The flight to Tatooine had seemed interminable in length. Brinna and Canderous had drawn first shift and it had been fun to shoot the breeze with him but the more time passed, the more uneasy she began to feel and she did not know why. It was frustrating not to be able to put her finger on the source of her discomfort. She knew that it wasn't a dread of Tatooine itself for, while it wasn't exactly her favorite place to visit, she'd been there several times and had never found anything particularly nerve-wracking about it.

Once their shift ended, she and Canderous drifted off toward their respective quarters. The women's bunks were dark and quiet and Brinna made as little noise as possible as she changed her clothes and crept into her own bunk. She was tired and she closed her eyes gratefully but sleep eluded her. She kept hearing Jolee's voice ringing in her head, telling her that there was something off about her, that something was dark about her.

Nonsense. He was just rambling as he's so wont to do, she scoffed but there was a part of her that could not dismiss what Jolee had said. Sure, he was good at spewing nonsense but he was also wise and he had not been joking when he'd said what he had about her. She shivered slightly, unnerved by the sensation that Jolee knew something about her that she didn't know herself.

Sleep finally came to her but it was a restless one and, before long, she was having yet another Star Map dream. This time the map appeared to be in a cave and was surrounded by broken, tumble down pieces of statuary that looked very familiar to her, thanks to all the time she'd spent tomb raiding on Korriban. As soon as the dream ended, her eyes snapped open and she vaulted out of her bunk, dressing hastily before hurrying off in search of Bastila.

Bastila was in the cockpit with Carth and the other Jedi met Brinna with a brief nod of acknowledgement before she began talking of their shared vision. Carth was silent and Brinna thought it was because he was concentrating on landing in the spaceport but once the ship had touched down, he turned and looked at her with an expression of both wariness and concern.

"I still would like to know just why you two share this bond," he said.

Brinna threw her hands up in the air. "That makes three of us, I'm sure," she told Carth, her lack of sleep making her impatient. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Bastila stiffen at Carth's words.

"It is not always clear to even the wisest of the Jedi why the Force works as it does," Bastila said, her voice taking on the cold, formal air that she did so well.

Carth did not look happy at the rebuke and he closed his mouth, keeping his lips pressed in a firm line as he turned to look out into the spaceport.

"Look, I know tempers are wearing a bit thin and all but this is no time for us to be fighting with each other," Brinna said with a sigh. She rubbed her throbbing temples as she continued. "Carth, if I could explain this bond to you, I would. But I can't. I don't know why it exists or what caused it or if it's a permanent thing but it's here now and all that Bastila and I can do is try to bear with it as best we can."

She watched as the tension drained out of his shoulders and he sighed so softly that it was almost inaudible. "I know," he said. "I just hate not knowing what's going on."

"I know you do. So do the rest of us," Brinna said, moving over to Carth and putting a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"I suggest we prepare ourselves for we have much to accomplish here," Bastila said, her voice stiff. Brinna could read the Jedi Disapproval in Bastila's glance as she made a point of gazing directly at Brinna's hand on Carth's shoulder.

You know it is wrong, Bastila said.

Angry with herself for doing so, Brinna dropped her hand from Carth's shoulder as if it had suddenly turned hot and was burning her. I thought we agreed not to discuss this any further, Brinna responded, struggling to maintain her patience.

Bastila stared at her for a long moment before turning on her heel and stalking elegantly out of the cockpit, head held as high as if she were a member of royalty.

"You want to tell me what was going on between the two of you?" Carth asked.

"Nothing, really," Brinna lied. She could feel a slight blush steal over her cheeks and she turned away from him. She didn't like hiding things from him but she could hardly be honest with him about why Bastila was so bent out of shape.

"It didn't seem like nothing," Carth said lightly but he didn't pursue the matter further, much to Brinna's vast relief. "Bastila's right about one thing, we should get going. Aside from finding the Star Map, we have Bastila's mother and Mission's brother to find and Canderous is supposed to have his little encounter on the Dune Sea."

With a start, Brinna realized that he was right. She'd been so caught up in her own troubles that she'd forgotten all of the troubles her crewmates had to face on Tatooine.

They went out into the common room and sat down to eat with the others. Practically every muscle in Canderous's body was tense and he looked as if he'd crush anyone who came near him. Mission sat quietly throughout the meal, her face rather pale and drawn.

When the others cleared away from the table, Brinna seized the opportunity to lean over and ask Mission, "Everything okay?"

Mission sighed. "Yeah. I'm fine. I'm just thinking about Griff."

"I know," Brinna said, reaching out to squeeze the Twi'lek's hand. "I don't want to leave you behind on the ship but…"

"It's okay," Mission said, squeezing Brinna's hand in return and smiling wanly. "I know how much the Sith want your blood and since you were jumped by Dark Jedi on Kashyyyk, I'd say the chances that it'll happen here too are pretty good. No offense, but I'd rather hang out with Big Z than fight Dark Jedi with you."
Brinna was relieved to hear it and though protecting Mission from Dark Jedi was certainly on her agenda, her real reason for leaving Mission behind was because she wanted to question some Czerka representatives about Griff's whereabouts. If something had happened to him, she wanted to know it before Mission could hear about it so that she could be the one to break it to the teen. The last thing Brinna wanted was for some stranger to be the one to break bad news about Griff to Mission.

She and Mission exchanged a quick hug before Brinna went looking for Canderous. He was right where she'd suspected he'd be, hunched over the workbench as he fiddled with his weapons. The look on his face would have scared a rancor away but Brinna approached him anyway.

"I know you're anxious to face Jagi," she said, without preamble, "but I need you to stay here for now. I'm willing to bet that Bastila's mom is in the town and not wandering around the desert so I'd like to take care of that first."

"And, of course, you can't leave loverboy behind," Canderous told her, looking up at her with a sardonic twist to his mouth.

Flushing slightly with a mixture of embarrassment and anger, Brinna said, "Watch your tongue, Mandalorian, or I just might cut it out."

To her surprise, Canderous grinned, his tension evaporating, albeit temporarily. "There's the fiery Jedi I know. You're a looker, no doubt, but you're as likely to gouge a man's eyes out as acknowledge his glance."

Naturally, Carth walked into the room at that moment. He acted as if he had not heard what Canderous had said but Brinna had not missed the expression on his face. "You ready?" Carth asked.

"Yes," Brinna said, turning away in disgust as Canderous leaned against the bench and graced Carth with an indolent smile. She'd left her pack next to the workbench and she seized it so roughly that a couple of medpacs flew out and clattered to the ground.

"Let me help you with those," Canderous said in a voice of exaggerated politeness as he bent down and collected them for her. He presented them to her with a flourish. "Anything else I can do for you?"

Brinna would have liked to tell him exactly what he could do but she held her tongue and took the medpacs from him, settling for an angry glare that he met with a broad smile. Bastila swept into the room and Brinna saw a wicked gleam in Canderous's eye.

"Good morning, Princess," he said to Bastila.

The gaze Bastila leveled on him was so full of scorn and disgust that she could have been looking at an insect that she'd accidentally squished with one of her highly-polished boots. "You know I detest it when you call me that," she said, her voice so cold Brinna wondered that Canderous didn't freeze to death instantly.

Instead, he swept Bastila a bow. "Don't let me hold you three up. I know you've got important things to do," he said, exiting the room.

The tension in the air was so thick Brinna could have cut it with her lightsabers and she mentally muttered a curse at Canderous as she turned to her two companions. "Are you both ready?" Two tense nods were her reply. "Right, let's go then," Brinna said, trying not to sigh in exasperation.

As soon as they stepped outside, they were accosted by a Czerka customs agent. Brinna thought the docking fee was exorbitant but she paid it just to stop the guy from nattering away at her. Ever since Kashyyyk, she had looked at Czerka with a somewhat less than approving eye and though she knew she shouldn't take it out on the poor grunt of a custom's agent, just the name of the company was enough to make her mad. She was, however, able to gather one piece of advice that might prove useful. The agent had suggested that she speak to the jawas about artifacts and she made a mental note to do so.

They had no sooner moved away from the customs agent when Brinna found herself being addressed by an aqualish who informed her that he'd deposited the "cargo" on her ship. Puzzled, she tried to tell him he must have made a mistake but he muttered something about distribution of cargo always being disorganized, informed her that the gizka were now her problem, and then took off.

"Gizka?" she asked, turning to Carth and Bastila.

They both looked as confused as she felt and so she shrugged and decided they might as well move on. Canderous was already on her list; he could be left to deal with the gizka, whatever they were.

The sun blazed down on them with a vengeance as they stepped out into Anchorhead proper. Brinna was pretty clueless as to where they should go but a little questioning of one of the locals convinced her that she ought to seek out the hunting lodge.

Just outside of the door of the hunting lodge, a desperate-looking woman stood. She introduced herself as Sharina Fizark and implored Brinna to purchase a wraid plate from her. Brinna learned that the plate was a trophy from one of Sharina's husband's hunting expeditions but her husband had tragically died before he could gather any more or sell the one he'd obtained. The haunted look in Sharina's eyes could not help but touch Brinna's heart and she agreed to purchase the plate from the woman and gave Sharina an extra two hundred credits above the asking price. An overjoyed Sharina thanked Brinna, declaring that she and her children were saved and would now have enough credits to purchase transport to Coruscant.

"Thank you for helping that woman. It may not seem like such a great thing to you, but you are making a difference," Bastila said, astonishing Brinna. She wasn't used to hearing praise from the other Jedi and she stared at Bastila in blatant disbelief. Brinna could sense Bastila's wariness and something that felt faintly of hope and then Bastila turned away and Brinna could feel the other Jedi doing what she could to break the connection between them. With one last glance at Bastila, Brinna led them into the hunting lodge.

Once inside, she surveyed the room carefully. There was an Ithorian standing in the middle whom she took for the owner of the place. Several tables had been set up along the walls of the room and Brinna could see a Twi'lek, multiple humans, and a trio of Gamorreans. Stepping forward, she addressed the Ithorian, learning that his name was Fazza and that he couldn't buy the wraid plate she offered him because she didn't have a hunting license. He told her Czerka used them to keep track of everyone who went in and out of Anchorhead and that one could be purchased at the Czerka office.

When she was finished speaking with Fazza, Brinna began to move about the room, chatting with the hunters. The Twi'lek was named Komad and he told her that he was hunting krayt dragons. She was able to glean a bit of information from him about the other hunters, the most noteworthy being that one of them used battle droids, much to Komad's disgust, and that he was wary of the Gamorreans.

Brinna didn't miss the moue of distaste on Carth's face when she led him and Bastila over to the Gamorreans. The creatures immediately began mocking her but though she had little patience for them, she still felt they might have some information that would prove useful to her. She made little progress with them, however.

"There's only one language you Gamorreans ever understand, a blaster to your forehead," Carth said angrily as the creatures continued to abuse Brinna.

She agreed with him, though she kept her opinion to herself. She could see why the Gamorreans made Komad uneasy and with one last disgusted look at the creatures, she led Bastila and Carth away.

A human man was seated at the next table and as Brinna approached, he gave her a slow, blatant once over that made her grind her teeth and wish for patience. She put what she hoped was a pleasant smile on her face as she addressed him. He looked about shiftily and asked if his wife had sent her. Frowning, Brinna told him she was just looking to ask a few questions.

"Well of course, darling, whatever Tanis Venn can do. You know, very few human females come to Tatooine…" he said, leering at her. Her stomach turned.

"Hey! You talk to her with a bit of respect in your voice or you'll end this conversation minus a few teeth. Got it?" Carth asked, breaking into the conversation.

The burst of chivalry was as endearing as it was unexpected and Brinna found herself flushing slightly as she turned and met his eye. She could see that he was ticked just by the way he held his jaw taut. His hands twitched at his sides and she knew he was itching to draw his vibroblades. The flattery she felt over Carth's defense of her and the disgust Tanis had provoked combined to give her a very strange feeling.

"Hey, hey, hey, let's calm down, shall we?" Tanis asked smoothly, holding his hands up, palms out. "No offense was meant. You just go ahead and ask your questions."

Brinna could feel her lip curling as she said, "I'm looking for something. Who knows this planet best?"

"Well, darling, old Tanis might be just what you need. Unless you mean the dunes. I suppose only the Sand People really know them. It's serious business. I'm sure I could help you through it." The grin Tanis offered was nothing short of lecherous and Brinna could hear Carth shift behind her and could sense Bastila's extreme disgust and dislike for the man.

"You are pretty forward for a married man," Brinna told him, meeting his leer with a challenging gaze.

"He seems pretty forward, period," Bastila said, her voice dripping with disdain.

"Ooh, you're a sour one. Loosen up, we're all friend here," Tanis told Bastila.

"Perhaps you had best turn your thoughts back to your wife, sir," Bastila responded.

"Ah, the old girl doesn't understand me," Tanis said, giving Brinna what he probably thought was a pitiful gaze. She wanted to tell him that she could see why his wife had no desire to understand a pig like him. "Her loss. Now, you have questions about the Sand People or something."

It was a true test of her patience but Brinna managed to tolerate Tanis long enough to quiz him about the Sand People and the jawas. She also asked him about his hunting ventures and was not surprised to find that he was the hunter who used battle droids.

"That man was completely repugnant," Bastila said once they were outside the lodge. The vehemence of her reaction to Tanis had startled Brinna and she found herself looking at Bastila in wonderment. The other Jedi did such a good job of playing the part of the ice princess that it was disconcerting to see her show such emotion. It reminded Brinna of the way Bastila had blown up after their battle with Brejik. Perhaps the young Jedi was not as controlled as she tried to pretend she was.

"I can't believe the way he talked to you and the way he looked at you," Carth said to Brinna. She could hear the indignation in his voice.

Brinna suppressed a smile. Carth's show of protectiveness made her feel a warm glow that she hadn't felt in some time. She longed to say something to him about it but there was no way she was going to do so while in Bastila's presence, especially after what had happened earlier that morning in the cockpit.

"I've had worse," Brinna told him lightly. "Don't forget about Yun Genda."

"Thanks a lot for reminding me," Carth muttered as they started walking again.

Suddenly, Brinna found herself nearly bowled over by a Duros who was ranting about a woman named Helena. When he finally noticed Brinna, he directed his rants toward her.

"I swear, 'Helena' must be your word for pit rancor," the Duros fumed.

Something clicked in Brinna's mind and she turned and asked Bastila if her mother's name was Helena. Bastila's tightly pursed lips told Brinna all she needed to know. The Duros stared at them in disbelief when Brinna asked him where he'd seen Helena and expressed his opinion that they must be crazy if they were purposely seeking her out.

Bastila's lips remained tightly pursed as they stopped in the Czerka office on their way to the cantina. There was another Duros inside the office and this one was in the midst of a loud diatribe that was directed at a black-haired Czerka employee. When Brinna made the mistake of asking him what the shouting was about, he commenced to shout at her instead.

"It's a good day for ranting Duros," Carth murmured dryly in her ear as the Duros finished shouting and stormed out of the office.

"No kidding," Brinna muttered back at him.

The Czerka employee acted as if nothing out of the ordinary had occurred. She told Brinna that the company was having trouble with the Sand People, who were attacking the sandcrawlers sent out on mining expeditions. It seemed that the Sand People had captured and killed many of the employees and Brinna learned that Griff was one of the captives.

Great. Just great. Now I'm going to have to figure out a way to liberate Mission's worthless brother from the Sand People, Brinna thought in exasperation.

With a great deal of reluctance, Brinna agreed to take care of the Sand People for Czerka in exchange for a hunting license. She knew enough about Czerka to question if their motives were as pure as the female employee tried to make them sound. Brinna vowed that she would do what she could to check the Czerka story out before she went rushing into the Sand People enclave, lightsabers blazing.

Brinna was still trying to figure out just how she could go about getting the full story on the conflict between Czerka and the Sand People when she stepped outside and the Duros she'd seen inside the office came rushing up to her. He asked Brinna if she was the one who'd been hired to kill the Sand People and when Brinna mildly responded that she'd agreed to look into the matter, the Duros launched into an explanation that helped Brinna understand why he'd been so indignant with the woman in the office.

The Duros said that the Czerka had no interest in communicating with the Sand People and sought only to destroy them. When Brinna asked him about the attacks on Czerka employees, the Duros asserted that the Sand People likely saw the Czerka mining operations as an invasion as there'd been no discussion between the Czerka and the Sand People about territory or resources.

She mulled over what the Duros told her and decided that he had a valid point. Though the brutal murders of the miners still bothered her, Brinna knew what Czerka was and she had little doubt that they had not treated the Sand People kindly. She asked the Duros how he suggested she communicate with them and he told her there was a droid at the mechanic Yuka Laka's shop that understood the Sand People dialect. He suggested that she obtain the droid, dress in the robes of fallen Sand People warriors, and then enter the compound and speak with the chieftain.

"It's suicide," Carth said impatiently as they walked away from the Duros.

Brinna sighed deeply. "It's not the best idea, I agree. But what else can we do? I don't want to just go on a murderous rampage through the Sand People enclave if Czerka has been taking advantage of them and I doubt they'd trust any overtures of diplomacy that we might make. I really can't see any other way to go about this."
Carth paused, shaking his head at her in disbelief. "Sometimes I think you're downright reckless," he accused.

"If you don't want to come…" Brinna began, rubbing her forehead tiredly.

"Oh no! There's no way I'm letting you go in there alone. I'm coming. I just hope you know what you're doing."

"Of course I don't but that hasn't stopped me so far, has it?" Brinna snapped. She bit her lips, wishing the words had come out a little less sharply.

To her surprise, Carth shook his head at her again but there was a smile on his face. "You really are something," he told her.

She could feel herself blushing slightly and she could sense the probing tendrils Bastila sent out her way. She resisted Bastila and smiled at Carth in relief. "Give me a little credit, flyboy," she told him. "You're just used to careful military tactics. You haven't yet learned to trust in my methods."

"Was that supposed to be reassuring?" he teased.

"Perhaps we should attempt to find this droid," Bastila broke in, before either of them could say anything more.

Remember your duty, Bastila's voice said inside Brinna's head, chastising her.

Remember your place, Brinna responded tartly. I'll give you a hint: it's not inside my head.

Bastila flushed with displeasure but Brinna ignored her and began walking once more, leading them toward the cantina. As she walked, she fumed and then almost laughed when she remembered that the first Duros had called Bastila's mother a pit rancor.

Now I know where Bastila gets it from, Brinna thought wryly.

Suddenly, she sensed some very unwelcome presences and her head snapped up. The bond between her and Bastila surged fully to life. Without words, Bastila and Brinna conveyed their acknowledgement of the presences of the Dark Jedi to one another. In tandem, they freed their lightsabers from their belts.

"What's going on?" Carth whispered.

"Dark Jedi. They're coming," Brinna murmured.

The air was suddenly rent with the snap and hiss of several lightsabers being activated. Brinna tightened her grip on her own weapons as they sprang to life. When the Dark Jedi rounded the corner, she was ready for them and lashed out, calling on the Force to put them in stasis.

She succeeded with two of the Dark Jedi but the third used his own command of the Force to inflict some dark power on Brinna. She clamped her hands over her temples with a small cry. The pain she felt was piercing and it was all she could do to hold onto consciousness. She was vaguely aware of the sounds of battle as Carth and Bastila laid into the Dark Jedi but she could do nothing more than clutch her temples and hope that her head would not split in half.

It took her several moments to recover and, by the time she had, the other two Dark Jedi had just been roused from their stasis and were besetting Carth and Bastila. Once more, Brinna called on the Force but this time to give her extra speed. The Dark Jedi weren't even aware that she had recovered until she was raining blows down upon him.

The battle lasted for some time and when it was finished, Brinna could still feel the residual effects of the dark powers that had been inflicted upon her. Wincing, she bent over and placed her hands on her knees but a few seconds later she felt blessed relief as Bastila called upon the Force to heal their wounds.

"Looks like Mission was right," Brinna panted.

"What do you mean?" Bastila asked.

"She guessed there'd be Dark Jedi waiting here for us."

Bastila frowned. "Darth Malak is growing bolder. We had best proceed with caution and as quickly as possible."

Brinna nodded her agreement. "We definitely can't let him get his hands on you," she told Bastila.

There was a brief pause as a sort of pall passed over Bastila's features. Brinna could sense something at work in Bastila's mind but just as she became aware of it, the other Jedi closed herself off. "No, we can't allow that," Bastila finally said. She turned and began to lead them toward the cantina.

Brinna glanced over at Carth and saw her confusion mirrored in his expression. "What was that about?" he asked.

"I don't know," Brinna said uneasily.

Carth studied her for a moment but said nothing, finally turning and following Bastila. Brinna followed suit.

There's something she's not telling me, a small voice inside Brinna's mind insisted. There's something she and the Council are holding back from me.

"Ridiculous," she muttered to herself, forcing her thoughts away from that direction so that she could concentrate on the task at hand.

Just inside the door to the cantina, Brinna was almost bowled over by a jawa and the little creature chittered at her excitedly. It was difficult to follow him but she'd done a bit of trading with the jawas in the past and she was able to make out most of what he said. There seemed to be a problem amongst his people and he asked if she might help them and then expressed his doubt that she would care.

"Those jawas sure aren't the trusting type, are they?" Carth asked when she'd translated the gist of the conversation for him and Bastila.

"No doubt with good reason," Bastila replied.

"Well, for once, I'll agree with you," Carth said.

Relief shot through Brinna and she couldn't resist adding, "You two agreed? Somebody mark this day down."

Carth shot her a mock-sour look but Bastila didn't even react to her words. Turning slight, Brinna could see why. A woman who bore an unmistakable resemblance to Bastila stood a short distance from them. Almost as if she were sleep walking, Bastila slowly approached the older woman. Brinna could sense the torrent of emotions within the other Jedi and it startled her.

"Yes, I'm sorry, do I know you?" the woman asked.

"I am here, Mother. Or don't you recognize me?" Bastila responded, her voice hard.

"What do you expect when I haven't so much as had a picture of you since you left? Do you know how long I've been trying to find you?" Helena asked sharply.

"You knew as well as I communication would be impossible once I joined the Order. Now what is this about? Where is Father?"

"Then you haven't heard. I should have known."
"Has something happened to him? Are you going to tell me or not?" Bastila's voice betrayed little but she was apparently too overwrought to block herself off from Brinna and Brinna could feel the fear that surged through Bastila as acutely as if it were her own.

"Your father is dead, Bastila. That is part of the reason why I was looking for you," Helena said. The flat way she spoke the words chilled Brinna. Everything about the reunion thus far chilled her.

"Dead? What happened? What did you do to him?"

"Isn't this a lovely reunion?" Helena asked sarcastically, turning to Brinna. "Already she is flinging insults at me. Tell me…you're one of her friends. Do you treat your own mother this way?"

The words brought Brinna her own flash of pain and she felt herself grimace. "My mother is long dead, if you must know," she replied tightly.

"Is that so? Well, I'll be joining her soon enough, I suppose," Helena remarked, her voice almost casual.

The conversation just continued to devolve from there. Brinna was stunned by the nasty and hurtful responses that mother and daughter directed toward on another and the depth of Bastila's repugnance for her own mother made Brinna feel slightly ill. She watched the two of them direct cutting remarks at one another until it left her nearly numb.

It seemed Bastila's father had been killed during a hunting expedition and Helena wanted Bastila to find his holocron. Though Bastila brushed her mother off and claimed that they wouldn't have time to search for it, Brinna could feel just how desperately the other Jedi longed to find her father's holocron.

"Do you want to talk?" Brinna asked gently, once they were outside of the cantina.

Bastila's hands were shaking visibly and she took deep breaths of the dry desert air as she calmed herself. Brinna could still feel Bastila's emotions and they were every bit as turbulent as a storm-tossed sea.

"About my mother?" Bastila asked. "I am unsure. I seem to find it difficult to remain objective when it comes to her. I find that…disturbing."

"You don't think we should look for the holocron?"

"We have more important things to do," Bastila insisted, but her emotions betrayed her words. "Still…my father is dead. Just because we find the holocron doesn't mean I have to give it to her."
"You'd keep it for yourself?" Brinna asked incredulously. She heard Carth stir beside her and she guessed he was every bit as taken aback by what Bastila had just said.

"I don't know. Part of me would keep it just so she didn't get it. I don't like that part of me. I would have thought my training would have put me past this kind of pettiness. I wish…I really don't want to think about this." With that, Bastila turned and strode off toward the droid shop.

Carth and Brinna exchanged a glance but said nothing. He appeared to be every bit as stunned by Bastila's behavior as Brinna was. By the time they caught up with Bastila, she was already at the door of Yuka Laka's shop.

Brinna explained to the Ithorian that she'd been told he had a translation droid available and Yuka Laka acknowledged that he had a droid called HK-47 that had this capability, but he seemed to know precious little else about the droid. Frowning, Brinna tried to probe a bit further but to no avail. The Ithorian gestured toward the back of his shop and told her she was welcome to speak to the droid if she wished.

The droid turned out to be like no other droid that Brinna had ever before encountered. There was something sinister about him yet, at the same time, Brinna could not help but find some of his statements humorous, despite her better judgment. After asking him a series of questions, she decided to buy him and he advised her that Yuka Laka was raising his price out of a sense of greed and that the Ithorian might be more receptive to "aggressive" negotiation tactics.

"Are you certain purchasing that droid is wise?" Bastila whispered to her. Carth was busy eyeing HK-47 uneasily.

With a sigh, Brinna said, "I won't lie and say I don't have my concerns about him but we need him. I can't speak the Sand People dialect and, as far as I know, none of the rest of you can either."

"Very well," Bastila responded.

Brinna purchased the droid from Yuka Laka, much to HK-47's apparent relief. "Statement: I see you have purchased me, master," he said, as she returned to him. "I find this a satisfactory arrangement. My restraining bolt will be deactivated when you take possession of me. Am I to accompany you now? Shall I kill something for you?"

"Kill something for me?" Brinna asked, staring at the droid in disbelief.

"If that bucket of bolts…" Carth murmured, but she didn't catch the rest of what he said.

"Answer: Indeed. I am most eager to engage in some unadulterated violence. At your command, of course, master."

She could feel the doubt emanating from Bastila and Carth was still muttering under his breath. "Travel with me now," Brinna said uncertainly, choosing to ignore HK-47's previous comments.

"Statement: I will enter into your service now, master. I am certain you will make adequate use of my primary functions. My gears are practically quivering with anticipation."

"Er…right," Brinna said, leading everyone out of the shop.

The suns were lowering when they stepped outside and Brinna decided they'd best leave any expeditions out into the desert until the next day. They were just turning to go back to the ship when a jawa approached them.

"Iziz, I am. Leader of the tribe that is mine. You are the same kind, a leader that stands before your tribe?" the little creature chittered. With some difficulty, Brinna translated his speech, much to Carth's apparent amusement.

"Leader of our tribe. Heh. That's a new one," he said, smiling widely. Brinna made a face at him before turning back to Iziz.

"There are troubles that we have. The giants made of sand, they are horned ghosts that take us away," Iziz told her.

Brinna's head was throbbing slightly and whether this was a lingering effect from the Dark Jedi battle or caused by the ugly scene between Bastila and her mother or the somewhat frightening meanderings of her new, homicidal droid—or a combination of all three—she couldn't say. At any rate, her concentration was shot.

"HK-47, can you help me out here?" she asked.

"Translation: ninety-eight percent probability that members of the miniature organic's tribe are being held by Sand People, master. Doubtless he wishes assistance."