Chapter 30: The Forum

"Here we go again, eh, Hotshot?"

Jas smiled as he made the final adjustments, the ship's hyperdrive continued to count down, under a minute until reversion…

…under a minute until they reached their destination.

"I suppose so," he agreed, "Though…I think we should try NOT to get hurt on this one. Our last two missions…they didn't end well."

Val shrugged in acknowledgement; she knew he had a point. Twice they had gone off together, and both of those missions had ended with one of them needing medical attention, first him, in the high mountains of Alderaan, and then her, in the planet's capital city.

She gave him a confident smirk.

"Third times the charm, Not-a-Jedi."

He tried not to smile.

That would be nice, he thought.

We will see.

He reached out with the Force, pulling levers and pushing buttons that he would not be able to reach normally. The armed courier vessel he had taken from the fallen cultist Temm Yimm could be flown this way, but it really should have had a second pair of hands. The Force made such a flight possible, but he really would not have wanted to do it under battle conditions.

No, he would need a co-pilot at some point, if he wished to continue flying this ship.

And yes, after a bit of work, it was now…his ship. Shusk and a team of organization engineers had gone over the vessel during his stay at the Jedi Temple, they removed or replaced anything that could have been exploited by an enemy. Once it was done, the Chadra Fan had given it back with a clean bill of health.

It was no longer a Collective ship; it was his now. Temm Yimm's Nightfire was now Jas Dar Bynn's Knightfire.

He welcomed that, he was no longer beholden to either Coop, or the organization when he needed a ship.

Finally, he had his own.

The Knightfire's computer beeped at him, warning him that they would need to exit hyperspace soon.

He reached up as the counter finaly hit zero, he pulled the handle.

The stars returned as his ship emerged in real space, a green and blue world appeared before them.

Jas checked the computer, making sure that everything was correct.

He smiled.

"We're here," he told the protector.

"Welcome to Kahvult Prime,"

Val peered out the viewport. The blue and green orb that appeared before them positively glowed with life. Large parasol like skyhooks dotted the surface, reaching out into space.

"Pretty world," the protector said glancing over at her companion.

Yeah, he thought to himself, but…if the galactic database is to be believed…

…it was not a world you wanted to visit lightly.

Val leaned back, checking her blaster for the fifth or sixth time. She was still not comfortable with the plan, but it was unlikely they would ever get another shot at the data that they needed.

They simply had to move forward, and trust in the Force.

The protector looked over at him, he did his best to appear confident, he smiled.

She remained…unconvinced.

"Ever been here before, Jas?"

"Nope, never have a reason to," he replied, checking his systems once again, making sure their fake ID was still broadcasting in the clear.

It might have seemed unnecessary, technically they were here on legitimate business, but, as Jas saw it, why take chances?

Kahvult Prime had a history, he had no desire to add to it.

They soon found themselves in the space lanes, forming up next to many other ships. Jas broadcast the clearance codes he had acquired for this mission.

An automated response came back, telling them to stand by.

He nodded to himself.

So far, so good.

He tried not to focus on his anxieties, they would not serve him here.

This was going to be tricky, most vessels that stopped here were only given authorization to land on the sky hooks. It was said that the skyhooks of Kahvult Prime were some of the roughest in the Republic; crime and graft were everywhere. The native Kahvulti were big on free trade, but preferred to keep it confined to the space stations that orbited the world. Surface access was not easy to come by, and it had cost him all the favors he had been owed from his organization days to get it. The natives were very picky about who they allowed groundside. The attitudes of the people here had gotten them into trouble in the past, that, and their willingness to shoot down outsiders.

Though a longtime Republic world, Kahvult Prime was far from what could be called a free port. It had been founded several millennia ago, by Kuati colonists, noble extremists who had decided that their culture back home was being tainted by outside influences.

The result of that belief, was a planet ruled by an elite that sought to do anything to keep outsiders off their world. Eighty years ago, it had gotten even worse, a group called the Diktat had seized control of the local government, bringing with them laws designed to control every aspect of their people's lives. Free speech, technological advancement, entertainment, even birthrate had been put under government control, any deviation was met with draconian measures, harsh punishments designed to keep the people under their thumb, and to protect the purity of the Kahvulti natives.

Such control…it couldn't last forever.

Five years ago, the Diktat had been overthrown, an incident with a Duros trading vessel had drawn both Senate and Jedi attention down on the government's head. The Kahvulti had replaced their old leaders, preventing the arrival of a Republic garrison and Jedi negotiation team, but that had not meant that the planet had changed for the better.

The Continuance Committee, that had replaced the Diktat, remained committed to the edicts and decrees passed by their predecessors, eventually, things might change, but in the meantime the noble houses saw little reason to.

Not a pleasant world, but it did have one advantage. The Kahvulti preferred that no one interfere in their business, and now…that business included data retrieval and distribution for the syndicates.

For that reason, Jas and Val now found themselves here.

They would have very little time to get out when they acquired the information they sought. Jas couldn't say how quick of a response they would see from the authorities, but he had to assume that it would be fast. The Committee's security forces watched everything.

They would need to be faster.

The navi-computer beeped again, the codes they had been given had been received and acknowledged.

They would now need to cede control to a planetary operator, the ship would be guided down to a secure port on the surface by remote.

So far, everything was going as planned.

"It is not what I expected," Val said as she strapped herself in for landing.

Jas glanced over.

"What is?"

"My parents dragged me to all kinds of scum-dens when I was a kid. They didn't look like this. This place could pass off as the most respectable of core worlds."

Val shook her head.

"How is a place like this the storage point for all the galaxy's dirty little secrets?"

"I suppose that is what makes it so perfect," Jas replied with a shrug, "Who would suspect that the syndicates secured their most prized data trove here, and, if what I heard from the Trandoshan was true, it wasn't like the syndicates had much of a choice."

Jas' mind drifted back to his meeting three days ago. He had managed to arrange a sit down with merchant lord S'Korr, one of the most successful Trandoshan businessmen living on Coruscant. The lizard made his credits on shipyards, nothing like they had at Kuat, but smaller more out of the way facilities scattered throughout the mid and outer rim…

…places that catered to people who didn't like being watched, people like the Red Eclipse.

Though not a member of the Eclipse, himself, S'Korr did have contacts within the group. It was through these contacts that they had set up this mission.

Originally, Jas had hoped to buy the information he sought, either from the merchant lord himself, or from someone that the lord could put him in contact with. Sadly, it was not that easy, there had been a shake up in the underworld of late, and such a deal was now quite impossible.

S'Korr couldn't access the data himself, but he could arrange for it to be out in the open. He could give Jas and company a chance to grab it.

They had no choice but to accept, they needed that information.

Jas was prepared to do what was necessary.

Again, he had needed to call in a lot of favors to set this up. The Trandoshan's cooperation in this had not been easy to arrange. Which of course led them here, and now…they needed to work quickly.

"You remember the plan, yes," Jas asked his companion.

"Sure," Val said nodding, "We go to the drop off, find the courier, and…convince him to give up the data card we need."

Jas nodded, that was it, at its most simple.

"You should probably let me handle the "Convincing," we need to keep violence to a minimum, hopefully, we won't need to do anything but simply ask for the card."

Val gave him a sly smile.

"You're going to use your Jedi magics on him, aren't you?"

Again, Jas shrugged.

"That would be my preference."

"And what if you can't, what if this guy's will is too strong?"

Jas sighed.

"Then…we will just have to get…creative, and try to get off world as quick as possible."

Val grinned.

"Least I know what I'm here for then."

Jas didn't respond to that.

Val was so much more than just a weapon. She was not just a shield for Vess. He wanted her to see that, accept that.

If he was going to stay in Vess' life, he would make sure that the protector understood that.

Val…she was so much more than she realized.

He still hoped to do this without violence. Security on this world was far tighter than most places he had been. The Kahvulti relied on a droid security force, and those droids outnumbered the citizens of the planet by a margin of four to one.

It would not be wise to pick a fight.

"Let's try to avoid violence, if we can," he repeated, "In and out, and then it's back to Vess."

Val smirked.

"Do you really think that it is going to be that easy?"

Jas frowned.

"I can dream can't I?"

The protector laughed.

"Hate to break it to you, Hotshot, but we've never been that lucky."

Jas nodded.

True, he had to admit, but hopefully…things would be different this time.

He would rather this not cause an intergalactic incident.

The lights flickered around them as the ship's controls were switched over to a surface operator, guiding them down. Normally, Jas would not have allowed this, but the Vulti didn't allow any outside vessels to land on their planet without taking such measures. They preferred to keep all off-world traffic confined to the skyhooks.

The surface was strictly for the natives, and a select few that were allowed by either business or custom.

Officially, he and Val were here by the latter.

"Once we're down, we will need to change into our disguises," he reminded her.

"Wonderful," she snorted.

"I know it is not ideal, but…"

"I get it, Jas," she sighed, "It is the only way to get what we need."

He nodded as they began their final approach to the planet.

If only there had been another way, he thought, but sadly…there wasn't.

The information was here, and the window to acquire it was very small.

One chance, that is what the lizard had offer.

They had needed to take it.

IOI

"NEXT!"

Jas nodded, and stepped forward, he walked with short measured steps, barely ruffling the long robe he wore, his expression serene and distant.

The Vulti security officer nodded as he checked his datapad, he glanced up briefly as the security cams registered Jas' robes, identifying his station.

So far, the disguises had served them well, they had garnered few looks from the security people, and the legions of spindly combat droids that were backing them up.

In other words, the plan was working.

Jas handed his identity card to the security man, he bowed his head humbly, as was expected.

"You will find everything is in order, noble sir."

The guardsman snorted at that.

"I'm no nobleman, Telbun, merely a man doing his job."

The guard ran his fake docs through the system, Val had already gone through successfully, so he didn't think he would have any problem.

The light behind the security checkpoint flashed green, it beeped loudly, almost making Jas jump.

The security officer chuckled and motioned him through.

"You are clear to go, Telbun," he said gesturing him through the scanner, turning to the next person in line.

"NEXT!"

Jas stepped through, he joined Val who nodded to him in greeting, as one, the two Telbun made their way down the street, towards the Lojanda Forum.

Their destination.

Jas kept his face forward, but kept reaching out with his senses, the Force felt…strange here, so much desire to control here. Everything so planned out and measured…

…he didn't like it.

"That was the fourth weapon scanner we passed through since our arrival, brother," Val said, speaking in the flat monotone of a well-trained Kuati Telbun.

She smiled slightly.

"Is there something these people are afraid of?"

"They merely seek to keep their world tidy, sister,' he replied, "Besides, we are Telbun, it is not our place to question, only to understand."

"Yes," she said with a nod, "We understand."

Jas could only just resist the urge to roll his eyes.

He could not understand how people could live like this?

It…it just seemed…wrong.

It was so…clean here, clean to the point that it went beyond merely the desire to be presentable. The population control laws of the last century had also made sure that the streets of the major cities were never crowded or noisy, and of course, security droids and checkpoints were everywhere.

Jas found himself thinking back to an early mission he had gone on with his friend, Mondar the Shadow. They had been hunting a killer with minor Force abilities. The man's dwelling had been kept in an immaculate state, no clutter or a trace of dirt anywhere.

"A diseased mind hiding from itself," Mondar had said, "Seeks to hide his true nature, our prey does."

That is how this place felt to Jas, he found it troubling.

The few aliens that Jas did see were Duro traders, after the incident years ago, the Duro had been granted special compensation to be allowed on world, to work directly with the businesses that had set up here. They were one of two types of outsiders that were not given a second glance by the natives.

The Telbun, were the other.

The Vulti natives remained true to their Kuati heritage, so much so that they continued the use of Telbun servants to promote genetic diversity in the ruling class. Trained from a young age, Telbun served as a means for the nobles to produce children without forming shaky marriage alliances with their peers. As was true on Kuat, the Telbun that managed to produce a child with their master or mistress were well compensated for their service, and afterward, remained with the family, serving as tutors and protectors for the children they had helped sire.

The children didn't view the Telbun as a parent, but at least those in the service could aid their progeny and serve the family that now provided for their own family back on Kuat.

Val understood the value of the program, the sworn protectors weren't so different, only they were altered to simply be weapons and shields for their lords and ladies. Jas found the impersonal nature of it all…disturbing, but understood the reasons, on a political stand point at least.

The noble families of Kuat and Kahvult were equally cutthroat in their politics, it was safer to keep their wealth and power in house, and the distance, and desire for non-attachment, it could almost be considered Jedi-like.

Still, he didn't like it, it seemed wrong on some level…

…or maybe he had simply lived outside the order for too long…maybe.

The sound of raised voices soon drew his attention, before them was a large walled-in square with only one arched entrance, The name Lojanda was carved in stone over that entrance.

The two Telbun stepped inside, and into a world of raucous debate.

Over a dozen men, women, and droids stood in various alcoves, all shouting loudly, preaching this opinion or that.

Jas and Val paused, looking around at the various firebrands.

Somewhere, hidden among them, was the courier that they sought.

The Lojanda Forum was one of the of few spots of open discourse allowed on this planet, and how the Vulti got around Republic laws about free speech. It was restricted almost everywhere else, but here. Which served as an outlet of a sort for such.

By keeping such debate isolated, the Vulti were able to maintain control of their world, and were able to keep an eye on whoever came and went from this place. There were no holo-cams or microphones here, but many were trained on the entrance.

In other words, despite the free speech being allowed in here, the government remained aware of who visited this place, and in turn could keep an eye on them.

Jas and Val began a long slow circuit of the Forum listening to the various arguments. They saw only a few people here, most of them Duro outsiders. The locals would not come here openly. Yet, that didn't stop the people speaking here from sharing their views. One man preached an end to the Vulti isolation, and demanded a full opening of their world to the rest of the Republic. Another preached a closer relationship with the Hutts, calling them a people who had been forgotten, rejected because of their chosen lifestyle. A young woman spoke of a goddess Jas had never heard of, saying that only by converting all to such a faith, would the galaxy be saved.

Jas said nothing as he passed each one, but listened, not to the rhetoric, but to the beeping in his left ear.

The robes of the Telbun were long, and hid the body almost completely, hot and stuffy with a high collar that left only the head visible. A useful disguise in that it hid the combat suits that he and Val wore, and, thanks to Vess and some Rist tech, hid the weapons that they carried, bafflers blocking the scanners here from detecting them.

Though Val had accepted the need for the devices, she didn't like that Vess had such intimate knowledge of them. She had never agreed with Rehanna Rist training her queen in the deadly arts of her assassin ancestors.

Jas was more accepting.

It was a dangerous galaxy that Vess lived in, if she was to live long enough to regain her throne. Naivete was good, but it wouldn't serve when she was surrounded by so many enemies.

He passed another speaker, so far, nothing.

One of these preachers were not who they appeared to be, someone here was the courier for the syndicate, and hidden on their person, was a portable receiver, one that would allow them to pick up and download the information that he and Val sought.

But which one, he wondered.

Which one?

He passed by a man preaching the value of the Force, and of the Jedi religion, Jas paused briefly, curious about what the man said, but quickly moved on. Next was a spindly droid with the flat round head of a T-series astromech, it danced, saying nothing to anyone. Which made sense, Jas supposed.

According to the database, dance was prohibited on this world, except for the official dances of Kuati formal gatherings.

"Anything, brother," Val asked into their commlink as she made her own way through the forum.

He shook his head.

"Nothing so far, sister."

He fought the urge to curse. He checked the small chronometer on his wrist.

If their Trandoshan contact was to be believed, the information should be arriving soon, if they missed it, they would likely not get another chance to acquire it.

The beep in his head was slow and steady. He passed another preacher, and then…another…

…Still…nothing.

Had the Trandoshan lied? Had this all been some wild Bantha chase?

He didn't want to return empty handed…he couldn't just go back to Vess…

Raised voices drew his attention. Voices raised not in debate, but in anger.

He turned to see a squad of security droids enter the forum, their chassis painted to resemble security officer uniforms.

The droids paused before the entrance, their crimson optics scanning the forum.

That caught Jas' attention.

Interesting, all the other droids he had seen had golden colored optics.

He didn't panic, he still had a job to do. The droids shouldn't have been there, they were forbidden here inside the Forum, a fact that several preachers reminded them.

The droids ignored those complaints, they began to spread out.

Jas wondered what they were looking for, but feared that he knew the answer.

The droids couldn't detect them, the bafflers they carried should have confused any sensors.

So, why were the droids here?

The squad had split up into groups of four, they executed a search pattern, their heads moving left to right, seeking…something.

Jas made his way back to Val, the protector had kept her cool, though her hands had dipped deeper into her robe, no doubt seeking the ion pistols she had sheathed there.

"I see nothing of interest, brother," she said with a slight frown.

"How…disappointing."

Jas nodded.

There it was; the code phrase they had agreed to.

He pressed a button up near his right elbow, it would start the pre-launch for the Knightfire. If things got sticky, he would activate the ship's beckon call, it would fly directly here and pick them up, the Forum was large enough for landing, from there, they could…

His ear piece beeped loudly. It took all of his concentration not to turn his head, draw attention to himself.

The signal was finally incoming, the courier was receiving it now.

They were not the only ones who detected it, eight security droids moved as one while the remaining four made for the exit.

Everyone was converging on a single location.

They were all moving towards the dancing droid!

The droid continued to move, ignoring the attention. Jas risked a glance up; the dancer had a small antenna extending from its disk-shaped head.

What a great cover, he thought appreciatively.

The droid was the courier.

Of course, extraction was going to be a problem.

He didn't have his lightsaber, otherwise he might just have cut off the droid's head, and took his chances he.

"DROIDS! HALT!"

A Kahvulti security man had arrived, he pushed his way passed the droids at the entrance.

"Cease search, and return to patrol stations," he ordered.

The droids didn't obey.

Jas and Val stepped back; you didn't need the Force to know something was wrong.

"Did you hear what I said," the security man repeated, "I ordered you…"

The man didn't get the chance to finish.

The four droids at the entrance raised their blasters.

They shot the man in the back…and then…

…all hell broke loose.

"Baffling field detected," one of the droids called out.

"Operation compromised," said another.

"Terminate operation," a third added.

"Delete all evidence!" the security droids said in unison.

The dancing droid stopped; it said a single phrase.

"Wha? OH!"

It turned its final gyration into a tumble, it came up behind a large stone pillar.

Its spindly arms split open to reveal a pair of compact blaster pistols.

It commenced firing on the security droids.

Preachers screamed and scattered.

The Lojanda Forum turned into a battle ground!

Jas and Val made their move.

They drew their ion blasters and began firing. They targeted the security droids, the ones firing on the courier.

The droids protecting the exit, noticing the new threat, began to turn their way. Jas flung out his arm, sending them flying back with a Force push. Two of the droids hit hard, freeing up the exit.

Preachers and visitors fled shrieking in terror.

The commotion served them, for the moment, Jas recognized, but it wouldn't last.

More security would be arriving shortly.

"JAS!" Val called out taking down a droid with her blaster, she tore at the Telbun robes she wore, freeing her legs and drawing a collapsible baton.

"THE SHIP!"

"It is on its way," he called out, he triggered the beckon call the moment the shooting started. He…

More blasterfire.

Kahvulti security had arrived, but they had problems of their own.

Jas counted four security men, and about twenty droids. Droids that when they saw what was going on, started shooting at, not just Val and Jas, but their own men.

Screams of shock and anger rang out as blasts burned the air around them.

A loud roar shook the forum, displaced air blew over stalls and awnings.

The Knightfire had arrived, the ship swung around quickly, drawing even more chaos.

Jas blasted the last security droid between him and the courier. He reached for his belt, but realized he didn't have his lightsaber.

He had no way to take the droid's memory core.

It turns out, he didn't need to.

The dancing droid's round head rose, noticing first the ship, then…Jas.

"That your ride?" it called out.

Jas nodded.

"We're getting out of here," he shouted.

The courier raised its blaster and shot another droid targeting it. The security unit fell, babbling something about deleting all evidence.

"Mind if I tag along," the dancing droid asked, "I can pay."

Jas nodded.

He still wasn't sure what was going on, but…

"VAL!"

The protector heard his shout, she had just taken down both a droid, and one of the human officers.

She looked up at her ally.

"We're leaving!"

Char Valenthyne didn't need to be told twice, she bolted for the hovering ship, which even now was lowering its boarding ramp.

Jas covered both her and the droid courier with his blaster. A glancing blow caught him in the right shoulder, it burned, but didn't throw off his aim.

Calling on the Force, he fled back to his ship, a blur in Telbun robes.

The Knightfire began to lift as soon as they were aboard. The autopilot would get them to a minimal safe distance, but no more.

Ignoring the pain in his shoulder, Jas made for the cockpit.

Val was already there, her and their new passenger. The droid said nothing, it stood back, its blasters once again folded back inside its hands.

"Everyone okay?" Jas asked leaping into the pilot's seat.

"No injuries," Val said.

"I still function," the droid answered, "What is going on? Who are you people?"

"It is complicated," Jas replied, his sensor board had just lit up, they had many small objects approaching, moving at high speed.

More security droids, he suspected.

"Watch that," Jas said to Val, pointing at the courier.

Before she could reply, he took the controls and gunned the engines.

The Knightfire leapt forward, but not out of danger.

Blaster bolts flashed through the air around them. Flying security droids screamed after them, their optics all burning red.

Jas juked the ship, trying to lose their pursuers, more blasts followed…

He cursed under his breath.

The chase…was on.