Chapter 6 is up. Sorry this took so long. I'll try to do better. Hope you enjoy.

It was still dark when I woke up. I had slept extremely soundly and found that I wasn't even the slightest bit groggy as I got myself to a seated position. There were several other members if our group sleeping around me, so I crept out of the tent as quietly as I could manage. Fortunately, I had always had very good night vision, so I was able to exit the tent without disturbing anyone.

The night sky was already starting to lighten with the dawn. In another thirty minutes or so, it would be morning. I hadn't actually meant to sleep the entire night, but since I hadn't woken up once during my slumber, I figured I must have needed the rest.

The wind was fairly light, which made the temperature outside seem just a tad warmer. I made my way to the makeshift mess hall, determined to find something to drink. Standing outside the tent was Harking, sipping some type of hot beverage. It made me wonder if he had gotten any rest at all during the night.

"Well, well, well, look who finally decided to wake up. You must have slept like a rock." He said when he noticed my approach.

"Yeah, I think I might have overexerted myself over the last two days. I didn't wake up once last night."

"Well, you needed the rest. I was beginning to worry about you."

I couldn't help but smile at the man. "I appreciate your concern, Lieutenant. The next time you see me overdoing it, throw a rock at me or something. I'm obviously a poor judge of my own limits."

"I'll do that, though isn't it bad luck to throw a rock at a Jedi? Not to mention it's definitely bad manners to throw a rock at a beautiful woman." He joked. "And please, call me Sarin. There's no need to be so formal with each other."

I hadn't realized it until that moment, but this was the first time anyone had used Harking's first name. The colonel had simply introduced him by his rank and I hadn't thought to inquire further. It was then that I realized something else. I was almost positive that Sarin was flirting with me. I didn't know if he understood that Jedi weren't allowed to have romantic attachment, but then it wasn't entirely common knowledge around non Jedi.

Suddenly, my throat was very dry and I desperately needed that drink I had originally been searching for.

"I'll remember that. Excuse me, I really need a drink. I'll talk to you later."

I slipped into the tent and the Lieutenant turned to watch me enter. The place was almost totally deserted.

"Oh, I almost forgot to ask. In about a half hour or so, a couple of my boys will be going out to take down the proximity sensors, so we can get moving as early as possible. You seem to enjoy the scenery around here, if you wanted to tag along?"

By that time, I had found and had managed to get down several large swallows of some type of hot tea. I had also been able to compose myself from our earlier conversation.

"Sure, I'd love to."

"Great, I'll let Wilkins and Tao know to wait for you before heading out. Just go over to the west side of the camp when you're ready."

I nodded in reply, drinking more of my tea. Harking left the tent and I was able to breath. I took a seat, try my best to at least look comfortable. I honestly had no idea how to deal with being an object of flirtation. It happened occasionally on Tython, but all of us padawans were too hyper aware of being caught by our masters to flirt for long. Here, in the real world, with no master around to catch me, I was at a loss even as to how I should have responded. Should I have informed him of our rules or simply took the attention as a compliment and moved on. I just didn't' know. He was an attractive man. Jedi or not, I still had eyes.

I pushed my thoughts aside as I finished my tea and headed to the western side of the camp, where I found two of Harking's men milling about. They had to be Wilkins and Tao. They were both tall men, but one of them was a human with olive skin, dark hair and almond shaped eyes, while the second man was Mirialan, with dark green skin, pale blue eyes and several black diamond shaped tattoos which ran down both of his cheeks and up his forehead.

"Good Morning, Master Jedi. You didn't' need to rush on our account." replied the human.

"I'm fine. I'm looking forward to the walk."

The Mirialan laughed. "The lieutenant said you were probably the only person on this planet who is enjoying being here."

I shrugged. "I'm making the best of a complicated situation. Kill me for being an optimist."

"I don't mind. It's nice to have someone around that's in a good mood, for a change. Shall we get going?" said the human, whose uniform read Tao, meaning the Mirialan was Wilkins.

"Ready when you boys are."

We adjusted our gear and headed out. I made sure my lightsaber was still firmly affixed to my belt. I was beginning to feel naked without it and I had learned that around here, it was best to stay armed at all times.

There were four total sensors, forming a full rectangle around the camp. The technology was well adapted to the cold and they functioned well, even during a storm. If even one of the sensors when out or the line between them broken in any way, an alarm was triggered in the camp. They were simple, but highly effective, technology. I silently observed while the men took down the equipment, allowing my senses to flow outward. Not terribly far, but far enough to make sure no one snuck up on us while we worked. Not that anyone could sneak up on an someone on an open ice plain.

It took the better part of an hour, but we had three of the sensors packed up and were just approaching the fourth. I was enjoying the morning air and the white/blue calm of the planet. We had nearly reached the sensor when I felt several humanoid presences around us. They were fairly far off, but they were definitely surrounding us and closing in fast. However, I could not see them.

"Wait. I feel someone." I said, halting the men. "Several someones."

The soldiers pulled out their weapons and started looking in all directions.

"I don't see anyone." The Tao said, continuing to look around.

I was confused. I could feel them. Six lifeforms creeping closer and closer to our position. Suddenly, a man wearing some type of cloaking device appear only a foot away from me. He was dressed all in white and it took me a few moments to realized I was looking into glowing red eyes.

The next moment, five more men, all with red eyes, appeared around us, weapons pointed. We were surrounded. By Chiss. I couldn't see much of their skin, but I knew their eyes. They were my eyes.

I pulled out my lightsaber and ignited it. The action obviously startled one of the men, who inadvertently sent a bolt flying our way from the side. With one smooth motion, I sent the bolt back at its owner, impacting him on the shoulder.

"Stop firing!" Shouted one of the men. "We need her alive."

I took a fighting stance and centered myself. They had made a mistake by stating that they wanted me alive. This meant that I needed to put myself between them and the two men with me. If they only cared about me, they could kill the others without a second thought. I decided to take a chance and hoped that the two soldiers at my back would follow my lead.

I took a deep breath and slashed out with my lightsaber. The two men in front of me easily dodged my attack, but they did what I had hoped they would do, they both jumped to either side, giving me an opening facing our camp. I whipped around and my soldiers, who had fortunately been thinking the same thing I had been, rotated with me, causing all six attackers to be positioned in front of us, with our camp to our back.

My plan had worked and I now had a better defensive position. "Alert the camp. I'll hold them off." I stated calmly. My heart was pounding, but I was impressed that my voice came out firm and steady. Wilkins and Tao hesitated for a few moments. I was afraid they wouldn't want to leave me behind. "Go!" This time my voice was a little less stable.

The soldiers got my meaning and began to back up quickly. The Chiss to my right started to point his weapon in their direction and I threw my lightsaber at him, guiding it with the Force to slice the blaster is two. My lightsaber returned to my hand and I prepared to send it out again if they made another move.

To my surprise, the attackers didn't attempt to fire at the fleeing soldiers again. Their attention was now firmly on me, which meant that I had to hold off six armed men, who were too spread out for me to defend against effectively. I had thought it would only be five, with my destruction of the one blaster, but to my disappointment, the unarmed man pull out a smaller spare weapon out of his coat.

On my left side, I heard one of the Chiss saying something in a language I didn't know, then, in accented basic, said. "We don't have time for this." He pointed his weapon at me and as I prepared to defend against the shot, I felt a second shot hit me on the left side of my back. I remembered shooting pain, then nothing.

To Be Continued...