Chapter One

Coruscant, Three Years Later

Representative Zarkko Burtoni from Kamino had a wide grin across his face as he exited his meeting with the Senators of the Republic. One in which he, again, successfully raised the rates for the production of additional Clones. It's rather simple, he smirked, as he thought back to how he used the construction of the Separatists' latest Droid Factory as leverage, forcing the Republic into a corner and reaping the benefits of another large order. Mother would be proud.

In anticipation of a large payday, Representative Burtoni bought himself some entertainment for the night to celebrate. He even picked up some expensive drinks from the local liquor store to ensure the festivities were well worth the price.

The hotel he chose for the night was on the outskirts of the city, a place he was sure he wouldn't run into any colleagues, or anyone who would recognize him for that matter.

Sliding doors welcomed him into the building. Inside, the lobby was dark and musky; there were stains on carpets that looked to have set in over a decade prior and holes in the walls that were never properly patched up. A state of nausea overtook the representative; he couldn't believe the peasants actually lived like this. There was some solace for him, though, knowing what waited for him in his room upstairs.

Three floors above, Representative Burtoni found and entered his room. There was a small lamp burning dimly on the nightstand. A dirty carpet, much like the one he found in the lobby, led him into the room where he found his entertainment laying on the bed.

"Ahh, eager today, are we? Well don't worry, Zarkko is going to… what?"

The girl lay motionless on the bed, looking terrified and refusing to make eye contact.

"What's wrong, baby? Don't worry, I'll make it better."

At this she scrambled to the far side of the bed and started sobbing.

"Don't tell me they sent a novice. I specifically ordered someone with experience! Ugh… no matter, I will not allow this to ruin my night. I shall enjoy myself whether you do or not." He began to crawl on the bed but was interrupted by a soft noise coming from the bathroom. "What was that?"

The girl ignored the question, continuing to cry into the pillow.

"Answer me, you- Ahh, I'll find out myself." He muttered under his breath as he approached the bathroom, "I hope you know who you are dealing with. I am a representative to the Senate. You hurt me and you will spend the rest of your pitiful life in a very small cell."

He pulled his secret blaster out of his robes; "You have until the count of three to surrender before I blast the door down and you with it. One…Two…Three…"

Representative Burtoni leveled his blaster and aimed at the door. His knuckle whitened on the trigger just as the intruder crashed through the door, catching him by the neck, and pinning him against the far wall in one swift motion.

The representative clawed at his assailant trying to free himself, but it was to no avail, the man was too strong. The escort was still on the bed screaming but he could barely hear her; his body was shutting down, desperate to taste the air. His vision began to blur, he lost feeling in his arms and legs; this was the end.

Suddenly, though, the man released his grip and allowed the representative to fall to the floor in a heap. He crumbled from the impact and gasped, desperately trying to allow the oxygen to flow through his body and into his lungs.

"You bastard!" He said between breaths, "I will have you killed for this!"

The man kicked him in the stomach, making it even harder for him to breath, before turning to the girl, "Get out."

She obeyed and quickly ran out of the room, leaving him alone with the representative.

"What do you want from me?" Burtoni asked, his voice weak and wavering, "Credits? I have plenty; I can see to it that you become a very rich man."

The assailant just laughed. "I have no need for your stolen riches."

"Then what is it that you want?"

The man took a step forward, into the dim light given from the lamp on the nightstand; he wore full black armor, including a mask that hid the entirety of his face. There were two blasters holstered to each thigh and a bow and quiver full of arrows on his back. A lightsaber hung from his hip.

"You're a bounty hunter!"

"No."

"An assassin?"

He shook his head, "I am the voice of the people."

"Fool, the Senate is their voice!"

"At first, maybe. But then they inevitably give in to the corruption that their government allows, much like yourself, Representative."

"I am the-."

"Enough, I do not need to reason with you, nor will I extend this conversation to give time to the security detail you just called for."

Rep. Burtoni looked at the communicator in his hand. "Then what do you plan to…"

The man drew his blaster so quickly that there was a hole in the representative's chest before he could finish his sentence.

Three Hours Later…

Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, and his padawan, Ahsoka Tano, made their way to a small, slimy hotel just outside the city. They had been sent by the Jedi Council to investigate the mysterious death of Representative Burtoni of the Senate.

"What would a representative be doing in a disgusting place like this?" Ahsoka asked, trying to protect herself from the lingering stench in the air.

"You'd be surprised how often people of power put use to these sorts of establishments, young padawan." Obi-Wan smirked.

"Unfortunately, for them, nothing good ever comes of it; this is just another example." Anakin explained.

The entire floor had already been evacuated when they arrived and the scene was being processed by the police droids.

"What do we have, Officer?" Obi-Wan asked as they entered the room.

"We are 99% certain that Representative Burtoni was murdered with a high-intensity blaster shot through the chest, damaging major organs. Time of death is set at approximately three hours ago."

"You can up that percentage to a full one-hundred," Anakin said, pointing to the bathroom door, "Signs of a struggle: broken door, bruises around the neck from being choked…"

"I agree," Obi-Wan said, scratching his chin, "But why?"

He turned to the police droid, "Search all the known databases and find out if there was a bounty on the representative."

"Already checked, Sir. There were zero known bounties and no data, or rumors, of an assassin hired in the area."

"Very strange," Anakin thought aloud. "So it wasn't for money and it wasn't a political enemy."

"Well it had to be some sort of enemy," Ahsoka proclaimed, "Even if it's not a high-profile person or organization. It wasn't a robbery – his credits are still on the nightstand. Nobody would just kill a representative unless they had a problem with him."

"Ahsoka's right," Obi-Wan responded. "Representative Burtoni is very unpopular around Coruscant given the amount of money he's regularly swindling away from the Republic. Those are public funds that should be spent on the citizens who are already struggling enough from this war."

"So you're saying it could just be a random citizen," Anakin surmised.

His Master nodded, "He's not going to bring a security detail here. I know it feels strange to see a political official gunned down by a random person, but this kind of thing does happen, especially in desperate times such as these."

"Excuse me, sir," The police droid interrupted, "This woman was in the room with the representative when he was attacked."

A young, scared woman stepped up; she kept her eyes focused on the floor and looked to still be shaking from her experience.

"You're the escort who was with the representative? Don't worry, you're not in trouble." Obi-Wan assured as the woman hesitated to answer.

She quickly nodded.

"Were you here when he was killed?"

"No."

"Did you see his attacker?" Anakin stepped in, acting as friendly and gentile as possible.

She nodded again.

"Please, tell us what happened, if you can."

The girl hesitated again, slightly, before beginning. "I arrived an hour before the scheduled …meeting, as usual. I didn't know at the time, but I was being followed. Once I opened the door he made his move. He told me that he wasn't going to hurt me and that I should just go about my business like he wasn't even there.

When the client, Representative Burtoni, arrived he was hiding in the bathroom. He almost got caught; the representative was ready to empty his blaster when he attacked, breaking through the bathroom door and grabbing the representative. He moved so quickly, I could barely process what happened.

The next thing I knew he had the representative by the throat and told me to leave."

They let the story simmer for a moment before asking the obvious question, "Did you get a god look at the assailant; was there anything unique that would help us identify him?"

"Oh yes," She said. "He was fully covered in black armor, mask and everything. He carried several weapons," She tried to remember, "Umm, two blasters, obviously, a bow and arrows, and…" She looked down and saw the lightsabers hanging from the Jedi's hips, "One of those."

Obi-Wan turned to the others, "A lightsaber?"

"Sounds like a one man army." Anakin suggested.

"Should be easy to track though," Ahsoka added, "He seems pretty unmistakable."

Obi-Wan nodded, "We'd better report back to the Council."

He turned to the girl and thanked her for all of the information before turning the crime scene back over to the police droids and heading back to the Jedi Temple.