"Um, yeah." Kira said, seeing the men in the orange and gold armor of the Republic running towards them.
She quickly ran to one of the floating, black vehicles, its hatch already open. She dashed across its steel surface, jumping into the seat. She was quickly followed by Crystal, and the hatch closed.
"Well, this will be fun." she murmured, and warmed up the engines, allowing the sub to descend beneath the lapping waves, ignoring the yells of the Republic soldiers.

"I can hear their thoughts," Crystal laughed. "They're wondering how the hell we got in and what we want with their submersible... and they're damn freaked about our sudden appearance. Not something you see everyday, you know... two women just appearing out of thin air and taking your submersible?"

She laughed. "They'll have something to talk about for weeks on end!"

Kira gave a half-smile.
"Glad to know that I'll be the subject of Republic gossip. Again."
The submersible carved through the water, its headlights peircing the swirling blackness. She ignored the navigational tools. The Shard was all the direction she needed. It was calling to her, and she could sense it. By following its power, she would be able to locate and pinpoint the position of it.

Crystal gave a little half laugh.

"Interesting, isn't it?" she said quietly. "How the two people who probably shouldn't be touching this shard are the ones most likely to do so?"

She sighed. "I hope you brought gloves, Kira... we really shouldn't touch it if at all possible. If necessary, I'll simply carry it out telekinetically, but we shouldn't allow our skin to touch it if possible."

Kira's expression hardened, her sparkling eyes becoming dark. "I...The Shard scares me." she admited quietly, "I fear that once we get there, I won't be able to resist its impulse, its call. I fear...I fear it will control me again." she cast a glance to Crystal, "And if it does, I beg of you not to interfere. Don't try and take the Shard from me. If you do...I don't know if I'll be able to stop myself from attacking and...perhaps even killing you. And I don't want to have to live with that."

"If it will help you, I can keep it out of your reach," Crystal said quietly. "And if necessary, I can prevent you from attacking me. Try to touch me now."

Kira's hand ran into an invisible barrier. "You will not harm me, even if you wanted to try."

Kira fought with herself. She couldn't allow Crystal to take the shard...but was that out of fear for her friend, or out of her own greed?
"Perhaps...perhaps I should just take the Shard." she said quietly. She reached into a pouch on her belt, and pulled out a small, bottle-looking container. "I won't even need to touch it. I can just scoop it into here," she said removing its lid, "And that way, neither of us will have to come in contact with it."

Crystal hesitated. "Alright," she said slowly. "That might work."

"I hope it does," Kira said, as the sub dove deeper into the waves of Manaan.

Jasra had heard Kira and Crystal talking on the ramp, but after a few moments, they went silent. Frowning, she hopped down from the table and went to investigate.

Strange, they weren't on the ramp. She did a quick check of the ship. Bao-Dur in engineering. Karda in the main hold. But no Kira and no Crystal.

"Karda?" she asked, since he was the only one there. "Did you hear Kira's voice a minute ago? Where did she go?"

Before Karda could answer, a Selkath official called to them from the ramp.

In a few moments, Karda and Jasra were being led to the Selkath courts.

Jasra was called inside first, but after a few minutes, she was sent outside.

"Mind trick all except Duula and Kota, and you'll be fine," she whispered to Karda in passing, as he was led inside to face the Selkath Judges.

Karda, rather suprised, grinned and went in to meet the judges.

"so I noticed," he remarked about the Force fields. "Well, ya'll got any better ideas? I don't much have faith in this planet's legal system"

Brax, had figured that manaan's police forces were ... semi-intelligent. Boy was he wrong, he had papers and all saying he had landed AFTER the killing had happened, had infact showed them to the guards who arrested him. He wanted ot just kill them, but ... decided to play along for now. He did manage to keep his gauntlet's though. Since the guards somehow didn't notice them. And so, Brax, handcuffed, was led into the prison, where Atton, Disciple, Teagan, Nyssa, The Doctor, and a number of others were all being held. He smiled at them, winked at the Doctor, and sat down in his cell.

(This should be amusing :P)

*You*! yelled the Doctor! *Officers! That's him! The Omwati!*
"You killed Revan!" yelled Tegan. "Why?"

One of the Selkath guards approached the Doctor’s cell and slammed his Force Pike against the security field, causing it to spark wildly. “Be silent!” he hissed. “You will have your time in court.”

“How do you know this is the same Omwati that murdered the deceased?” asked another. “It is recorded that you did not personally witness the crime!”

~~~~~~~~~~~

Jasra had managed to convince the Selkath Judges, (well, three out of the five, and that’s all she had needed) that while it was true she had been on the ship with Revan, she hadn’t seen him leave the ship and she had been in the cantina when he was killed. With a little persuasive mind trick and the timestamp on her betting slip, she had even managed to ‘prove’ it to them.

Even though she guessed Karda wouldn’t be long, he might be in there long enough for her to swing by the cantina to collect her winnings. But as she headed across the atrium, she couldn’t help notice a commotion going on around the corner. Curious, she walked toward it and found herself just outside the holding cells where a few agitated Selkath guards were trying to settle down some equally agitated prisoners. As she peered in through the open doorway, her eyes widened.

Brax! And the Doctor, Tegan, & Nyssa, and some other unsavoury looking blonde character, and Atton and the Disciple, were all locked in Force cages, arguing with the Selkath….

Wait a minute… Her eyes rolled back to the stranger. She scowled, and wrinkled her nose. His Force signature was unmistakable. Oh, no! Not another one! First the Jedi send me away, then disappear and abandon me, and now they are seeping out of every crack in the Galaxy big enough for a yelt rat! She rolled her eyes. Unbelievable.

She left the corridor and found herself a quiet place just outside the entrance to the courts by the atrium fountains where she could sit and think while she waited for Karda, as it was very likely he, too, could finagle his way out of detention. Her head began to hurt. What if he didn’t? Kira and Crystal were missing, and the rest of the crew, and Brax, were all in Selkath custody. And now there was this other Jedi on the scene, and he, too, was incarcerated. Things were not looking good.

And what was worse, is that even though she knew in her heart that Brax had killed Revan, she wanted to help Brax escape. How could he train her when he was locked up? But she couldn’t help him. Not now. Not with the others watching.

She knew that the accused would all be assigned arbiters. The Selkath Judges had told her as much when she had been brought before them. But who was she to ask the courts to be assigned to represent her companions as such? She was a mercenary, a dancer, a courier for disreputable merchants and thugs. She knew nothing of Selkath law or diplomacy. And she was no Jedi. Only a misguided, padawan learner with no Master and no faith in the Order. What could she possibly do to help them?

After successfully persuading the judges, (and having a bit of fun doing it), Karda walked out rather in a good mood. But as he came out of the room, something attracted his attention, and he felt through the force into the nearby room.

That creature was there, the Omwati... The beast who had murdered one of the greatest Jedi ever to walk the galaxy... And the Doctor, probably with one of his assistants... Then... another force-sensitive? And Atton and the Disciple.

Not really wanting to get in the middle of the conversation, or be near the Omwati, he walked around the courtyard waiting for them and keeping an eye - or rather his mind - on them. He spotted Jasra, who seemed a bit distressed, and went over to join her. "Are you alright?"

”Are you alright?” Karda asked Jasra, as he sat down beside her.

Jasra was relieved that he had escaped being thrown into a cell with the others, but sitting this close to him, being bombarded with the resonance of his lightside Force Aura, was bringing back painful memories of Master Kelva and Jasra’s subsequent feelings of abandonment by the Order. Suddenly, she felt ashamed of some of the very un-Jedi like behaviour and decisions she had made, and that feeling was making it difficult for her to hide her thoughts, control her emotions, and think logically.

“No,” she blurted, keeping her eyes focused on the ripples in the fountain. They abruptly reminded her of the ripples she remembered from the Room of the Thousand Fountains in the Jedi Temple. Another painful memory.

“Revan is dead. Kira and Crystal are missing. The shard is still out there. Everyone else is locked up in the Selkath holding cells. Except you.” She glanced at him, then turned her eyes back to the water. “And you’re a… you’re a Jedi. I can’t trust you. Yet, you’re the only one here.” She paused. “So, no, I’m not alright. I'm confused and I don't know what I should do.”

"I know how you're feeling. I feel the same way. But you have to trust me." He said. "I'm the only one here, like you said. And if you don't trust me, then we will always be watching each other for betrayal."

Karda pused for a moment. "If you don't mind me asking... Why don't you trust the Jedi."

"Because Jedi lie," she said bitterly. "They say one thing, and do another. They give hope, and then take it away. They promise to protect, and then they abandon. Who can trust someone like that?"

"The Jedi do not lie - they protect, and they do give hope. The darkest times in the galaxy have been given hope by the Jedi Order. Why do you believe this?"

Jasra frowned. "They didn't give any hope to me in my darkest time," she said quietly. She shifted uncomfortably, slightly turning her back to Karda. "They didn't protect me. Or Kelva. They sent us away. They sent all of us away. They used us as bait to protect themselves from the Sith." She paused for a moment. "And then they disappeared," she said distantly. "They said they'd come back for us, but they lied. They never did. They just...left. Empty places. Quiet corridors. Silent fountains. They just left. So, I left them."

Brax smirked faintly at the Doctor. "What's an Omwati? Sir? Officer sI have no idea what this man is talkinga bout. Omwati? Have you ever heard of such a race? I'm a chiss." He did look a bit like a chiss ... just thinner, lither and his eyes were off in coloring. But what the hell did a selkath know about Omwati OR Chiss for that matter.

"Sir, your accusations are unfounded, as the Judges will see as soon as I enter the chamber. I have my documents stating that I was not even ON this planet when the supposed murder took place. I only just arrived a few minutes prior to my arrest."

He nodded slowly, and winked at the Doctor. "And if who was murdered, was infact, Revan, then there is no way I could have killed him. I am but a humble merchant, I know nothing of combat." The doctor could see those glowing red claws on the ends of Brax's hands ... nothing of combat? The man moved like a predatory cat, but the Selkath were nodding. And after the doctor had a few moments to speak, they were taking Brax off to see the Judges.

"You are Kelva's padawan, aren't you." Karda replied. "But the Jedi didn't abandon you. They were being slaughtered by the Sith, they sent you away for your safety. And if you had not left them, and not kept your force-sensitivity a secret, they would have taken you back."

“Liar!” Jasra snapped at Karda, because in her mind there was no way what he was saying could possibly be true. “They could’ve found me if they had wanted to!” she protested. “They found the Exile, didn’t they? And she didn’t even want to be found. I did! Yes, I hid. If I wanted to live, I had to. There was no other choice! And I stayed on Berrat III for weeks, no months after …!” She choked up, feeling both angry and sad at the same time at the memory of her master’s brutal death. “Yes, I was Kelva’s Padawan. And I should have died with her on Berrat III. But I didn’t. I lived. And still no one ever came looking for me. Not ever! So I begged, I stole, I did anything I could, and lots more that I shouldn’t have, just to survive, just to get back to the Jedi Temple at Coruscant. Because I still had just a little bit of hope that if the Jedi couldn’t find me, then I would find them and everything would be alright. And you know what I found when I got there? Nothing. No one. Not even a working droid with a holovid message! Nothing but empty corridors and burned out data terminals and broken holocrons. Even the Room of a Thousand Fountains was stagnant and dead! There was not even a hint that any Jedi ever existed there, let alone that any would be trying to find a stupid, half-starved, ill-trained Padawan learner who couldn’t even save her own …!”

Jasra stopped abruptly and rose, arms crossed over her chest, and jaw set. Her emotions were running wild and she struggled to keep them in bounds. “I don’t want to talk about this anymore,” she said to Karda. “Right now, we need to find Kira.” She turned to him. “And if that means working with you, then fine. I’ll listen to you. I’ll do what you want. Mainly because I don’t know what else to do. But I won’t trust you. And if you’re smart, you won’t trust me either.”

She paused, staring at Karda with implacable eyes. “So, Jedi, what do you suggest we do then?”

"I would suggest we go after Kira and Crystal. I think they headed to a Republic base, although I am not sure." Karda didn't move, however. "But before we go, one thing. The Jedi did not leave you on your own." He paused.

"There were no Jedi left. You would have died if you had been with them. And the moment you abandoned them, the moment you left and hid your force-sensitivity, they could not have found you. When the Jedi Order was reestablished, they went looking for Jedi that were still alive. They might have found you."

Jasra's brow wrinkled. Was Karda saying that he had been a Padawan, too? That he had been sent away at the same time she and her Master had been?

"But you're... you couldn't have been... I mean, you're a lot older than...." She stopped, and took a breath. "You had to have been at least 20 when they sent all the Padawans away. Surely you had completed your trials before then?"

"No, I hadn't." Karda said slowly. "I was too brash and emotion-filled for a long time, even through the Jedi Purge. I almost came close to the dark side, in fact. But after the Jedi found me, I was knighted."

Jasra let out a snort of disbelief. Karda had been one of the Padawans sent away? She wondered if this was some sort of a trick to get her to trust him. Her eyes narrowed as she considered for a moment. She didn't sense that he was lying, but...

"Okay, so maybe we have something in common," she reluctantly conceded. "But that still doesn't mean I trust you." She considered him more carefully. "You were nearly of age to take your trials when the Purge came. Even without a Master at your side, you still had enough skills and knowledge to keep to the Light. Unlike me. I still had a lot to learn then. And I still do now." She turned and began to walk towards the Republic base. "Although I think it's too late for me to learn anything from the Jedi. They wouldn't want me back. Not after what I've...." She paused, and turned to him. "Well? Are you coming with me to the Republic base or not?"

"I'm coming, don't rush." Karda walked over beside Jasra and they headed over to base. "The Jedi would, or at least some would. Even though you were only a padawan, Kelva must have taught you this philosophy: Nobody is without hope of Redemption, no matter what they have done. The Jedi wouldn't reject you if you came willingly. Just like they didn't reject Yuthura Bann, or Revan."

Jasra didn’t respond to Karda right away, as her thoughts began to waver between the Jedi on one hand and Brax and his offer to teach her on the other.

She felt guilt for some of the things she had done in the past, and redemption would take that guilt away. But Brax seemed willing to teach her without any redemption on her part. He accepted her the way she was now.

Master Kelva had been wise, kind, and gentle. Brax was cunning, intimidating, and powerful.

Brax had said her emotions were necessary. The Jedi frowned upon strong emotions—emotions that through lack of practice, she had difficulty suppressing now.

Both options had their good points, and their bad points. Balance…Brax had spoke of balance. Was it truly the way, or was it a temptation to be avoided? She couldn’t decide.

“Perhaps the Jedi Order might be willing to take me back,” she finally said to Karda, just as the entrance to the Republic base came into view. “But I’m not certain if I’m willing to return. Or trust them yet.” She paused. “And who’s Yuthura Bann, anyway?”*

*((OOC: Jasra was trained at the Jedi Temple at Coruscant, not at the enclave on Dantooine. She would have only been about 7 yrs old at the time Yuthura returned to Dantooine before its destruction by Malak. Of course, she would have heard tales of Revan, as he was a legend in his own time, but Yuthura would be less well known.))

Kira wavered at the helm of the sub, its sides rocking precariously as she nearly passed out. New images were coming, more impulses...The Shard...
"The Shard's calling me again," she murmured, peering out through half-focused eyes.
Flashes of an undersea compound, machinery humming and blowing out thousands of bubbles of exhaust...then a path...a brigde...and an ancient device...Star Map...
On instinct, Kira veered to the right, then gunned the ship forward. "It's here somewhere..."
Sure enough, in moments, the Republic research station on the edge of the Harakart Rift came into view. "Bingo."

OOC: Afraid my job's keeping me away from keeping up with the amount of posts...I'm sorry. I hearby drop from the RP :( I think you all are magnificent story tellers, hopefully I can RP with you all again, but my work's keeping me away.

can i join? I'm sorry if this is a waste of post

((OOC: I'm not sure...DarthSion hasn't been paying much attention to this thread :xp: or else I would tell you to ask him...))

Crystal nodded. "The nearer we come, the weaker I feel," she murmured. "I... I think it would kill me to touch it in any way."

With that, she pulled her 'thought bubble' in so it only surrounded her. It made her feel a little better, but she still wasn't sure she'd be able to be of much help.

Back in control again, Kira slowed the vehicle as she came in to dock. Once they were secure in the docking bay, the Exile took a deep breath.
"Something tells me that our welcome is going to be a bit more interesting than I thought..." she murmured.

The Doctor ignored Brax. He fell over, Nyssa and Tegan barely catching him in time.
"Doctor, what's wrong?"
*I... I'm not sure...* he said. *I feel... weak, suddenly...* he gasped in pain. *It's Crystal.* he said after a moment. *I can sense her... she's growing weak... she's in danger...* he was silent for a moment. *Oh... bloody hell...*
"What is it?" asked Tegan.
*She and... Kira. They've gone after the shard.*

Brax was led out of the chamber, and into the court. He stood there watching the Judges, and just showed them his paperwork. There was some grumbeling about the doctor's saying he was an omwati, but brax assured them that he didn't even know what an Omwati was. And that infact, as The Doctor was the prime suspect in the case, and wasn't even willing to give his true name. Wasn't that a bit off?

And so Brax was released, they led him back to get his possesions, and he waved to the others in the cells. And took his things, linking his datapad up right he found out where Jsra was, grumbled to himself that the Jedi was with her, and went off to keep tabs on her.

"She's done WHAT???" Atton shouted, still nursing his hand.
"Where are they?" Disciple asked, slightly calmer. His clear, blue eyes reflected his worry all too clearly.

*I can't be sure...* said the Doctor, recovering, ignoring Brax as he returned to collect his things. *I can't sense Crystals thoughts, per se... more like her emotions...* he shook his head.
"Well then what is she feeling?" asked Nyssa.
*Fear, mostly. Of what, I cannot be certain. She's weakening, as well. I can feel it. They're close to the Shard - I'm sure of it.*

Just before entering the Republic base, Jasra paused. "Erm...Karda? Maybe you better ask if they've seen Kira," she said hesitantly. "I'm not on too good of terms with the Republic at the moment." She turned to Karda, feeling his eyes upon her. "And, before you even say it, yes, I know I said I was on the Republic ship Moon Shadow when I first contacted you. But I never said I was with the Republic. Only that the ship was," she added quietly, looking sheepishly down at the ground.

"Yeah, I probably should. And Yuthura was a Sith Master who was turned back to the light side by Revan, and was welcomed back to Dantooine." Karda went into the base and headed toward the Republic leader.

Jasra scowled at Karda as they were leaving the Republic base on Manaan. “Okay, was it really necessary to refer to me as your ‘Padawan’ in front of Ambassador Wann?” Jasra complained to Karda as they were leaving the base. “I mean, I know I said I wasn’t on good terms with the Republic, and, yes, it definitely lessened their suspicion of me thinking I was a Jedi like you, but… ‘Padawan?’” She snorted. “Couldn’t you have thought of something better? Like companion? Or scout? Or…I don’t know… anything but ‘Padawan’?”

Karda just grinned with amusement.

“Oh. Ha ha. Very funny,” she said dryly. “Just… just don’t do that again. It… it makes me feel…, well,… uncomfortable.” She sighed. “So… we know that two strange women, which we can safely assume were Kira and Crystal, suddenly appeared in the sub bay and stole one of the submersibles. And we know that they were last tracked on route to the research station near the Hrakert Rift, and that something down there is causing the Republic’s tracking systems to fail, which we can also assume has something to do with the shard. But since Ambassador Wann doesn’t want to risk the loss of another submersible, we can’t go down there to find them.” She frowned slightly. “But…maybe the Doctor’s blue box can. I think we should pay him a visit in jail. See if he has any ideas on how to get them released.”

"Kira..." Crystal said faintly. "I... I don't think it'll be wise for me to get out of the submersible here... the closer we get... to the shard, the worse I feel."

She let her head fall back against the seat, breathing heavily. "Do you... do you think you'll be... able to... resist touching the... shard? On your own?"

((JasraLanitll has given me permission to control Jasra a bit. So if she says anything in my post, don't go crazy on me :p))

The Doctor gasped for air. *They are... getting closer. Crystal is not able to... prevent herself from... oh, what's the word... transmitting. She's weak. very weak. If we could get to the TARDIS, we could help them, but... as it is..."
At that moment, four Selkath walked in flanking none other than Jasra and Karda.
"Jasra!" said Tegan. "I never thought I'd be happy to see you."
"Yeah, well, don't make it a habit." she said. "Doctor," she whispered. "We think that Kira and Crystal have gone down to the Hrakert Rift to-"
*Yes, I agree. I can feel Crystal growing weaker as she approaches the shard,* said the Doctor quietly. *If we could get to the TARDIS, we could help them, but... there isn't much I can do to pilot her from here.*
"Maybe we can get you out of here." she suggested. "The Cantina keeps security recordings. We could get a copy of them. That would prove your alibi."
*Yes, but unfortunately, that would leave Atton and Disciple here. They weren't in the Cantina at the time.*
"We can come back for them in the TARDIS," said Nyssa. "I don't think they'll be going anywhere."
"Sounds like a plan to me," said Jasra. "How about it, Doc?"
*Yes, I suppose that will have to do,* said the Doctor. *Alright, if you go retrieve the tape, we can get out of here and get to Kira and Crystal.*
"Alright. We'll be back," she said.

"I can try." Kira said quietly. With that, she popped the seals of the cockpit's 'bubble', and climbed out.
"Halt!"
The Exile rolled her eyes. Here we go.
A Republic soldier approached her, his blaster ready in his arms. "Who are you?"
Think on your toes, Kira. "I'm a Jedi." she said simply. Great alias, very inventive.
"And what would your buisness be here? The Embassy at Ahto never sent us a message declaring the arrival of a Jedi."
"Er...yes. I'm...I'm a historian. I've come to Manaan in search of the Star Map, the same one Revan found. It's for a document I'm working on, and its unofficial. Therefore, you would have recieved no word."
The guard looked at her suspiciously, but she held his gaze confidently. She waved her hand slightly, and said, "You'll let me through, won't you?"
"Yeah, I guess you check out. Go on through."
"Thank you."
She stepped through the door, every moment feeling more and more strength and confidence as she drew closer to the Shard.
After drawing looks from several scientists and soldiers, she finally reached the far end of the complex, and a set of airlocks. 'Borrowing' an enviornmental suit, she quickly slid it on, undid the lock, and stepped out onto the Manaan sea floor.

~*~*~

"Leave us here." Atton said quickly, "Whatever it takes to get to Kira faster."
As Karda and Jasra left to retrieve the tapes, the Scoundrel punched the wall. "She so stupid sometimes..."

Jasra walked quietly with Karda from the jail to the Swoop Cantina. She really wasn’t sure what to make of him, now that she knew a bit more about his background. He was obviously a servant of the Light now—the feeling she got from his Force Aura told her that much. But she wondered what he had meant when he had mentioned that he had ‘almost’ fell to the Dark Side. Perhaps she would ask him about that later.

And she was also thinking about Brax. She hadn’t seen him in the jail, and the Doctor hadn’t mentioned him. Had he been released? If so, then where was he? Her mind was so cluttered with all that had been happening that it was hard for her to detect if he was nearby or not. She wanted to meet with him, but so far, she had not been alone for long enough to have the opportunity. But she had a feeling that she was going to need some instruction from him soon if she wanted to be of any help to Kira and Crystal if, rather when, they found the shard. Perhaps she could find a way to distract Karda at the Cantina.

And there was something else that was bothering her. Togo had mentioned 'others' that were interested in acquiring the completed Gayat crystal? Was Brax one of them? Or was there someone else? Someone decidedly…darker. After all, there were still Sith out there. A powerful crystal like this ‘Key to the Galaxy’ would no doubt be a very tempting possession for a Sith Master. Even more tempting, for a Sith Lord.

She shivered at the thought. No, she was definitely going to need Brax’s help. She gave a quick look at Karda. And if Karda offered any ‘combat tips’ she would listen to him, too. After all, Kira had taught her some things. So had Crystal. And she’d been told that Revan had had many Masters. There was no reason why she couldn’t have a few as well. Now if she could just find someway to meet with Brax alone….

Reaching the cantina entrance, Jasra suddenly remembered her swoop race ticket in her pocket.

“You know, Karda, you’re probably much better at mind control than I am,” she began. “And definitely better at diplomacy. I think you should be the one to ask the Selkath behind the bar about obtaining the security tapes for the Doctor. Besides, I need to check on the race results to see if Queedle won his second and third heats.” She waved the betting ticket in her hands. “I have a feeling that we might need the credits if we’re going to be travelling all over the Galaxy looking for shards.”

The excess carbon dioxcide bubbled out of the processor at the back of her suit, creating a whirl of bubbles around Kira every few minutes. She moved her arms and legs, getting a feel for the suit.
I've always hated these things, she thought, flexing her arm, They're so restricting and clumsy.
After a moment, she began to tread across the sandy floor, faintly hearing the clack of metal against metal every few steps. She gazed around quickly, taking in her surroundings. On one side of her was the research station. On the other was a console and a great, large machine. That must have been the Kolto harvester.
She continued on, feeling the pulsating presence of the Shard. As she continued, the drive to have it was stronger and stronger. Before she knew it, the Exile was running across the bridge...to the small, excavated spot that housed the Star Map. This is it!!! This is it!!! Her eyes danced with excitement and anticipation as she reached for the Star Map, activating the ancient machine, and watching the map unfold and glow before her. But that wasn't what had interested her.
When the map opened, a bright light issued from the center of it. And, what would be in the light but...
"The Shard!" she said. She reached forward, carefully cupping the small sliver of amber in the bulky hand of the environmental suit. "Finally!"

"Er, yeah, maybe you're right." Karda said. He added quietly, "And just a note, if you lost, I can always persuade the race manager too." He headed over to the cantina manager, smiling.

Once at the bar, he ordered some kind of Selkath drink. "Hey, you." The bartender turned. "You don't happen to have some security video tapes from a little while ago that I could borrow, do you?"

The Selkath shook his head. "No, not for you." He said in his language, shaking his head. "Why do you want them?"

"Because a couple of friends of mine are in jail, suspected for murder. I, along with a few others, know the real person, but we can't exactly prove it right now. But those tapes will prove my friend's innocence." Karda showed a few credits. "I'll pay you for your time, of course."

Bad idea. The Selkath looked disgusted - at least that is what Karda could make of his expression - and turned away. Karda put his credits away. "You want to give me the tapes." The Selkath repeated, "I want to give you the tapes."

Karda left a few moments later with the tapes in hand.

While Karda was at the bar getting the security vids, Jasra slinked off to the swoop lounge in the back, to check her race ticket.

The lounge wasn't very full, just a few swoop jockeys and a couple of groupies. She went to one of the race terminals that was the furthest away from anyone, and inserted her ticket.

She raised her eyebrows, then grinned. Queedle had indeed won all three of his heats. She had won 400 credits. She inserted her datapad and transferred the credits to her account. At least now her balance was close to what it was before she took this nightmare job.

She looked around the room. No sign of Brax, but she knew he was close by. She went to check on Karda. The Selkath was giving him something. The security holovids, no doubt. She'd have to go with him. Getting to Kira & Crystal was the priority now. Brax would have to wait.

She rejoined Karda just outside the Cantina.

"That was impressive," she said to him, eyeing the vid discs in his hands. "You were almost quicker doing that than I was in checking my ticket." They headed back towards the holding cells. "Oh, and by the way, I won. Four hundred credits. Legit, too," she felt compelled to tell him. "Although, I don't know why I just felt I had to tell you that." She looked at him askance. "You're not messing with my head, are you?"