"Seems someone knew where to find you." A tall, stocky Enforcement agent knelt beside the body, his mechanical eyes zooming in on the wound in Menelaeous chest. It was rather disconcerting, Kyp thought, watching as the human male looked over the body as if it were the most interesting thing he'd ever seen in his entire, dull life.

"Really?" Kyp asked in mock fascination. "I'd never have guessed." His voice was thick with sarcasm. The agent, whose small nametag read Sontebren, stood and straightened to his full height, staring at the Jedi Master with open contempt. Kyp had met enough men like this one to take it in stride – he actually smiled when Sontebren stepped forward, only inches away from Kyp's face. The man wanted a fight? Well, fine. Kyp was definitely up for it.

The only thing bugging him was the fact that the man's eyes – one was blue, the other a dark green – swirled around in their sockets. He'd seen many things in his life but he'd always held an aversion for fake eyes – they showed him only coldness, emptiness, as if the person had no soul.

"You got a problem?" Sontebren asked with arched brows.

Kyp sighed while he pursed his lips. "Yeah, I got a problem. I need you to hurry the hell up so we can solve this case."

Sontebren shook his head, stuffing his hands into his pockets. He stood level in height with Kyp, glaring at the other man and not even trying to hide his dislike. "You stuck up, sithing piece of shavit. Who the hell do you think you are?"

Kyp shrugged. "Oh, I don't know. Maybe the guy you called for help because you can't handle the situation?" He let out a little laugh. "In my book that means failing. You want me to spell it out for you?"

He watched as Sontebren worked his jaw. Kyp just waited for a punch or a stupid comeback remark but amazingly, Sontebren took a step back. Seemed he did have brains after all.

"According to the scans, the energy signature matches the power cell from E-17d Sniper rifle."

Kyp frowned at the new info. "They were waiting, whoever they are."

"Seems so. Might actually still be here enjoying the show." Sontebren lifted his head and scanned the area, grunting when he realized it would be of no use. They were surrounded by tall buildings, old warehouses and hundreds, if not thousands of empty speeders parked within an open garage. They would have to use a droid to triangulate the shot, hopefully finding evidence of the shooter. But Sontebren wasn't very confident. Whoever had done this knew what they were doing.

"We've found something!"

Kyp glanced over to Jaina, who stood waving at him like a frantic woman. Sontebren followed Kyp towards her and one of Sontebren's colleagues. A short, athletic young woman crouched on the ground and picked up a silver coin. She held it between a gloved forefinger and thumb, holding it up to get a better look at it. "You know what this is?" She asked in a soft voice, handing the coin to Sontebren and straightening up.

"Never seen it before." He cleared his throat, turning halfway to look at Kyp. "But maybe Pus-bag over here knows what it is?"

A tic started in Kyp's jaw. Pus-bag was a derogatory form for a Hutt. If there was a species in the galaxy Kyp had no patience for, it was a Hutt and he wouldn't stand for being named as one.

"Uh-oh." Jaina whispered, hurrying to stand at Kyp's side while snatching the coin from Sontebren's hand. "Are you crazy?" She snarled at him.

Sontebren shrugged, rubbing at his brow. "All in good fun, of course."

Yeah – and the Empire loved aliens.

Kyp snatched the coin from Jaina's hand, his jaw still working but he did his best to ignore Sontebren's jibe. After this case was closed, Kyp wouldn't have to work with him anymore so he calmed himself, knowing that it would get him nowhere to cold cock Sontebren. Well, personal satisfaction – yes. But a long and boring discussion with Luke – so no.

Taking a good look at the coin, Kyp narrowed his eyes at the inscription along the inside. Written in basic aurebesh with a few numbers in between. "An ocean in which dreams are reflected…" he read aloud, his forehead creased into a frown. "Any guess what it could mean?"

Jaina shrugged. "Sounds like a riddle."

"And we love riddles, don't we?" He turned the coin around and stopped as he saw a tiny symbol in the middle. Then he smiled and handed Jaina the coin. "Look at this."

Jaina's eyes twinkled in the dark and underneath artificial lamp light, her cheeks glowed a pretty light red. "It's an eye."

"Remember what Menelaeous said? Looks like our killer is working for this Vishous character."

Jaina nodded, a sudden seriousness overshadowing her face. "And I'm guessing that person is also working for Enforcement. How else would they have known to find us here?"

"Maybe they weren't here for us. Only to get at Menelaeous."

Jaina scoffed. "Do you honestly believe that?"

Kyp took the coin from her outstretched palm and sighed. If he wanted to and thought really, really hard about it, he could believe a whole lot – like Han only pretending to be a smuggler when he was younger (big, enormous maybe), or Moruth Doole actually being a nice guy (well, maybe not so much), or Admiral Daala becoming one of the good guys (when hell froze over and the devil himself kicked the bucket) – but this didn't seem like one of those times and he knew it.

"No." He said in a low voice. "Someone sold us out."

Mara tapped her lower lip with her index finger while she walked up and down her living quarters. Luke was on a mission, having taken young Ben along for the ride and having left Mara in charge with the case concerning the drug Push.

She'd gotten word from Kyp and Jaina that their information source had been shot down – executed almost – in the middle of the streets, which made Mara believe that they were a) dealing with pros and b) dealing with someone who was slowly getting edgy.

And getting edgy meant getting sloppy.

Besides the fact that Menelaeous had died, two more cases of Push misuse had arose in the past three hours alone and the numbers of deaths were increasing day after day. The local news channel had already broadcast the story of a young woman who had been found mangled in a dark alleyway. Of course, since Push granted the user comparatively strong mental use, the media thought it was a Force user. No fingerprints, no weapons, no nothing – only a young woman with scratches all over her arms and hands and according to the coroner, she'd been strangled.

Strangled by usage of the mind alone. How convenient.

Mara sighed and raked a hand through her long red hair. She hated being stuck inside while Kyp and Jaina were out there enjoying all the fun. She needed to stay put and moderate – yippie.

Kyp and Jaina were now on the way to The Eye, hoping to find more answers concerning the murder of their informant and who had the guts to betray Enforcement and the Jedi in one move. Whoever it was had to be seven kinds of stupid.

Mara leaned against the wall and stared out towards the busy city. No matter where she looked, something was going on – she could feel it. Murders, rapes, breaking-and-entering, robbery, fights – anything she could think of was happening down there at that very minute. The downside of a planet with one huge, big city. And with an Enforcement agency who had no clue what the hell it was they were doing. This wasn't big enough to include the CSF – of course not. It was, after all, only a drug that could turn a maniac into an even bigger, telekinetic maniac – now why would that be reason to worry?

She pushed away from the window and settled back behind her desk. She still had a few reports yelling at her to be reviewed.

"Wow. I'm impressed." Jaina smiled up at the building, watching as a transparent tube lift ascended to the top. The base of various kinds of music melted into a slab of noise in front of the entrance. From the outside the club looked to be the Hot Spot for Coruscant's younger inhabitants. Four bouncers stood before the doors, dressed in impeccable black suits with little microphones pinned to the front. Each had an earpiece to listen in on disturbances going on inside the club – Kyp actually held sympathy for the person daring to be idiot enough to start a fight in a place like this.

"Look." Jaina inclined her head towards a symbol above the double doors. The eye that was branded into the coin and around it the same words "An ocean in which dreams are reflected."

"You know – for this hotshot Vishous guy, that riddle is highly un-manlike."

Jaina laughed and shook her head. "It's just a riddle."

"Yeah, it sounds girly."

They watched as a group of scantily dressed teens exited the club, two girls and a young man, holding on to each other as if they were anything but sober. One of the girls was so pale, Kyp thought she would fall over right there but she held on to her friend as if her life depended on it. The young man, on the other hand, looked very well. His Force signature was altered, though. Kyp could feel it in his very bones that this little boy – he couldn't have been older than eighteen – had consumed Push.

When they passed Kyp and Jaina, the boy glanced over his shoulder and smiled in their direction, as if he knew what Kyp was thinking. It was a sobering thought because Kyp couldn't feel him probing his mind. What if Push enabled certain individuals to spy on Force users? This drug could turn out to be one hell of a weapon concerning the Jedi.

"Come on." Kyp breathed. "Let's get this over with."

Stepping forward towards the entrance, the bounces stared at them with raised eyebrows. Kyp knew they were dressed for the occasion and they wouldn't be able to guess at their real age but still something nagged at them. Kyp stopped and grabbed Jaina's arm, spinning her around as if to kiss her. Instead he lowered his head. "Block all your thoughts the best you can. I can feel that they're on the drug and I think they can read us." He whispered.

"Are you sure?"

"No but I don't want to chance it."

He pulled away from her and grabbed her hand. Surprisingly, the bouncers let them pass without a word but Kyp could feel their looks on their backs, the questioning gazes. And when he reached out to the Force to probe their minds all he got was static. A blankness that completely cut him off to their minds – definitely on the drug.

The inside was crowded with all sorts of beings mingling in a huge, sweaty mass of bodies. Jaina stayed close by Kyp, both of them already earning curious glances. Kyp ignored them while Jaina waved at a young man who blushed a crimson red.

"That is so adorable." She whispered towards Kyp. He bent down to hear her better over the music, blaring through speakers hanging in each corner of the first room. "Still, I feel old around these kids."

Kyp frowned at her. "You're not much older than they are."

"Still."

Shaking his head, he led her through the maze of dancers into one of the back rooms – dimly lit only by a few wall sconces, the music was dampened to an almost normal level (a level that kept your ears in one piece) and the dance floor was almost empty. A few black clad people sat around couches and comfortable looking chairs around the area, staring at Jaina and Kyp as if they were intruders entering a private show.

Kyp reached out with the Force and again he was greeted by a black wall of static. It was getting increasingly annoying, especially since he couldn't be sure if these people could read him or not.

"I have a bad feeling about this." Jaina whispered and Kyp was inclined to agree.

"Come on. Let's take a look around the place and get out."

Jaina nodded and so they left the dark atmosphere room and headed towards the next, which showed to be a bit livelier. The dance floor was packed and no one paid attention to them. Kyp noticed a flight of stairs leading to an area surrounded by a balcony with a holographic sign switching from advertisement of alcoholic beverages to a sign saying "No Admittance".

A nagging feeling at the back of his mind told Kyp that what they were looking for was up those stairs. Taking Jaina by the hand, he ignored the sign and together they hurried up the steps. From the balcony, the people down below looked like cattle almost. A group of gullible young people out for a few hours of fun – a perfect way to exploit them by selling them drugs, perhaps even altering their state of mind of mind to do so. No one had an idea what exactly Push did to certain people, only that it gave them abilities for a period of time.

"This way." Jaina said, inclining her head towards a single door. She touched the control panel with the tips of her fingers and the door slid aside silently. When it closed behind them, the music was completely blocked out, leaving only an eerie silence and an annoying ringing in their ears.

"This is way too easy." Kyp commented in a low tone as they walked down a narrow corridor.

The lights around them cut off suddenly, bathing them in darkness.

"Welcome." A voice boomed from all at once, a deep, supposedly dangerous sounding voice. Kyp sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Wait, let me guess. You're the bad guy, right?"

They heard a deep chuckle before the voice replied. "Witty, aren't you?"

"I take pride in it. Who are you?"

"You'll find out soon enough." The voice laughed again. So clichéd, just like in the cheap holo-movies Kyp was forced to indulge with Han every-so-often. "But first, I think it's time for a little nap."

A hissing sound emanated from all around them and the air suddenly smelled sweet and tasted thick. There was no time to cover their faces or use the Force to clear their lungs. Blackness descended upon them in seconds.

Oh, the sweetness of sleep! Or unconsciousness, in this case.

Delving into the lands of colorful and unusual dreams. It was an adventure in itself. Although some dreams had a cringing, face-contorting-in-fear factor – before Kyp could fully grasp the waking world, his mind dealt with the last few fabrics of the dream he never wanted to have to deal with again.

There was a Hutt. With purple skin, glowing like his lightsaber. Black spots covered its body and each spot had a face of its own and they were laughing at him. All of them. One of those faces even beckoned him forward for a kiss.

Kyp groaned and rolled around, frowning as he felt something odd at his back. It took him a moment to realize his hands were bound together and his long body was twisted in an uncomfortable position, making his fists dig into his spine.

Well, this wouldn't do at all.

He took a few deep breaths before he finally managed to concentrate just enough to call the Force to him. It was a like a wake-up call, as if someone had splashed ice cold water into his face – he was wide awake suddenly, feeling replenished and as good as new. He directed the Force towards the binds around his wrists and let out a satisfied breath when the cord loosened and dropped to the ground.

And that's when he took the time to look around. He didn't recognize much besides a small room without furniture. A single light dangled from the ceiling, casting shadows against the walls. Otherwise, the room was black. Completely black, which meant no windows. No obvious escape vector.

"Oh, goodie."

Kyp got up to his feet, cursing inwardly at a sharp pain in his knee. Obviously, he was getting to old for this kind of thing. Whatever happened to the smart Jedi Masters with poetic words to lead the young generation? The History writers and Jedi who cleaned up the archives?

Yeah, the boring Jedi.

"Stop complaining." He muttered under his breath as he stepped forward and reached out to trail his fingers along the cool material of the wall. It felt like transparasteel, no obvious lines or cracks – nothing to suggest a door.

"I see you're awake."

Kyp rolled his eyes and groaned at the disembodied voice. "Not you again. Can't you just go away and leave me alone to rot in this little cage of yours?"

"You do think you're funny, don't you?"

"Not at all. There's nothing to think about. I know I'm funny."

The voice laughed again, a throaty laugh that was supposed to make people fear him, Kyp surmised. All it made Kyp do was chuckle. "Wow. You've been watching too many B-movies, haven't you? Haven't you learned that the bad guy always loses? My personal favorite would be death by impalement."

"What if I'm not the bad guy?"

"Will you stop whining and finally get on with it?"

There was a slight pause while Kyp kept walking around the room, his palm moving along the walls hoping for an exit.

"You should be afraid."

Those few words made Kyp straighten and clear his throat. He fought very, very hard not to laugh.

"What?" he croaked.

"I'm not one to be played with."

Kyp gave an exaggerated nod. "Ah, yes. Threatening me now, are you?" He waited for a response but when a few seconds passed in silence, Kyp sighed and shook his head. "Fine. You win. I'm afraid! See me quiver and shiver?"

He twitched his arms and hands a little then went back to examining the walls. Who'd this guy think he was anyway? Kyp wasn't intimidated by anyone and this faceless, no-name kriffer thought he could scare him? He snorted at the audacity.

"Did you know that Push allows me to look into your mind?"

Aw – crap.

Kyp straightened and glowered in the darkness. "Your point being?" He couldn't even begin to count up how disconcerting it felt having to talk to air. Maybe the molecules around him actually cared for the words being spoken.

"I know who you are."

Kyp arched a brow. "Do you now? Somehow I doubt that."

The disembodied voice laughed again – and that laugh was getting increasingly annoying. "As much as I would like to ascertain that you are wrong, I must admit your mind is very intriguing. The best men we have couldn't even scratch the surface."

"Woohoo for me then." He turned back to the wall and let a slight smile play across his face as his fingers felt the tiniest of cracks. He trailed along it until he could make out an outline of a door. Now all he needed was to find the controls – which were mostly likely hidden or controlled by the freak-voice annoying the hell out of him.

"But your friend, on the other hand…" His voice trailed off and he chuckled. Kyp stiffened. "Once she's out, all her blocks seem to crack. Did you know that your friend is a Jedi Knight?"

Not good. Not good. NOT GOOD.

"Really?"

"Which begs the question if you are, too. I think you are, or else you wouldn't have gotten out of those binds so quickly. It would also explain why we cannot see into your mind. Not even now."

Kyp grimaced. The only thing he felt was someone watching him but there was nothing to tell him someone was trying to poke around in his brain. A situation he'd never been in before – he could always rely on the Force but this new drug was pulling everything out of perspective. Another little thing on his I-kriffing-hate-my-job list.

"There's nothing to see in there anyway. Just a chaotic jumble of – well, chaos I guess."

There went that laugh again. Kyp swore that should he come across the man holding him against his will – which was unheard of in the first place – he'd try and disconnect the vocal cords. No one needed to endure a laugh like that for longer than ten seconds.

"Your little friend is just waking up. Would you care to see what fun she'll be having?"

"Do I have a choice?" Kyp asked darkly, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

A misty field appeared before him, coalescing into a light blue hologram screen. It looked like someone had poured a bucket of dust from the ceiling. The screen showed an equal room to the one Kyp was in, only he saw Jaina sitting on the floor. She seemed alright and he couldn't feel alarm from her – in fact, he couldn't feel anything at all.

She tugged at her arm and that's when he saw that there were cuffs around her wrist. He stepped closer and the picture zoomed back to show him a young man laying next to her – he grimaced. They were cuffed together.

"Have you ever seen a Push addict on withdrawal?" the voice asked with a hint of underlying humor. "They are ferocious. Very…medieval. Primordial almost. You must understand, Push is like nourishment to them and once taken away, they will do anything in their power to gain more." There was a short pause before he continued. "Since your pretty lady friend is a Jedi, I do believe she could take care of him on her own. But I've been doing research and the Jedi have a great weakness which negates their power."

Kyp rubbed his brow. He wouldn't really have one of those forsaken animals, would he?

"Does the word Ysalamiri ring a bell?"

Kriff.

"I don't know what you're talking about." He shrugged nonchalantly. "I just met her yesterday. All good fun, you know?"

"I somehow doubt that."

"Your problem. Not mine." He leaned back against the wall, bracing his booted foot against the cool material.

"Well, then I doubt you won't mind watching when our Push addict wakes up and kills the pretty lady. Because that's what I told him to do. And he will and do you know why?"

"So he can crawl up your butt some more?"

A light chuckle. "He wants his drug. He kills her and that's what he will receive. I trust you will enjoy the show."

There was a slight click and Kyp was left in silence. Anger growing to a fueling boiling point, he watched as Jaina poked the sleeping man to wake him.

If only she knew that waking him was one big mistake.