Four days it took to return to Coruscant. Four days of knowing there were three bodies in one of the currently unused crew bedrooms, with the temperature turned down as cool as possible. Dead bodies that existed because they had been with her. But it had given Chae the opportunity to get to know Tom better. Despite his relationship with Asia, Chae had never really had the chance to talk to him at any length. He admitted that, yes, he had been little more than a gun runner and drug smuggler at the time he'd met Asia; but meeting her had made him want to turn his life around. Hence why, once he had finished the jobs he had agreed to, he returned to Coruscant in an attempt to find her again. This had led him to getting work as a cargo pilot, shipping supplies on behalf of the Jedi, thanks to Asia finding ways to pull strings to get him the job. Once the Clone Wars started, he transported Jedi alongside the supply runs for the temple.
Falling in love with Twi'lek Jedi hadn't been part of his plan. It hadn't been Asia's intention to fall for him either. It had surprised both of them when it had happened. The hardest part was keeping their relationship a secret. Chae knew that one only too well after keeping her own relationship with Obi-Wan a secret for so many years. Only four people knew about their relationship, but Chae suspected others within the Order probably had their own suspicions about their partnership.
Chae also took up Tom on the chance to have a proper tour of his ship. It was a YV-560 light freighter that had been modified. The main thing that had changed was the scientific research bay was a crew lounge area, of sorts; and the specialised cargo holds attached to scientist quarters were refreshers. Everything else had essentially stayed the same.
The ship touched down on the landing pad at the top of one of the spires of the Jedi Temple. As Chae stepped down the ramp, she saw that there were some Temple staff waiting to take the bodies of the dead Jedi. Tom had already started down the ramp behind her and offered to deal with it to save Chae having to see the bodies again. Managing a somewhat tired smile, Chae thanked him, and she continued to make her way along the landing platform towards the Temple. As she approached the door, Asia appeared, grabbing her friend in a huge hug. Chae allowed herself to enjoy the hug, as she needed the physical contact with someone she cared about. Asia didn't need to explain the tight hug. Chae could feel it through their Force bond. Asia had found out about the outcome of her mission and was no doubt just glad to have her friend home safely.
Like Chae, Asia had changed up her own Jedi robes but it had been more due to the Clone Wars. Now she wore black leather like trousers and vest top with the outer layers of the traditional Jedi robes over the top, with the sash and belt around her waist; all in dark brown. On her forearms Asia wore metal gauntlets made from spare parts of Clone Trooper armour, which were coloured in dark colours to match the rest of her outfit.
Finally pulling herself away from the hug, Chae grinned and said, "your boyfriend will be waiting for you."
Asia blushed and began to protest, to which Chae raised an eyebrow at her. "How did you know?" Asia finally asked.
"I worked it out a long time ago because the two of you were being so obvious," Chae responded. "Also, spending several days together on the same ship, you tend to get talking to your ship mates. Tom admitted that you were together…. Now, go see him."
Asia headed towards the ship, stepping to one side to allow the Temple staff to pass her with the bodies they had been sent to collect. Seeing Tom waiting at the bottom of the ramp, Asia ran towards him and practically jumped on him for an embrace. They never took these moments for granted. They treated every secret meeting like it could be their last. The Clone Wars had killed so many. Knowing that the Temple had given Tom the go ahead to stay docked on the landing pad for the night, Asia chose to stay with him on the ship. Usually their sexual activities were rough and to the point. But this night it was gentle love making. They were more reluctant than usual to part ways the following morning.
A night's sleep in her own bed hadn't helped Chae's mood or feelings. Even though she had essentially passed out the moment her head had hit the pillow, it had been a bad night. Chae had woken up every few hours. She had also slept alone on a night when she really needed – and wanted – Obi-Wan there to just hold her. Obi-Wan was away on yet another mission with Anakin in tow. During the night, Chae had grabbed one of the pillows from Obi-Wan's side of the bed, in order to have something to hold. His scent still faintly clung to it, despite the fact he'd only shared her bed maybe three or four in the past few weeks…. Or had it been months? Everything had been so crazy that Chae had lost track.
Chae stepped into Yoda's private quarters in the Jedi Temple. Despite her best attempts to keep her nerves under wraps, Chae was still concerned at how she was going to sound when she told Master Yoda what she knew. The small, wizened old Jedi Master was sat on one of the meditation cushions. He looked up and her and smiled kindly at her.
"Something to tell me, you have," Yoda began, as Chae sat on the other available meditation cushion opposite him.
Chae pondered how she was going to start, before taking a deep breath and replying, "I found out some information… something related to the Darkside and the Sith."
Yoda allowed the younger woman the time she needed to tell him what she wanted to say. It was obviously difficult, whatever it was she wanted to tell him. Finding the courage to continue, Chae told him about what Count Dooku had told her – that Darth Sidious and Supreme Chancellor Palpatine were the same person. But that she knew she had no way of proving it; and that, yes, the Sith can and do lie. She also finally admitted to the suspicions she'd had for years, ever since Palpatine managed to get himself into power as Supreme Chancellor. Her concerns for Anakin spilled out as well.
"I know how this sounds, Master Yoda," Chae added, once she had gotten everything out that she wanted to say. "I know I sound crazy… but I just know that Dooku wasn't lying to me. He had no reason to lie at that point. He knew he was about to die. He had nothing to lose."
Yoda was quiet for a time, thinking over everything he had just been told. Eventually he informed Chae that he would meditate and get back to her with his decision on how to proceed. Whilst it was a lot to take in and process, Yoda knew in his heart that Chae wasn't lying. She truly believed what she had said was true. He now understood why she had requested to speak to him privately before presenting the information to the Jedi High Council.
The Supreme Chancellor was in his office alone. Thanks to his informants, he now knew about Count Dooku's failure. The failure that had been the cause of his death. It was a little ironic that he was killed by the daughter of his former Jedi padawan. This Jedi, Chae Jinn, was proving to be far more of a problem than he thought she would be. She knew too much, having already worked out who he really was, even though she didn't have solid proof yet. It would only be a matter of time before she came for him. If she refused to die, then maybe there was a way to discredit her and the rest of the Jedi. That was something he could use to his advantage within the senate. Make the Jedi Order look like they were a danger to him and the Republic; then he could use that as an excuse to implement Order 66 and destroy them.