as well – and really had no right to complain.
Vincent pushed that problem out of his head and concentrated on the task at hand: freeing Sunry. He didn't think it would be too difficult but he wanted to be prepared nonetheless.
(You! The kolto that's floated to the surface is contaminated! You're going to have to explain this to the courts!) an angry Selkath yelled at him from outside the courthouse.
Vincent cursed under his breath. These damn Selkath hadn't stopped taking him to court since he had set foot on Manaan. He was grabbed by a guard and "escorted" inside to face the judges. His reputation had obviously preceded him, as the judges already didn't look happy.
(We have received word that the kolto that is floating to the surface is now contaminated and impure. We have reason to believe that you were the cause of this. Explain yourself,) one of the judges ordered.
"Your Honor, as I'm sure you know, the Republic has – excuse me, had – a kolto harvester on the sea floor. I was asked to go down to the base and investigate a communications failure. What I found was a scene of complete carnage; all of the Selkath down there had gone insane and had literally eaten the rest of the crew alive."
(Insane? What is this nonsense?) another judge interrupted.
"According to my knowledge, when the kolto harvester was activated, a massive Firaxa shark came up out of the Hrakert Rift. I was told that a terrible screech was heard, and that the Selkath all proceeded to go insane," Vincent explained.
(A massive Firaxa shark?) The judges began to converse among themselves.
(Could it really be?)
(Do you think it's the Progenitor?) another one asked.
(Ask the Jedi! He saw it!) one suggested.
A judge turned to Vincent. (Please continue,) he said.
"Well, I had two options. I could either poison the Firaxa shark or blow up the harvester. I chose to blow the machine up. The Firaxa went back down into the rift after that. I came back to the surface."
(You have done us a great service, young Jedi. We believe that the Firaxa shark you encountered was the Progenitor, our ancient ancestor. We are immensely grateful for your decision not to kill the shark. You may consider yourself acquitted of all charges in this matter,) the judge said in a pleased tone.
(Uh, yeah, thanks. Listen, I'm the arbiter for the Sunry, and I was told that I could come before the court now,) Vincent reminded the judges.
(Ah, so you were. Yes, we will hear the case of Sunry vs. The Sith at this time. Bring in the defendant, the prosecutor and the witnesses.)
Vincent watched as a Sith was allowed into the room, followed by Sunry, his wife Elora, Firith Me, Gluupor and Ignus, the hotel manager. He paid little attention as the Sith laid out his case, stating something about cold-blooded murder and that it was imperative that the court found Sunry guilty.
(Arbiter, it is now time for you to question the witnesses.)
Vincent stood from the seat he had been designated and walked to the front of the room. The first witness was Ignus. Vincent decided to ignore any pointless questioning and get straight to the point.
"What did you hear or see on the night of the murder?"
"I saw the Sith woman come in around 8:30 and check into a room. Sunry came in around 9:00 and checked into the same room. At about 9:30, I heard a blaster shot, and then I saw Sunry running out of the hotel as fast as he could," Ignus said clearly.
"Do you think Sunry could've committed the murder? After all, he is a cripple."
"Well, I mean, it doesn't take much skill to shoot someone point-blank does it?" Ignus replied.
"True, but we haven't established that Sunry even fired a weapon that night. I have no more questions for the witness," Vincent said.
Next up was Firith Me.
"Tell me what you saw or heard on the night of the murder, Firith."
"Well, I stayed in my room most of the night, but I did hear a blaster shot. I peeked out of my room and saw Sunry running like hell down the hallway."
"Did you see either the Sith woman or Sunry before that?" Vincent pressed. This piece of information was vital to his case.
"Um, yeah actually, I did. Earlier, I had bumped into the Sith chick."
"And what happened?"
"Well, I noticed that she had a lightsaber on her belt."
"So she was a Dark Jedi?" Vincent asked.
"Yeah, she was. Robes, lightsaber...everything."
"Objection! The defendant is attempting to paint the victim in a bad light!" the Sith prosecutor exclaimed.
(Overruled,) the judge stated. (He is simply stating fact. If she was a Dark Jedi, that is relevant to the case.)
"I have no more questions your Honor," Vincent said to the judge. He nodded and motioned for the next witness to be brought to the stand, Gluupor the Rodian.
"Gluupor, what happened on the night of the murder, from your perspective?"
(Gluupor stay in room nearly all night. Hear shot, see Sunry leaving hotel in a hurry. Nothing more.)
"What about the war medal found at the scene of the crime? Do you know anything about that?"
(Gluupor...Gluupor not know about medal.)
Vincent grunted in frustration. He needed Gluupor to admit that he planted the medal in front of the court.
"Are you sure you don't know anything about the medal?" Vincent asked, very slightly using the Force to persuade Gluupor. Thankfully, it went unnoticed by the judges.
(Gluupor will get into much trouble for this but...Gluupor was paid by Sith to plant medal on body. Gluupor was told not to tell anyone.)
The Sith made to protest, but was silenced by the judges before he could say anything.
"And Gluupor, did you actually see the murder happen?"
(No. Gluupor stayed in room. Saw nothing but Sunry running out of hotel.)
Vincent gave a self-satisfied smirk in the direction of the spluttering Sith prosecutor and said, "No more questions, you Honor."
Elora was next to the witness stand, and Vincent felt a pang of sympathy upon seeing her. She must've been through a lot since this whole murder scandal. He hated to have to question her publicly about her husband's affair, but he needed to.
"Elora, was your husband having an affair with the victim?"
"I...yes. He was."
"Do you think he killed the victim?"
"Sunry may be a lot of things, but he is not a murderer. He's a decorated war hero for the Republic. Surely that must count for something," she pleaded.
"And it is true that Sunry is a cripple, correct?"
"Yes. He can barely write or walk anymore it's gotten so bad."
"Thank you. I have no more questions for Elora."
Sunry was sent to the witness stand and Vincent took a moment to pause and collect his thoughts before questioning the ex-Republic soldier.
"You were having an affair with the victim at the time of the murder, is that correct?"
"Yes, that's right."
"But you were fed up with being used. The Sith were trying to pump you for information, and you had had enough. Tell me Sunry, if you tried to end the affair, would the Sith have objected?"
Sunry became as animated as Vincent had ever seen him. "You're sure as hell right they would've objected!"
"So that night, you had gone there to end the affair?"
"Yes."
"And what happened?"
Sunry shifted. "Well, we got into an argument. She was angry that I was leaving her, but I told her that I was through with everything. I left pretty angry-stormed out of the room, slammed the door and got out as fast as I could."
"And the victim was still alive when you left the hotel?" Vincent asked.
"Well, if being alive means yelling at you and threatening things, then yeah, she was alive," Sunry responded.
"No more questions."
Vincent glanced over at the Sith representative and repressed a triumphant grin. The man looked as if he was about to be hit by an oncoming speeder: eyes wide, mouth in an "o", face pale; he knew he had lost. The Sith quickly regained his composure however, and grudgingly took a seat to wait while the court debated. Vincent felt confident that he had persuaded the Selkath judges, but something was niggling at the back of his mind. The young Jedi knew that Sunry was a murderer, and yet he was trying to keep him from having to pay for his crime. Though he knew it to be wrong, Vincent was trying to appease his conscience by telling himself that he was doing it for the Republic and not for Sunry or Elora or Jolee.
His thoughts were interrupted by the plaintiff barking, (All rise!)
The judges filed in at a leisurely pace, taking their seats before the courtroom – or lack thereof, seeing as the only turnout consisted of people suspected in the case, witnesses, the prosecutor and the defendant – was allowed to sit.
(We have come to a conclusion in the case of Sunry vs. The Sith. In this matter, we find the defendant...) - Vincent realized he was inadvertently holding his breath - (Innocent of all charges.) He exhaled and let his head loll backwards to stare up at the ceiling. The judges, however, were not finished just yet.
(Let it also be known that the Sith Embassy will face an immediate inquiry and will be subject to a thorough search.) The Sith representative made a move for the door. (And, let it be known that the prosecutor is now in our custody and will be taken immediately to the holding cells with no opportunity for visiting or communication with the outside world of any kind. Court dismissed.)
Vincent surveyed the scene before him. Elora was crying and hugging Sunry, who looked very relieved, and the Sith was being forcibly hauled off to the holding cells. Something compelled the Jedi to turn around, and he realized that all of his friends had been standing behind him throughout the whole trial, watching and hoping just like everyone else. Vincent's eyes searched for Jolee's face, and found it graced with the biggest, most childish grin he had ever seen. The older Jedi practically ran up to him.
"Ha ha! You did it! I don't know how - I don't care how - but you actually did it!" Jolee exclaimed before crushing Vincent in a large hug. He whispered into the younger man's ear. "But you and I both know he wasn't innocent."
Vincent pulled back and stared into the old man's face, searching, seeing the knowing sadness lurking behind Jolee's eyes. He smiled to keep up appearancesonce Jolee had finished and said in a quiet voice, "It was nothing. You would've done the same for me." Vincent paused and briefly met eyes with everyone. "Now if you'll all excuse me, there's a med bay table in the Ebon Hawk with my name on it."
