"Where are we going?"

That had been Carth who, once again, pestered me as we browsed the Upper City pavilions.

The hunt for a way off of this planet was well underway. The plan had been for Carth and me to eavesdrop around the Sith. Carefully, of course. So far, all we came up with were bratty little kids that liked to pick on Ithorians and a xenophobic old man. The base a few miles away from the apartment was apparently full of Sith officers. Even though I was crazy enough to ride a swoop bike in a race, I wasn't crazy enough to go snooping around in there.

And then there were the rumors. About some Ebon Hawk that Davik Kang somehow got his hands onto before the Sith came along. Apparently, he was the only person that avoided the embargo and confiscation of all ships and speeders.

We were about to give up for the day before I was approached by a harried-looking Twi'lek.

And now we were heading to our next lead. And I knew Carth was not going to like it. Not one bit.

I glanced around at the few speeders that were left—all piloted by Sith. One of their ships hovered above the ground, their wings folded out before it glided into space. The cantina was around here somewhere...

An elbow knocked into mine as Carth expressed his annoyance. "Did you hear me? Where are we going? It's getting late, you know."

I really didn't feel like dealing with the pilot right now.

Especially since...

Mission came up beside us with large steps. "Whacha guys talking about?"

I hadn't noticed it until now, but my frown was heavily set into my face. The shuttles of Sith seemed so much more interesting than whatever we were trying to do. Which was...my eyebrows scrunched up. What were we doing again?

The blue Twi'lek appeared again and I baulked when a hard surface connected with my shin. Carth was giving me one of his suspicious looks and Mission was giving me a concerned one.

"Are you alright? You've been dazed all morning. Did something happen?" she asked.

Beside the fact that I rarely got any sleep anymore? Beside the fact that I could be Force sensitive? Beside the fact that the Sith could kill all of us at any moment?

Not to mention that Canderous Ordo wanted me to see him. Or else he would turn us over to the Sith? I mean, why else would that Mando want to have anything to do with me?

I looked away from her and began to trudge forward again.

"It's nothing. Let's just keep going..."

Again, I had no idea where the cantina was. I didn't want to say anything about that either and reveal the shit we had just gotten ourselves in.

Carth snorted. "That's what I asked you. Where are we going?"

I looked over my shoulder.

"Why don't you decide, Commander Orangy?"

He was, in fact, wearing his orange jacket again while I also wore my old red one. Cheap armor bought with little credits didn't deserve to grace my perfect form.

But really, it was more of a danger to wear those second-hand Hidden Bek leftovers. During the fight with the Black Vulkars, my armor was tugged and burnt in places that were painful. Uncomfortable places. Carth's had been ripped into cortosis shreds of fiber by the rakghoul's claws.

There went the rest of my credits, all wasted in one day on pathetic pieces of shit.

I swear, if I met Zax again I would have to remind him that he owed me a few thousand for winning that race.

Carth glared at me. Finally, someone to fight with.

"Because I have run out of ideas. We checked all the cantinas on this side and nothing. We checked Sith apartment buildings and stations. Still nothing. At least...not without causing a scene. We're running out of options."

I sighed, looking up into the sky and spotted the Sith fleet. They were like a shadow creeping over our shoulders. We were running out of time, weren't we?

Mission came alongside Carth.

"There are still a few cantinas we haven't checked yet," she said. "They're not exactly...nice but what else could we do?"

The pilot looked down at her. "And how does a kid know this?"

The Twi'lek pouted. "I'm not—!"

"—a kid. I get it. But still, how have you lasted this long on Taris on your own? Surely you had parents or...someone."

The Twi'lek stopped walking and I almost missed the glare that she gave the pilot. He really liked to piss everyone off, didn't he?

"That isn't true! The Hidden Beks and Big Z helped me and even then I can take care of myself." She huffed. "In fact, when I met Zaalbar, I was the one who saved him. Some Black Vulkars were trying to swindle him in a cantina. He didn't know much about the big city so I told them to shove it. Then, without warning, he just picked them off of the ground like nothing!"

I smirked, remembering feeling petrified when he did that to me.

"And he bludgeoned them to death?" I asked, remembering the pipe.

The Twi'lek looked over towards me and shook her head rapidly. "Of course not! Big Z might look and act tough, but he's really a softy on the inside. They ran off screaming like cowards."

Yeah...a softy that liked slamming people's heads in with metal bars. I'm not sure that Mission really knew Zaalbar despite how close they appeared...

The blue Twi'lek glanced back towards Carth. "What I'm trying to say is that you don't have to be an old geezer to know the streets around here. Big Z is probably twice your age and he had no idea what he was doing when I found him. So, don't underestimate me."

Normally, I wouldn't take a kid like her seriously, but she hasn't yet gotten in our way unlike that other little squirt. I never really felt the need to protect or rescue her from anything. That and she reminded me of myself when I was her age. Street-smart and savvy.

Carth didn't seem convinced. The damn bastard was never convinced.

"I just find it a problem that someone your age has to learn the streets in the first place. Especially on Taris."

The Twi'lek threw her lekku over her shoulder. "Especially on Taris? What's that supposed to mean?" The tone of her voice grew in volume.

"Well...Taris isn't exactly the best planet for a kid to be living on. With what I've seen so far the place is an utter mess."

The teenager shook her head. "But...but that's only since the Sith invasion. Everything was fine before."

Words seemed to spill out of my fatigued mouth as I brushed my chin. "Last time I came here it wasn't much different. Same old stuffy Tarisians. But then again I didn't see much..." I muttered, looking down into the Lower City.

The Twi'lek pounced on this.

"You've been here before?"

"You've been here before?" Carth repeated but with a darker tone.

Kriff. I dropped my hand. "Err...I meant..."

I didn't want to bring up what I was before I "joined" the Republic Navy. The look that Onasi was giving me was dangerous and dark. I could already tell what he was going to say.

"Why exactly did you come here before? I highly doubt that any normal person would want to come here."

Mission looked offended again. "What are you saying? People visit Taris all the time!"

"Taris isn't exactly a vacation spot, Mission. Its been a warzone twice. Kind people haven't visited Taris in years unless they were trying to liberate it."

Sweat began to build up on my forehead. I was far too exhausted to be dealing with Carth's paranoia. In fact, all I wanted was a nice hot bath or maybe even a massage? I doubted that Carth would want to give me either of those.

I stepped away from the side of the street and began to walk away. I had a cantina to find after all and a Mandalorian to threaten.

The pilot began to call after me but I ignored him as I found the nearest cantina - surprisingly one that we missed before. And the one I had been looking for.

A Sith bouncer gave me a look as I stomped past him. Unfortunately, I spotted Carth and Mission trailing me. I wondered why the bouncer didn't stop the teenager like all the other times before I realized that we were in Sith territory.

What a coincidence.

This upcoming meeting with the Mando was not looking good.

Loud electric music pounded into my head and I walked past gambling tables and groups of laughing Upper City folk. If Carth was still calling after me, I couldn't hear him anymore.

I tried to find the scarred face of Canderous, yet either the Mandalorian had either given up on me or he hadn't arrived yet. So, I decided on sitting at the bar to get a quick fix. A moment of silence passed before Mission jumped into the seat beside me. When my drink came, Carth joined me on the right.

"You're paying for this round. You still owe me 1,000 credits anyway," I said to no one in particular. I drank deeply, draining half of the cup. The soldier beside me was giving me an incredulous look and grabbed my wrist as I finished the chug.

"Look...just stop, alright?"

I forced my hand down and glared at him as he released me—some of the drink spilling out onto my sleeve.

"Should it even matter what I used to be?"

When I asked that question, Onasi grew red.

"Of course it matters. If you were some Sith spy I would want to know about it. How am I wrong to suspect you? Actually, you know what, if you were innocent then you wouldn't even care."

The song changed into something more upbeat and enraging. A few people on the dance floor were shouting words of praise and whooping into the air. I looked off, past the wine and alcohol fridges. I sighed before I took another drink.

"I came to Taris a few years ago to deal with the Exchange. Davik hired my crew to haul the hottest goods along the Corellian run during the war with the Mandos. I was captured a few months ago and now I'm stuck here because I had no idea what I agreed to. They said they needed my language abilities or whatever dumb excuse they had to throw me onto your stupidly named ship. Oh, yeah, and the Endar Spire is the stupidest name I have ever heard. There, you happy you got your fucking answers?"

Carth's expression turned from angered to muted as I went on my tirade. Mission had wilted as well as I ranted on.

I snorted. "Thought so." I pushed myself onto my feet.

If Canderous wasn't here, then someone else had to know where that Mandalorian ran off to.

Leaving the two behind, I tread through the dance floor. Many of the dancers glared at me as I pushed them aside. A few Twi'leks were singing with Bith percussionists on the stage. Those who didn't like to dance were all sitting at tables lit with low red lights. Those were the ones who would have information.

Fortunately, I didn't need to ask. Canderous had been staring at me from one of those tables. He was also in the middle of a heated discussion with a dark-haired man. He waved at me when our eyes met and returned his gaze to the man.

The Mando's dark tone cut through the timber of the music. "Davik won't be waiting for long. He isn't a patient man. Mandalorians aren't either."

The man shoved his chair back as he stood. The metal object almost toppled to the ground.

"You will hear from Czerka once the Sith leave the skies, Ordo," the man said.

"If you get out of this alive, you mean?"

The man didn't bother to argue. Instead, he shoved my shoulder as he stomped off towards the exit. I eyed this Mandalorian curiously and he motioned to the seat in front of him. He lit a cigar after I sat. He offered me one, but I quickly declined.

"I was surprised to see you at that swoop race. Thought you would have died in that Vulkar base. You have the toughest balls on this side of the galaxy." He laughed once with the brand between his teeth. "Well, except for me of course."

I raised my brow. "You were at the swoop race?"

"Davik ordered me to come as his bodyguard. It's what I'm stuck with now—licking the boots of these damn Exchange idiots."

"I know the feeling..."

Believe me.

He smirked as he took another draw of the cigar then blew the thick smoke in my face. I coughed then glared at the Mando.

"I'm tired of working for Davik and his Exchange. As a Mandalorian, working as a lowlife mercenary isn't going to cut it. Fortunately, I ran into someone as crazy as you. I have a proposition. One I'm sure you would be interested in considering your associations."

I raised my eyebrows, leaning back. Hopefully, he wasn't alluding to the lightsaber I threw around like a complete idiot.

"You have my attention."

The Mandalorian leaned back in response. "Where should I begin...?"

"No."

That had been Bastila's answer after relaying to the team what Canderous had propositioned.

I rolled my eyes. "Come on. Do you really think we'll get anything else?"

The evening seeped into the high windows and smells of the reheated food we had for dinner remained in the air. The Wookiee, who was never satisfied when it came to food, grumbled at us for starving him to death.

Bastila glanced towards the person that sat across from her. And I refused to look at that person. When we left the cantina, Carth and Mission followed me like shadows. Neither of them spoke a word until we got to the run down apartment building. Mission began to chat like a maniac about the bath she planned to give Zaalbar when we got back. Of course...she was going to use the roundabout way that she always used with the filthy Wookiee—the "Water Spray Deluxe."

The Jedi gave up on getting any assistance from the soldier. So, she addressed me again.

"I find it hard to trust a Mandalorian and his plans. He's from the Exchange. What if this is a trap?"

I picked up my plate from the small table and threw it on top of the other dirty dishes. We haven't bothered doing anything to tidy ourselves since we wanted to leave Taris and not live here.

"I doubt this is a trap. The Mando could have killed me whenever he wanted to. He has nothing to gain tricking us."

"Except that he saw you with me at the race. He could easily just want me to give to the Sith."

Yeah, and I thought that to be true at first. But the Mando could have had us jumped at the Sith-controlled cantina. Why would Canderous waste his time on the elaborate scheme?

Instead of voicing this, again, I sat lazily on the couch. They would only be words wasted.

The small boy gave me a tired smile. He hadn't been so clingy since we came up here. In fact, he was starting to enjoy Mission and Zaalbar's company more despite the Wookiee's menacing appearance.

The Jedi got up to get rid of her dishes as well along with Carth who remained silent during this conversation. I wondered why, suspicion was his favorite subject after all. And if he agreed with Bastila it would be two against one.

The Jedi shook her head. "And what he is suggesting...going into a Sith base? That will only endanger our position more than it already is."

"But we have no other choice. And would a Mandalorian really side with the Sith? After what Malak and Revan did to their people?"

Also, doubt a Mandalorian played games like that. Too much "honor."

I think that I almost convinced her because she was giving me that annoyed look. She knew that I was right about this, but didn't want to concede the point.

She sat across from me and beside the tach monkey. He gave her a curious look before heading towards Mission who was fiddling with a device in the corner. That must have been the "Water Spray Deluxe." The looks she was throwing at Zaalbar, who was still whimpering about food, were not kind.

The Jedi sighed. "I see. There is no convincing you. I...suppose there is a chance this Canderous isn't lying..."

"He isn't. Trust me."

The Jedi huffed at my interruption.

"And even if his plan is suicidal, I see nothing else that we could do at this point."

I smiled when she admitted it, those words like fine wine to my ears.

"I knew you would see reason."

She returned the smile.

"But I haven't seen the light of day for three days. Even more if you count Brejik's imprisonment. Maybe if I came along..."

Finally, Carth seemed interested in the conversation.

"No. It's too dangerous. I don't know how many times—"

"How am I supposed to help if I'm stuck up here cooking like a housewife and staring at the wall?"

My mouth twisted into a held-back smirk. "May I point out that your cooking has helped our stomachs?" Even though her reheated dinners sucked. I wasn't going to mention that small detail, however. I liked my life, after all.

Instead, Bastila ignored my empty compliment and gave Onasi a red angered look. I guess she just figured out I was lying or something with her Jedi voodoo.

"If you two are going to be invading a base then some of those Sith are bound to be strong in the Force. What are you going to do then?"

Well, that goes without saying. I'll use the Force against them. If I'm such a Force sensitive beast then surely I would be able to use my own mind to grab those yellowed-eyed fiends' weapons out of their very grasp!

Carth glanced briefly towards me and I assumed that my face had an expression of courageous glamour and confidence. He looked back towards Bastila when he noticed that I was smiling at him.

"We'll run away," was his lame response.

Wow, I didn't really know what to say with that strong supporting answer. He should win a medal for Jedi tact and persuasion! I surely would be convinced by that statement!

Bastila gave the pilot a hooded look, a similar expression that I gave her a minute ago.

"Well, as your higher officer I am ordering that I come along."

Life would be so much easier if lower-ranked people just listened to their betters like mindless droids. At least...that is what I assumed Bastila wanted Carth to do.

I saw the pilot giving me a look again and I raised my eyebrows. Did he want me to convince the Jedi to not come with us? I wasn't in the mood to fight with her after last night. The wrong sorts of subjects would be brought up around the orange jacketed soldier that I really didn't want to mess with right now.

I sighed when that look stuck onto me, even after I made sure my dark eyes never wavered away.

"Look, Bastila, sunshine. If you want to help then use your Battle Meditation on the Sith or something. Surely that wouldn't be a problem, right?"

"In normal circumstances, yes, but you forget that Malak is able to sense the Force as well. His focus will be on the bases and if he senses my influence then this whole plan would have been for nothing."

She really liked to make things difficult. It didn't help that I knew nothing about the abilities of the Force.

I waved a hand. "Then why do you want to come with us if your very presence is going to ruin things?"

Bastila appeared impatient like I was a child who kept on asking why ships could jump to lightspeed.

"Because it is not me that he senses directly. It is the Battle Meditation."

"If that's the case then why can't you just distract Malak with your powers or something? You were able to influence entire battles without them knowing for a while right?"

She huffed in frustration, her face turning red. "It. Isn't. That. Easy. Just—you are wasting our time with these pointless questions. If we don't go through with Canderous' plans then we will have no hope of getting off of Taris."

Funny, just a second ago she could barely trust the Mandalorian, but when faced with her own pride she decided to go with it. I would have to remember that for future confrontations with her.

Carth was looking away as we fought and hovered beside the small table. His silence was rather creepy and when I glanced towards him as I talked with the Jedi his eyes never met mine. He was still angry about me being a smuggler or something. Despite his misgivings, I had grown a sort of liking to the pilot. He was the only other adult human male in the group after all. I think I would have gone insane otherwise.

Bastila noticed me giving the pilot an eye but she paid no vocal heed to the break in the conversation.

I sighed. "How is your combat prowess, anyway? After all, the famous indestructible Battle Meditator like you was captured by the Vulkars of all people."

Her face grew even redder and she glanced towards her belt as if something important would normally be there.

"M-My Force powers were exhausted while fighting on the Endar Spire."

I "hmmed."

"But surely those thugs wouldn't have stood a chance with your lightsaber, am I right?"

She grew a tomato red and her grey eyes were like storm clouds in strong winds.

"I lost it after the crash. How was I supposed to defend myself?"

I struggled to suppress a laugh. "Wait...you lost your lightsaber?" I couldn't hold back my laughter now. "Out of all the Jedi in the galaxy, why do we get one who's absent-minded?"

I swear that she was going to use those Force powers on me at any second. I could even see her ears turning red.

"This is no laughing matter!" she protested. "I—"

"Well, without your lightsaber I see no point in you coming along with just your Force powers unless you want to be seen carrying a cortosis double blade around the Upper City like a terrorist."

She glanced around as if she could find the answers in the ceiling.

"B-Brejik...must have taken it from me. I have no idea where it is now."

My smile was still on my face when I rested my elbows on my knees.

"I see. What a sad turn of affairs."

Her grey eyes glanced towards me with accusation.

"Where is it?"

I raised my eyebrows.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," I said, feigning confusion.

The Jedi's face grew dark.

"My. Lightsaber."

I smiled.

"Brejik had it, didn't he?"

Her mouth flapped up and down when I finally caught her in that little white lie. Of course, she wasn't the sort of person to admit her mistakes. My smile grew wider as I saw her tussle with her own inner pride.

"And now you have it."

Carth gave me a dark knowing look. I ignored him by glancing towards Mission who was focused on her project. The small boy bent over beside her with pure interest. The Wookiee was slumped against the wall beside our bags, tired.

I rubbed my chin.

"Now...why would I have it if Brejik supposedly took it from you?"

She huffed louder this time, extending her hand.

"Enough games. Give me back my lightsaber."

"So rude. I thought Jedi were taught manners. At the very least say 'pretty please.'"

"Please give me back my lightsaber," she said, with a serious look on her face. Carth didn't look amused.

I shrugged. "Sorry, but why should I give you another reason to come along? Orangy already hates my guts."

Bastila glanced towards Carth and he looked away when I mentioned him. Yep, he was still ashamed about what happened in the cantina. I really didn't know why, it was no big deal.

Eventually, the Jedi gave up. At least, I thought so until she stood up and went for our bags. Kriff, she was one step ahead of me!

The handle of the lightsaber reflected in the low light. I took my chance and dove for my bag while Bastila was distracted by Carth's. The Jedi noticed me right after my attack, but she was too late.

Then, Mission began to laugh like a madwoman.

"Time for the 'Water Spray Deluxe,' Big Z!"

The Wookiee roared in terror then covered his face from the spray of water. The Twi'lek held the ancient hose up like a blaster and the little slave whooped wildly at the spectacle.

Unfortunately, I happened to be in the crossfire.

I was quite shocked when the cold water hit my face. So much so, I dropped my prize.

"Mission!"

Bastila scooped up her lightsaber before I could react. The Twi'lek finally noticed that she was hitting me as well.

Mission shut off the water immediately.

"Oh jeez...I'm sorry, Wessy!"

My hair and upper body soaked, I shivered like a wounded kath hound. Defeat. Pure, utter defeat. I will never live to see another day. Mission didn't notice my dark expression as she attacked the Wookiee with sweet-smelling soap which dripped all over the floors.

Believe me though...it was anything but sweet.

The Jedi grabbed her cloak and gave Carth and me a look. The pilot shook his head with a huff.

It wasn't my fault.

I swear.

For some reason, Mission insisted on coming along. Carth had argued that climbing around in a Sith base was too dangerous for a kid but apparently he hadn't learned his lesson.

"I. Am not. A kid," she responded, stomping her foot closer to the pilot with every phrase. Onasi was not amused and glanced towards me as if I could solve all of his problems. I was not a babysitter nor a fatherly figure. Why did these people assume that I could convince and take care of these kids?

However, I took Mission's side.

"Come on, old geezer. She can sneak around better than you," I said, reminding him of the rakghoul incident. He didn't argue any further after that. This guy...

Mission gave me a wide smile and marched after Bastila who was far down the hall. After the "Water Spray Deluxe," Zaalbar didn't really look healthy enough to go walking around. In fact, I feared for the Twi'lek's safety if he came with us. So, I approached the soaking Wookiee. Carefully.

"Hey, ah, Big Z? Can you watch the little guy while we're gone?" I pointed to the dirty kitchen. "You can help yourself."

His whole body lifted at the opportunity. The little boy did look slightly unhappy about being left behind. I really hope they didn't get themselves into trouble.

With that taken care of, I followed Mission and Carth after Bastila's trailing form.

Canderous pointed me towards Janice Nall's droid shop in the run-down section of town. Not many Upper City folk wanted to work with an alien and after the Sith came for a visit I was surprised that the Twi'lek Janice was still in business. There was really only one reason why she still was.

The Exchange owed her a debt.

Fortunately, the shop was opened late and we were able to catch her before she closed for the day. Parts of all sorts lined the shelves and buggy protocol droids buzzed nonsense words. Janice shoved a box closed as we walked past the astromech C8s and protocol C6s. Obviously, she wasn't used to getting customers.

"W-Welcome to Janice Nall's droid and repair shop!" she exclaimed as she struggled to put that box away. Mission and Carth lagged behind in order to investigate a beheaded tourist information droid that was on a loop. Bastila wanted to talk to the owner herself first, but I was able to persuade her that I knew my way around the business. I could tell that the seller was put off by the Jedi.

"Um...what can I get you? I was about to close up shop. If you're just browsing—"

I strode up to the counter and slid a slip forward. On it was Canderous' insignia. Important to the plan, I guess.

"Canderous Ordo sent me to pick up a droid. An astromech."

A mixture of recognition and terror dawned on her face. "Canderous? Well then, why didn't you say so?" She looked behind her and I knew where the droid was now. "I've been holding this little guy for weeks. Davik Kang wanted him to...well let's be honest here. Commit crimes. I thought he forgot the order."

"Well, he wants the droid now," I said.

I didn't want the Twi'lek to be asking the crime lord dangerous questions. Bastila crossed her arms as she peered past the girl and into the back of the shop. Janice whistled. The swinging door banged open. A pristine T3 model beeped happily up at me. It could have been considered almost...cute.

"That will be 2,000 credits, as promised," she said with a hand extended.

I swear that I lost the ability to see for a second.

"2,000 credits?"

I couldn't believe this. First I made Mission promise to pay me 1,000 credits for doing that suicidal stunt and now I was being forced to hand over 2,000 credits? Was fate mocking me? Did I mean nothing to the circle of what may be?

And why was I paying for something that Canderous or the Exchange should have? All of it just didn't seem fair...

I laughed. "Well, could we open a credit?"

Janice looked genuinely surprised. "Wait...what? I thought the Exchange had millions of credits. 2,000 wouldn't be much. I thought I was giving you guys a discount."

Are you kidding me?

Before my rage could go flying at this innocent store owner, a firm hand grasped my arm. I glanced past my shoulder and Bastila's ancient eyes hit me. Instead of anger and embarrassment, there was concern in those eyes. What was wrong? Was it something I said? Or was going to say?

I sighed, realizing that the Jedi wanted me to be diplomatic. Well, guess what, Jedi? I hated diplomats and politics. I wasn't going to settle with nothing. This was life and death here and we couldn't just mess around.

Janice Nall was looking towards me expectedly. And then I realized. Canderous didn't want me to pay a credit on this droid. He was expecting me to steal from this poor lady. He really thought I was that low? What type of person would do that?

Oh, right. A smuggler.

I sighed again, rubbing my face. "Look, there is a misunderstanding here. I'll talk to the right people who I swear will pay you back."

Once I talked to a certain Mandalorian.

But the Twi'lek wasn't having it.

"I'm sorry but the last time I promised someone credit they either died or went broke. You seem like the type that is the latter and the former."

So, there was no way I could do this without threatening her. My face seemed to grow cold and slapped the counter forcefully. The Twi'lek jumped.

"I'll pay."

Bastila shoved me aside like I was nothing. My angered face calmed instantly as I gave the Jedi a confused look. What was she doing? She wasn't actually going to use her own credits on this? Actually, we were here because of her so shouldn't she be paying anyway?

And why didn't she say something before I almost went ballistic on this lady? She really had to work on her timing.

Nall looked overjoyed and grabbed Bastila's datapad in order to make the transaction.

"I knew you were pulling my leg there," she said, humming a quiet song right after as she put in the numbers. "This little guy is worth more than those 2,000 credits you spent on him. Believe me."

And so we bought T3-M4 the astro droid.

The droid rolled over to us and began to sing. This droid was...rather positive about his little robotic life, huh? Mission and Carth gave the droid a stare and Bastila patted the chassis once. T3 followed the Jedi out and I was last to leave. Janice paid us no mind as she went back to work with her boxes, calling over a protocol droid to help her.

Was she going to scam us? I doubted it, she seemed rather afraid of Davik Kang and didn't seem the type to swindle a powerful crime lord.

When I stepped out into the night, the only person I saw was Bastila and the droid. Mission and Carth were scouting ahead, as ordered by Bastila, to look for the old Republic base. The Jedi sat on a bench, staring off into the night while holding a comm link.

Since she didn't seem to notice I was there, I waved a hand in front of her face.

"Hello, Taris to Bastila."

She jumped and glared at me, crossing her arms as usual.

"What?"

"Whoa, what's your problem?" I stepped away as if she was going to bite. "What is your plan anyway? Why send off those two? Let's just storm the place."

The Jedi huffed. "I want to talk."

Great, another Jedi pep talk. I sighed, sitting forward while looking away from her face.

"About what?" I asked. "And please don't confess your deepest feelings. I am not a sap."

Bastila, for once, didn't appear impatient. "It is about Carth. I could sense that you were disturbed whenever you were around the soldier."

I paused, my breathing slow. I glared at her with full force.

"You do know that I like my privacy? Stop snooping around in my mind, creep," I said.

She ignored my playful voice. "I am not snooping willingly. I have already said that you might be Force sensitive. That possibility might have some drawbacks including susceptibility to the dark side of the Force. Whatever happened between you and Carth...I want to know about it."

Was she serious? I was not planning on becoming a Jedi. What did she expect? I was my own man, as I've already stated.

I sat back, looking in the direction where the Sith fleet would be.

"Why are you so interested in the drama of us normal folk?" I asked. "You shouldn't care. You're a Jedi."

The Jedi opened her mouth to respond then pursed her lips. "I suppose you are right. I'm...sorry for prying."

She stood and spoke into the comm. Carth's voice was low in the channel while I pondered our brief conversation. Maybe she was right, maybe I was being too reckless. Of course, I wouldn't admit that but circumstances have led me to believe that something strange was going on here.

I stood and followed the Jedi towards the Sith Base, T3 beeping his first depressing note.