Chapter 26

A Republic Commander, a Mandalorian Warrior and a Twi'lek Dancer Walk Into a Bar...

"Engage people with what they expect; it is what they are able to discern and confirms their projections. It settles them into predictable patterns of response, occupying their minds while you wait for the extraordinary moment – that which they cannot anticipate."

- Sun Tzu, The Art of War

"You heard me right. The Republic is dying and no wonder. They're weak, filled with nothing but a bunch of whining complaining girls in lingerie. Only thing Republic soldiers are good at is running," the Sith trooper said with a sneer. "You can run- but you'll just die tired, like your pathetic, anemic Republic."

Carth watched the scene unfold before him with interest over the rim of his glass, sitting at a round table, in one of the many swanky bars located in Ahto city. A pair of Sith, wearing heavy armor, had approached a lone Republic soldier sitting across from him at the nearby bar. Carth had noticed the Ensign when they'd entered, force of habit being in the military, checking out anyone in uniform. Of course he usually noticed more than most, also another habit he'd picked up in the service.

He leaned back into the cushy leather, u-shaped seat, taking a sip from his drink before placing it silently on the table. He understood the desire for the soldier to want to kick the Siths' ass and throw him into the ocean. He also knew though that Fleet regs strictly forbid any altercations on the water world. Any violence, especially the discharge of firearms, was strictly forbidden by the Manaan government and the Republic military had to adhere to their laws. It was one of the conditions the Republic had to accept if they wanted a base there. Their penalties for violence were especially harsh on the litigious planet. It made their political stance of neutrality much easier to maintain, at least publicly. Manaan was officially and strictly neutral when it came to the war, allowing both the Republic and the Sith to have embassies in the modern city. Conditionally.

"He's just going to take that?" Canderous asked, downing his whiskey in one gulp. "Not that I strongly disagree on any particular point," he added, pouring himself another drink from the bottle on the table.

Carth ignored his dig, his immediate interest in the young man across from him. He noted the Republic soldier's shaky hand move to his weapon.

"Still, I do hate the Sith more than the Republic," Canderous continued, downing his freshly poured drink.

"Good to know, considering our main objective," Carth commented wryly, rubbing his cheek thoughtfully. The Sith weren't letting up, they were right in the kid's face.

"Hopefully, he'll just walk away. He's outnumbered and he'll be incarcerated- or worse if he makes physical contact resulting in an injury with them or shoots them. It's all right here," Mission chimed in, briefly showing Carth and Canderous her datapad.

"Yeah, I'm familiar with their laws," Carth said with a nod.

"I've never had a use for this planet or their laws," Canderous sneered, downing another shot.

"You know you might want to go easy on that," Carth admonished him, knowing it would do no good.

"Pffft, this is blue milk to a Mandalorian," Canderous shot back.

The way Canderous drank, especially lately, Carth bet there was more alcohol than blood in his veins. He decided to let it go. It hadn't become a problem yet.

"I've watched the Sith in bars before. They are such bullies when they outnumber you, but the minute the odds change, they're just a bunch of cowards," Mission put in, stirring her drink with its swizzle straw and taking a sip, before she returned her attention to her datapad.

"You're right about that. Good point, kid," Carth acknowledged, shooting Canderous a sideways glance, picking up his drink and taking a sip.

"Yeah, she's right," Canderous agreed, pouring himself another shot.

"You know, I think I recognize that Ensign- believe I'll go say – hello," Carth informed them, sitting his barely touched drink on the table, rising to his feet.

"Yeah, me too," Canderous put in, downing his shot. He stood quickly, then stretched rolling his head, his neck cracking loudly. "Let's go, Fleet."

"I'm coming too," Mission announced, starting to stand.

"No," Carth and Canderous both barked simultaneously.

Mission sat back down quickly. "Talk about your bullies," she muttered, returning her attention to her tablet.

The pair sauntered over to the young soldier, sporting heavy scowls and in all out military, tough guy, swagger mode.

"Hey there, Ensign. Don't I know you?" Carth asked, clasping the man on the soldier, placing his free hand on his sidearm, chest out, standing his full height. Canderous flanked him, the pair making an impressive looking badass wall beside the ensign.

The man looked to Carth with gratitude and with confusion at Canderous. "I-"

"Hmmph, we'll finish this later," the Sith snorted derisively. Then his gaze carefully surveyed the new additions with interest before making a quick exit.

The ensign was shaking. "They are insufferable. How I ended up stationed here, I have no idea. Worst duty assignment ever."

Carth met the man's eyes. "Believe me, it's not," he corrected the soldier.

"Too easy, that was no fun at all. No wonder Mandalorians avoid this frakin' planet. All their frakin rules take away all the joy in life. I bet they meet in committee before changing their damn clothes," Canderous said tersely, motioning to the bartender for a drink. "I hate this place; it's wet, it's boring, it's soft and the whole city is like a roving sushi bar that you can't eat," he noted, rolling his eyes.

Carth shot Canderous a glare.

"Well it is, Fleet," he defended. "Leave the bottle," Canderous instructed the bar tender when he began pouring his drink.

"Who are you guys," the soldier asked bewildered.

"It doesn't matter who I am and this one-," Carth paused, using his head to motion to Canderous. "Well, it really doesn't matter. Anyway, thought I knew you, but I can see now I was mistaken. Sorry to bother you."

"Bother me? You guys, whoever you are, just saved my ass. I was ready to fight. There are cameras everywhere- their rules here- well I guess you know. They're strict and the Sith just keep trying to push us to the point where we'll shoot first," the ensign explained.

"Yeah, well don't let that happen, son. It's not worth it, not just for you, but for the Republic as well. You have to be strong. When you join the armed forces, and especially when you wear that uniform, you're representing more than yourself. Duty, honor, courage. Remember that," Carth admonished.

"Yeah - you're right and no offense but you sound a lot like my C.O., " the ensign remarked nervously, tossing some credits on the bar, preparing to leave.

Canderous laughed loudly at that. "Can't take you anywhere, Fleet. Uniform or not, you stick out like a nerf herder on Coruscant."

The man eyed the Commander warily. "Yeah, well thanks- um sir," the ensign said uncomfortably before hastening to the nearest exit.

"Hi," Traviata greeted the pair cheerfully,coming up beside Carth, putting her arm through his. "Who was that making the quick getaway?"

"I think you made him wet himself, Carth," Canderous said with a chuckle, pounding back another shot.

"Hey there, Beautiful," Carth greeted her, his face lighting up, wrapping a arm comfortably around her waist. "Oh, thought I knew him, I was wrong. Where's Jolee and Bastilla?" Carth quizzed, his brow puckering.

They were supposed to be with her, no one was supposed to leave the ship alone. After what happened on Tatooine, Carth had instituted a strict buddy system. The standing protocol was that you went out in groups of three and you never split up from your group.

"Relax, they're just outside. They're trying to get some help with directions to the sub station to go to the Hrakert Rift," Traviata replied. "They didn't need me for that and I missed you," she admitted, enjoying the way his touch made her skin come alive.

"I missed you too. You still look tired. I thought you were going to rest," Carth said, drawing her closer to him and kissing her lightly on the mouth.

They'd rented several suites at the luxury hotel in Ahto city. Carth decided to take advantage of the situation and mix a little business with pleasure. After Traviata's initial recovery, they'd landed on Manaan. It allowed the entire team a few days rest and he welcomed the chance to get Viata checked out by a Republic doctor and treated at their doctors said she was almost healed completely and only prescribed rest. That was easier said than done though, her nightmares were getting worse. Carth had noticed she was becoming increasingly moody and restless.

"You worry too much," she countered. "Besides, you're one to talk. When's the last time you got any decent sleep?" she asked, noting the deepened lines around his eyes.

"I worry just the right amount and I sleep enough. You on the other hand are still recuperating," he noted, pushing some hair off her face.

Traviata stared up at Carth, he had spent days by her bedside, waiting for her to fully regain consciousness after her rescue. Once she did, they spent a lot of time talking during her recovery. She'd admitted that she'd felt she was in danger at the lodge, but thought she could handle it. Canderous had been there with her, and she let him go, knowing something was wrong. She'd been cocky. It had been a painful lesson in humility. But it was one well learned, she hoped. Carth was not about to let it go, and she couldn't really blame him. The experience had given great credence to all of his unheeded warnings.

"Well, Commander what do you expect? That's what happens when you're on your honeymoon," she whispered playfully in his ear, gently biting it.

"You need to stop that right now, I can't focus when you're doing that," Carth murmured heavily into her ear, his hand moving down to her hip.

"You sleep, no you sleep. Oh my, whatever will we do without sleep," Canderous mocked, his distaste evident. "You two are frakin disgusting," he added, turning his back on them and sitting down at the bar. Ever since Tatooine, the couple had been incessantly affectionate. It was not the turn of events the Mandalorian had hoped for.

Carth rolled his eyes. "How old are you Canderous?"

Traviata ignored Canderous, nibbling on Carth's neck. She was determined to enjoy every moment they were together. She couldn't remember a time she was ever happier. The only mar on her complete bliss was the weighty darkness she felt enveloping her more every day. It was a feeling that had been expanding for some time now. But since her experience in the cave - it had gotten much worse. She had no doubt that Malak had connected with her thoughts somehow, during her time in captivity. She was convinced that he was somehow sharing his memories with her. Though she couldn't begin to fathom why the dark Sith Lord would do such a thing. It left her feeling heavy, like she was carrying some huge pack. Traviata hadn't shared this information with anyone. The idea of talking about it, saying it out loud, seemed impossible. Not only that, but she was terrified that at any moment, the love she and Carth shared was going to be ripped away from them. It seemed to good to be true, when it was happening to her.

"Gross. You guys really need to get a room," Mission reprimanded, joining the group at the bar. "Oh, that's right. You have one – try using it. I mean, seriously. What if I did that-"

Carth's mortified gaze met Mission's.

"Apparently, we're outnumbered. We'll continue this when we're alone," Traviata promised softly in his ear.

"I'm going to hold you to that, Beautiful," Carth warned, his eyes briefly flashing his passion. He hugged her to him tighter momentarily, before releasing his grip on her.

"We have good news, Commander. We've discovered the best route to the Ocean's surface. It was quite difficult to get any information; everyone has been reluctant to talk about it. We finally found one Selkath willing to help us though," Bastilla announced as she and Jolee joined the group.

"That's good news," Carth echoed, glancing at his chrono. It would take them roughly two hours to get back to the ship and gear up. "Is it far?"

"No, not at all. We can use the subs located on the Republic base," Bastilla replied.

"I wonder why they weren't forthcoming with that information? I mean, we've been there. I spoke at length to the Commander- That's really odd," Carth commented, his eyes narrowing with suspicion.

"A good question. You piss someone off there too, Fleet? Canderous asked.

"No- I don't see how. I don't even know anyone stationed here. It's something else. I'll do some digging, talk to Paul, see if I can figure out what's going on. Let's all get back to the ship for now," Carth instructed. "We can discuss it better there."

"Yeah, good idea. This place is full of more bugs than a Hutt's bed," Mission said, her tablet in her hand, heading for the exit.

"Who's going on this little pleasure cruise under the sea?" Canderous asked.

"I'd like you to come, or perhaps Jolee, maybe both. Let me do some checking first," Carth paused. The last thing he wanted to do was to plan a mission blindly; of course he should be getting used to it at this point. "I'll let you know back at the ship," Carth added, tossing some credits down on the bar.

"Jolee and Bastilla, do you mind following after the kid?" Carth asked.

"Of course not, Commander. We'll meet you back at the Ebon Hawk," Bastilla answered.

"You two try not to get yourselves lost on the way back," Jolee offered lightly, giving Traviata's arm a squeeze. "Maybe you and I can have a talk when we get back to the ship," he added, his expression and tone troubled. "It's been ages since just the two of us chatted."

"Sure, Jolee. Sounds good, I mean if there's time," Traviata said offering a smile, but not meeting his eyes. He knew there was something troubling her. She'd been trying to bury her concerns about Malak and the darkness she felt hanging over her. He was sharp though, and his skills were remarkable.

"Try to make time, my dear," Jolee suggested, his eyes meeting Carth's briefly, and then he followed after Bastilla.

"What was that about?" Carth asked Traviata, his eyes narrowing.

"We haven't had much time to chat since – well you know since, Tatooine" Traviata answered, her eyes watching the old Jedi leave the bar.

"You two coming," Canderous asked, tossing down some additional credits.

"Yeah," Carth answered taking Traviata by the elbow.

"We'll be right behind you. You go ahead," Traviata countered.

Traviata met Carth's troubled gaze. "I can't tell what exactly, but that Republic Commander, the one we met when we first got here? The one on the base? I'd felt a great unease in him, but I thought it was just me. Could have something to do with the subs. I'm sorry, I'd have mentioned it, but I've been feeling off since Tatooine."

"It's okay, don't worry about it, it's certainly not your fault. But, let's go. I want to talk to Paul as soon as possible. Plus, I'll feel better when we're all on the ship. Something's not right with this," Carth informed her, leading her to the door, stepping quickly.

They made their way through the busy streets unimpeded, until Carth stopped dead in his tracks. A man was staring at them, blocking their path.

"Carth? Carth Onasi?" the man said with shock.

Carth's hand hovered over his blaster for a second; the light of recognition came to his features, and then surprise.

"Jordo? Is that you?" Carth asked, clasping the man's outstretched hand in greeting.

"My word, it is you," Jordo's features and voice astonished, but it was soon replaced with a broad smile. "What the hell are you doing here? Of all the people and in all the places, I can't believe they pried you off the bridge of the Spire," he added.

Carth grimaced, giving his head a slight shake. "The Endar Spire was destroyed in a battle with the Sith over Taris, Jordo," he paused letting that piece of information sink in.

"Oh, damn. I've been busy, behind on my Republic news I'm afraid. I've been working as a pilot in the private sector. I was directed here to pick up some Czerka officials. My injuries forced me into early retirement- I'm sorry, Carth," he apologized. "She was a fabulous ship and had a wonderful crew."

"That she did, Jordo. It's just one of the many tragedies of this war," Carth noted.

"Yeah, I'm – I'm sorry about your wife, um. Well, I mean I haven't really gotten the chance to see you since it happened. It's been a long time-My condolences," Jordo offered, clearly uncomfortable.

"Thanks, Jordo – I'm sorry, I forgot my manners. I just wasn't expecting to run into you of all people," Carth paused, his arm wrapping around Traviata's shoulders. "Jordo, this is Traviata-Traviata Onasi, we were recently married," Carth explained, his gaze now on his wife.

Jordo seemed to brighten sincerely at this bit of news.

"Nice to meet you, Traviata. This is a great guy here, though a hard ass of a boss. I'm really happy for you both," Jordo replied, offering his hand to Traviata.

"Nice to meet you, Jordo," she returned, shaking his hand. "You worked with, Carth?"

"Oh, more than that. I've known Carth – well all his life really," Jordo answered.

"Yeah, Jordo and I go way back. We grew up together on Telos IV, we came up together in Fleet," Carth explained.

"We got in more than a few scrapes together when we were kids. Tearing all over on our swoops. Those were the days," Jordo said wistfully.

"Huh, we're lucky we didn't get killed. We were idiots," Carth corrected.

"You still ride?" Jordo asked with interest.

"When I can find the time. Which isn't as often as I'd like," Carth answered honestly.

"Wow, sounds like you two have quite a history together," Traviata commented.

"Yeah, we lived a couple of streets over from each other when we were young and then later also, once we'd grown up. Our wives would get together and our kids played and fought together-" Jordo stopped abruptly.

"Did you say kids?" Traviata asked, her questiong gaze going from Jordo to Carth.

Silence.

"I – I'm sorry about- well, you know – Dustil-" Jordo stammered, breaking the silence after several moments.

Carth cleared his throat, looking at the ground for a moment and then shaking his head slightly. "Yeah, I know. Thanks- Jordo."

"Dustil? Carth, who is Dustil?" Traviata asked, trying to be patient.

No one answered. The only sounds were the passersby and the overhead speaker system with canned music, or something passing for music.

"Have you seen him lately?" Jordo asked uneasily, first to break yet another uncomfortable silence.

Carth's confused look met his. "Seen him lately? Jordo, you must know Dustil died on Telos during the attack."

"Carth, who is Dustil?" Traviata asked, her eyes going from one to the other; frustrated, trying to make sense of the conversation.

Jordo shifted uneasily in his stance, and then scratched his head. "You think he's dead?"

Traviata instinctively took Carth's hand in hers. He was in terrible pain; she wasn't sure who Dustil was, but her husband was in emotional agony.

"Jordo, Dustil is dead," Carth corrected him woodenly. He turned his gaze to Traviata. "Dustil is- was my son. He died on Telos IV with his mother during the attack," Carth explained.

"Carth, I don't know how to say this – Dustil is alive. Well at least he was a couple of months ago when I saw him," Jordo explained, his eyes shifting about the area.

"It's impossible, you're mistaken," Carth corrected, his eyes cutting into Jordo. It was great to see him, but this was like pouring sulfar into an open wound.

"No, I really don't believe that, Carth. I know Dustil. I know his voice, I know what he looks like. I even said hi to him," Jordo continued.

"Jordo, I looked everywhere. I never found a trace of him. He must have been in the garage, I think- it was- it was mostly just a pile of ash" Carth insisted, his heart pounding fiercely. Jordo had to be wrong, it couldn't be true.

"Where did you think you saw him?" Traviata asked Jordo, both her hands wrapped around one of Carth's.

"I was dropping some Czerka reps off on Korriban…" Jordo trailed off hesitantly.

"Korriban?" Carth demanded, his horrified shock evident. "You think you saw my son on Korriban? What the hell would he be doing there, Jordo?" Carth demanded, his voice rising.

"Well, um-" Jordo replied

"What is it, Jordo? You're trying to spare my feelings now?" Carth asked acidly. "For frak's sake, if there's something more, just spit it the frak out," he spat, shaking off Traviata's hold, his hands on his hips as he took a step forward.

"Carth, I'm really sorry – I – I thought- Damn," he paused shaking his head. "He's a student at the Sith Academy there," Jordo said sadly.

"No- now I know you must be mistaken," Carth said, his voice angry. "Dustil would never do that. You know that."

"I was surpised, for certain. He was out with his buddies, they were all wearing the Sith cadet uniform," Jordo's eyes met Carth's angry gaze. "Listen, I'm sorry- But I'm sure, go see for yourself if you don't believe me," Jordo offered. "Again, I'm sorry; I thought you knew, Carth."

Another long silence.

"Well, I have to go. It was good to see you again Carth, and it was lovely to meet you, Traviata," Jordo said awkwardly.

"Yes, you as well Jordo. Sorry, this is just a lot to absorb- thank you though for the information," Traviata returned, glancing toward Carth and then Jordo. Carth was about to lose it, she had to get him to the ship.

Jordo nodded and then made a hasty exit, disappearing into the throng of people busily making their way about the palatial thoroughfares of Ahto City.

Traviata put a hand on Carth's chest, she could feel his rapidly beating heart. "Let's get back to the Ebon Hawk," she urged softly.

Carth's tortured gaze met hers, she instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck, leaning into him, wanting to relieve his pain with every fiber of her being. He stood there immobile, his mind racing with a million thoughts.

"Carth, we need to get back to the ship, now," she said soberly, disengaging herself from him. "We're drawing attention to ourselves," Traviata let her gaze wander over the crowd and then to the myriad of 'hidden' cameras. "We don't know what's going on here. We're being watched, and who knows by who. We need to get back to the ship."

Carth's now alert gaze met hers at the last part and he nodded once. "Right, we need to go now," he took her by the hand and quickly made his way to the docking bay.

Once on board the Hawk, Carth headed immediately for the bridge, passing Canderous in the main hold, the sound of his heavy boots thudding loudly against the steel grating.

"Hey, what's going on?" Canderous asked, before taking a bite out of a huge sandwich that required both of his large hands to hold. His questioning gaze followed Carth's quickly retreating form out of the hold before settling on Traviata, who paused momentarily.

"It's complicated, but if I'm right we're about to dust off and head to Korriban at a speed that may possibly break records," she answered, before continuing her trek after her troubled husband.

"Wait. But why now? I thought we were going on the submarine," Canderous' eyes scanned the now empty room, then stared at his sandwich. He took a bite and then tossed it onto the plate in front of him. Something happened to get Fleet's blaster coil overheated to make him want to race off to a Sith world. He knew that was the planet Carth had the most concerns about exploring.

When Traviata arrived in the cockpit Carth was busily studying the many displays that lined the main control panel.

"Carth, we need to talk," Traviata said, coming up beside him, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Can you check the status of the deflector shields?" he shot back, his fingers flying over the controls.

"Carth, just take a minute and talk to me. I get it, you need to go see if your son is really alive. We have to go there anyway, but please, just take a moment-"

"Traviata, do you know what my last words were to my son?" Carth asked soberly, fixing her with a stare, momentarily pausing from his tasks. She shook her head wordlessly.

"I was on a mission, as usual. His mother and I would communicate mostly by recorded videos when I was deployed. Well just hours before the attack on Telos I'd received one of those messages telling me how Dustil had been secretly working on my old swoop bike. My first swoop bike, to be exact, " Carth paused, staring darkly at nothing, replaying the events in his mind.

"I didn't mind that so much, him working on it. But then she told me he'd snuck out with the bike and had been racing it- well, you know what kind of people typically race swoops," Carth trailed off.

"Not the kind of people you wanted your son associating with," Traviata supplied, glad he was talking about it with her.

"Exactly, not to mention how dangerous they are. It takes a long time to learn to master driving a swoop," Carth agreed, his eyes drifting to hers and then away again.

"Anyway, when I found out, I was enraged. I immediately com'd Dustil – we had a huge fight about it- In my mind, he was just a kid, but he was getting ready to come into manhood- hell, he'd be a man by now..." Carth shook his head at the idea.

"I have leave scheduled soon and when I get home there will be hell to pay, young man," Carth said darkly. "Those were my last words to my son. He got mad and ended the transmission." Carth swallowed visibly.

Traviata squatted down beside him and caressed his face, her eyes trying to meet his. "Carth, look at me."

She stared into his pain ridden face. "I don't know if he's alive or not, but I do know this: if he is alive, we will find him," she promised. "You know, I'm sure he knew you loved reacted like any loving parent would- "

"Parent? Yeah, well great job I did of that," Carth corrected, interuppting, his voice rising. "I was going to teach him to ride swoops one day- ME - when he was ready- older. I was- and someone else...," Carth trailed off, pounding the bulkhead with his fist. "I wasn't there for him, I was never home when he was growing up and then when my own family needed my protection – where was I?" Carth said heavily, his self-disgust evident.

"You were doing your job, and when you knew they were in trouble you did everything you could to get to them," Traviata answered, taking his hand in hers.

Carth stared at her for a long moment. "Well maybe I need a new profession- if I can't even protect my own family. Look at what's happened to you," snorted contemptuously.

"You can't compare the two, they're completely different situations. Plus, I'm a soldier like you, not to mention I'm a Jedi. I have my duty to follow as well. You've saved my life countless times now. I'm sure you were a wonderful-"

"I wasn't there much," Carth cut in, frowning. "I can't change the past but I am sure as hell going to find out if by some miracle my son survived. Then do my damnedest to not make the same mistakes," Carth returned.

"You're not in this alone, we'll go look for Dustil together," Travita answered. "Surely you know there isn't anything I wouldn't do for you. Besides, nothing would bring me greater pleasure than to be a part of reuniting you with your son."

Carth's eyes scanned her face, and then he caught her up into a tight hug. " I know that, I do, and I'm sorry to have to ask you to do this. I've been trying to figure out a way to keep you off Korriban, and here I am dragging you there," Carth apologized, releasing her, but taking her face in his hands. "I hate that you have to go to that planet. But I never imagined anything like this happening. I don't know what else to do."

"We would have ended up on Korriban eventually. There was no way of escaping that, no matter how hard you tried," she answered. "The important thing is that your son may be alive."

She'd hoped for more time to prepare for the dark world, but under the circumstances, there was no postponing it. They had to go immediately and as quickly as possible. Trap. The word fluttered around in her mind like an elusive butterfly. Could this be a trap? She'd reached out with the Force to get a read on Jordo while they were talking, she'd sensed no deception in him. Carth didn't seem to be considering the idea at all, which was unusual for him.

"If it had been anyone else but Jordo – I'd have thought it was too convenient, some kind of trap even," Carth said, echoing her thoughts, his hands falling to her shoulders.

So he had considered the possibility after all.

"I wondered the same thing. If it is, I don't believe Jordo is aware of it. I sensed no duplicity in him, Carth," she shared.

Carth nodded. "Yeah, he's a good guy. If he says he saw Dustil – I still can't get my mind wrapped around it. He must be mistaken, doesn't matter- I have to check it out," Carth said, seeming to make up his mind he returned his attention to the control panel.

"Will you check those deflector readings? And will you get Canderous up here? Oh and can you get Zaalbar and HK to make sure all the gear is stowed in the cargo bay?" Carth asked distractedly.

Traviata stood, he was going to be consumed by this until he checked out the Sith Academy himself.

"Yes, of course," Traviata responded, walking toward the adjoining corridor.

"Oh and see if you can get Mission to rig up some kind way we can change our ship ID for when we land. If anyone can do it, she can," Carth asked. It was a long shot, but it was worth a try.

"I'll do that," Traviata said.

"Someone needs to put in the coordinates to Korriban so the calculations are finished when I'm ready," Carth added over his shoulder.

"Got it," Traviata tossed back.

"Also, when you get a minute, you'd better pull up all the intel we have on Dreshdae. That's the city on Korriban where we'll be landing, it's where the Academy is," Carth added. "They're won't be much, but any information will help."

Traviata let go a long breath, if he'd stop giving orders she could get busy doing what she already knew needed to be done. He wasn't normally given to micro-managing but nothing about this was normal.

"Hey, and one more thing," Carth said, keying madly at his control board.

Traviata stopped, reminding herself to be patient. She'd been running short of that lately. "Yes?"

"I love you," he reminded her.

"I love you too," she hesitated, hovering at the edge of the room and then decided to move on with her many tasks. She had a strong sense of foreboding, maybe it was the thought of going to the Sith planet.

Trap. As hard as she tried, she couldn't rid her mind of the thought.