Chapter 24

Watched

The instant the loading ramp of the Ebon Hawk lowered onto the dusty grounds of the Tatooine docking bay, Kael was assaulted by a dusty gust of wind which struck his face with stinging particles of sand. The twin suns of the planet had both gone down a little over half an hour before their arrival, and the temperature was just low enough that the thick-haired Big Z had no reason to complain, save for all the sand which immediately became embedded deep in his fur. The Wookiee complained with a low growl, and his long-time companion chuckled softly behind him, although the bare skin of her lekku were also not spared from the bombardment of sand.

Kael gulped a little before lifting his right foot to begin his descent down the loading ramp. The heat of Tatooine and the unquestioning fact that they would have to brave the harsh deserts to get to wherever they needed to go was one thing – rather, he felt deep concern about the need to keep a close watch at all times for spies who were in league with the Sith Empire. Every soldier in the Republic knew that the Sith had made every effort to undermine the security and war capabilities of the Republic by closely co-operating with Czerka and Exchange operatives, never mind bribing every corruptible planetary official they could reach.

All around the docking bay, Kael could see numerous utility droids of various designs presumably performing checks and maintaining docking schedules for the customs officials. Looking at a few of the people dressed in an all-too-familiar orange uniform, a sigh escaped the lips of Bastila who recognized them as Czerka employees. Unfortunately for her, she had many unpleasant memories of them trying to milk every credit they could out of her, all the while looking lecherously at her chest. Still, it was always funny to see them fall dismally for the Jedi Mind Trick, the oldest trick in the book for a Jedi who was not in the mood to waste credits on important missions.

"Czerka," Carth muttered as he walked alongside Mission and Audrey. "Who'd have guessed?"

"Psst, hey Kael," Mission discretely nudged the Padawan's arm, "reckon you can…y'know…Do that old Jedi Mind Trick on these guys? I really wanna see them act like total retards."

Kael couldn't help but crack a grin as he walked down the loading ramp and towards a Czerka employee who stood several yards in front of him, behind a customs stall. The man was relatively young, dark-haired and with slightly tanned skin, and had relatively vacant eyes that immediately told the Jedi among the group that he could be taken hook, line and sinker by even the weakest Mind Trick.

"You really wanna see it for yourself, huh?" Kael snickered. "Alright, then. I've only studied it and how it's supposed to be used in the Academy, but I guess I can put in some practice. We'll just walk over to him and—gaah!" he suddenly cried out in pain, clutching his hand against his aching chest. His insides felt as if they were squeezing and contracting inwards to the center of his heart, as if they were strings being yanked and brutally pulled in by a cruel puppet master. Flashes of blinding white and blue assaulted his mind and eyes, and he fell to his knees upon the surface which still burned hot from the blazing afternoon sun.

"Kael! Kael, are you alright?" Elena immediately crouched down to Kael's right, placing her hands around her unknowing fiancé while Bastila did the same from his left.

But Kael couldn't feel their hands upon him. Without a second's warning, eerie images of two imposing and dark figures came right before his eyes, their crimson sabers drawing upon him with murderous intent.

-o-

A shrivelled shriek filled the air as another body of a Tusken warrior hit the ground, his dark blood seeping out of his mouth and wetting the sands. The dark, masked figure who stood over the carcass soon released his telekinetic hold over the victim, and soon the brutal contracting forces which utterly crushed the Tusken's internal organs died down. It was a moonless night – fitting, given the horrific fate which had befallen the Tusken camp which was unfortunate enough to be in the way of the two fallen Jedi Knights.

Revan let out a puff of condescension at the tattered remains of the one who styled himself as Chieftain of the Tusken tribe. Behind the dead body stood a female, her hand trembling as she held in front of her a small, pitiful dagger, pointing it at the Sith Lords, the unmasked one not being able to help grinning darkly at her stupidity as he stepped towards her, lightsaber in hand.

The female's metal mask glowed an increasingly bright shade of red the closer Malak approached her. Soon enough, the last of her feigned courage left her, and the dagger fell limply onto the sand as she fell backwards against the hard stone wall. Beads of sweat became visible on the bottom rim of the mask and dripped steadily into her lap as she looked up at the Sith in despair. Then, just as Malak raised his lightsaber viciously, preparing to behead the woman with a single swing, the eerie voice which Kael recognized from his earlier vision spoke.

"Stop," Revan said, holding his right hand up at his apprentice. "That is enough, Malak."

"We've already slaughtered the entire camp, Revan," Malak hissed, his eyes glaring down at the female. "What harm will one more kill do on my conscience, when I no longer have one?"

"I have ordered you not to kill that woman, Malak. My orders are final, and you will do well to remember that from this point on." The master's voice was solemn and commanding, and Malak knew better than to risk incurring the wrath of one so powerful as him. With an irritated growl, he deactivated his lightsaber and clipped it back onto his belt, virtually slamming it in in frustration.

"Mercy is weakness, Revan," Malak narrowed his eyes at his tutor while doing his best to avoid glancing at the woman who quickly scurried past Revan, not even bothering to look back. "For one who aspires to rule over the Sith, you seem to have forgotten that simple fact."

"Hmph, you must feel so tough from murdering helpless women and children," Revan mocked, and Malak almost instantly returned his words with yet another vicious glare. "Besides, our objective here was never about committing genocide on the Tusken camp. We came here for one thing, and one thing only: the Star Map." He proceeded to walk right over the dead Tusken Chieftain's body and through a wide curtain made of animal hide which shielded the inner contents of the camp from view. The room was almost completely pitch black from a lack of light due to the tented roofings, but barely visible in the middle of the large chamber was, as Revan predicted, another Star Map. Just as he had seen on Dantooine, a large sphere was held in place by a cross-shaped piece of stone, its end tips arching upwards in a smooth curve. Reaching out through the Force, Revan let his presence be known to the device which immediately levitated in midair before splitting into thousands of tiny spheres to represent the layout of the galaxy.

Faintly yet surely, a white beam of light stretched across from the sphere which represented Dantooine, to another far away which represented Tatooine. Even fainter lines pointed towards Kashyyyk, Manaan and Korriban, the planets which were yet to be visited by the power-hungry Sith Lords.

Having had enough of the stench of the deceased all around him, Malak grunted and turned his back to the Star Map. "We got what we came for, Revan. I suggest we leave."

"Malak," he said coolly, stopping his apprentice in his tracks. He could feel the contempt Malak felt for him from where he stood. "I will say this once, and I will say it once only: let this be the final time you shed blood needlessly."

Malak merely grunted. "With the power we are set to gain, what have we to fear? Who will stop us? Why should I even consider showing mercy?"

"Have you learned nothing at all about power, Malak?" Revan now noticeably lost his cool demeanor, and instead spoke with a scathing tone. "History has shown time and time again that the harder you try to cling onto power, the more it seeps from your grasp. An empire which is run by fear will ultimately collapse unto itself. For the objective we have set, we must gain the people's loyalty, trust and voluntary compliance. Destruction and threats will get us nowhere – rather, they will hinder us."

"…" Malak remained silent, although he was gritting his teeth behind his sealed lips.

"And let this be the last time you question my motives or objectives," Revan said, walking past his disgruntled apprentice and out the hide curtain back into the chieftain's main chamber. "I grow tired of your complaining. I am in need of competent commanders, not whiners. Question me again and you will come to regret it – I assure you of that. Now come."

Like a scowling, chastised dog trailing after its master with its tail between its legs, Malak followed dutifully, suppressing the murderous intent that lay dormant in his heart towards one who was once his best friend. His blood felt as if it was boiling in his veins, and for a moment he lost all concentration, barely managing to stop in his tracks before he walked into his master who strangely stopped in front of him.

Yes, Revan could sense his anger. He could feel it boiling to the surface. The Dark Lord turned around slowly, looking up at the man who easily loomed over him by more than a head's length. The Force brimmed around him, and the thin walls of bantha hide which formed a perimeter around the outer sections of the camp shook and trembled eerily. Suddenly, he pulled out his lightsaber, throwing Malak into a state of alert as he immediately backed away from him. But then, instead of charging at his upstart of an apprentice, Revan threw his lightsaber at a portion of the hide wall to the right, the blade cracking into life as it sailed through the air. A howl of pain came from where the weapon was thrown, and out the torn section of the wall fell the dead body of a Tusken warrior who had hidden away for the opportune moment to carry out a last-ditch ambush.

"You see, Malak?" Revan sighed, recalling his saber to his belt through the Force. "Your bloodlust, combined with your short-sightedness, could very well be your downfall."

-o-

"Are you alright, Kael?" the soft voice of Elena, always so calming and assuring, echoed in his head, bringing him back to reality after his mind finally shut out the vision which struck him unexpectedly. Looking to his right, he was met with the sight of her steel grey eyes, and to his left, Bastila's similarly grey eyes stared at him with concern.

"I…I'm fine, thanks," Kael replied with a weak smile, reaching with his left hand to squeeze her right in gratitude. The mental prison of Dantooine now far behind her, Elena acted on the instinct of her heart and fully returned Kael's affection with a tender squeeze of her own before helping him back into a straight standing position. Bastila got up also and sighed in relief – or, rather, what was comprehended at least by Kael and Elena as relief as opposed to hidden jealousy.

"Strange, though," Bastila said, her fingers eerily twitching as she spoke. "Normally, Kael would be the only one who would see his visions, and he'd later speak to us about them. But this one…this one was felt by all three of us, and we saw the Star Map as well!"

It was true. While he saw what unfolded in his vision, Kael could also sense the presence of his two mentors watching along with him. Naturally, he shrugged off the strange feeling, given that Elena could also feel the pain he experienced during his fight with Juhani, Belaya and the kath hounds. Although he appreciated the fact that the strengthened bond between them could pay handsome dividends in future battles, he thoroughly disliked the idea of causing either of them pain if they shared the full experiences of his visions with him.

"You actually saw the Star Map?" Carth asked. "Where was it located?"

"Force knows," Kael shrugged. "It was in a Tusken camp that Revan and Malak practically decimated. Probably far out in the desert somewhere."

"Not much of a lead, but at least we have one now at least," Canderous grunted from behind. "We should probably look around this locality for clues, hints, anything. And for sure as hell, we need a proper map uploaded into the datapad."

Elena nodded. "Canderous is right. And Kael, chances are that you'll be receiving more of these visions in higher frequency and intensity. Just don't shy away from telling me or Bastila about them, ok?" Glancing to her left, she saw that the others, especially Carth, had uneasy looks on their faces, almost as if they were suspicious of something. "On second thought, share it with any one of us. What affects one of us will affect us all."

"Umm, could I chime in for a sec?" Mission politely spoke behind them, waving her hand briefly towards the three Jedi. "Sorry to interrupt your lovey-dovey moment, but…there's a war going on in Big Z's stomach that makes this war with the Sith look puny by comparison."

And she was right; as all went silent, they could hear the rumbling of the wookiee's stomach. Mission was definitely not kidding when she said that Zaalbar needed no less than five substantial meals a day – one of those meals being enough to fill a grown human man's stomach for a full day.

"You're serious about eating here, Mission?" Audrey chuckled and gave her ward a soft nudge. "This is Tatooine we're standing on – renowned the galaxy over as a festering pit of villains and underhanded scum. It isn't exactly placed highly in terms of food quality standards."

"I know, but…it sure would beat the crap out of eating stuff from the food synthesizer aboard the ship," Mission grimaced. "After spending one month on Dantooine, it's made me realize just what I've been missing out on in terms of food."

Letting their intimate moment pass, Kael and Elena released each other's hands and proceeded to walk with Bastila towards the seated Czerka employee who looked at them with a perplexed gaze from behind the customs counter. Audrey instinctively followed after them as she was the one who held possession of Davik's credit chip, while the others remained behind to exchange words and come up with a plan. Kael and Elena exchanged occasional glances, and each of them could feel that the other had something to say. But there would be a time and place for everything, and now was the time to concentrate on the task at hand.

"Hello there and welcome to Czerka customs," the employee greeted them with a tone that instantly told them that he was being made to work overtime without a caffa by his side. "As per regular procedures, I will need to collect a docking fee from you. The fee rates are listed here." Clearly in no mood for a conversation and only being polite in the interest of keeping his job, the employee gently pushed forward a piece of paper that had the prices for various lengths of docking periods. Only a glance was needed for the four companions to know that Czerka were out to milk the public for every credit they could get.

"Bloody expensive this is, even for a single day's docking. Wouldn't you agree?" Audrey whined, looking squarely in the employee's eyes with a pursed-lipped frown and puppy-like sad eyes.

"It's policy, ma'am," the employee apologized blankly. "I'm sorry, but I just can't negotiate on the prices."

Audrey pressed on and walked right in front of the counter, keeping up her appealing tone. "But it's so expensive compared to all the other docking prices offered by Czerka on other planets. It's so harsh!"

The employee was clearly falling for Audrey's charms bit by bit as he stammered. "I'm…really sorry, miss. I just can't!"

"But it costs so much! How am I going to pay for all my other expenses now, especially given that I have a sick cousin I'm going to visit? I had to hitch a ride with these people because I couldn't afford a flight all on my own!" Audrey went on, now practically leaning over the table. Her golden blonde hair, striking blue eyes and radiant skin made her a drop-dead gorgeous woman, and she took advantage of that fact whenever and wherever necessary in order to get what she needed. She saw that the man's eyes were gradually widening and growing ever more tense – a sure sign that her efforts were paying off. Of course, the virtually infinite supply of credits stored in Davik's credit chip meant that a thousand credits meant as little to her as a single one, but it certainly didn't hurt to keep her skills of persuasion and seduction razor sharp.

The employee was now visibly flustered, constantly peering up and down with his eyes and unable to keep focus on the blue diamonds which sparkled as they stared at him. Audrey laughed inwardly at the gullible man who couldn't help but steal glances downwards at the rest of her flawless body clad in leather, pretending to look down solely out of nervousness.

"Tell you what," Audrey grinned, feeling so confident that she scratched at the bottom of the man's chin with her finger. "It's getting late, and you must be tired. How about you and I head to the local cantina together after your shift's finished? You're a cute one, and I'd definitely be interested in seeing you again. And in exchange, would it be reasonable for you to give us a teeny…weeny…discount?"

It was most definitely working. Glancing down after seeing that the man had yet again avoided her direct gaze, Audrey could see that a not-so teeny weeny mountain had formed in the man's trousers. All those years of practicing the art of seduction on stupid and gullible Vulkars and other folk in the Taris Lower City cantinas with Zaerdra had clearly paid off. And behind her, the three Jedi looked on with perplexed and amazed faces, thinking that perhaps, just perhaps, a Mind Trick was not always the best way to take advantage of the weak-minded. Briefly looking back at the main group, Kael chuckled when he saw Carth staring wordlessly at his lover with a stone-faced expression.

Fucking priceless.

"Well, if you really need it, I guess I could make an arrangement of sorts," the man chuckled shyly and started to type away on a console just to his left. "Just don't tell anyone about this, okay?"

"Of course not," Audrey smiled at him angelically. "I can't thank you enough. I'll look forward to tonight, won't I?"

"Sure thing," the man smiled back, then pulled out a strip of paper that was printed out of the console's front. He presented it to Audrey along with a pen. "Alright, here it is: a generous 25% discount offered only to repeat customers. I'm sure it'll slip through on the database. I just need your signature here on this bottom line, and—!"

"Ooooooiiii!" a loud and harsh voice rang out from the stall's left, where the main entrance gate to Anchorhead was located. The voice was rough and coarse, sounding like it belonged to a person who smoked perhaps five hundred cigars too many. Peering towards the echoing gargoyle, a sigh of despair escaped from the mouths of all four companions as they saw just what kind of creature emerged.

"Toydarian," Bastila exhaled, rubbing her forehead with her hand. Perhaps a Mind Trick was a better option after all.

"You there! The hell are ya doin'?" the grumpy, pot-bellied alien growled as he approached the Czerka employee with his finger pointed viciously at his face. How on earth a Toydarian's tiny wings could support its hefty figure no-one could understand – another case of the bumblebee mystery, perhaps?

"I…I, err…," the employee stammered, beads of sweat beginning to fall down his brow and his hands trembling with fear.

The Toydarian snatched at the invoice which lay between the man and Audrey, and studied it for a while with an angry gaze. Then, fuming uncontrollably, he ripped it into a hundred pieces and threw it right in the employee's face. "Aaah! Ka putta matto da vosta!" he yelled, then slammed a finger on the paper which showed the standard docking fee prices. "Prices stand as they are! Do you hear me, boy?"

"Yes, boss, sorry for the slipup," the employee lied as best he could, receiving not a single bit of sympathy from his superior.

"Ughii, I have to fly here and there, and it takes a shitstorm amount of energy from my wings, ughiiii," the grumpy alien muttered, then shoved the price display paper towards the four companions. "No full fee, no deal, no docking! Now pay up!"

Seeing that she would have absolutely no effect on the alien, Audrey stepped back, allowing the three Jedi to take over.

"These prices are way unreasonable," Kael said as calmly as he could. "They're so out of line with standard Czerka customs prices elsewhere."

"You're standing on Tatooine, not Coruscant, you dimwitted pup!" the Toydarian rudely snapped. "You have no idea what kind of crap and toll this war has taken on our supply lines! Prices stay as they are, and that's final!"

"The prices are unreasonable," Kael said as convincingly as he could, extending his hand and pointing his palm upwards as if he was trying to reason with the gremlin. "You should lower them."

The Toydarian looked at Kael, confusion ridden all over his face. His previously scowling expression softened somewhat, and for a moment, Kael thought he had him exactly where he wanted him.

"They are unreasonable," the alien said, scratching his chin in understanding. But just as a small smile was about to form on Kael's lips, he shouted again, this time far more furiously. "But I don't care! What are you, a Jedi trying to play tricks on my mind? Mind Tricks don't work on me – only money! What Otto says goes around here, and nothing else! Now pay up! Full fee!"

Sighing in defeat, Audrey stepped forth again with the credit chip. While paying up credits was most definitely a non-issue, the act of leaving behind traceable evidence of their presence on the planet was. After the employee re-printed an invoice with the full-fee, Audrey gave one of her false signatures and gave her credit chip to be processed.

"Ka putta kiddo di gamacho d-esperanya…uiggghhh," Otto the foul-mouthed Toydarian muttered to himself as he flew away, his subordinate visibly shaking a little after being reprimanded. "Aaah, kaputta!" Otto roared again when he saw four men unloading heavy loads of crates from freight machinery accidentally drop two crates from the main pile. The men hastily apologized before scrambling to put the crates back, small bits of cracked wood having been left on the ground where the boxes fell.

"Sorry about that," Audrey apologized with genuine sympathy for the man. "I must have gotten you into a lot of trouble."

"A lot of us get that kind of treatment, so we're pretty much used to it," he shrugged. "While the transaction's being processed, can I help you with anything else?"

"Yes, indeed," Bastila said, and the man turned to face her. "We're in need of a map of Anchorhead as well as the surrounding areas in the Dune Sea. It's important."

"I can certainly make that arrangement, but may I ask why you want to head into the Dune Sea?" the man asked.

"I was looking to hunt," Kael said, making himself sound like he had the confidence of a career hunter. "I've been here and there, and I've heard that Tatooine was a great place to hunt for creatures which contain pearls of all kinds."

"Good luck with that, then," the employee grimaced in fear as he took a blank datapad from Bastila and began to upload an area map into it. "A great lot of people have been, erm…eaten as of late. Either that or ambushed by Sand People."

"Sand People?" Bastila said. "Can you perhaps…give us more details about the attacks? Frequency and the sort?"

"I'm afraid I can only talk about it in general terms, since I'm not that well-informed about it," the man replied. "You'll have to talk to the people at Anchorhead HQ about it, and it's also where you can acquire hunting licenses to head out to the Dune Sea. It's right here," he tapped a building outline on the map, and it glowed red with a marker.

The transaction soon completed, the old and aging machine finally having done its job. A strip of receipt paper came out, and the man handed it as well as the credit chip back to Audrey.

"Thank you," Audrey said with a slightly disappointed smile.

"No problem," the man smiled back. "Well, is there anything else I can do for you?"

"No, that'll be all, thank you," Bastila replied, seeing no need to consult the man further after she pinpointed the location of her mother's whereabouts as she remembered her father's hunting companion saying to her on Dantooine. She tapped the datapad with her finger, and another red dot formed to mark the house's location.

"My pleasure. Have a good evening. And uhh," the employee said shyly, looking at Audrey. "Are we still good for tonight?"

Audrey stood still for a moment, looking at him with dazed eyes. Of course she didn't hold any real affection for him, but she nonetheless felt sympathy. After seeing the man scolded so harshly and also being forced to work overtime when it was obvious he was tired, she decided to not leave him to feel completely broken.

She walked over to him with a warm smile and once again leaned over the counter. She gave him a soft kiss to lift his spirits, the kiss landing just away from his lips on the right side of his face. "We'll see."

After securing entry into Anchorhead, the four returned to the main party who all stood silently by waiting for them. Carth had an unsettled look on his face, while Mission snickered jokingly at him.

"Sorry about that," Audrey shrugged sheepishly at Carth while Bastila held the datapad in front of T3's sensor so that he could scan and upload the map to all the other datapads they held via wireless connection. "Thought I might as well keep up the practice and all."

"Couldn't you just let Kael, Elena or Bastila use Mind Trick?" Carth winced. "And on another note, I sure hope that Mission sticks to the innocent-little-girl routine than go down your path."

"Nothing lasts forever," Audrey teased him and then addressed the whole group. "So anyway, what's the plan? You guys sorted things out as we were over there?"

"The three of you can go together to see that mother of yours," Canderous said, straight to the point as he looked at Bastila. "Carth and Audrey can take Z and Mission to Czerka's to get to the bottom of the business concerning her brother; the Cathar and I'll have a look around and see if there are any weapons or other gear around that'll be useful, as well as keeping an eye out for potential spies. We can all meet in an hour's time at the local cantina to grab some food and drink."

Kael turned to the little droid which was behind Canderous. "What about T3?"

Canderous turned around and simply grunted. "He'll guard the ship."

T3 gave a low toot of disappointment, his legs slumping a little to let his dismay be known.

"Aww, look at the poor guy! He's crushed!" Mission cooed, petting T3 on the head as if he was a dog. "But…hey, what the—!" she gasped the moment she felt something soft and round poking at her right foot. Looking down, all could see that a tiny runaway creature was rubbing its face against Mission's shin.

"What the hell is that thing?" Audrey raised an eyebrow.

"Great. Gizka," Bastila muttered, holding a hand over her face as she recognized the species which had caused her and Elena a massive headache once during a mission to a planet she couldn't remember in the Outer Rim.

"Oooohh!" Mission squealed, picking up the gizka with both hands and holding it up to the level of her eyes. The little thing seemed quite content as it continued to coo at her, taking pleasure as Mission scratched at the bottom of its chin. "Can I keep it? Please? Pretty please?" she grinned at her two guardians who looked back at her with hesitant expressions on their faces.

"Should we?" Carth said to Audrey.

"You know she'll never stop chanting repeatedly if we say 'no'," Audrey sighed. "Well, Mission, if you really want it, I guess you could—"

"Yaaay!" Mission gave a happy yelp, leaning up on her toes to give Audrey a quick peck of thanks on the cheek. She then squeezed at the gizka's face a little, finding it amusing how it produced a small squeaky sound.

"As long as it doesn't cause trouble," Audrey continued.

"You really don't know what that thing is, or what you're getting us into, do you?" Bastila murmured to the woman who was on her first steps to what could be remotely considered as motherhood.

"We'll deal with things as they come along," Audrey muttered, although she knew that it was best to heed Bastila's warning. "Speaking of coming along, I think we should get a move-on. Let's go. Make sure to keep in contact on your comlinks, okay?"

With Kael, Elena and Bastila at the head, the group started to walk towards the town of Anchorhead while T3 strolled back into the Ebon Hawk, the ramp closing up behind him. Audrey couldn't help but smirk as Mission continued to talk cutely to the little gizka which was perched up on her shoulder.

"I shall call him Squishy, and he shall be mine. He shall be my Squishy, and I shall be his mommy," she giggled, squinting when the gizka licked her slightly on the cheek.

And while the party was distracted by Mission's newfound pet, they were completely unaware of the presence of a familiar foe watching down on them from atop a wall which extended around the perimeters of Anchorhead. A pair of vengeful eyes looked down on them behind dark goggles, and the man's fingers twitched as they yearned to grasp the heavy Mandalorian blaster pistol holstered at his side. On one side of him stood another human man, dark-eyed with short greying black hair and three sizeable gashes stretching down the right side of his face; on the other stood a droid quite unlike any had ever seen before – clad in red plating, with a design that was almost alien in appearance. An Aratech sniper rifle modified for both silent and rapid fire was clipped on the side of its body, and its right arm sported no less than three supporting weapons: a toxic dart shooter and a flamethrower on the top of its wrist, and a protractible bayonet underneath. Rows upon rows of grenades were just visible inside the droid's plating within its torso.

"Query: Shall we have at them, o goggled meatbag?" the droid asked, gleefully eyeing the entourage which walked through the gates into Anchorhead. "I do believe that a single grenade will do just fine."

"For an assassin droid, you sure lack a sense of real stealth," the man muttered. "No. There are too many Jedi with them, and they're all on alert. We'll wait it out until they separate, and then do our dirty work. But be sure to make it quick – I don't want to give up a single credit by letting Sith minions get to them first."

"You said that Malak's orders were to capture only Bastila, the black-haired Jedi Knight and that brown-haired guy who's walking alongside them, correct?" the greying man spoke, pointing his finger at them. His companion gave a nod, and he then continued. "Pity. For Jedi, I can only imagine the pleasure or credits I can get by getting my hands on them. But then again…," he grinned lecherously, staring at the blonde, Twi'lek and Cathar who walked behind them. "There's always lots to choose from…"

The goggled man spoke, then smirked darkly as his eyes focused squarely on Canderous. Revenge was a dish best served cold, and something that was definitely worth waiting for.

A/N: As I've said before, there will be major changes to what happens on Tatooine. Yuka Laka will be completely removed, and I've made Xor a gruffy human instead of a Twi'lek. The fight with Calo will be changed significantly, as I simply can't understand why in the game he thinks he can take on several Jedi with minor Rodian/Wookiee backup. He'll resort to more sneaky methods just like Zam Wesell and Jango Fett do in Episode II.

Other than that, I have one more big surprise in store, and you'll have to wait until the next chapter to see what it is. Heehee.

It's amazing to see that we've finally broken the 200 reviews mark – thanks so much for that, all of you. Hope I can give you more great chapters in the future. :D