Ello, loves! Please see my disclaimer in chapter one regarding this story and it's return from the dead.

Talan and Carth stared at Ice, unsure if they had heard her correctly.

"Your sister?" Carth said slowly, his voice betraying his skepticism.

"Yes, fly-boy, sister. Though ask me under different circumstances and I will deny any affiliation as I am sure she will."

"Why?" Carth asked.

"I hardly see how that concerns you."

Carth shrugged. "Just curious."

Ice crossed her arms, her face hardening. "I'm sure you have met her, and if you have you are fully aware it is difficult to spend more than a few moments in her presence without wishing to put a blaster to your head. Now, imagine growing up and sharing a bedroom with her. The girl even managed to annoy me in her sleep." A wide grin spread across her face. "And now my talented sister has gone and gotten herself captured by a street gang of all things. Oh, this is too good. Mother would be so proud."

She almost spat the last word, indicating that this family had troubles that far exceeded Talan's understanding. But that was none of his business and it was not his place to ask questions. All he knew was that if they had any hope of rescuing Bastila, they were going to need Ice's help. He considered his options and chose his words carefully.

"Listen, Ice-is that your real name?"

"It will do." She replied flatly.

"Right. It's obvious you hold no love for your sister, but like it or not she is-"

"Critical to the war effort," Ice said, cutting him off. "So I have heard."

"Exactly. If we don't find a way to rescue her, the Republic stands little chance of being anything more than a mention in the history books. Whatever bad blood is between you, is it worth letting the Republic fall?"

Ice looked unimpressed by his words. She cocked an eyebrow slightly, indicating she was not about to put her pride aside and take the high road.

"If that does not persuade you, then think of the credits the Republic will offer you for your services."

Ice's expression softened sightly, and Talan knew he had found the bargaining chip he needed.

"There is a bounty on Republic fugitives high enough to feed the Lower City for a month. Think of how much more she is worth alive, and how generous the Republic would be to have one of their own returned to them safely."

He could see the internal struggle she was having. On the one hand, she would have to swallow her life-long pride and help rescue the one person in the galaxy she did not want to see again. On the other, she would be rewarded with a stack of credits large enough for her to buy her way as far away as possible once she had played her part. The promise of reward proved to win the battle.

She let out a defeated sigh.

"Alright Stranger, you have made your point. But if I am to take part in this suicide mission and help you rescue my bantha's ass of a sister, I am going to need something from you."

"How much do you want?" Carth asked hesitantly.

"Oh, it's not credits I am after. As your friend here pointed out, there is a bounty on your head so high that every bounty hunter in the galaxy will be looking for you. If I am going to risk my neck and get involved in this mess then credits will do me no good if I am locked inside a torture chamber."

"So what do you want?" Talan asked.

"Transportation. Once we find your Jedi princess you take me with you when you make your getaway, I will not be left here to see the consequences of this foolishness."

Talan looked at Carth who shrugged. Their options were somewhat limited, and they were left with little choice.

"Deal."

"Do you think we can trust her?" Carth asked for what felt like the hundredth time.

Talan sighed with exasperation. The two of them were back at the apartment that was now used as a base, waiting for their newest reluctant ally to return. Ice had a friend within the Sith, an officer by the name of Sarna who had invited Ice to a party that was taking place that night. The plan was for Ice to attend, and once the other party goers had drunk themselves into a stupor, she would relieve them of their uniforms earning them a ticket to the Lower City.

"Carth, we have been over this." Talan said, trying to calm his growing frustration.

"Doesn't it seem a little too convenient that the first person we run into just happens to be the sister of the person we are looking for? How do we know she's not selling us out to the Sith right now?"

"She has no reason to betray us."

"Are you kidding? What reason wouldn't she have? There's a bounty on our heads large enough to rebuild Telos with some to spare. And, I don't know if you have noticed, she doesn't seem to have any real love for Bastila. It seems like she would turn her in just for a chance to see her in a cage."

"Are you always this paranoid?" Talan asked with a little more heat than he intended.

"Yes," Carth said, busying himself with cleaning his blaster.

"We have to trust her."

"We don't know anything about her, I mean hell, we don't even know her real name."

"Why so interested?" Talan teased. "Are you thinking of asking her to dinner?"

"What? No! I just like to know who I am entrusting my life to. For all we know she could be a Sith lord in disguise."

"That's a little over dramatic don't you think?"

"Expect the worst and you'll never be disappointed," Carth muttered.

Talan let the matter drop. Carth's perpetual paranoia and negativity were beginning to wear on him, and he had no desire to argue with the man. No matter how skewed his views might be. A Sith lord? Honestly.

He rose from the table, crossing the room to the small sink in the corner. He stared at his reflection in the dirty mirror, frowning at his appearance. His right temple sported a rather large scar that he could not for the life of him remember how he had gotten. His face was covered in several days worth of stubble, having had no chance to shave since the Spire. His short brown hair was messy and disheveled from running his hands through it frequently in frustration.

He turned the knobs on the sink, producing a small stream of water from the faucet. He splashed cold water on his face, trying to drive away the exhaustion that he was feeling. He took one last look at his reflection, freezing in his tracks as he caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror. His normally dark green eyes were replaced by the yellow trademark of the dark side. His usually good-natured smile was replaced by a sinister sneer that made Talan's blood run cold. His skin was no longer sun browned, but rather grey and scaly.

Talan remained frozen as the evil reflection continued to sneer at him. He could feel the evil calling to him; a familiar feeling rising in him that he could not place. He could feel the hairs on the back of his neck stand up as he tried to tear his eyes away from the evil staring back at him.

The door to the apartment opened, pulling Talan from the trance he seemed to be under. Ice had finally returned, a large pack slung over her shoulder and a rather smug expression on her face.

Talan turned back to the mirror, but his reflection had returned to normal. There was no evil face staring back at him, only his own confused expression.

I must be losing it.

"Took you long enough," Carth said as Ice threw the pack on the table.

"I didn't realize I had a time limit." Ice shot back.

A Sith helmet rolled from the pack, falling to the floor at Carth's feet. He picked it, holding it away from him with a look of disgust on his face.

"There's only two uniforms in here." Talan said as he rummaged through the pack.

"Good eye," Ice said with ill-disguised annoyance. "Three Sith going to the Lower City without a superior officer will raise suspicions. Two Sith escorting a prisoner however..."

Her voice trailed off, staring pointedly at Carth.

"Wait a minute," Carth protested. "Trusting you to help us find Bastila is one thing, but letting you point a blaster at my head-"

"Do you have a better idea?" Ice interrupted. "People in the Upper City know who I am, I cannot very well walk around with my face showing. And since our fearless leader here bested me in the arena just a few hours ago, he will be just as recognizable."

"She has a point Carth," Talan said. He had to admit he was rather impressed with the girl, she had proven to be invaluable thus far. She had lived up to her end of the bargain so far, and they were in no position to refuse help.

Carth was silent for a moment, clenching his jaw as he weighed his options. He sighed as he came to the same conclusion that they really did not have much of a choice either way.

"Fine. But if I see your finger anywhere the trigger I swear I'll break it."

Ice looked at Talan, a slight smirk on her face. "I think I'm starting to like him."