Chapter 7: The Agent

"It is a most interesting story, Master Jedi. I suppose that we should count ourselves lucky you arrived when you did."

Jas gave the woman a humble look. He wasn't sure what to expect when the Gilded Claw and the Mannanter had arrived at this station six hours ago. The two ships had come together, under the watchful eye of a Republic warship. The Claw was not under any threat, but both Jas and his crew had been…encouraged to join them. As for the trip itself, both Republic ships were going whether Jas approved or not. The orders to make the jump had come from Republic High Command, after acting Captain Kre'Fey had briefed them on what had been happening aboard his freighter.

Jas had complied, he had needed to, if he was being perfectly honest with himself.

It was the only way that he could learn what was going on here. He needed Republic support to find the answers he sought.

This…was the only way.

He smiled at the woman he was meeting with.

"To be honest, I wasn't entirely sure where I would end up, Agent Garza, but when you work undercover you have to be prepared for the unexpected.

The young Republic SIS agent smiled.

"Well, you are not wrong," she agreed.

"The unexpected does enter in when you do this kind of work."

He took the fact that she was willing to grant him that point as a good sign.

At least she was open to speaking with him, hopefully…she would be willing to go a bit further.

He still needed to learn more about what the collective had been doing aboard that freighter, and what the captain's link was to Targo Sei.

He could not afford to behave predictably. Targo was expecting that.

If he played the bounty hunter's game, he would likely lose both Val and Vess, only by being unpredictable, could he hope to gain the advantage.

That is what he needed most right now, an advantage.

So far, Targo Sei had been one step ahead of him.

He needed to beat the man at his own game.

He hoped that the Republic would be willing to let him do that. Yet, so far, he had gained nothing, he had more questions than answers.

It was not the best way to begin.

To start with, Jas still wasn't entirely sure where they were right now, all he knew was that this station was some sort of listening post, likely under the command of Republic Naval Intelligence, and the Republic SIS, the Strategic Information Service. They had isolated the Gilded Claw crew since their arrival, asking that Jas and his companions remain aboard their own ship while Republic agents conducted their own investigation and examination of the Mannanter, trying to learn just how far and how many of the Sunset Collective agents had infiltrated the vessel's crew.

Technically they were in Republic custody, but if they were, it was a very gentle form of custody. The Claw may have been locked down, but the crew was free to move about their ship without interference, and no boarding parties had tried to enter. They had even been allowed to keep their weapons, as a show of good faith. They didn't have clearance to leave, and if they tried the Republic would have moved to stop them, but that was to be expected.

Burr had said it best. Jas had dropped a huge pile of steaming Bantha poo-doo on the SIS's doorstep, they were still trying to figure out how best to deal with it. The Republic agents didn't trust Jas and his allies, but they weren't treating them like enemies. They were being cautious, that was all.

Jas didn't blame them, not for for being careful. What he and his people had discovered was likely troubling for the naval officers. Commander Kre'Fey had certainly been shocked. Yet, they had evidence, and proof of the Collective's presence.

Being blindsided, it was not the easiest thing to admit.

IOI

After they had successfully secured the Collective Captain. The Bothan First Officer had moved quickly, he sealed off the bridge, and with Shusk's aid reactivated the ship's anti-personnel system. It had not been difficult for the Chadra Fan to undo what he had done when they arrived, and soon the rest of the crew of the Mannanter was incapacitated; all rendered unconscious by the sedative gas that Republic naval vessels used to deal with would-be boarding parties.

From there, the search had begun in earnest. Jas had no idea exactly how many collective agents were aboard, but he did have an idea to ferret out at least a few of them. He informed the Bothan of the Collective's suicide implants, the neuro-toxin they carried in case of capture; a brief search of Captain Remn's person revealed that he did indeed have one; it was under one of the finger nails of his left hand. The man that V'Lek had killed had one too, this one in one of the man's molars.

Jas Dar Bynn was pleased when they found them, at least they had some proof of the cult's involvement in this matter.

It wasn't much by itself, but it was a beginning.

It was a start.

Plus, it gave the Republic sailors something to look for, it was a clue in trying to figure out exactly who on this ship might have been working with the Captain. How many other infiltrators they had onboard?

The Bothan agreed to help them conduct the search, though he insisted on calling for help. He would say nothing over the comms about Jas, or his people, merely that the ship was suffering mechanical failure and needed aid.

Kre'Fey was smart enough to realize that Republic naval command might not be the only ones listening in on the freighter's communications.

When help arrived, they would be able to brief the admiralty, and find out what to do next.

Jas agreed, still hoping to keep things cordial between himself and the Republic Navy.

After Alderaan, he could use a few friendly ears in high places.

He didn't doubt that some blamed him for what had happened with the Righteous. He hoped to put any such arguments to rest. He could work through official channels, when he had too.

He had enough enemies, he had no desire to make any more.

It took them almost two hours to search the freighter from top to bottom, but that hunt had not been in vain. They had been able to identify six other crewmen with Collective suicide implants.

Finding so many were troubling to the Bothan officer, and to Jas.

That makes eight, he thought with a frown, almost a fourth of this ship's crew were Collective agents.

That thought, it was not pleasant.

Who knew what the Collective had been planning with this vessel?

By the time help arrived in the form of a Republic cruiser, Kre'Fey had secured the unconscious Collective agents in their ship's cargo hold, their suicide implants removed, with Jas' aid.

Republic Security would have questions for these people. Hopefully, Naval Intelligence would have more luck than he had in getting anything out of them.

After they had secured the Mannanter and briefed the Captain of the cruiser on their situation. Both he and Kre'Fey had asked that Jas and his party accompany them to a Republic port. The SIS would have questions regarding this incident.

Jas had agreed, he still hoped to get a chance to read the Collective Captain's log and any files that he might have stored in his personal computer.

He hoped that the man might know more about Targo Sei, and if he did…

…That he might find some clue that might lead him to either the bounty hunter, or perhaps where the man was hiding Vess and Val.

He could only hope for the best.

The cruiser had slaved both the Mannanter and the Gilded Claw to its Nav-system, from there, the three ships had jumped as one. They had arrived at this station six hours ago.

Rior had liked that, the Claw was her vessel, she had no desire to make some blind jump to who knew where. Burr had managed to convince her, but the Cathar had remained skeptical.

"I hope you know what you are doing, Mister Jas," she had said.

"Me too," he replied.

Upon arrival the ship was asked to stand by, they were cleared for docking, and even offered refreshments, they had to take them aboard their own ship, but the offer was there.

Regardless the two Mandalorians insisted on checking the food and drink for anything suspicious. Jas didn't see what the point of the Republic drugging them, but had allowed the check just the same. It came back negative, of course, but at least they could now eat without concern.

Thus the waiting game began.

Burr and Rior went back to their quarters for some alone time, while the rest of the crew tried to relax in the ship's galley. Fallenstar napped in a chair while the two Mandalorians played cards with Shusk. V'Lek sat in the corner meditating, his growling breaths hissing between his tusks.

Jas tried to meditate as well, but couldn't do it, he could not find his center.

His thoughts kept turning to Val and Vess.

He was more than distracted, especially now that they had a lead to follow.

It was all he could do to keep from pacing.

He has tried to be patient while the Republic tried to sort out the Mannanter mess. He tried to remember that everything was fine. Their hosts had done nothing to restrain either him or his crew. They only asked that they stay aboard the Claw, and stand by. So, they had waited. Jas waited. He again tried to meditate, but he kept thinking about Val, and how she had looked when Targo held a blade to her throat.

It kept him from finding a sense of calm, he wanted to be moving. He wanted that information…now!

He had been on the verge of losing his patience, of storming out the airlock and onto the station when he had finally been summoned to speak with Agent Garza, the SIS representative here.

Which of course, brought them to his moment.

Now, here they were, sitting across from one another in an interrogation room.

Jas tried to be polite, but thoughts of Vess and Val kept intruding on his Jedi calm.

Can we not move things on a little faster, he wondered?

We still have things to do.

IOI

When the interview had started, he had not been entirely sure that the Republic Brass would believe them, the story about the Collective, and what they had discovered aboard the Mannanter was surprising to say the least.

Through the Force, this Republic agent appeared open, willing to listen.

He took comfort in that.

He was grateful to hear from someone who was keeping an open mind.

Garza didn't strike him as a stickler for protocol, she remained polite, but he could sense her curiosity through the Force.

She was a young woman, late twenties early thirties. Yet, she tried to remain cool and aloof, her emotions still bled out through the Force; both her emotions, and her curiosity

She wasn't dismissing him, and she wanted to know what he knew.

It was as good a place to start as any.

She entered a few commands on the data pad before, again Jas tried to be patient, he had questions of his own.

He hoped that they would be able to help each other.

The woman smiled.

"I must confess, Master Jedi, your presence here has definitely ruffled some feathers back at high command."

"Really," he said trying to appear uninterested, "How so?"

The agent chuckled as she looked down at her pad.

"Your name was recognized, of course, but that should come as no surprise, I think. There are those in high places that blame you for the destruction of the Republic Cruiser Righteous above Alderaan. People that claim that you dragged the Republic into…what did the report say? Hm, vicious Mandalorian clan politics, they believe you should have been prosecuted for the deaths that occurred aboard the Righteous. That you are responsible for those deaths."

Jas tried to keep his expression bland, but inside he was almost fuming.

There goes my brother again, he thought.

Sy Dar Bynn had wasted no time in blaming the Righteous incident on him. Despite the fact that Targo Sei had boarded the ship long before it arrived on Alderaan. There were plenty of interested parties in the whole Bantoon affair, and any one of them could have hired Targo to acquire the two women for them.

Of course, those parties had not known about the Mandalorian's vendetta against Jas. He had taken advantage of the hunt to settle his own score, regardless of what he had been paid, or so the evidence Jas had gotten at the various bounty hunter's guilds in the last few months suggested.

Targo had gone rogue, but that was not surprising, not given what Jas knew about the man.

"That is what it says?" he asked the agent.

"Yes," she replied, "Officially."

He tried to keep his tone light, he even smiled.

"The problem with the official version is that it only fits those in charge. How they want things to be, not necessarily the way they are."

"An interesting point," Garza acknowledge, "Could you elaborate?"

"Do I really need to," he shrugged, "I'm sure my name was not the only one discussed after the Righteous affair. I'm fairly certain that I wasn't the only one whose name was discussed when it came to casting blame?"

The young agent didn't respond, but she didn't outright dismiss his suggestion either.

Jas took the chance and pushed forward.

"Tell me, is it Republic military doctrine to fire on a shuttle with innocent hostages onboard? Your Admiral Rakkas did not seem to care about the lives of Vessaria Istillo and Char Valenthyne, the two women that were kidnapped by Targo Sei?"

Garza's expression turned grim.

"I cannot approve or disapprove of what happened that day," she responded, "I'm only saying that the events on Alderaan got you noticed, and made the higher ups question your presence here."

The agent entered a few commands on her data pad, images recorded from the Mannanter appeared before them, namely still images of Jas' crew.

The agent smiled politely.

"I must say, Master Jedi, you and your padawan travel in some interesting circles. Are you aware that the Chadra Fan and the Cathar that you are traveling with have several outstanding warrants out for them in six different systems? Then there are the two Mandalorian warriors, not to mention the bounty hunter, someone who your own order considers a rogue, or so our contacts within the Jedi have informed us, and I'm not even going to get started on Burr Otano, the man had several files worth of history where the Republic military is concerned."

Jas wasn't surprised to hear about Burr's history, he had known for a long time that the man had had a past with the Republic navy.

Not that that mattered right now, only two things mattered to Jas Dar Bynn, and they were both in the hands of Targo Sei.

They…were what mattered.

Plus, he didn't bother correcting her about V'Lek not being his padawan, there was no point, not when she was attacking his people.

Again, Jas shrugged.

"Are we really going to quibble about my people's history right now, Agent Garza? I can't say much for them, only that they are willing to offer their aid in helping me rescue the two women taken on Alderaan. I would also like to point out that they aided your crew in identifying the Sunset Collective members that infiltrated the Mannanter."

"All points in their favor, yes," she agreed, "I'm merely making sure you were aware that the people you were travelling with are not in possession of, shall we say, clean records."

"We all have histories, Agent Garza. I'm not going to blame someone for their past, not when the future is at stake."

Garza nodded, perhaps she even understood.

The agent sighed.

"So, you weren't investigating these terrorists then? You were only seeking the two kidnapped women, the ones that were taken during that business with the Righteous?"

Jas nodded.

"According to a source of mine, Targo Sei, the bounty hunter responsible for what happened on Alderaan, was in contact with someone on the Mannanter, they were how this contact hired the man to do jobs for them."

"I see," Garza replied, she entered the information on her pad.

"You were hoping that this middleman might lead you to this bounty hunter, and through him, the two kidnapped women?"

"Yeah."

Jas smiled politely.

"I don't suppose you could tell me what the Sunset Collective was up to on the Mannanter? Given what I know about their history, I doubt it was anything good."

"That matter is being investigated," she assured him, "But it is also classified right now, the matter of a Republic military vessel being infiltrated by a hostile force is something we at the SIS take very seriously."

"Understandable," Jas agreed, "I have no desire to impede any investigation that you may wish to start, only to try and figure out the link between the Collective agents aboard the Mannanter and the bounty hunter in question."

"You believe that this is more than a professional relationship then? You believe this…Targo Sei is a member of their group?"

Jas paused, weighing his options.

How much did he wish to share right now? He had gotten the SIS's attention, but did he really want to start sharing everything he knew when it came to the Collective and Targo.

He had no desire to harm his clan, Nuna had suffered enough from Targo's betrayal, but at the same time, he needed Garza to understand.

Fine, he thought.

I'll share.

"He is a known associate of theirs, that for certain. He first started working with them about ten years ago, he was involved in the Collective attack on the Kuat Drive Yards."

Garza's eyes widened slightly.

"These people were involved in that?"

Jas nodded.

"I know the blame for that matter did not fall that way, but I can tell you for certain that it was the collective that masterminded that assault. They turned their own people into bombs that day, leading to many deaths and so much destruction."

Again, the agent entered this information on her data pad.

Jas decided to go further, to try and win this agent's trust.

"The Jedi Shadows have been investigating the Collective for almost five years, with little results. They are a cunning adversary, striking at just the right moment and then disappearing again into the shadows."

Jas frowned.

"Do not underestimate these people, agent. If you do, they will make you pay for it, trust me. I've seen plenty of death and destruction left in their wake, I would rather not add to it, not if I can help it."

Garza smiled at him.

"We appreciate that, Master Jedi. Though I fear that there is little I can help you with here. There is a matter of Republic security to consider, this infiltration of one of the Republic's freighters is a serious matter, one not left in the hands of outsiders."

"But I'm not an outsider, am I? I'm involved in this, and I'm cooperating. My investigation led to the discovery of what was going on. Now, all I ask is a little professional courtesy. This captain…I need to see his files, perhaps even interrogate him, see what he knows about Targo Sei, lives may depend on it."

Garza shook her head no.

"I understand what your asking, but those files are now classified, and I'm afraid that I can't allow you to speak with any of the prisoners, it wouldn't be proper."

"Proper?" Jas asked coldly.

"As I said, this is a classified matter, if you gained authorization from the Jedi Council then I might be able to allow something, but…as of right now…"

Jas didn't let her finish. He…he couldn't believe this!

If not for him, the Collective would still be hiding aboard the Mannanter, planning only the Force knew what.

Now, after helping them, they were refusing to let him have the data that he came for?!

They were just going to sweep this under the rug, and he would get nothing!

ABSURD!

Maybe Burr was right.

Maybe he should have looked out for himself first, taken the Mannanter as a prize and moved it to one of their organization's bases, they could have returned it to the Republic after he had taken what he needed.

Speaking of which…

Jas frowned.

He was more than tempted in than moment to use the Force to take the information from Agent Garza. It wouldn't be difficult, just reach out with the Force and compel her to give him what he required.

It would be so easy…

He felt his hand starting to rise, the desire to reach out with the Force, the words already forming on his lips.

…It would be so easy, it would be…

Take what you want.

Again, temptation reached out, and again he almost surrendered to it.

Almost.

He took a frustrated breath.

No.

He…he couldn't do it.

He could almost see Vey's disapproving gaze.

He wouldn't do it.

It would be wrong.

"Are you okay, Master Jedi?"

He looked up at Agent Garza, did the young woman understand what she was doing here? She might very well be dooming Val and Vess to death.

Did she not realize how easy it would be for him to take what he desired?

It was for that reason that he held back.

His brother considered him out of control, a grey Jedi. He was determined to prove that he wasn't, but he still had to find the girls, he had to save them.

He had to!

Duty and desire were at war within him, but this time…duty won out.

Yet, he didn't give up.

He tried one last time.

"Agent Garza," he said, "I understand you have a duty to perform, and I do not wish to impede it, but…there are lives at stake. Two innocent women whose only crime was trying to help their home world."

Jas leaned forward.

"I'm asking you, please, give me what I need to try and save them. I will be discreet in my investigation; you have my word on that."

Agent Garza regarded him thoughtfully, Jas wasn't sure what she was thinking in that moment.

She seemed surprised.

She was quite strong willed, he was unsure if he would have been able to get her to submit, but he would have tried, he still hoped that would not be necessary.

The young woman frowned.

"This is usually the part where you wave your hand before my face. Where you try to use your powers to compel me to aid you."

Jas gave her a sheepish look.

It sounded like she had worked with Jedi before, and likely been confronted by the Jedi's need to get what they wanted.

"That is not who I am," he assured her, "I'm asking for your aid in this matter, please, to save two innocent lives."

Garza said nothing she gave him an unreadable look, but then…

…she entered a command on her data pad, it gave a loud beep.

"Damn it," she hissed, "The damn holo cams are down again, they tripped the power, and…damn…the microphones are offline too."

The agent shook her head... She sat the data pad down on the desk between them. She rose quickly from her chair.

"If you will excuse me, Master Jedi, I need to take care of this. I should be gone for…ten minutes at least."

She gave him a hint of a smile.

"I trust that you will NOT read the files on my data pad, the information there is sensitive to this investigation, I'm not authorized to let you have it.

She gave him a hard look.

"I trust that you get my meaning?"

He nodded, trying not to smile.

Well, well, he thought.

Isn't this a pleasant surprise!

"I understand…yes."

"Good," she said with a curt nod.

"As I said, I will be back in TEN minutes, no longer, I trust you can be patient until I return, and NOT do anything you are not supposed to."

"I'll behave myself," he promised.

She nodded and went to leave.

"Agent Garza?"

She stopped and turned.

"Yes, Master Jedi?"

He gave her a grateful bow.

"Thanks."

"For what?" she asked, "I've done nothing."

Her expression turned serious.

"I know you could have tried to take what you wanted. I respect the fact that you didn't try. That is why I'm doing NOTHING about this, but this is as far as I can go, Master Jedi. Please, respect that choice."

"I do," he promised, "I understand."

Again, the woman nodded.

"I'll be back," she assured him, "Ten minutes, master Jedi, then we can see about getting you and your rather…curious crew back underway."

"I appreciate that, Agent Garza."

"You're welcome, good luck, Master Jedi. I hope you find what you are looking for."

"May the Force be with you, Agent. May we both find what we seek."

The woman left without another word; the door hissed shut behind her.

Jas took a deep breath and counted to ten, giving her time to distract whoever else might be watching.

He pulled the data pad to him, and began to read, it contained everything that the SIS had collected from the Mannanter, including the captain's personal files.

Very through of her, he thought, most excellent!

Jas began to read.

As Agent Garza had told him, he had ten minutes.

He smiled.

He would not waste them.