Chapter 2

The door to the Council Chamber opened with a violent crack - apparently the arriving guest was not in the mood to wait patiently for it to open by itself - and very unsettled Mara Jade Skywalker rushed in, her golden-red braid flowing behind her like a whip.

Her eyes quickly skimmed the almost empty room, resting on the only one person present.

"Durron " she spat.

"Master Jade Skywalker" Kyp bowed his head slightly. "What can I do for You?" he asked, dreading the answer ("Walk out of the window?" ,"Swallow a thermal detonator?", "Examine your guts with a lightsaber?" )

"Where is Corran Horn?" she demanded ignoring his politeness.

"No idea. Am I my fellow Master's guardian ?"

"No" Mara scowled at him "You're rather a pain in his ...ehh...neck. Where's Kent Hamner then?"

"On a mission to the Remnant. Last time I spoke to him, he was ready to leave Bilbringi"

"Shavit! What about Saba Sebatyne?"

"Somewhere in the Corporate Sector, why?"

"Cighal?"

"On Kashyyk. There's been an epidemy of bash-rash"

Mara looked sceptical: "I thought the Wookies didn't get bash-rash"

"Well, that was certainly a surprise to everyone. But the reason is simple:You can't see the rash because of the fur. Cilghal discovered it first when she shaved a sick Wookie."

"She did what?! And she's still alive?!"

"Well, maybe she didn't do it herself, and yes, she's alive. At least she was alive when I talked to her. " Kyp made a pause and frowned. " On conclusion, I must admit she didn't use the visual connection when she made contact, so I can't be sure what's her exact state. Maybe..."

"Never mind. I don't care !" Mara finally recovered from the shock of imagining a flock of bald Wookies chasing the little Mon Calamari healer, and grew impatient again. "So, is there any Jedi Master here at all ?"

"Yes. Even two"

"Great! Who?"

"Me"

"You don't count Durron!"

"How nice of You" Kyp muttered.

"And the other one?"

"You..."

"You kriffin' idiot ! Do You think I would come here to look for myself?!"

"The Temple is supposed to be a suitable place for soul search, so why not..." Hardly did he finish the sentence, when Mara's fist came searching contact with his nose. Kyp ducked, and tried to calm Mara a little. "Ok, ok, take it easy Master Jade, I was only joking."

Mara still looked anything but calm.
"So You are telling me there's no Jedi Master here, except from You?!"

Kyp nodded in silence. Mara started pacing the room back and forth, cursing with feeling (and not only): "Sithspit! Sithspit! Sithspit!" Finally she stopped and glanced at Kyp, who was wiping his face.

"And what are you doing now?!"

"Cleaning myself from Your sithspit. You burst out cursing like a geyser, really" he explained.

"Would You please tell me what's up?"

Mara looked a bit ashamed for a heartbeat, then she snapped : "Ben has been kidnapped!"

"What?!"

"Yes, or at least he disappeared from that blasted kindergarten he was going to, so probably someone kidnapped him, but nobody knows who, or how, or why, at least not the teacher, who doesn't know anything at all, and Luke is away, and I can't sense Ben's presence, so I was looking for someone, a Jedi I mean, who could do it..."

Kyp listened to Mara's word-flood, shocked. It was probably the first time he has seen her in such state. But then - if his child would have been kidnapped (if he had one firsthand) he wouldn't be any better. Most likely even worse - going darkside and strangling every suspect with the Force or something along these lines. Not that Mara wasn't getting close to the darkside now - he could feel her fear and anger - being himself a victim of the Sith spitting technique aside...

He sighed inwardly. She needed help of a Jedi with ability to track down a person's force signature, and he knew he was one of the best, if not the best Jedi at it.
But she couldn't stand him and vice versa. He had a feeling that volunteering to cooperate with Mara Jade would mean agreeing to go to the nine Corellian Hells on his own request. What a merry perspective! Yet he was a Jedi knight, and knights were supposed to help damsels in distress, weren't they? And Mara definitely was in distress .

He sighed again, this time aloud, and passed a sentence:
"I'll help You."

Mara looked at him suspiciously.

"I'm good at sensing people through the Force" he added " Maybe I can help You."

"You'd better" she said threateningly "Or You can go straight to the nine Corellian Hells. Let's go back to the kindergarten then." With that she spun and left the Chamber .

After a moment Kyp followed her, still wondering in amazement at how his precognition abilities have improved lately: Going to the nine Corellian Hells, indeed. Who would have thought that!