Although Jacen explained nearly everything that had happened after he disobeyed Master Hamner to Kyp, the latter had him brought all the way back to Shedu Maad so that he could relay the exact same information to the acting Grand Master. Reluctantly, Jacen complied, hoping that once he got all this out of the way as soon as possible, Hamner would understand the full extent of Sith involvement in Ben Skywalker's disappearance.

The only thing that Jacen had left out was the mysterious Sith's knowledge of his relationship to Tenel Ka and Allana; and he could only hope that neither Kyp nor Hamner could glean that he was keeping that a secret from them.

But after Jacen had told Hamner in his office everything that had happened in the asteroid in the Kanz sector, the acting Grand Master said, "And all that is supposed to justify your insubordination, Jedi Solo?"

Jacen's lips thinned in impatience. "Master Hamner, I just told you, there's a Sith presence that's involved in my cousin's-"

"You didn't answer my question. Was your misadventure supposed to justify you going against my orders?"

Jacen repressed an exasperated sigh. "Yes, Master Hamner, it does."

"Really?" the Jedi Master asked with eyebrows raised in consternation. "And what exactly came of your discovery of this Sith's dubious involvement in your cousin's disappearance?"

"Dubious?" Jacen countered incredulously. "From everything I just told you, Master Hamner, what makes you think that her involvement in Ben's kidnapping is dubious?"

"You only have this supposed Sith's word that she is involved," Hamner explained dispassionately. "For all you know, they could have been lies used as a psychological tactic against you in combat. From what you've told me, Jedi Solo, if her powers had been enhanced by the effects of the asteroid in which the two of you had fought to the point that she could read your thoughts, that could very well mean that she was simply playing into your suspicions for her benefit... or even simple amusement, for that matter."

At that, Jacen released an exasperated sigh.

"Moreover," Hamner cut in before Jacen could get a word in edgewise, "during this encounter, you failed to get even circumstantial evidence that could pertain to your cousin's whereabouts. So you came away from your misadventure with absolutely nothing except an insinuation that there is a Force-user who is strong in the dark side who may or may not truly have any involvement in Ben's disappearance."

"Master Hamner-"

"And to top it all off, Jedi Solo," Hamner said with a slight increase in his tone, "your truancy from our campaign to retake Adumar from the Chiss may have very well cost more lives than had you been there."

Now Jacen looked concerned. "What happened at Adumar? How many lives were-"

"The retaking of Adumar turned out to be a success in spite of your absence, Jedi Solo. Masters Ramis and Lobi were able to do well enough without you. Nevertheless, that's beside the point. The point is that, as a Jedi, you do not have the right to simply disregard orders when you feel like it. This is war, Jacen; we do not have the luxury of following our instincts as we had during peacetime; because if we did that, people who could have been saved by our hands will get hurt or die. You cannot make such a blatantly irresponsible decision in this Order ever again."

"You really think I'm being irresponsible here, Master Hamner?" Jacen asked with a hint of ire in his tone.

"I wouldn't have made that speech if I didn't, Jedi Solo," Hamner replied with a testing tone.

"Well, then, why not just expel me from the Order so I can do what I want, like find out where my cousin is?"

"You would really do that? Leave your friends and family to continue to fight this war without your support, Jacen?"

"They can do well enough without me," Jacen said confidently. "It's Ben who needs me."

"Listen to yourself. You have no thought for the friends and families of those who died at Adumar because you weren't there to aid them. How can you be this selfish, Jedi Solo?"

Jacen closed his eyes in a moment to compose himself. "You're wrong, Master Hamner."

"Oh? About what?"

"I feel bad that I wasn't at Adumar to help prevent more deaths for the Galactic Alliance. I feel bad that I'm not some all-powerful, all-knowing entity who can just end this war with a snap of my fingers and make sure conflict never arises in this galaxy ever again. But we both know that I can't be responsible for every wrong that happens just because I'm not there to stop it."

"Don't try to excuse yourself just because you want to save your cousin. Wanting to save one life, even the life of a loved one, over many, even if you don't know them, is not the Jedi way. I would think that at this point in your life, Jacen, you'd have learned that. And don't you dare think that just because you turned out to be right, in that Adumar was a success for us even without you, that that absolves you of responsibility here, Jedi Solo."

"You wanna talk about responsibility, Master Hamner? How about being responsible for the well-being of Ben Skywalker, the son of our Grand Master? You refuse to even lift a finger to save him!"

"That is because," Hamner said calmly, "his father is already looking for him. You need not feel that responsibility at this time, Jedi Solo, nor should you have the gall to inform me that I should bear any responsibility for young Ben."

Jacen's jaw dropped. "His father is already looking for him?"

Hamner nodded. "That's what I just said. That's how Master Skywalker is spending his bereavement leave."

"You could have told me this in the first place!" Jacen nearly yelled. "You made me think that you weren't doing anything to save him!"

The acting Grand Master leaned forward, now with a low growl in his tone. "I was under no obligation to tell you that, Jedi Solo. It was your obligation to have followed my orders without question during this war. And, moreover, even if I had told you that your uncle was looking for Ben, would that really have changed your mind? Or would you have strayed from Adumar anyway to find your uncle and aid him in his search for his son?"

When Jacen simply sat back without an answer but with a defiant expression, Hamner continued with, "Jedi Solo, if you diverge from my orders again, I have full authority, even without your uncle's permission, to expel you from this Order. And I can do so without you ever being reinstated, even after Master Skywalker's bereavement leave is completed and he returns to his post here."

Jacen crossed his arms over his chest. "If you think that that's supposed to make me feel bad, as if I can't help in the war as a non-Jedi, Master Hamner, I don't see how even you can stop that."

"Perhaps not," Hamner admitted evenly. "Of course, my word might convince the likes of Supreme Commander Bwua'tu or even Chief of State Omas himself that you aren't to be trusted, given your recent dereliction of duty. I wonder if your prior history will be enough to help you counter my claims." He tilted his head in thought. "But even if it does, let me remind you that dereliction of duty in the Galactic Alliance military has much more severe repercussions than it does in the Jedi Order, Jacen."

"I understand, Master Hamner," Jacen replied reluctantly.

"Good. Now, then," Hamner said in a much lighter tone as he reached into his desk drawer, "here is your next assignment, Jedi Solo." He produced a datapad from the drawer, just like before, and slid it along the desktop to Jacen.

The Knight picked up the 'pad to read the instructions to himself. When he looked back up to the acting Grand Master, he said in a neutral tone, "I will see to it that the Galactic Alliance will retake Mon Calamari by the end of the month, Master Hamner."

"I'm glad to hear that you're so confident about that, Jedi Solo. But you need not shoulder that responsibility alone; Master Durron will aid you there. You ship out immediately with him. Good luck, and may the Force be with you."

Jacen only nodded before he stood up and turned to leave the office.

"And Jacen."

The Knight stopped and turned back.

"I will have this mysterious Sith looked into. If it'll ease your mind at all, make sure that it stays on the tasks that lie in wait for you, I will dispatch Master Katarn, or perhaps Jedi Knight Jaden Korr, to search for her. Perhaps she really does know something about Ben."

"I hope Master Katarn or Jedi Korr can succeed where I failed, Master Hamner." Jacen then left the office.

. . .

Mere days after its departure from Kesh, the New Purpose dropped out of hyperspace in a near-empty system in Wild Space. Said system wasn't known on any legitimate starcharts in the Galactic Alliance or most of the other governmental powers in the wider galaxy. However, it was in one of the smuggler-friendly starcharts that was an unintended hand-me-down from the late Captain Okilp, the Purpose's previous owner back when it was lasciviously christened the Chick Magnet.

According to the logs that Darth Judicar had taken over from Oklip, this system in Wild Space was only nearly-empty because the only location worth mentioning, aside from its dying blue dwarf star, was the secret pirate base on a lone snow-covered nameless world. And that world was now several hundred million kilometers away from the Purpose, which was presently broadcasting a distress signal.

It took several minutes before a ship—which the Purpose's sensors registered as an antiquated ChaseMaster frigate—emerged from the planet's atmosphere. Not long after, it made a microjump to end up a few dozen meters from Judicar's vessel.

"Unidentified ship," a male voice from the Purpose's comm console said, "we're responding to your distress call. Please don't move; we're sending a shuttle over with some men to board your ship and help in whatever way we can."

"Understood, whoever you are," Judicar responded with an urgent tone. "Just hurry. We got quite a few technical problems here we're not well-equipped to handle." She shut off the comm and looked over in the copilot seat to the Purpose's only other occupant: the Lost Tribe of the Sith's Tyro Vestara Khai.

They didn't need to exchange a word to address the other's readiness through the Force for what was about to come.

Less than two minutes after Judicar addressed the pirate over the comm, both she and Vestara were standing ready and facing the cockpit exit. It didn't take long before the door opened and two pirates—one a Weequay, the other a green-skinned male Twi'lek—took up the threshold with rifles pointed directly at the two Sith.

"Hands where we can see 'em!" the Twi'lek demanded.

Judicar and Vestara complied, their outward expressions guarded but tinged with feigned fear, before a light-skinned male human with brown hair emerged between the blaster-wielding pirates.

"Well, now," the human said, "is there anything you ladies have aboard you wanna tell us about?"

Judicar and Vestara acknowledged to each other through the Force that, aside from the three pirates before them, there were three more searching the ship for any valuables that they could pilfer.

So, with that assessment, Judicar said, "Yes. This."

She moved her left hand and telekinetically brought the rifles of the two alien pirates up to their chins, much to their shock. Judicar then used the Force to pull down the triggers, blasting a hole into each of their faces and ending their lives instantly.

The human pirate didn't even have time to exclaim to his subordinates further back in the ship before Vestara reached out with one hand and telekinetically snapped his neck.

Both Sith then moved forward with their lightsabers out, active, and ready to dispatch the three remaining pirates further back in the ship.

. . .

Captain Debos, a male Aqualish, of the ironically-named ChaseMaster frigate Helping Hand watched in confusion as the shuttle that was sent over to plunder the contents of the Ebruchi freighter returned less than five minutes after it docked with it. During the shuttle's transit back to the Hand, Debos tried to raise his human lieutenant Jeku or any of the other men he sent aboard over his commlink, only to not receive a response from any of them.

So, when the shuttle finally docked in the Hand's hangar bay, Debos had six other pirates lurking at the smaller ship's ramp area with blasters raised toward it. When the ramp finally lowered to the hangar's deck, and even though he couldn't see the occupants from his vantage point, Debos called out, "Alright, Jeku, what the hell's goin' on? You were barely-"

The Aqualish was cut off from completing that sentence when he and his men were suddenly blasted off their feet by an unseen force. When they recovered and began to stand back up, they found themselves being charged at by two human women with blazing red lightsabers.

Not a single one of them, not even Debos himself, were fast enough to seize an opportunity to get off one bolt toward either Sith before they were all cut to pieces.

With those pirates dispatched, Judicar and Vestara moved silently on to rid the ship of the rest of its crew.

Less than half an hour later, the last of the Helping Hand's crew was disposed of via airlock, and Judicar turned to face Vestara.

"You've done well, Tyro Khai," the older Sith said in a measured tone. "It is clear that your father and Lady Rhea did not exaggerate your abilities."

"Thank you, Lord Judicar," Vestara replied with a bow of her head. "As I told Grand Lord Vol when we first met, I live to obey."

"For now, of course. You understand that as you grow older, so will your powers. And when you reach the zenith of your abilities, you will not live to obey any further, Tyro Khai. Instead, you will be the one whom others will obey."

"I hope that will be the case one day, Lord Judicar," Vestara replied with no change in her outward expressions or Force-presence.

Judicar grinned lightly. "Until then, however, as I begin modifying this ship's controls to make it easier for us to pilot and navigate without extra crew, you are to return to my ship and bring it here."

"Yes, Lord Judicar. And what of the other pirates over at their base world? Will they not grow curious as to why their comrades won't have returned?"

"Yes, they will," Judicar said, her grin now growing feral. "But when they do, we'll only kill most of them; after all, we'll need at least a few mind-tricked slaves to pilot the other ships back to Kesh for us. Now get going, Tyro."

Vestara nodded and obeyed without another word while Judicar went to the Hand's bridge to make those modifications.