Your welcome.

I take it that Gina is like an combat droid. I wonder how that will change the story...

Gina is very, very, ve-HE-ry cold. But that may just be because of the programming.
It was a good chapter and a great addition to the story. I wonder if Virago and Aruil will be able to escape before they reach Dxun ...

Anyways. Nice work. Keep it up!

Your welcome.

I take it that Gina is like an combat droid. I wonder how that will change the story...

Pretty much, except that she is more streamlined. She not a clunky piece of metal. Unless you knew who she was, you would just think that she is just a 16 year old girl. That is her strength - she looks like an innocent girl - but she can throw a man around like a rag doll - just wait. She is more flexible than the average droid and can learn and think, a sort of cyborg, if you will.

@BFA: yeah thats the impression I wanted to give, but its because of the programming. She was never programed with anything other than combat, languages, and computer skills...no morals or anything. But she is capable of learning and I'm hoping she will slowly learn some human traits. She is curious about them but is too cold and calculating to appreciate them...yet.

The important thingto remember is she is not human, so she will not be acting like one. Picture a 16 year old girl terminator (like the terminator robots from the movies) - she looks human but is an advanced machine. Thanks guys, now I know I'm on the right track with her. :D

~HOP

Terminator!!! That movie [well, number 2] has been doing re-runs over and over for like .. the past two - three years!!!!! I can almost recite the whole damn thing! A change from the whole big macho guy terminator though, lol.

Never would expect to see a 16 year old who could practically kill you just by looking at you. [Which would seem ironic, if NOT for the fact that she has crazy laser eyes. .... Does she have crazy laser eyes? :D :D :D ]

“I’m a hyper-alloy combat unit,” she stated stiffly, “I have living human tissue on the outside and a metal endoskeleton underneath.” Suddenly Gina’s brown eyes glowed with an intense green light as though she had lasers inside of them. Karn gave an involuntary twitch and Marlena jumped back in alarm. As quickly as the glow came, it faded.



Basically her eyes look like a normal humans, but the irises can glow bright green when she wants them to. It is the color of her robot eyes underneath the human ones. She does not shoot lasers out of them or anything. Still I'd be creeped out just to see the glowing.

~HOP

Same. When I was reading I was like ... "Ah crap. I'm gonna die. I just know it...,"
I'm really interested to see her develop in her views of Humans.

Oh, yes, she will be learning all about humans...she has to learn about our emotions (something she as a machine lacks) our nuances and of course our curse words. :D Should have a good time with that one.

I am writing the next chapter -"The Replacements." I'll try to make it short enough to fit in one post.

@Everybody: I am entirely open to suggestion in this fic. If there is a character or aspect that you would like explored more, feel free to say so. My fic is a little character heavy and obviously I can't go into everybody's life story. Obviously Jacen and Virago will be expanded on without saying...but others might depend on who you want to see more deeply into.

~HOP

Pretty much, except that she is more streamlined. She not a clunky piece of metal. Unless you knew who she was, you would just think that she is just a 16 year old girl. That is her strength - she looks like an innocent girl - but she can throw a man around like a rag doll - just wait. She is more flexible than the average droid and can learn and think, a sort of cyborg, if you will.

Ah, I see. Thank you for elaborating. :golfclap:

I am looking forward to the next chapter. :)

Gina is fast becoming my favorite character. :D Funny you should have a Terminator-like character right at this time...I just saw T1 and T2 for the first time.

Okay, I just read your fic! I love it! There's a little comma trouble, but that's it. The 'death' scene for Durin was really, really good! Very emotional.

About the traitor--I knew it was Nayaka! I just knew it! It's always the character you least suspect! :lol: Now Tarin's gonna save Jacen's rear at some point, I'll bet!

lol, sorry. That's what my sis says about some stuff I write and DON'T post (thankfully). "It's always the one that couldn't be the bad guy, isn't it?" Argh, I have this great villain and he's dark and scary and mean and is totally gonna get creamed by my main character later...but what I haven't said is who he is! (Guess what, my sis has almost figured out who it is. [sigh]) Don't even get me started on this subject! Now to figure out a rabbit trail for her to follow...

Sorry about the rant. ;)

Back to your story! I can't wait to hear more, HOP. Keep it up! :xp:

Ah, yes, commas and I do not get along. :xp:

Since Gina is getting such positive support, I think I'll expand on her more. I plan to have all the storylines (Jace, CCI, Virago, Jacen out doing his thing) meet at some point. So she will probably join the heroes of the story soon enough. Ah poor Virago, imagine him being stuck with Aruil and Gina. (who are my personal favorites because they are strange)

Endorenna: Thank you for reading, new readers are hard to come by in the CEC so thank you and thank you BFA! I don't want to give away too much, but I can tell you that you are right about one thing. ;)

~HOP

It has been a week since this story had been updated... I'm sorry it took so long for this feedback to reach it.

This was a great addition to your tale and I would say that your writing shows noticeable improvements in segregating the pause for detail while not getting encumbered by level of description. I like how the majority of your dialog is spoken and voids actions outside what is demanded to know who is speaking and how it is delivered.

In regards to the story(I hate to admit this, but it may just be me)... I lost my attention to the new chapter, but had times where I didn't know where you were going. It may have been that it comes the further the story progresses, but there were times when I pulled my head up and forgot where the last few paragraphs were going. This was just me, but I really liked where you left off more than where you were before.

I am also liking that you've already got some adversity brewing this early on. SiD may be complimented for many things, but it lacks a villain. This is something I'll have on the back of my mind while I'm doing my revision... "No villain? Good thing you reminded me; better put one in! Call him 'George' that's a good name for a villain."

Like where this story is headed. I'll be on the next update like a shark.

In regards to the story(I hate to admit this, but it may just be me)... I lost my attention to the new chapter, but had times where I didn't know where you were going. It may have been that it comes the further the story progresses, but there were times when I pulled my head up and forgot where the last few paragraphs were going.

Like where this story is headed. I'll be on the next update like a shark.


No problem for the wait, we are all busy at the moment. :)

I added Gina because she causes some tension, but I also wanted to have a powerful person that was not the steroetypical lightsaber weilding jedi. She should spice up the story line a bit, plus she has tons of room for character development.

I know chapters arer going kinda fast but now I have the story lines (except for Jace) where I can start the main story arcs.

Now when you say you didn't know where I was going, is that good or bad? Sorry, I just didn't quite get the first paragraph that I quoted. Could you explain? Thanks.

~HOP

Ooh, this chapter was veeeery interesting...
Nakaya was soo trying to hug Jacen so she could nick the chip. :¬: unless it's a set up! And the chip is false. dun dun dunnnn.

Loved Gina's little entrance there. :xp: reminded me of HK a bit, with her nonchalant approach to killing people haha.
Can't wait for the next bit :]

Thanks Burnseyy! :D

A yes, Gina...sees things logically. Her programming tells her she has to protect Jace and follow his orders, though, these two directives will come into conflict. Logically, if someone is trying to kill Jace, she will kill that person to stop them. We as humans might spare the person because of pity or because we feel it would be morally wrong. Since Gina has no morals or emotions, she genuinely does not understand the "inefficiant" behavior of humans. The only differences between her and HK are that she has a curiosity (it is in her programming to learn) about humans and seems to try to discern why we act as we do, and two is sexy on the outside. :xp:

There will be some controversy about the Nakaya situation next chapter. It's not going to be as easy as "she did, now lets lock her ass up!" Oh, and you meet Jorrin's replacement next chapter...I hope you all hate her as much as I do. :xp:

~HOP

A yes, Gina...sees things logically. Her programming tells her she has to protect Jace and follow his orders, though, these two directives will come into conflict. Logically, if someone is trying to kill Jace, she will kill that person to stop them. We as humans might spare the person because of pity or because we feel it would be morally wrong. Since Gina has no morals or emotions, she genuinely does not understand the "inefficiant" behavior of humans. ~HOP

"Why were you going to kill him?!"
"Because I'm a Terminator."

:lol:

Oh, and you meet Jorrin's replacement next chapter...I hope you all hate her as much as I do. :xp:

~HOP

Don't worry, I'm sure we will! :D

In advance sorry for the dissappointment. Just a summary. The actual chapter should be up in two days at the most. :) I post these because it builds a bit of anticipation for the upcoming chapter.
---------------
Chapter Five: The Replacements

Jacen interrogates Nakaya but is cut short and put in custody by a new boss, Reana’ka Norian, who takes charge of CCI in Jorrin’s stead. This vindictively ambitious twi’lek is willing to go to surprising lengths to pry information out of Nakaya. The assassin arrives on Coruscant and Senator Jace finds out about Nakaya and has an idea to solve the problem.
-----------

The summary is a bit misleading because a fairly large portion of this chapter is dedicated to Gina and Jace. And (as deemed by Burnseyy) the "crazy kill everyone woman" Mandy will be back, because I enjoy writing for her so much, and I keep finding uses for her.

In order to make the chapters fit into one post, Virago's storyline will not be advanced. Basically from now on, there will be one storyline that will be absent from each chapter, whether it be Virago, Jace, etc.

Sorry for the wait.

~HOP

Ahem.

I'm waiting.

Aww, darn it, you would post a summary! That just makes me want the chapter even more!

I think you achieved the desired effect. :xp:

Aww, darn it, you would post a summary! That just makes me want the chapter even more!

Thats the idea. :D I'm cruel, aren't I?

I'm writing more as we speak, but the chapter is long, so instead of using two posts, I am going to split it into two separate ones. One realeased tomorrow, one the day after. A quick decision I know...but hey now you get two chapters in two days.

I feel so mean right now - tantalizing you with another chapter. :xp:

~HOP

Chapter 5: The Replacements

The nightlife of Coruscant droned on. Speeders zoomed through the space lanes, the noisy roaring of their engines piercing the night; the gamblers at The Hive continued to play pazaak, unaware that an abduction had occurred on the doorstep of their very building; senators rushed from one sub-committee hearing to the next, debating minute details of legislation that in the long run would do little more than get them reelected. The inhabitants of and the visitors to the city planet and capital had no idea of the events unfolding around them.

Senator Jace sat in his chair, watching the news, but absorbing none of it. He was the only one in his Campeign Headquarters, save for the guards, who was not asleep. The reporter on the news was going on about some sex scandal involving the senator from Correlia, or some other nonsense that didn’t matter. Jace was deep in thought, thinking about the information he had received from CCI. The threat was very real…and the assassin was probably already here on Coruscant.

He was startled out of his thoughts by a shiny black form that stepped between him and the holoscreen with the news. He blinked, focusing his eyes, to see Gina standing over him, right in front of his chair. She was still wearing that tight leather unisuit that showed her every curve, and had a low neckline, showing off her cleavage. Jace made a mental note to order her some new clothes “What?” asked Jace.

“You have not spoken for 37 minutes,” she responded, her eyes unwavering, staring at him.

“I’ve been thinking...” Jace said vaguely, trying to tune her out and escape to his own thoughts again.

Gina’s head twitched to one side, mechanically as though studying him. “About the assassination threat?”

Jace blinked in surprise. “Can you read minds now too?” he asked bluntly, knowing that any social tact would be lost on her anyway.

“No. But I conducted a scan. Your salinity is high, pulse slightly faster – you are under stress. It is probable that the threat on your life is the cause.”

Jace smiled darkly. “And how would you know that?”

Gina continued to stare at him. “Threat of death upsets people,” she said mechanically, as though it was some obscure fact memorized from a textbook.

“Thanks for the tip,” said Jace dryly in his deep voice. “I didn’t know you could do that, the scan that you just did. I think I should know of your capabilities. Can you detect lies?” he inquired, privately thinking that he would have her scan his staff, to make sure they were all clean.

“Electroencephalography?” Gina said, her head tilting straight up again. “Use brain waves to discern whether someone is lying or not?” she added at Jace’s confused look.

“Yes,” said Jace, who was starting to get used to such matter of fact responces. “Yes, that, can you do that?”

Gina blinked once. “No.” She pivoted to the left and started to leave the room.

As much as Jace would have been glad to just be alone he was curious to such the sudden change in the “girl”. One minute she was disturbing him for no apparent reason, and the next she was walking away in the middle of a conversation. “Were are you going?”

She turned to face him. “I’m going to clean the scope of my T-5000 sniper rifle. It has to be combat-ready. Do you want to watch? I can instruct you on proper cleaning techniques. I find humans are insufficient in weapon maintainance and use.”

“I’ll pass,” he boomed. Returning to his own thoughts and the cyborg girl left the room. He sighed. As wary as he was about having such a dangerous cyborg, it was comforting to know that she was on his side. Still, the assassin might have ways around her. The assassin…he was coming and he would be in for a nasty surprise.

*__________________*___________________________*__ _______________*

A shiny charcoal colored ship shot through the space lanes of Coruscant. The driver wove recklessly between the other speeders and ships, paying no heed to the numerous horns blaring at him. The pilot had a meeting to get to - and he was already late.

After swerving around a cylindrical building, the pilot guided the ship into landing pad 325JP008, which was empty, just as promised. The pilot was a human male with dusty brown hair, and a five o‘clock shadow that gave him a rough appearance. He had a large crescent shaped scar around his left eye. He unbuckled his crash webbing as the ship touched down.

His thick boots made heavy clunks on the floor of his ship. His granite gray eyes fell on the door to his ship’s armory. The ship was a small one, built for speed and quick getaways. It had only two sleeping quarters, and one of them had been converted into an armory. Stripped of the bed and stuffed full of gun racks and plasteel cylinders containing grenades, rockets, and darts, it was crammed full with any weapon that an assassin could possibly use. Far less common were vibroblades, with were much less needed in his line of work. A large glass case full of vials of various poisons, toxins, and bacteria samples took up the back wall.

The man comptemplated whether or not to take any weapons other than the heavily upgraded Mandelorian Pistols strapped to his waist. He should not take anything too big. After all, this meeting was with an employer and suppossedly an “ally.” But the man had been in this business too long to be naпve enough not to take anything. After a breif pause to decide, the man took a smoke grenade and a small assassin pistol and hid them on the inside of his dark leather jacket.

The man strode over to the boarding ramp of his ship and activated it. While his features were perfectly calm, his hand rested lightly on one of the pistols at his waist. The ramp hissed and descended.

Total silence engulfed the hanger. It was lit only by security lights. The man scanned the hanger suspiciously. It was not like his employer to be late – his employers reputation was legendary, one of the few who could rival his own for assassination and bounty hunting. Everything he had heard about this being suggested decisiveness and effectiveness.

Suddenly he heard booming steps approaching from the far side of the hanger. He quicky drew his pistols, aiming where the footsteps were coming from. The security lights only lit half of the hanger, the far end was in total darkness. Out of the darkness, came a hulking ebony-skinned alien with bright yellow eyes. This was not the employer he had expected.

“Where is she?” asked the man in a rough voice.

The alien held his hand out, revealing a portable hologram projector. He carefully placed it on the floor, all the while glaring at the man who did not lower his pistols even a fraction of an inch.

“What the hell is this?” demanded the man. “I didn’t come here to talk with a hologram.”

“My master sets the conditions,” grunted the alien standing up from fiddling with the controls of the projector. Before anything else could be said by either of them, the hologram winked to life, revealing a life-sized form of a woman.

“Miranda Almira?” inquiered the man, now completely ignoring the brutish alien, and instead, giving all his attention to the woman.

“Yes, but just call me Mandy,” said the woman in a silky tone. You are Daksh Tavon?”

The man nodded taking in Mandy’s petite form, “Forgive me, but you don’t look like the tough bounty hunter that I heard about.”

“You thought I would be uglier, more brutish, and covered with a plethora of nasty scars, correct?” said Mandy in her poisonously sweet voice. “Well I thought you would be taller, but we are not here to discuss our physical attributes…and I assure you, if we ever meet, after this deal is done, when we are not working together, I would relish the chance to show you how my reputation was earned.”

She was trying to needle him, and Daksh knew that she was not at all happy that she had to work with him. “Just go over the details,” said the Daksh flatly. He had not come here to play word games with this woman.

“Jace got an upgrade…a good one,” said Mandy. “My employer’s contact inside CCI informed me that Jace has a K-1200 cyborg guarding him day and night. And,” she said looking him up and down a slight sneer on her face, “ it looks like you don’t have enough firepower to handle it.”

Daksh spit on the durasteel floor. “I can handle that walking pile of scrap,” he said gruffly, privatly thinking that if he ever came face to face with this schutta, Mandy, he would snap her like a toothpick.

“Oh, I’m sure you can,” cooed Mandy in a condescending, baby voice, “But just to be on the safe side – Levin!” she suddendly barked.

Out of the darkness strode a second figure, much different from the first. He was a tall, thin, human, with skin the color of Telos’ polar ice cap. He had streaky jet black hair and piercing ice-blue eyes. His face was perfectly shaped, as though he was a sculpture brought to life. He walked with a calm grace. He could not have been more different from the lumbering alien, except that they were of similar height. Completely ignoring Daksh, the man’s eyes seemed glued to Mandy’s hologram.

“Levin,” said Mandy in that sweet tone cracking a wicked snarl, “show him.”

Without a word, the man called Levin stretched out his arm, his fist closing around the alien’s neck. The alien tried to pull Levin off, but despite his bulging muscles against Levin’s thin frame, he was not able to move the man’s fingers a fraction of an inch. With seemingly no effort and an emotionless expression, Levin lifted the gargantuan alien off the ground, the aliens feet dangling a full two feet off the floor.

The alien struggled, gasping for air, his hand feebley reaching for his blaster. To Daksh’s surprise, Levin made no attempt to stop him. The alien, with great difficulty drew his blaster pistol aimed it at Levin’s head and fired.

Levin’s flesh was blasted, leaving a bloody hole; yet something was strange about the wound. The blood stopped flowing from it in a matter of seconds. Daksh narrowed his eyes, which soon opened in shock. Underneath the skin was a glimmer, a shine – metal. Levin was a cyborg.

Levin tightened his grip, and the alien’s neck snapped with an earsplitting crunch that echoed throughout the hanger. He let the alien fall to the floor.

Daksh’s eyes were fixed on the…thing in front of him. Levin was strong…very strong. The cyborg in question, returned his attention to Mandy, looking intently at her as though nothing had happened. His face was quite expressionless.

Daksh pried his eyes away from the split flesh on Levin’s face. Mandy gave Daksh a cold look.

“Now, the playing field is even,” said said in a satisfied voice. Our cyborg against Jace’s.” Mandy fixed Daksh with an ice cold stare. “I have already had to deal with the mistakes of my crew today, and I don’t want to have to deal with another one. But I won’t. If there is another mistake Levin will handle it. Do you understand me?”

She was threatening him. Daksh felt anger boil inside him. He was not used to being treated with such disrespect. Disrespect was something he could handle though…but threats from this woman made him seethe with anger. And judging by the smug look on her face, she knew it. Yet with Levin watching his every move, he was helpless…the prey instead of the hunter. There was only one solution. He would have to finish this mission as quickly as possible and leave this metal man far behind.

Mandy nodded, a maddening smile on her face. “I think you do understand me. Good. Time is short, and I have already wasted precious minutes talking with you. And remember – if Jace does not die…you will.” The hologram blinked off.

Daksh swallowed and turned to Levin. “We have work to do.”

*___________________*________________________*____ ________________*

Jacen stood by Marit’s workstation watching Nakaya. She was still sitting in her chair, sipping at her coffee, her eyes red and puffy. She is a good actor, thought Jacen. She’s still acting all upset…as if she gives a damn that Jorrin’s dead. Behind him, Marit was talking on her comm unit to CCI’s Head of Security and Field Operations, Kel Ratrin.

“O.K., thanks Kel,” she murmured. She turned to Jacen “We’re a go.”

Jacen nodded “Lets do it then.” He looked across the room to the sliding doors which lead to the Field Operations Office of CCI. The tinted glass doors slid open. The dark skinned, muscular, Kel Ratrin strode puposefully out of them, flanked on each side by an armed field agent. He saw Jacen, and nodded briskly. Jacen returned the gesture and headed towards the cafй area from the south side of the room, Kel and his team from the north. The workers closest to the cafй stopped talking, all eyes following Kel’s progress.

Jacen reached Nakaya first. She looked up from her drink. She sniffed, “Oh, hi, Jacen. What’s up?”

“I think you know exactly what’s up,” Jacen replied coldly.

Nakaya’s eyes widened in fear, and upon hearing heavy footsteps behind her, turned around in her seat and stood up. She came face to face with Kel. “Kel,” she said in a wary voice, which was poorly covered by an optimistic smile. “What is going on?”

“You’re under arrest Agent Li,” said Kel. “My team and I are here to escort you to your holding cell, where you will be prepped for interoggation.”

Nakaya’s eyes widened further, “Interoggation? I have’nt done-”

“Save it,” snapped Jacen. “We all know what you did! Don’t even bother to deny it.” He was sick of playing these games.

Nakaya seemed too stunned to speak, and shook her head vigorously.

“Fine,” said Jacen, “but you’ll tell me what I want to no one way or another.”

Kel motioned towards Nakaya and his two field agents firmly grasped her forearms, one of the agents slapped a pair of stuncuffs on her.

Nakaya found her vioce and began screaming at the top of her lungs. “No! No! Kel! Kel, I didn’t do anything, you have to believe me!” The guards literally dragged her away to the holding cell, kicking and screaming. The doors slid shut muffling, but not completely blo9cking out her screams. Jacen could her them echoing in the corridor.

The CCI workers were now on their feet, in a sort of stunned trance, watching their collegue be dragged off by security. Their eyes were glued to her, expressions of horror on their faces. No sooner had Nakaya dissappeared behind the sliding glass doors, they began to whisper to eachother, the buzz permiating the whole room.

Marit and Taran had climbed the stairs to Jorrins office and stood on the landing, overlooking the main floor of CCI.

“Can I have everyone’s attention please,” Marit said in a commanding voice. The whispering and murmuring stopped almost at once. She took a deep breath before continuing. “I regret to inform you all that director Jorrin Ptakh was killed a little over an hour ago.” The whispering resumed, but Marit ploughed on and it subsided. “You all would have been informed of this tragedy earlier, but evidence obtained by Jedi Knight Jacen Zarek and Jorrin, before he died,” here her voice wavered a bit, “suggested that there was a traitor inside CCI involved with the people behind the hit on Jace.” She looked over at Taran, not sure what to say next. Taran spoke.

“Nakaya Li is being questioned on this subject in regards to her involvement,” Taran said in his rough, yet silky voice. “Our District Headquarters has been informed, and they are sending over replacements for both Jorrin and Nakaya. Until that time, as deputy director, I will be provisionally in charge of running CCI. All protocals remain the same.”

Marit spoke again. “I understand that Jorrin’s passing is upsetting and there will be a time to greive for him. But it is not now. We still have numerous active protocals and Senator Jace’s life is still in jeopardy. We have to keep working…its what Jorrin would have wanted. Let us make sure that he died not in vain, but for the betterment all. Thank you.”

No sooner had Marit finished, than the mumbling began again, though the people went back to their workstations. Marit turned to laeve, but saw Taran staring at her and she had a hunch what it was about. “Taran, I sorry I kept you in the dark about the chip, I-”

Taran shook his head dissmissively. “Don’t be, you did the right thing.”

Marit’s eyes narrowed, as though trying to detect sarcasm. But she felt that Taran was sincere. “Thank you,” she said in a surprised tone. Taran had never payed her a compliment before. She tried to say more, but the words dissapated in her throat.

Taran inclined his head to her, with an small smile. “You look like you want to say something.”

Marit gave her head a little jerk, snapping out of her stasis, clearing her throat. “I was just wondering who District is sending over to replace Jorrin and Nakaya.”

“Uh…” mumbled Taran, opening the folder he was carrying, reshuffling some durasheets. “Here,” he said triumphantly plucking a sheet of of the folder. “Some one called Reana’ka Norian is going to be director.”

Marit felt her heart sink at the thought. “Great,” she said sarcastically.

“Something going on between you two?” asked Taran, who seemed a bit amused at Marit’s frustration.

“I worked with her at CCI’s District Headquarter for two months before I was transferred here.”

Taran nodded “And?…”

“She…” Marit stopped herself before saying something she would regret. “She’s by the book, opinionated…but she can be hard to work with.”

“How so?” asked Taran as he and Marit descended the polished metal stairs, their shoes making pinging sounds on the metal.

Marit absently wet her lips with her tongue. “About a third of the people were gone within the first three weeks of her being in charge.”

“That many people were fired?” asked Jacen incredulously meeting the pair at the bottom of the stairs.

“No,” said Marit darkly, “That many people quit.”

“She sounds as sweet as a juja cake,” said Taran, and Jacen snorted in spite of himself.

Jacen swallowed “Taran, I need to ask you something,” he said slightly awkwardly. It felt strange to be talking to Taran with out criticizing him…or being criticized by him. “I’d like to be the one to interoggate Nakaya.”

“Yeah right,” began Taran sarcastically, “I don’t think so-”

“Taran,” Marit interrupted sharply. His head snapped towards her. “Come here a second,” she said jerking her head towards the nearest wall. She gave Jacen a “wait just a minute” look before guiding Taran to the wall, putting her head close to him, wispering something Jacen could not quite hear.

“Taran,” whispered Marit quickly, “I know you don’t like Jacen, but trust me, this is one area where he is not like the other jedi.”

“Really?” said Taran skeptically arching an eyebrow at her.

“Yes, really,” said Marit, a sharp edge creeping into her voice. She took a deep breath calming herself and when she spoke again her voice was quite normal. “Jacen…is not gentle with interrogations. Trust me, I know him, he won’t coddle her with ‘jedi pacificism.’ He has done this sort of thing before…against the council’s orders of course. All I’m asking is that you give him a chance – five minutes,” Marit asked. “If you aren’t satisfied then have Kel take over.”

Taran looked ambivilant. Marit was sure she knew what was going on in his head. On the one hand, Taran knew that Jacen had potent force ability, and could be an effective interroggator. On the other hand, he did not want to just cave to Jacen’s request after he had worked so hard and went out of his way to make sure jedi did not meddle in CCI affairs.

He turned to Jacen.

Taran gave him a calculating look as though sizing him up. After a pause he said, “Fine, but you won’t have long, Jorrin’s replacement, Reana’ka Norian, is arriving, after that you’ll have to clear it with her.”

“Thanks,” said Jacen. He had not dared to hope that Taran would be this flexible. Taran had never been this accomodating before and Jacen wondered whether he had bumped his head or something.

As though Taran really was regretting this accomodation he added stiffly. “Next time try not to ruin my pants.” With that he stalked off, back to his work station.

Jacen watched him go. “Thanks, Marit,” he said feeling a rush of gratitude towards his friend. “I don’t know what you said to him, but it worked. Thanks. I won’t ask for your help ever again, and if I do-”

“I’ll know that you are back to normal,” she interjected. “Still, the favors are starting to stack up, aren’t they?”

“I don’t know what I’d do without you, Marit,” said Jacen, “Thank you. You have brought me a step closer to unraveling this whole thing.”

Marit nodded, as if to say it was true. “You better get in there, Norian is due to arrive soon. I’ll warn you via comlink when she gets here and I’ll stall her as long as I can.”

“I won’t need long,” said Jacen in an uncharacteristically cold voice, as he headed for the interoggation room, Marit tentitively looking after him.

*_________*__________*_________________*

Jacen made his way down the dark corridor that lead to the interrogation room. The hallway was completely deserted. Nobody except for the interrogators ever came down here, Jacen supposed. As if to dispell his thoughts, Jacen heard footsteps behind him.

Taran was walking behind him. Jacen waited for him to catch up. He still did not particularly care fot Taran, but looked more kindly on him after Nakaya’s arrest.

“What are you doing down here, Taran? Shouldn’t you be running the rest of CCI?”

“Marit is covering that for me,” said Taran. “What?” he added at Jacen’s surprised exprssion. “You didn’t think you were the only one Marit ever does favors for, did you?”

“Well…yeah,” Jacen admitted. “But you didn’t answer my question.”

“I’m going to be in the monitering room of Nakaya’s room. You know, monitering the lie detector, her pulse, and all that. Here,” grunted Taran, pulling something from his pocket, “put this in your ear, that way I can communicate with you while you are interrogating Nakaya, without her knowing.”

“Thanks,” said Jacen stiffly putting the small object in his ear. It fit perfectly. Suddenly, a thought occurred to him. “Taran, why are you monitering Nakaya? Isn’t that somebody else’s job?”

“Yeah, it is,” said Taran adamantly, “But just because I let you do the interrogation does not mean I am going to trust you implicitly, in fact, I barely trust you at all. You’ve been acting strange all night…the same night a traitor is discovered. Don’t expect us to be friends all of a sudden, just because I did one thing for you.”

“Fair enough,” said Jacen, stopping at the door to the interoggation room which Nakaya was in. Taran opened a door right next to it, the door to the observation room behind the one way mirror that was so typical of interoggation rooms.

Taran gave Jacen an encouraging nod which Jacen returned. He pressed a button and the interrogation room door hissed open.

The room was fairly small and eerily silent. Three of the walls were made of durasteel and the fourth was a mirror, behind which Taran was watching. The room was deviod of furniture save for a roughly hewn metal table and a sole chair, which was occupied by Nakaya. She looked up, startled by Jacen’s entrance. He moved, until he was directly across from her, only the table separating them.

“W-what are you doing here?” she stammered her eyes wide with fear “You’re not an authorized interrogator.

“I am now,” said Jacen with a cold smile. “But that does not matter. There are no rules in this room. It’s just you and me. Tell me what you know – first and last chance before I have to hurt you.”

Nakaya whimpered, but shook her head. “I don’t know anything.”

Jacen could feel his heart pounding. He had interrogated people before. Very few of them broke without being hurt. Physically hurting a helpless being went against Jacen’s nature, and he hated himself every time he had to do it. But there was no time- Jace’s life was on the line. The sooner Jace was safe, the sooner he could concentrate on finding Virago. He had to do it.

Jacen studied Nakaya’s face for a moment, looking for a sign. A slight twitch, a fidget. He reached out with the force, probing Nakaya’s mind. He felt the tendrils of his consciousness make contact with with her mind. It squirmed and retreated behind rock solid barriers. Yes, she was definitly hiding something.

“You’re a good lier, Nakaya,” said Jacen letting the force of his mind ebb away. “But I have seen better.”

Nakaya’s eyes, now watery and scared pierced him begging him to stop.

Jacen felt an urgency rise from within him. “Damn you for making me do this!” he hissed at her. With a flare of anger and an animal-like grunt, Jacen overturned the table separating him and Nakaya. With brutal force he pulled her from her chair and slammed her against the wall. He ignored the protests of Taran that were streaming from the ear piece.

Jacen felt all of the emotion that he had been supressing since Virago’s dissappearence explode from him. “You don’t get it do you?” he demanded in a whisper, his hand around Nakaya’s chin, his face so close to hers that their noses almost touched. “ You think because I’m a jedi, I won’t hurt you because of the Jedi Code and the masters. Well the masters are not here – I am. My padawan is gone – gone, do you hear me?! And there is a good chance that he was targeted because I’m protecting Jace. You have been caught, working with the people behind the threat on Jace’s life. But this is not just about Jace – when Virago got caught up in it, it became personal. Tell me what you know, now!" Jacen demanded.

“I don’t know,” started Nakaya “I have nothing to do with Jace.”

“Than what?” snarled Jacen “Tell me or I will hurt you – I don’t have a choice, Virago’s and Jace's lives are in jeopardy!”

There was a hissing sound and Taran stormed into the room. “Calm down Zarek!”

Jacen felt as if a barrier was lifted from his senses. They were much clearer now. He had not realized that they were so clouded until the fog was removed. He now saw things as they were: Taran standing in the doorway gripping a blaster; Nakaya who had crumpled on the floor, crying.

Jacen felt the need to explain his actions but before he had the chance Nakaya spoke.

“I- I have been hiding something, but not what you think – I don’t know anything about Jace,” Nakaya stammered, pushing a clump of her unkempt purple hair out of her face, sobbing miserably Both Jacen and Taran turned their attention to her. The atmosphere of the room seemed more tense than ever.

“I left our mainframe open…she told me to and I left it open. I’m so sorry,” Nakaya croaked, tears streaming down her face. “She offered me money…you don’t understand what it’s like living out there…I needed thet money…that’s all.” She burried her face in her hands and shook with sadness.

“Who is ‘she’?” asked Jacen quietly, contaning his anger.

I do not know, I swear…she paid me, and that all I cared about.”

Jacen stretched out again with the force…feeling…searching. He could detect the truth in Nakaya’s words. He felt a lump form in his throat as Nakaya pulled her knees close and continued to cry into them.

He turned to Taran. “She is telling the truth, I can feel it.”

Taran looked doubtful and began “Jacen if she is lying-”

“I know the consequences,” snapped Jacen, roughly wiping the sweat off his forehead, breathing heavily. Suddenly there was a beeping, which Jacen realized was his comlink.

He answered curtly, “Zarek.”

“Jacen, it’s me,” said Marit from the comlink. “Norian just arrived.”

Jacen felt himself deflate slightly. He sighed. “Great.”

“Oh and Jacen,” said Marit.

“What?”

“Erm…Norian sent word about ten minutes ago that nobody is to interrogate Nakaya until she arrived so…technically you are already in violation.”

“Sithsblood!” spat Jacen. “Alright thanks Marit, Zarek out.” He ended the transmission and turned to Taran. “We’re in deep bantha fodder aren’t we?”

Taran nodded.

*_________________*____________________*__________ _________*

No sooner had the conversation with Jacen ended, when Marit saw Reana’ka Norian’s distictive form walk through the glass doors and onto the main floor of CCI. The guard at the security check station had informed her of Norian’s arrival…now here she was in person.

Marit took a deep breath and released it. Taran was in the interrogation romm with Jacen. That meant that she was the highest ranking person available and therefore, her job to greet Norian. She half-reluctantly rose from her seat making her way towards Norian.

Norian was an exceptionally tall female twi’lek, topping two meters. Her golden yellow skin glowed, contrasting heavily with her hard, granite-grey eyes, which were sweeping the room. She was clothed in a stiff, black business suit that seemed almost absurd for someone of her race. Behind her were about ten similarly dressed beings, all of them human. They were all walking in pace, like automatons, each carrying a breif case.

Marit strode directly up to Norian. Marit always hated standing so close to the twi’lek, for she was dwarfed in comparison. Norian noticed Marit and gave her a smile. But not a real smile – a business smile that did not reach her eyes which were still cold and calculating.

“Director Norian,” said Marit neutrally.

“Hello Marit,” said Norian in her commanding voice, looking down, pehaps more then she needed to at Marit. They shook hands.

Marit was used to this. I was an old tactic of Norian’s, to exaggerate her height by declining her head more than necessary.

“I know today will be trying,” she Norian in a formal tone, “But you and I know what we are doing.” She turned her head to the humans behind her. “Just put my things in my office.” Nine of the ten walked rigidly to her office, all toting an extra bag full of Norian’s supplies.

The remaining human was an exceptionally short, pale man. He was bouncing on the balls of his feet, looking expectantly and almost slavishly up at her. As though she could feel him looking up at her Norian glanced at him before turning her attention back to Marit.

“This is Mylar Trazian,” she said carelessly, “He’s replacing Agent Nakaya Li. That will be all,” she added to the man, and with a slight bow of his head, he scurried off to his workstation.

“Is there anything you would like?” asked Marit, stalling for time, hoping Jacen could cover his tracks before Norian discovered what he had been up to. “Coffee? Tea?”

“No,” said Norian. “Gather everyone around,” she said with the aire of a queen commanding her subjects, as she gestured vaguely to the people at their workstations, “I have something I want to say to them.”

Marit nodded. It would not be hard to get everyone’s attention. Most had vacated their workstations to get a look at the new director. “Can I have everyone’s attention!” she said. The workers gathered in a semi-circle around her and Norian. “This is Reana’ka Norian, she is taking over for Jorrin.” Marit nodded to Norian who spoke, addressing the crowd.

“Spies within the agancy, directors running out with jedi on field assingments – things have been out of control here today,” she said with the fainest ghost of a smile. “Starting now, they are back in control.” She paused, as though for dramatic effect, then continued.

“I understand that many of you were called here from your beds, and that most of you have not slept in almost twenty-four hours.” Many of the CCI workers looked up at her hopefully, waiting for encouragement or a moral booster. If they were, thtey were sorely dissappointed with Norian’s next words. “Too bad. Nobody even yawns until we accomplish our objective. If you have a problem with this, now would be the time to submit your resignation.” She paused again, waiting for someone to indeed submit their resignation. Nobody moved.

“Good,” she said approvingly. “Our objective remains the same. Find out who is behind the assassination threat on Jace and assess his level of danger. You may all return to your workstations.” The crowd slowly dissapated.

Norian, delicately pushed one of her shining lekku behind her head. She turned to Marit. “I’m going to the interrogation room now, to see Agent Li.”

Marit nodded helplessly, inwardly praying that Jacen was out of there. She knew Norian, and if there was one thing that irritated the twi’lek, it was her orders not being followed.

Before Norian had even taken three steps, Mylar ran up to her. Marit moved closed to here his words.

“I checked the security camera files as you asked, Ms. Norian,” he breathed with a bow of his head. “The jedi Jacen Zarek was there, interrogating Li, against your orders.”

Norian’s mouth hardened to a thin line, her eyes narrowing. “Was there anyone else there?”

“No ma’am,” responed Mylar, “ Though Zarek was talking to someone standing just outside the camera’s view – we don’t know who it was.”

“Just as I suspected,” said Norian triumphantly, “I knew the jedi were no good. You!” she said to Kel Ratrin who was passing by. “Get your security team and arrest Jacen Zarek. He was last seen near Agent Li’s interrogation room but I’m sure he’s run off – find him, arrest him,” she finished dramatically.

Ratrin nodded and took off.

*___________________*________________________*____ __________________*


Senator Jace stood in what functioned as the living room in his capaign headquarters. It was not a private living room during the day. Campaign managers, senatorial aids, and all the others that worked so vigorously on his campaign effort normally traipsed through it constantly during the day. But it was night now and the room was mercifully empty.

Jace stood, his hands clasped behind his back, staring out the window that covered an entire wall of the living room. It was tinted, so no one outside could see in. He knew he would regret staying up the whole night when morning came. He would be bombarded with everything from charity banquet offers to speech revisions. Jace massaged his temple’s wearily. Tommorow would be a long day.

He heard footsteps behind him. It was his bothan head of security, Karn.

“Karn,” boomed Jace, “What is it?”

“I have a call for you sir,” grunted Karn, “It’s Director Norian from CCI.”

“Put it on the holoscreen,” said Jace, who was feeling his anticipation rise, though he did not let it show on his face. The large monitor mounted on one of the walls blinked on.

On the screen were three people, just like the last time CCI had contacted him, though two of them were different. Jace immediately recognized Vorzar, the vurk jedi, who was seated on the right. On the far left was a small, rather pale man in a pair of stiff, black, dressrobes, the collar of which was so tight, Jace thought it was an acheivement that the man managed to breath at all. But his eyes were drawn to the twi’lek woman in the middle. His first thought was that she must be extremely tall for her species. Seated, the top of her head was higher than Vorzar’s, and Jace knew that Vurks were on average about 1.8 meters. Her golden yellow skin stood out from everything else in the room and though she looked like a normal twi’lek, Jace thought thtere was something very strange about her.

Then it occurred to him that he had never seen a twi’lek so stiffly dressed. Norian’s dress suit was so crisp and stiff, that it looked as though it had been starched and pressed just a minute ago. The suit was so…plain. Jace’s experience with twi’lek senators from Ryloth was that the males dressed in ornate, silky robes, while the females wore tight fitting robes of shimmersilk that left little to the imagination. Norian’s bulky suit was buttoned up to the top button, not revealing anymore than the upper half of her neck.

“Senator Jace,” she began in a business-like tone, her lekku perfectly winding around her neck. Jace forcibly thought of snakes sntrangling her – the effect of he lekku was not pleasant. “I’m Reana’ka Norian, director of CCI’s East Coruscant Branch. With me are my tech specialist Mylar Trazian and the Jedi Order’s liaison to CCI.”

“Ms. Norian,” said Jace noting that she did not even bother to name Vorzar, “do you have an update for me?”

“Yes senator,” she said cooly, “much has happened since Vorzar informed you of Jorrin Ptakh’s tragic death.” There was not even the slightest note of sympathy in her voice. “The chip that Jorrin and Zarek recovered yeilded results. We have taken one of our own agents, Nakaya Li into custody, as the chip confirmed her involvement in the threat on your life.”

“Has she said anything?” asked Jace with a controlled patience, though eager for the information.

“She is proving hard to crack sir,” said Norian reluctant to show that she could not immediately produce results. “I have had our head of security, Kel Ratrin, working on her for the past twenty minutes; but she keeps denying her involvment…I think more…forceful techniques are needed. She and Ratrin were good friends and I think his emotions are keeping him from pressing her hard enough.”

Jace nodded, though his insides constricted. His mind was whirring. Emotions were keeping him from pressing her hard enough…too much emotion… Suddenly an idea struck him. “Ms. Norain, I have someone who would be more suitable for this job. If it is all right with you, I would like to send her over.”

“By all means, senator,” said Norian. The transmission ended.

Jace walked away from the holoscreen. If emotions were the problem, who better to fix it than someone without emotion?

*_____________________*______________________*____ ____________*

Jacen was ushered into his cold cell within CCI. Kel Ratrin, the muscular, dark skinned man who just minutes ago had helped him arrest Nakaya, had now arrested him. Jacen could have fought the CCI security team, but he could not bring himself to harm those who were in truth, his allies, especially after hurting Nakaya.

He shuddered from the cold. The cell was small, windowless and cramped. He had to find a way out of here. Both Virago and Jace needed him. He had to find a way out…

Okay, I lied, its out today. :xp:

The chapter was originally longer, but in order to fit it into one post I split it in two. Chapter 7 will most likely be posted the day after tomorrow. NOTE: I didn't poof read this, and for some reason the spell chack does not work on my computer (:confused:) I know there are typos throughout. I'll find them tomorrow...I just too tired tonight.

I know, Virago was not in this chapter - He will be in the next one though. Just could not put him in and keep it one post (there is a 40,000 character limit per post.)

So, Gina is coming to CCI...and Nakaya is not involved with the threat on Jace (her wrongdoing with leaving the mainframe open will be explained next chapter...it is not supposed to make a whole lot of sense right now.) Thoughts?

I wanted to bring Gina in with the hero characters (Jacen, Marit, etc) as there is only so much she can do with Jace - good or bad idea?

I hope you all enjoyed the read.

~HOP

Double posting! ;_;

First off, there's small errors here and there. I'm too lazy to point out all of them, but a quick example:
Your salinity is high, pulse slightly faster – you are under stress. I presumed the threat on your life was the cause.Salinity? O_O I'm not sure whether robots *can* presume--perhaps try have her calculate other stress factors and say that the chances of it being due to the death threat is 78.63%?

I’m going to clean the scope to my T-5000 sniper rifle. It has to be combat-ready. Do you want to watch, I can instruct you on proper cleaning techniques.I'm going to clean the scope of my T-5000 sniper rifle. Do you want to watch?

Some spelling errors (there are others as well):
The driver wove wrecklessly between the other speeders and ships, paying no heed to the numerous horns blaring at him. Should be "recklessly".

The pilot was a human male with dusty brown hair, and a five o‘clock shadow that gave him a ruff appearance. He had a large crescant shaped scar around his left eye. He unbuckled his crash webbing as the ship touched down.It should be "rough" and "crescent". And crash webbing? Is that supposed to be a seatbelt sort of thing?

Levin’s flesh was blasted, leaving a bloody hole; yet something was strange about the wound. The blood stopped flowing from it in a matter of seconds. Daksh narrowed his eyes, which soon opened in shock. Underneath the skin was a glimmer, a shine – metal. Levin was a cyborg.Why have blood in the first place? It's messy stuff :xp:

Other than that, seems pretty good (although I didn't read from the beginning :[). More polishing would help, so just have a quick read through and edit out all the small errors.

Good idea, good idea! I'm all for it! :D

Great chapter, HOP! Fix up the typos and it'll be perfect. :D

Can't wait for the next chapter! :D

Wow, did I just use three grins in a row???? Hmm, guess I did. :D

Thank you both for your feedback.

@Bee Hoon: Thanks, I'll get on those typos. :) For some reason spell check is not working on my computer...makes it harder to find errors, but still not an excuse.

Crash webbing is a type of seatbelt thing, I used it because it was mentioned in several EU books I've read.

I like the percent idea that you have, :) though let me clarify about Gina. She meant salinity of the blood, which can be used to determine a number of factors- dehydration, stress, etc. The word presume was probably not the best one to use, I'll admit that. :) She can scan the body with her advanced cyborg vision I guess (when I wrote her I had a terminator - like the Arnold from the movies in mind - so she can do all kinds of stuff.)

As to why Levin has blood - part of the effectiveness of these cyborgs is that they look like actual humans. Just having skin on matal would not look very realistic. They have the blood, though they do not need it, obviously. It may be messy, but somehow I don't think Levin will mind staining his clothes. :xp:

Thank you for your help, though you must have found this chapter terribly confusiing without having read the others. :xp: Thanks for reviewing my fic, I found you comments most helpful. :D

@Endorenna: Glad you like it. Sorry I was a bit misleading - I said there was a bunch of Gina stuff, but when I split this chapter in two most of it got pushed to the second one. Oh, well, tomorrow you'll see it.



~HOP

I'm not you, but I like shorter chapters. (from 15,000-25,000 characters) This is a clever way to get nearly twice as many responses for the same amount of effort. I like seeing certain stories updated, but each piece covers a lot of content that makes it a bit difficult to keep sorted for two posts' worth of story. I would just say that I'd be more in favor of seeing a small update every week than a huge addition half as often.

I can't really go into detail about much of the subplots... there were a lot to remember them all, so I'll try to say something insightful about it all.

You seem to devote a single paragraph to explain certain details, such as the way the twi'lek's garb was different from the norm. The mindset during the interrogation scene when you didn't trail off for more than four or five sentences. The cyborg's functionality and descriptions were very impressive.

Level of detail is good, but integrating it almost seamlessly is even better. I'll be trying to match that for PtE. I'll be looking forward to the next day.

Ah, I see. I haven't read any EU novels, so I'm kinda out of my depth ;D No problem, just give every chapter a quick read before posting. I find that it's a good way to catch errors :)

Well, it isn't just salinity (by which I presume you're referring to sodium levels) which affects mental status. There's potassium, calcium, chloride and tons more electrolytes, all of which are important. In any case, the level of electrolytes shouldn't have been altered despite his stress, as he seems to be healthy enough--this implies that homeostasis is functioning well, keeping everything within normal limits. Besides that, how would Gina analyse the electrolyte levels without getting a sample of his blood? ;)

I picked up the gist of it but I may go back and read the summaries of other chapters.

Indeed, I just thought that it would have been unnecessary. Well, let's just assume that the people who designed them enjoy making life difficult for themselves;D

You're very welcome! :D

@Bee Hoon: As DY said, my story can be a bit confusing, what with so many subplots and all. I actually did not write a summary for each chapter, though I could whip some up and PM them if you like. :)

True enough about the blood, when I researched it, I heard that salinity can be one factor to help determine stress...which may have been wrong. Very true - Gina is more complicated than necessary. That is to stress her difference from humans, and despite the fact she looks like them, is quite different. (there is one part in chapter 4 - the second part after the first set of *____*____* which I would say is necessary to get the true gist of Gina.) The rest of the characters...well the summaries are good enough for them I think. :D

@DY: Firstly, thanks for the compliments! I think you are right about shorter chapters. Since I write the story, it's hard for me to get confused as I know the stuff by heart, and generally where its going. I can see how it could get confusing...I'll take your advice and stick with shorter, more frequent chapters. Unforntunatly, that shortening will mean no Virago again...oh well. :xp:

~HOP

Inside a basement somewhere in Washington D.C. (HOP's basement)

HOP: O.K., I'll just check the forums and - Gina what are you doing here?!

Gina: There was no new chapter on the 13th.

HOP: Oh, come on Gina, I got sick - puked about three times.

Gina: There was no new chapter on the 14th or 15th either.

HOP: Cut me some slack, tin man, I've been busy.

Gina: You are inefficient. Your purpose is to write chapters for other organics- you have failed your mission.

HOP: Look what are you doing here anyway? Shouldn't you be carrying out your mission?

Gina: I have new mission parameters. Jace is no longer a priority.

HOP: Who sent your here anyways?

Gina: Them.

HOP: *sigh* Who is "them?"

Gina: The readers. They are not pleased with you.

HOP: Look, I'll get on that chapter when I feel like - Hey, put me down! You can't hurt me, I created you!

Gina: You are just a body - organs, bones, and meat. My physical capabilities are more than sufficient to dispose of you.

HOP: Hey, why don't you just think this over Gina? you know, sleep on it?

Gina: I don't sleep.

HOP: What if I promise to get that chapter up this weekend?

Gina: You promise?

HOP: Yes. Now can you put me down?

Gina: *puts HOP down* My sensors indicate that you have a high level of anxiety.

HOP: Maybe because you were about 5 seconds away from killing me! Gee, maybe thats why I'm stressed!

Gina: No, I was not 5 seconds away from killing you. I was 3.2 seconds away killing you. I understand the cause of your stress. Humans are easily upset and-

HOP: No, don't even say it.

Gina: But my mission parameters state that I am supposed to say an insensitive or awkward phrase to relieve dramatic tension while emphasizing my cyborg status.

HOP: Fine. Now let me just get on that chapter, okay sunshine?

Gina: That's astral. [you guys will get this one after reading the next chapter - HOP]

HOP: Hey one more thing? What happens if I don't do that chapter?

Gina: Aruil will come over with a 75 page speech on the Babbling Buzzsnapper.

HOP: Pfft. I can avoid her. Just have to tell her I have Gyrots Disease.

Gina: If you do, I will come for you. *eyes glow green* I will find you- and terminate your life.

HOP: How about I just start typin up that chapter?
----------------

O.K., sorry for being late with the chapter. I was sick though. Was vomiting and everything (some funky seafood I believe) But then I thought I should give readers a week to read each chapter before updating. I don't want to overwhelm anybody. Until the weekend...

~HOP

I have little concern with your personal problems... even if it's cyborg coercing you to write. It's more fun to watch your fans demand more and more than to have a lot of work end up returning very few compliments. You should be flattered and take each demand as a compliment.

Awww, get well soon! Food poisoning is miserable :( I'll get around to reading your fic--but no promises as to when, as I have been rather distracted :p

@DY: Hehe, yeah, I do take demands as compliments, but as I promised a chapter and was not able to post...well I thought up a humorous way to explain myself. Well, I don't expect people to read super fast thats why I'm going to post a chapter only once a week from now on. :)

@Bee Hoon: No problem, take your time ;) Thank you, I feeling better now, though still a bit drained.

~HOP

This made me laugh :lol: I plan on finishing off the other half of the chapter... sometime. Perhaps today. But what I've read so far is very promising. :) Can't wait to read more!

And hope you're alright now... never had food poisining or whatever, but it can't be good!

ps. You're better at updating than me! Hope that makes you feel better about yourself. :xp:

Ooops, didn't see this.

Thank you Burnseyy! Yes, I'm doing much better now and yes, food poisoniung is terrible. I'll be posting the next chapter soon.

Yes that does make me feel a bit better about myself. :xp:

O.K. so chapter six should be up either today or tomorrow, depending on how well the editing goes. Here is another lovely peek, since I know you love them so much and totally don't get annoyed with me for them. :D

-------------------------------------

Chapter Six: Let's Go!

Senator Matrik Jace sends Gina to CCI to interoggate Nakaya. Virago's Zabrak friend Duran (from chapters 2 and 3 - the one that was almost killed outside the pazaak den) contacts CCI and his call, coupled with new intell from Narr Shaddaa, confirms the identity of Virago and Aruil's kidnapper. Reana'ka Norian manipulates to get more power over the jedi at CCI, and Marit teams up with Vorzar Kahbei and Taran Vhek to try to bust Jacen out of his CCI holding cell, all behind Norian's back, - and in the process, they gain an unexpected ally...


--------------------------------------------

Okay, I am trying to write shorter, more manageable chapters. Most of my chapters are over 40,000 characters. The last one was about 37,000. I am going to try to decrease by a few thousand every chapter. I want to be able to have weekly updates of about 20,000 - 25,000 characters each. But the way the storylines work, I'm going to have to do this gradually.

Also, despite the description, this is a very Gina oriented chapter, a few bits are even from her perspective.

~HOP

A nice recap since it has been so long.

Jacen Zarek uncovers a chip that is supposed to lead to a traitor within CCI. When decrypted by Marit, the chip points to Agent Nakaya Li. With the unlikely help of Taran Vhek, Jacen interoggates Nakaya and believes she has nothing to do with the assassination threat on Senator Jace.

Jacen's interoggation is cut short upon the arrival of a new, twi'lek boss named Reana'ka Norian. Furious that Jacen interoggated Nakaya without her permission, Norian has Jacen locked up in a cell within CCI and Jace sends Gina to CCI to continue Nakaya's interoggation, though only Vorzar is aware that Gina is cyborg.

Virago, Aruil, and Duran were ambushed outside a pazzaak den and Virago and Aruil were dragged off by Mandy's thugs. Duran was shot and left for dead, though as chapter 3 concludes, he is found to be alive. (This will play an important part in this chap)


Chapter Six: Let’s Go!
Jace peered through the open door to Gina’s room. She had reluctantly stayed inside the room at his behest. He had wanted to continue his thoughts uninterrupted. Jace had grappled with his decision to send Gina to CCI as soon as his discussion with Norian ended.

Very few people knew that Gina was a cyborg and he wanted to keep it that way. The last thing he needed was the whole of CCI knowing about it, especially since a traitor had just been discovered inside its walls. After a moment, he decided that he would tell Vorzar, the vurk jedi, that way Gina could avoid the metal detector to get into the building. She was nothing but on walking pile of metal, and was bound to set it off. He would talk to Vorzar privately and inform him and tell him to keep Gina’s cyborg status a secret.

Gina was sitting upright on the bed, still garbed in her unisuit, watching the holoscreen across from her bed. Jace thought for once that Gina did not look out of place. She was just siting on her bed, in a bedroom with soft yellow walls, dimly lit by a glow lamp, watching a show on the holoscreen. She looked (with the glaring exception of the unisuit) like a normal human girl. She continued to watch the screen, giving no sign that she knew Jace was there.

Jace stepped into the room, looking at the holoscreen as well. He almost laughed out loud. Gina was watching the most unlikely program - a soap operah.

A shapely blond woman was on the screen talking to a man. “Oh, Dirk, I love you, but I can’t be with you!” She dramatically rested her wrist on her forehead.

“No, Mai,” said a tall muscular man “I will not let you leave me again.” He lightly ran his fingers over the woman’s lips and then through her hair. She threw her arms around him and the two embraced, kissing passionately, a sunset beach scene in the background.

Gina continued to watch as though transfixed. Jace wondered how a being with no emotions would interprit this wild display of affection.

Gina spoke. “His method was potent,” she said shortly.

“What?” said Jace in a mildly surprised tone. Gina had not complemented his guards, himself, or any other human for that matter on anything. But she complemented a man on a soap opera?

Gina turned her head mechanically towards him. “Yes, he wanted her to come with him. His motive was lust and he achieved his goal through a mere touch,” she responded stiffly but continued, “His method was effective. Humans always have a motive…”

“And you do not?” responded Jace, his brow furrowing.

She blinked as though the answer was obvious “No. I follow my programming, even to my own destruction.” There was a pause then Gina spoke again. “The man’s motives were easy to discern, but the woman’s were not.”

“Oh? And why is that?” asked Jace wearily.

Gina never took her eyes off him, continually staring. “Men are simple. Girls are complicated.”

Jace shook his head, knowing that she would never understand humans, though she had made an observation that was sometimes voiced by the female population. “I have a task for you,” he boomed. “CCI has caught a spy within their own ranks. They have her in custody now, and previous interoggations have been…unsuccessful.”

Gina continued to stare, with her brandy brown eyes glued to his face. Behind their watery pools, Jace thought he saw a slight green flash. He blinked and the flash was gone. Perhaps he was just seeing things.

“You want me to interoggate the infiltraitor.”

“Possibly,” said Jace, “But before I decide, I need to know what kind of experience you have with this subject.”

Gina responded, “I have interrogated twenty-seven organics since my creation. Twenty six of them broke whithin minutes – and told me all that they knew.”

“And the other?” asked Jace, his eyes narrowing.

Gina cocked her head to one side as she so often did. “He said very little, then he screamed and writhed in pain as I broke his bones one by one,” said Gina impassively, “And then he was quiet and said nothing at all.”

It was disconcerning to hear such harshness from the mouth of what appeared to be a sixteen year old girl. Jace was thinking of what he could possibly say to this when a commercial on the holoscreen distracted him. I was for some new speeder called the Nitro 400. A man was on the screen yelling “This ride is astral!”

Just as he turned his attention back to Gina, she inquired. “What does ‘astral’ mean? I have read a complete list of Galactic Basic language vocabulary; yet this word is not recorded in my memory chip.”

“Oh,” said Jace almost grateful for the change in subject. “Astral means ‘awesome,’ or ‘cool’ – it’s just slang.”

Gina again nodded. “I see. Thank you for explaining this. I’m ready.”

“Ready?”

“Yes, ready – to interoggate the prisoner,” said Gina mechanically.

“Okay,” said Jace, You’ll have drive over to CCI yourself as my guards won’t let me leave this time of night with the assassination threat. Do you know where CCI is?”

“Yes, it was downloaded to my memory before I came here.”

“Good,” said Jace digging in his dress robes and pulling out a datapad. “The codes to unlock my speeders, in the hanger, are in here,” he said holding out the datapad.

Gina looked at him, with a slightly confused expression. “I could just hack the code to get into the speeder, I don’t need this.”

It took all of Jace’s reserve not to roll his eyes. “But this way the alarm won’t go off and wake up the whole building. Now, which speeder do you want? - just so security knows that one of them has not been stolen,” added Jace before remembering Gina likely would not care about the model of speeder she would use.

But Gina responded looking up from the datapad which contained the model and make of all of Jace’s security speeders, her eyes meeting his. “I will take the Nitro 400,” she stated, giving him back the datapad, “I’ve memorized the unlock code, I no longer require the datapad.” She turned to leave.

Jace was surprised be Gina’s quick answer. “Any particular reason you chose the Nitro?”

Gina turned back for a brief moment. “It’s astral,” she stated.

With that she walked, with such confident strides, out of the room, toward the tubolift, and to the hanger.

*____________*______________*_________*

Jacen was pacing rapidly about his cell. His mind was racing, but getting nowhere, just going in circles. Four walls, a sleep cot, one glow lamp, one door. He had only been inside the tiny room for about twenty minutes – but those minutes were something that he couldn’t afford to waste.

There were voices outside the door. The thick metal door muffled them so that Jacen could not make out the words. He pressed his ear against the door. The door was freezing cold and highly unpleasant, but Jacen was so intent on hearing what was being said that he didn’t even notice. With his ear against the door, he could hear much more clearly.

“- director Norian’s orders,” came an irrate voice that sounded like Taran’s. “Now are you going to let me in to see him or do I have to get Norian down here to tell you? Now maybe I’m wrong, but I got the impression that she’s not in the mood for anymore incompetence today.”

“All right, all right, I’ll open it,” came another voice, “I’ll be just down the hall if you need me.”

There was a hiss and the door slid open. Jacen almost fell forward on his face because he had been leaning so heavily on the door. Taran stepped into the cell as Jacen recovered himself.

“Taran?” said Jacen, wondering why in the world Taran Vhek of all people would come to see him. “What are you doing here?”

Taran held up his hand for quiet. The door slid shut and Taran let out a breath. “Listen, Zarek, I don’t have much time so listen up. I’ve told the guard the Norian sent me in to question you…which was a lie, so I can’t stay in here too long. Marit, Vorzar, and I are working on a way to get you out of here. Norian has got at least ten security guards in this hallway alone. We havn’t figured out how to get rid of them yet, but we’re working on it.”

Jacen nodded, “Okay, so what should I do?”

“Just stay put,” whispered Taran urgently, with a quick glance at the door behind him, scratching his soul patch nervously. “Vorzar said he had an idea, but I couldn’t get anything else out of him – damn jedi and their ‘mystical routine.’”

“What about Nakaya?” asked Jacen, ignoring Taran’s jab at the Jedi Order.

“Well,” began Taran, “Apparently she sold access to CCI’s mainframe to an unknown buyer. In exchange, this person payed Nakaya money, money that she needed to get the Exchange off her back and drop the bounty on her. She borrowed money from the Exchange a couple months back and couldn’t pay it back.”

Jacen heard footsteps coming down the hall. Taran’s head whipped around. “I have to go – we’ll figure out some way to get you out, I promise.” Taran made to leave but Jacen, a question burning in his mind, spoke.

“Taran, why are you trying to help me? Marit and Vorzar I understand, but you? Aren’t you supposed to hate me or something?”

Taran turned to face Jacen, an sheepish look on his face. He seemed embarrassed, but looked Jacen squarely in the eye. “I uhh…I might have misjudged you before…about you acting all strange tonight – I had no idea that your padawan was missing, the kind of pressure you were under. And I’m sure the last thing you needed was me giving you a hard time.” He swallowed, “And you didn’t attack the CCI guards when they arrested you…that took guts to just let yourself be taken in…those guards are really the good guys, just following Norian’s orders – and you didn’t make them pay for it.”

Taran looked hesitantly at Jacen then stuck out his hand. With a gruff, smile Jacen clasped it for a brief moment, feeling a rush of gratitude towards his former enemy. “Thanks Taran. I owe you.”

“Yeah, well don’t think we are just best friends all of a sudden,” said Taran gruffly. “We just have a common enemy now – that worm headed schutta running the place.”

Jacen smirked at Taran’s reference to Norian. “You better go.” Taran nodded.

Taran slipped out the door and dissappeared just down the hallway. For split second, Jacen considered dashing out the door too, and making a run for it. He hesitated, and the door shut with a resolute thud.

No he couldn’t just run out there. The guards had taken his lightsaber away, and even if he manged to overpower them, there was no way he could fight his way to the building entrance, or the hanger all by himself. He would just have to be patient…and trust in his friends’ plan. He sat cross-legged on the floor. He closed his eyes. Breath in, breath out…calm, waiting.

*___________________*__________________________*__ _______________*

Marit sat at her workstation, absently twisting a strand of her hair. She was supposed to getting intell on known assassins, and cross reference that list with those known to be on Coruscant. But she felt that Senator Jace had plenty of security to protect him. Jacen on the other hand was counting on her. Her mind was constantly whirring, thinking up rescue senarios, each more unlikely and riskier than the last. She sighed. Jacen was usually the idea guy. She was the tech skills girl. Together they made a great team…but in his absense she realized how much she had come to rely on Jacen’s ability. This reliance had ultimately weakened her.

The tall, dark, muscular form of Kel Ratrin blocked Marit’s view, as she stared into space. She shook her head, clearing her mind. “Yes agent Ratrin?”

“I have a call for you, master jedi,” said Ratrin, his bald pate shining, “A jedi named Duran Thul. He tried to call Jacen Zarek…and I told him that Zarek is unavailable. I didn’t want to tell him he was – well locked up.”

“Thank you, transfer it to my comlink,” said Marit, swiftly, remembering that Duran was Virago’s zabrak friend. Marit waited a few seconds, for Ratrin to be out of earshot.

“Hello, Duran? This is Marit, Jacen is tied up at the moment, can I help you with something?” Marit decided it would be best not to scare Duran with news of Virago’s dissappearence right away. After all, if he didn’t know, he would be no help with thematter, but if he did know he was bound to tell her.

“Jedi, Thel-Tanis,” said Duran in a weak voice, “I’m sorry I could not get to you sooner. I need to talk to Jacen Zarek.”

“He is occupied,” said Marit evasively, “but whatever it is, you can tell me.”

“Virago and I…sneaked out of the temple,” said Duran in a guilty voice as though waiting to be repremanded. “We went to a pazzak den, and we were ambushed outside. I was out there for hours,” said Duran, a shiver creeping into his voice. They shot me and left me for dead. They took Virago, and another jedi, Aruil Nenenitosael.”

“Are you alright?” asked Marit her heart racing. “Where are you?”

“I’m going to be okay…or so they say,” said Duran in a waivering voice. “Republic security found me. I’m at a hospital.”

Marit chewed on her tongue anxiously as Duran spoke. She asked, “Duran, I know a lot has happened to you in the last couple of hours, but I need you to stick with me. Jacen and I are trying to find Virago. What did the people who ambushed you look like?”

“I-I- they were these huge black-skinned aliens with yellow eyes – I don’t know what species they are.”

“That helps somewhat,” said Marit trying to hide her dissappointment at this scanty information. She knew Duran felt bad enough, both physically and mentally and she didn’t want to make him feel worse. “Do you know what ship they were using?”

“No, I don’t know anything else…but they wanted us, or at least Virago alive.”

Marit was about to respond when another voice sounded through the comlink. “Master Jedi, this is Dr. Surei, Duran needs to receive treatment now, you can talk to him later.”

“I understand,” said Marit, knowing that Duran probably did not have anything else useful anyway. “Have him call me when he is feeling up to it.”

No sooner had she ended the transmission, when Taran approached her workstation.

“How is he?” inquired Marit.

“Well, he’s holding up,” said Taran sighing. “But I wouldn’t count on his patience lasting much longer. Virago going missing – it has shaken him. I never liked Jacen that much, but he was always a strong person…I’ve never seen him so…” Taran trailed off, seeming to lack a good word.

“I just got a lead on Virago’s dissapperence,” said Marit in a hushed tone.

“We have an intell meeting in two minutes,” said Taran, “Norian’s orders. Tell me on the way there.”

In a hushed tone, Marit told Taran everything that Duran had confided in her. She broke off upon reaching the conference room. People were streaming into it, and through the glass, Marit could see Norian was already there. Marit entered the conference room with Taran and both took their places at the table.

Marit took note of the people present. Only the Department Heads were here – this must be an important meeting if so few were qualified to be here. Indeed, there were only about ten people in the room: Herself; Taran ; Kel Ratrin – head of Security and Field Operations; a male mirialan with numerous tatoos whom Marit recognized as Akelo Lithuinl – head of Communications; a quarren whom she knew was head of Logistics; Mylar, Norian’s yes man; Vorzar; and a few others whom she only knew by reputation.

All sat at the table except for Norian who was standing next to a holoscreen. “You have all been called here because we have just received new information from our investigation of Narr Shaddaa in relation to the threat on Jace,” said Norian in a business like tone.

“Luckily there was some DNA evidence that we was able to use,” said Norian, turning the screen on. The suspected murderer is this woman.” The criminal progile and picture of a pale, human woman with jet black hair appeared on the sceen. “This is a bounty hunter, who we believe was hired by the people trying to assassinate Senator Jace. Her real name is Miranda Almira, but in the crime syndicate, she is known as Mandy.”

“What do we know about her technique?” Marit asked, “Do we have any idea how she will try to get to Jace?”

Norian fixed Marit with her cool gray eyes, though could do no more than that in the crowded conference room, full of employees. Marit’s lips tightened into a thin line. So Norian was going to blame her for Jacen’s “misconduct.” Fine, tougher people than Norian had stood in the way of her goals. Marit averted her eyes, knowing it was wiser to just let Norian think she had won this battle of wills.

Norian’s lip curled triumphantly. “Little is known of her methods; but we know they are highly effective. The only solid thing we know about her operation style is that she often uses a rare species as her henchmen.”

“Do we have a description of them?” asked Kel Ratrin, “We can put out a watch for them. If they are rare they should be much more easy to spot than Mandy.”

“We have no visual of them,” responded Norian in a sour tone, “But the few living people who have seen them describe them as tall, muscular beings with ebony skin and yellow eyes.”

Marit felt a jolt of shock. That was how Duran had described his assailants. She looked at Taran, who was giving her a significant look but could do little more with Norian present. Out of the corner of her eye, Marit thought she saw Norian pause, her eyes darting between Taran and her. Marit quickly averted her gaze. The last thing she needed was Norian on her tail.

After Norian assigned new tasks to the departent heads, the meeting ended. Marit tried to slip out of the door as quickly as possible. Her fingers barely brushed the glass of the door when a voice called out behind her.

“Marit.”

The jedi woman turned to face Norian. They were now the only two in the room. “Is there something you need, Ms. Norian?” asked Marit in the politest voice she could muster.

“I know things here are different with Jacen Zarek in prison,” she cooed giving what she clearly intended to be a warm smile. She failed miserably at it. “But I hope you know where your true loyalties lie – with CCI, and I.” Norian smirked at Marit’s ambivilant expression. “You know, there are all kinds of rumors going around about you and Jacen – things you have done. You know what I always say – Let him screw you, don’t let him screw you over.”

Marit felt her face redden in anger, “Jacen and I have not done anything of the sort, and even if we did, it’s certainly not any of your business,” said Marit hotly. Norain was trying to bait her and it was working. No, thought Marit, I won’t let her get to me like this.

“If you don’t have any more pearls of wisdom,” said Marit, letting sarcasm seep into her voice, “I’d like to get back to work.”

Norian gave her another false smile, her eyes still cold as ice. “By all means.”


*__________________*_____________________*________ _________________*

Reana’ka Norain stood in her glass-walled office that overlooked the main floor of CCI, giving her a good view of the entire main floor. She stood, looking out of the glass, like an overseer, keeping an eye on her slaves. Her granite gray eyes scanned the room, watching the workers bustle from one workstation to the next, and carefully scrutinized every meter of the room.

Mylar had just entered her office and though the twi’lek woman did not turn around she was well aware of his presense. The only sign that Norian knew Mylar was even in the room was the fact that she began to speak.

“They flow from workstation to workstation,” she said, still staring down at the employees below her. “Put some durasheets here, stop to get a coffee there, enter data in the mainframe over there; they are so…orderly,” said said without the slightest trace of a complaiment in her tone.

“Orderly?” squeaked Mylar in his high voice, almost cowering in Norian’s very presence.

“Yes,” she replied vaguely still staring, “But they are not orderly are they? On an individual level, who knows what they are going to do?” She turned to Mylar.

“I have a task for you,” she said in a commanding tone, her lip curling at the sight of Mylar’s slavish bow of his head. “Marit Thel-Tanis is a problem. She acts all compliant and pleasant, but her friend Jacen Zarek is in our holding cell. I read her emotions at the intell meeting – she is not in compliance with my command. This complicates things…if I know Marit she will do anything to get Zarek out. And I know Marit.”

“Place a tap on her computer system – I want to be able to moniter everything she does,” she said cooly, “And bug her comlink, I need to hear every call that comes out of it.”

“Yes, Ms. Norian,” said Mylar unctiously, “I’ll get right on it.” The little man dashed out of the office, eager to please his boss. Norian sneered after him, plucking a tall, clear glass of water off her desk and taking a sip, her long fingernails clinking on the glass as she did so. Mylar…a pathetic excuse for a being…but he had his uses, she tought as she sat down in her office chair as though it were a throne. She was in charge now, and she wouldn’t let anyone mess it up.

She had waited, waited for so long to get this position of power. From her seat she looked down at the main floor. From this height the workers looked like mere insects, which could be squashed without effort. Norian smiled inwardly. Yes they could all be quashed starting with Marit Thel-Tanis.

*__________________*____________________*_________ __________*

“Excuse me little girl, but you have to go through the metal scanner first.”

Gina looked at the speaker, her eyes sharp and unwavering. The man, a CCI security guard flinched slightly, but stood his ground. Gina had just arrived at CCI’s security clearance station.

She stepped through the metal detector. The metal detector emmitted a harsh beeping sound, its lights blinking. The guard’s eyebrows rose, dissappearing under his bangs at the sight. The metal readings were off the chart. Fumbling slightly, the man pulled out his blaster from his waist. “Don’t move! What do you think I’m some kind of idiot? There’s no way you’re getting into a secure government building carrying so much metal, now hand it over.”

Gina again fixed him with her piercing eyes, her mind assesing his threat level to her mission. Threat level: none. She continued to walk forward. The guard stepped in front of the entrance, blocking Gina’s route, a rather cocky expression on his face.

“You are making this difficult,” said Gina stiffly. “Step aside or you shall be removed.”

The man scoffed. “Oh, yeah?” he said in an ‘I’d like to see you try’ tone “You and what army, little gi-”

The man was cut short as Gina lifted him off the ground, by the neck, with one hand, and without the slightest sign of effort on her face.

“Gina!” came a loud, deep, voice from behind.

Both Gina and the guard looked around. Vorzar Kahbei was barrelling down the corridor towards them, his head crest gleaming with sweat. He had obviously run here. “Put him down,” commanded Vorzar, “I’ll get you in.”

Gina, cocked her head at the guard, who was breathing heavily, his eyes wide with fear, his feet dangling in midair. She released her grip, and the man fell to the floor, gasping and massaging his throat. After a couple of rasping gasps the man pointed an accusing finger at Gina.

“S-she tried to k-kill me!” he said hoarsely, looking accusingly at Gina.

Gina looked at him calculatingly as she responded. “If I tried to kill you, I would have snapped your cervical vertibrae, and you would be dead.”

“Just open the door,” said Vorzar in a commanding tone to the guard. The guard feebly pressed a button behind his desk and the doors hissed open.

“Come on,” grunted Vorzar in an uncharacteristically impatient voice, as he ushered Gina through the doors into CCI. “What were you thinking?” he hissed “Were you going to kill that guard?”

“Possibly,” said Gina in her neutral tone. “You interrupted before my decision making process was complete.”

Vorzar, shook his head, knowing it was both useless and foolish to argue with a cyborg. One could not change what their programming instructed them to do just by speaking with them. “You are supposed to remain discreet, no one except for me is supposed to know you are not human.”

“How would my actions give that away?”

Vorzar looked at her indignantly. “Well, I may not be human, but I’m pretty sure a teenage girl is not capable of lifting a full grown man off the floor.”

“I will save that into my memory for the future,” said Gina, not reacting even slightly to the jedi’s impatience.

“In here,” said Vorzar shortly, leading Gina into the conference room. Only one person was inside its sound proof walls: Marit. No sooner had Gina entered the room when she spoke.

“My mission parameters state that I am to proceed to interoggation chamber two, and begin the interoggation of agent Nakaya Li.”

Marit and Vorzar exchanged a significant look. After an encouraging nod from the emerald green alien, Marit began.

“What exactly is your mission, generally speaking?”

Gina cocked her head at Marit, “The interoggation of Agent Li is but one means of acomplishing my mission – to protect Senator Jace at all costs.”

Marit hesistated, wetting her lips with her tongue. “So…then if you could find a better way to protect Jace, and find the people threatening his life, you would take it?”

“It is in my programming to find the most efficiant means of completing my mission,” she stated mechanically.

“I think I might have another way for you,” said Marit, knowing that she was playing a very dangerous game. If Norian ever discovered what she was about to say…best not to think about that now. “Nakaya Li has confessed to selling access to the CCI mainframe to an unknown buyer. Lie detectors indicate she is telling the truth and has had no knowing involvement with the people behind the threat on Jace.”

Gina, studied Marit for a moment, assessing her. She found Marit was more able, both mentally and physically then most humans…but still ineffecient. “Lie detectors make mistakes approximately 2.79% of the time.”

Marit felt her blood chill at the quickness of Gina’s calculation. Hearing such unfeeling calculating words from the mouth of a teenage girl was unnerving. “That is a small percentage. Wouldn’t it be more… efficient,” she said using Gina’s word, “to explore other routes?”

“Other routes can be explored after the interoggation,” Gina stated. “Take me to Agent Li.”

Marit hesitated, looking at Vorzar, who after a moment agreed. “I’ll take you there. But if you find Nakaya innocent you will follow our route?”

“Astral,” said Gina shortly, “ And yes, then I will ‘follow your route.’”

Vorzar and Marit led Gina down the dark corridor to the interoggation room that Jacen and Taran had walked down only a short hour ago. The shound of their boots made loud echoing sounds on the polished floor. Vorzar stopped at a door.

“Here it is,” grunted Vorzar, indicating to the sealed metal door. He entered a code in the control panel beside the door. The door slid open and Gina made to walk inside.

“Wait,” said Marit sharply. “What are you going to do to her?”

“Whatever it takes,” said Gina coldly, entering the room, the door shutting with a resounding thud behind her.

*________________*____________________*___________ _______*________*

Nakaya sat in her rigid, cold, metal chair. It had been twenty minutes since anyone had entered her room. Twenty minutes since Kel had hurt her, but her hands were still trembling, her once perfectly styled purple hair hung lank around her face. Kel was her friend, but he had his orders. Jorrin’s replacement didn’t believe that she was telling the truth. She had only sold access to the mainframe to some unknown woman. She had no idea what was going on with the threat on Senator Jace. She had just needed the money…so those men would not hurt her or her daughter. No one believed her…except Jacen.

Nakaya shivered, her shirt drenched in cold sweat. Kel had injected her with a substance that made her nervous system feel like it was on fire. He had done so with greatest reluctance. That twi’lek, Norian, had come. Kel had told her that he didn’t believe Nakaya was holding anything back and was telling the truth – that she had only sold access to the mainframe. Nakaya’s eyes watered and her muscles felt like jelly remembering how much the injections had hurt. Though they were short-lived and all pain was gone now, she dreaded the moment when the door would open, reveling an interoggator with more needles.

Suddenly the door hissed open. Nakaya jumped in her seat, her eyes darting toward the door. The newcomer was just a girl, a teenager.

“W-what are you doing here?” stuttered Nakaya, her voice trembling. The girl flashed her a pitiless look.

“I am Gina. I am here to interoggate you,” said the girl.

“Your just a girl…how…” Nakaya’s sentence trailed off into nothingness. “I will tell you what I already told them – I don’t know anything about the threat on Jace.”

Gina cocked her head, studying Nakaya. After a minute she spoke. “We will see.” Gina walked slowly up to Nakaya’s chair and Nakaya felt as though she were frozen to her seat. Gina’s eyes were so…cold, uncaring, almost un-human.

Without warning, Gina grabbed Nakaya’s wrist in an iron-hard grip. Nakaya tried to pull away, but was not able to move her wrist in the slightest. With her other hand Gina pinched Nakaya’s forefinger between her own forefinger and thumb. She pushed Nakaya’s finger back and – snap!

Nakaya howled in pain. Gina looked thouroughly uneffected. “There are 206 bones in the human body,” said Gina calmly as though this was something she did everyday. “That was one. Tell me about Jace.”

Nakaya’s face was streaked with tears. She looked at Gina with new fear in her eyes. “I-I d-don’t know, I swear.”

Gina resolutely grabbed another finger, ignoring Nakaya’s pleas and objections. There was another snap and Nakaya cried anew.

*_________________*____________________*__________ _____________*

Vorzar sat at the table in the conference room, his head in his hands. He did not see what had happened in the interoggation room. But he could Nakaya’s feel pain and terror pulsing from her.

There was a tink of a finger nail on glass as the conference room door opened. Vorzar’s body snapped up, startled. He was a jedi, he was supposed to appear strong. He could not be seen sitting here all morbid – moral was low enough with Norian running the place. But it was Gina who entered the room.

She walked until she was directly across from him, on the otherside of the glass-topped table. As the door closed behind her, all sounds of the outside; comlinks buzzing, the chatter of employees, and the humming of the computer system all faded. It was just him and Gina now.

She stared at him with her fierce burning eyes. Vorzar stared back determined not to show signs of fear to this “girl.”

“I can not locate one sign of lying in Agent Li,” said Gina.

Vorzar waited, but Gina merely stared at him, unspeaking. “And?” he prompted.

“I will follow your route,” replied Gina. “What is it?”

Vorzar found himself with a determined smile on his face in spite of his sorrow for Nakaya’s plight. His plan would ultimately help her too, after all. “We are going to bust out a prisoner.”

Confusion registered on Gina’s face. “Bust out?”

“Yeah,” said Vorzar, “You know, break him out – it just means we are going to enter the cell block and help a prisoner escape,” he finished, being as clear as he could so the cyborg would understand.

“Who?” inquired Gina.

“Jacen Zarek,” said Vorzar shortly.

“Jacen Zarek is the jedi who is assigned to guard senator Jace,” said Gina stiffly, retreiving the information from her memory chip.

“Yes. He can help. He is determined and is willing to follow leads – good leads - that CCI and Norian will not.” Anybody who knew Vorzar would have been taken aback. It was rare for the vurk to say so much at once.

“I know of Jacen Zarek’s abilities,” said Gina mechanically, “Senator Jace chose him to be his jedi protector because of Zarek’s many accomplishments. We are retreiving Zarek?”

Vorzar nodded. “But we are going to be breaking about 50 CCI protocals and rules in the process,” he warned.

To Vorzar’s surprise, the corner of Gina’s mouth twitched up slightly, as though breaking rules were something of a treat for her. “Let’s go.”

*___________________*___________________________*_ ____________________*

Jacen sat in his cell. He was in sort of a half sleep, recovering his energy. When the plan to break him out, whatever it was, happened, he would need his strength. But he could not allow himself to sleep. He had to be ready. Suddenly he heard a commotion outside the cell door. There was a grunt and a bang, that sounded like someone had been slammed against a wall.

Jacen lept to his feet, ready for action. BOOM. Now something was hammering at his door. To his amazement, a large dent appeared in the door, caving in towards him, as though someone was punching the door from the outside. BOOM. A hole had replaced the dent, a fist protruding from it. Hands grasped the metal and peeled it away as though is was no more than tin foil wrap.

Thee was a creak and a groan and the door collapsed inward. Jacen flattened himself against the back wall of the cell, the falling door missing him by mere inches. In the door frame stood a teenage girl, about Virago’s age. If there was a picture of perfection of a teenage girl, it would be this one. Her features were perfectly defined, as though she was a sculpture brought to life. Yet her exprssion was hard. She was garbed in a tight black unisuit. She cocked her head at him.

“Come with me,” she said.

Jacen looked at her with awe. She was just a girl, a child in his eyes, yet she had torn down his door with her bare hands.

“The longer you stand there the less probable our chances of escape are,” she said. She handed him a blaster pistol. “Vorzar is waiting in the hanger.”

“Who are you?” asked Jacen snatching the pistol and following her out the door.

“I’m Gina,” she said. “I’m here to ‘bust you out.’”

-----------------------------------------------------

Yay, about 8,000 characters shorter than the last one. :D I'm getting there with making the chapters more managable.

I am not happy with how this chapter turned out, but it layed thte ground work for a few future chapters that I promise will be awesomeness. ;)

~HOP

I am really, really, really, starting to like Gina, hahaha.
I like how you have gradually, if not close to undetectable traces of emotion in some of her sentences. She is learning. Learning to be more than just a cyborg. Yet still bring the cold, killing machine that she is.

Some can go overboard when doing something like that, but you keep it inside respectable parameters, HoP.
Great work indeed. I look forward to seeing the evolution of Gina.

Okay, I OFFICIALLY like Gina! She's just an awesome character. :xp: I really liked the part where she almost killed the guard. :D

PS. Please tell me Reana'ka Norian dies before the end of this? No, wait, don't tell me! I want to be kept in suspense! :xp:

I promised it would be a very Gina-ish chapter! :D

@BFA: Thank you, that is exactly what I was going for. :)Like integrating "astral" into her vocabulary- slow changes. She learns some human traits, but is still cold and ruthless. Well she is with Jacen and Vorzar as they flee CCI next chap. They will have to learn to like her though...

@Endorenna: Thank you! If you liked the guard scene you'll love this- Well Jacen and Gina have to fight their way out of CCI next chap so: First Gina Fight Scene! - taking out those guards :D

I promised you would hate Norian didn't I? :xp: I tried to show how manipulative she is (having Mylar bug Marit's comlink) and how she plays on emotions. As for her death: You will just have to wait and see, though I promise you will hate her more and more as the fic progresses. She won't be like Taran who has sort of redeemed himself and is now on the good side.

The main point I wanted to make with Norian is that the world is not divided up between good guys and sith. Technically she is on the good side, but is quite an evil witch. :xp: One more note: I will tell readers this - Nakaya is not the traitor. Jacen and Gina are right about that. But there is still one - perhaps someone not yet introduced, or perhaps not. ;)

~HOP

What can I say? Gina is a great character.

It's good that you don't revolve the story around one character, but I like where you left the next chapter to start off. I guess I wonder now which new character is going to be a traitor. Look forward to where this goes!

Okay, chapter eight is down for a re-write but I won't leave you guys totally in the dark here. Gina forced me to draw some colored character sketches - nothing fancy, just sketched in pencil and colored in with Foray ultra-fine tip art markers.

http://www.lucasforums.com/album.php?albumid=95&pictureid=2303)

The main characters of The False Peace: (from left to right): Virago, Aruil, Reana'ka Norian (waaay in the back), Marit, Senator Jace, Jacen, Vorzar, and Gina.

3 points:
1)Yes I was too lazy to draw the background. :)

2) Having no clue whatsoever about vurk anatomy I fully admit that for Vorzar I just looked at a picture of a jedi Vurk and tried to replicate it as best I could. :xp:

3) Yes Gina is wearing a pink belt and gaunlets...you guys will see them appear later in the story, when Gina learns about "astral" clothes.

http://www.lucasforums.com/album.php?albumid=95&pictureid=2302)


In the spirit of Chapter 8 of TFP I present: Gina vs. Levin, a battle of the kill-happy cyborgs! Chapter 8 will contain the showdown between Gina and Mandy's cyborg Levin. Cyborg fight! :D I actually put a bit of work into this one...but still too lazy to draw a background.

Okay, so I tried to put the pics directly onto this post but it would not let me do it from my albums. Oh, well, linkidoo then!

~HOP

Noiicee work, HoP!
Nice work indeed!
Can NOT wait for the fight against Gina and Levin. That is an AWESOME picture there. Gina's hair reminds me of Rogue.
Can't wait for the next chap! :D

Nice pics, HOP.

Gina in...pink??? LOL!!!!!!! :lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:

Battle of the Robots! Can't wait! :xp: This'll be better than T3. :D

^^^ QFE! :lol:

Chapter Seven: Narrow Escapes

RECAP: Mandy, ever resourceful, hires the assassin Daksh Tavon to kill Senator Jace and has him team up with her owncyborg Levin. Mandy herself has kidnapped Virago and the eccentric Aruil who are on a planet near to Coruscant due to a forced landing because Mandy’s ship is in need of a new hyperdrive. Meanwhile Gina has broken Jacen out of the CCI cell that Norian placed him in and the two start their escape from CCI.

Daksh Tavon and Levin
Empty hanger, Coruscant

The assassin Daksh Tavon sifted through the pile of gadgets that had acumulated on the table in the central hold of his ship. He had let this junk accumulate for so long...and now he had lost his comlink in it. Being alone with that cyborg of Mandy’s…what was his name…Levin. It was bad enough being stuck with that thing, but now he had no way to communicate.

Now that Jace had a cyborg protecting him, Daksh would need a bigger team. He had a few low-level bounty hunter that he called when he needed help with a job. They were’nt thte best help, but they worked cheap. The cyborg Levin entered the hold. He hardly looked dangerous, a tall, pale man in his twenties. His face looked as though it was from a stattue brought to life, flawless.

“What are you doing?” said the cyborg.

Daksh looked up from his search, eyeing the cyborg warily. “We’re gonna need some extra help. I’m looking for my comlink – contact some guys I know, to help us get to Jace.”

Levin blinked, his ice blue eyes intense color brought out by his jet black hair. “Mandy sent better ones.”

“Yeah?,” said Daksh skeptically, “I don’t see them here.”

“They contacted me,” replied Levin in his mechanical tone. “They are waiting outside the ship. Come with me.”

Normally Daksh would have not taken kindly to being ordered off his own ship, but he had seen what Levin could do and thought it best to comply. The two strode down the boarding ramp and into the hanger, where Daksh had talked with Mandy’s hologram about thirty minutes ago.

Five new beings were now in the hanger. Daksh thought they were a motley sort, but he had to admit they looked dangerous.

There was a man who was as tall as Levin, though, twice as broad. He had bulging arms and a rather dull look to him. Next to him was a green twi’lek male, garbed in a unisuit, numerous granades at his waist. On his right was a human woman with short black hair. Standing behind her was a bald man in a dark cloak and next to him was a lean man with bleached blond hair.

“Each of these beings has a skill,” said Levin in an unimpressed tone, “A skill that Mandy deems necessary.”

The woman stepped forward, a satisfied smile on her face, though her eyes coldly raked Levin. The cyborg didn’t seem to notice. “I’m Ava,” said the woman. “I’m the unarmed combat expert. This is my crew” she said gesturing to the four behind her. “Orn is the muscle,” she pointed at the tall man, “Fal’eak is out demolitions guy,” the twi’lek, “Norval, our blasters guy,” the blond man, “and Uruk, who has a rather…special talent,” the bald man.

Daksh didn’t even bother to ask what this “special talent” was though it could not have been more obvious that Ava wanted to tell him. Ururk however looked indifferent.

The group armed up, and started conversing quietly. Somehow, Ava had ended up next to Levin, a flirtacious expression on her face, her hand creeping up his arm. Clearly she didn’t know Levin was a cyborg. She kept barraging him with questions to which he would answer with one or two words in a flat, mechanical tone. The other crew members were charging and examining their weapons and paid no heed Ava and Levin.

Finally it appeared that Ava had become frustrated with Levin. “Would it kill you to make a little conversation?” she demanded hotly. Clearly she was not used to being ignored.

Levin stiffly turned towards her, a slightly confused look on his face. “No, it would not kill me.” With that he turned back to loading his belt with various smaller weapons. Ava threw him a withering look and walked away, giving him up as a lost job.

“All right, everbody into the ship,” said Daksh when everyone had finished arming up. “We have a job to do.”

*____________________*____________________*_______ _____________*

Jacen Zarek and Gina
Coruscant Central Intelligence (CCI), Coruscant

Jacen breathed heavily as he sprinted down one of CCI’s many corridors with Gina keeping a steady pace with him, not the slightest strain on her face. Her speed and the effortlessness with which she achieved it were to be expected, but in Jacen’s mind, the fact that she was a cyborg was still sinking in.

“So,” said Jacen panting, “you’re a…?” His sentence trailed off. It was just so surreal that this teenager, about Virago’age was one of those cyborg killing machines; yet he had seen her tear down his cell door with nothing but her bare hands.

“Yes,” Gina said, her voice level, as though she was merely standing idely, instead of running at her rapid pace. “I’m a…” she finished, mimicking Jacen’s tone, though doing so quite mechanically.

“How come the alarms are not going off?” asked Jacen. “I’m a prisoner who escaped, shouldn’t there be flashing lights or beeping or something?”

“Your friend Marit is good with computers. She disabled the the automatic alarm- it has to be set manually now,” said Gina, as the two kept running. “I would have just destroyed the building and killed our way out…her method was ineffeciant.”

“Look,” said Jacen sharply as they paused at the junction of two corridors, Jacen peering around the wall to see if anyone was there. “These guards are not the bad guys here. Norian is. They are just following orders and I refuse to slaughter them for my personal gain.”

“It would be helping Jace as well,” said Gina cocking her head at him, “If they choose to stand in my way they will be killed. Their deaths are insignificant.”

“Jace wouldn’t want them dead,” said Jacen, hoping to convince her.

“Jace is not here.”

Jacen clutched his blaster tightly, in a white-knuckled grip as they rounded the corner, only to come face to face with a CCI security team. All of them were speaking into their comlinks. Jacen’s busted cell door must have been discovered. The guards definatly knew about the breakout. There was no choice, Jacen and Gina would have to fight their way out.

One of the guards looked up his eyes widening at the sight of Jacen and Gina. He yelled something incomprehensible and pointed at them. Another guard spoke into his comlink, and within a second a blaring alarm sounded, flashing red lights dotting the wide, metal corridor.

Jacen, being without his lightsaber, took cover behind one of the relief columns that lined the walls of the corridor. He set his gun to stun. He didn’t want to kill these guards just for obeying Norian’s orders.

Gina, however, did not even attempt to take cover, she strode towards the guards at a brisk, but confident pace, as though she was merely walking down a city street. The guards looked at eachother uneasily, reluctant to open fire on a teenager.

One of the guards tried to restrain her with just his hands. His arm darted out to grab her, only to be caught midway in Gina’s bone-crushing grip. With her right arm gripping his Gina threw him across the hall. He landed at an awkward angle and groaned but did not get up.

Now resolute, the rest of the guards opened fire on Gina. The lasers tore through her flesh exposing the metal underneath. Gina seemed thouroughly unphased by this sudden attack.

Jacen used the guards’ focus on Gina to his advantage. He jumped out from behind the columns, using the force to guide and direct his aim. There, an opening. He fired in quick succession stunning two guards.

Gina brought her arm back and slammed her palm into the chest of a twi’lek guard, sending him flying twenty feet though the air. Another guard, seeing the minimal effect the blasters were having on Gina, drew a vibrosword. He swung it fiercly, cleaving Gina’s neck. The sword grazed off her metal endoskeleton.

Gina responded by ripping the sword from the guard’s hands, her eyes now glowing bright green. She grasped the blade, oblivious of the blood dripping down her hands as the blade cut them. She bent the sword into a C shape, before throwing it aside.

With a quick kick Gina disabled him, before whirling around to stop the final guard. She ducked under his clumsy swing of his sword, before delivering a blow that layed him flat on his back. She had disabled an entire security team in a matter of seconds.

Jacen watched the fight with aweful awe. All these men…beaten up by what appeared to be only a slender teenage girl. Still, he was not pleased that so many had to die for him to escape. “I told you not to kill them.”

Gina eyed the prone guards that lay scattered all over the hallway. She cocked her head at the nearest one. “He will live,” she said in a cold, almost diappointed tone, ignoring the man’s pitiful wimpers.

Jacen and Gina took off, hearing the pounding of footsteps behind them. A new team of guardsd was in hot pursuit.

“The hanger is just through here…oh,” Jacen stopped. The blast door was securely shut. The building must be in lockdown because of his breakout. What a terrible time not to have his lightsaber. He rememberd how Gina had broken into his cell with only her bare hands. “Can you get through the door?” he asked urgently.

Gina placed her palm on the cool, sealed blast door. There was a pause. “Yes, I can get through,” she replied turning her gaze to the wall next to the door. “But the wall would be much faster.”

Gina took a fighting stance and slammed her fist into the metal wall, leaving a deep dent. She struck the wall again and the dent grew bigger. Jacen could hear the shouts of the guards – they were getting closer.

“Hurry!” whispered Jacen, readying his blaster.

Gina delivered a powerful kick, busting a hole into the wall. The pair clambered through the hole just as the guards rounded the corner, pointing and shouting louder that the targets were sighted.

Jacen and Gina raced to the hanger, the alarm still blaring, guards hot on their trail. Jacen pushed his body to the limit, a pounding in his ears, adrenaline coarsing through him. As the guards gained, Jacen sent a force wave at them, knocking them back, falling over like domino’s. The pair sprinted into the hanger, Jacen sealing the door behind them. “It won’t hold them long,” he said panting, sweat dripping down his face, “They probably know the code.”

Gina, plunged her fist into the door’s control panel, pulling out a fist full of wires and circuit boards. “The code won’t help them now.”

Vorzar was waiting inside the shiny black, convertable, Nitro speeder that Gina, arrived in. He urgently motioned for Jacen and Gina to get in. Jacen, vaulted over the door into the passenger seat as Gina climbed into the back.

“We have a problem,” said Vorzar before Jacen could utter a word. “I just got a distress signal from Jace’s Campaign Headquarters. He needs us. Now.”

Vorzar stretched out his hand, a shiny, cylindrical object resting in it. Jacen took his lightsaber gratefully. “I’m ready.” He jumped into the passenger seat, Gina, climbing into the back. He could still her the commotion on the otherside of the blast door as guards vainly tried to break though and prevent his escape.

Vorzar revved up the speeder and they shot away from CCI, leaving, Norian, Mylar, and the guards behind.

*_________________________*_______________________ _*________________*
Virago Nual and Aruil Nenenitosael
Vengence’s Claw, Nierport VII

Virago knelt on the freezing cold floor of the cargo hold, his ear pressed against the door. Silence. Good.

The Vengence’s Claw had landed on Nierport VII about twenty minutes ago. Virago and Aruil had taken turns listening at the door. Their eavesdropping had yeilded results far better than Virago would have dared to hope.

He had learned that the ship needed a new hyperdrive and that this factor had forced them to stop at Neirport VII, a planet only an hour long shuttle ride from Coruscant. On her turn listening, Aruil had learned that Mandy, who did not trust her dullart thugs to find the correct part had left the ship to get it herself.

“Now is our chance,” said Virago in a whisper. “Mandy is gone and she took a few of her henchmen with her.”

“Are you sure it’s the right time?” asked Aruil, clutching the fuzzy rodent she had found ealrier. Since then it had been dubbed Mohinder.

“We won’t get a better opportunity, okay?” insisted Virago in a tone that was harsher then he had meant. Being cooped up with Aruil was…different. On the one hand, he had learned to like the Teevan girl and take her eccentricities in stride. On the other hand he was growing impatient with her calm demeanor. Didn’t she know they were locked up on a ship full of eratic, hostile, bounty hunter thugs?

“Okay,” said Aruil mildly, “There is no need to get angry.”

“I’m not angry,” said Virago stubbornly.

“Then you do a very good impression of it, you know,” said Aruil serenely her bulging eyes shining.

“I – you’re right,” said Virago apologetically, “It’s just this whole situation is – its just we could be dead any second, that Mandy is a complete psycho.”

Aruil cocked her head at him. “You are full of munjas and gnarglefuls,” she said with a smile.

“What?” said Virago confused.

“You know,” said Aruil mistily, waving her rodent-free hand, “Munjas and gnarglefuls – happy thoughts…I was being sarcastic,” she added airily at Virago’s uncomprehending look.

“Full of munjas and gnarglefuls?” said Virago with an amused smile, “You mean like the fruit. I don’t think thats a saying though.”

Aruil cocked her head to the other side “It’s not?”

“No, I don’t think so.” He cleared his throat. “Well – better get started. Do you remember the plan?”

Aruil nodded, stowing Mohinder in her pocket.

“Okay,” said Virago turning his head towards Aruil, a strand of his dirty blond hair partially obscuring one of his bright blue eyes. “Once the guard is down, I’ll sneek over to the entrance and scout out what kind of security is blocking it, you wait here.”

“No, I’m coming with you,” said Aruil gently. “I like to know what is going on and being there is so much faster than waiting for someone to tell me afterwards. Besides, people have a habit of leaving out important pieces of information, like whether someone’s left earlobe is bigger than their right, or whether they have magical force sheilds protecting them, or if they have a scar shaped like a wompa rat on their neck.”

“Why would you want to know if someone has a scar shaped like a wompa rat on their neck?”

“Oh, that,” said Aruil, pulling her silvery blond hair back into a pony tail, “Well the alien thug with that particular scar stole my charm bracelet that wards off the Blibbering Buzzsnapper,” she said holding up her pale, bare wrist for Virago to examine, “as well as two buttons and my lucky pebble. I would like to get them back.”

Virago rolled his eyes not sure if Aruil was joking or not, but appreciating the slight relief in tension. “Okay, we should try to get our lightsabers on the way out. Ready?”

“One moment,” said Aruil closing her eyes as though concentrating deeply on something. Virago could feel an enormous surge of the force from her. The sheer power of it amazed him. The ice that had covered the walls and ceiling of the cargohold melted into water – water that Aruil could use as a weapon. “Okay, I’m ready.”

Virago nodded. They would only get one shot at this. “Guard!” he shouted, “Guard, I need help!” As he did so Aruil hid behind the door frame. One of the guards accessed the door and lumbered stupidly into the room.

“What do you – aaaugh!” The guard cried out in surprise as Aruil’s wave of water hit him from the side with tremendous force, knocking him against the wall. He jumped to his feet and made for Aruil, reaching for his blaster.

Virago, saw him grabbing his gun and acted instinctively. Before he could even think about what he was doing, he jumped at the guard from behind, wrapping his arms around the aliens thick neck. Virago could feel his arms stiffen, locking in place as the guard tried to pry them off. The guard’s strong hands bruised Virago’s forearms but he held on tight. Suddenly all strength seemed to leave the guard, and he fell to the floor, dead. Three icicles were protruding from his chest.

Aruil was standing alert and ready, two more icicles hovering in front of her, suspended in the air through the force. But she let them fall to the floor seeing the alien was dead and Virago getting up. She looked more focused and poised than Virago had ever seen her. This was not Aruil the looney girl – this was Aruil the warrior.

“Aruil Nenenitosael,” said Virago, his heart still pounding from the sudden action, but swelling at pride for her, “I’m glad you are on my side and I’m proud to be your friend.”

“My…friend?” said Aruil in an almost disbelieving voice. “I’ve never had somebody call me their friend before.”

“Yeah, well,” said Virago rubbing his neck, embarrassed at Aruil’s bluntness, “that’s just how I think of you.” Before he knew what was happening, Aruil flung her arms around him in a hug, which he returned, feeling the softness of her midnight blue robes, though her pebble necklace pressing uncomforably against his collar bone.

When she let go, there was a new light in her eyes, and a smile dancing on her lips. “Ready, my friend?”

Virago gave her a rogue, lop-sided smile. “Lets roll.”

The two jedi crept out of the cargohold, feeling an immdiate rush of warm air. Clearly the rest of the ship was kept a a comfortable temperature. Aruil tapped him on the shoulder, holding out three razor sharp icicles that she had formed out of some of her water. Wordlessly, but with a nod of thanks Virago took them.

The corridor of the ship was narrow and had a deathly silence about it. Virago and Aruil crept ever so carefully down the corridor as not to make a sound. Virago could feel beads of sweat trickling down his head.

Virago heard footsteps approaching and flattened himself against the wall. Another of Mandy’s thugs rounded the corner. Virago looked around for somewhere to hide, but it was just a hallway. Well, better we meet on my terms he thought. He pushed out with the force, sending the alien crashing into one of the walls and collapsing to the ground.

The garguntuan alien made to stand but Virago smashed his head back into the wall, holding Aruil’s pointed icicles to the alien’s throat.

“One sound and you die,” said Virago, his blue eyes blazing, “Tell us where our lightsabers are and you get to live,” demanded Virago in a hissing whisper, pricking the alien’s neck to show him he was serious. Virago’s entire body was stiff and tense, his right hand freezingly numb and wet from holding the icicles.

“The armory, just down there and to the right,” said the alien weakly, apparently shocked at being brought down by a couple of teenagers.

“Thank you,” said Virago polietly, before slamming the alien’s head into the wall again, knocking him unconscious. They would have to move quickly. The alien’s body was too large to hide on this ship and somebody was bound to find him just lying on the floor.

The metal door to the armory was locked. Virago stretched out with his mind, concentrating on the locking mechanism, just the way Marit had taught him to. Marit was an expert at hacking through security and Virago learned techniques from her every chance he got. He could feel a solid metal mass, the door…ahah! -there is was, the security panel…now just to tweak some wires…got it! The door slid open and the two jedi slipped inside.

The tiny room was bristling with weaponry, crammed from corner to corner. There were hexagonal shaped storage containers as well as footlockers lining the walls. Virago knew there would not be time to use his security skills to hack into all of the containers, but one of the lockers, the oldest, and most battered, caught his eye.

“Aruil, look at this,” he breathed. “It’s one of those old style manual locks – no computer codes or anything. All of these other containers look pretty standard, but this looks out of place like it was just put there.”

“You think our lightsabers are in there?” asked Aruil, putting a calming hand on her pocket which was quivering from Mohinder’s fright. “You might want to let me try that.”

“Let me guess,” said Virago, “you’re a security expert too?”

“No,” said Aruil cheerfully, renewed hope gained from their so-far- successful escape, “But you would be surprised at how many things you can solve with water.” She directed a small stream of water at the lock, guiding it into the keyhole. Once the keyhole was full of water, she froze it, the ice pushing all the pins inside, and the container’s lid popping open.

“Genius,” said Virago grabbing both of their lightsabers out of the box and handing Aruil’s to her. It was made of a glowing whiteish metal that almost looked like ice. He grasped his own in his right hand, feeling it’s smooth surface. Somehow holding the weapon reassured him.

Suddenly a cry of alarm rang throughout the silent ship.

“Damn it, they know we are out,” said Virago, “Lets move!”

*____________________*___________________*________ ____________*

Matrik and Marlena Jace
Senator Matrik Jace Campaign Headquarters, Coruscant

Senator Jace lay in his plush, luxurious, bed, next to his sleeping wife Marlena, listening to her gentle breathing, characteristic of sleep. He himself had not caught a wink of sleep. He had a speech to give tomorrow and at the rate he was going, he would be too tired to make it through breakfast.

Questions were burining inside his mind. Gina had not called him with any new information. That was the whole reason he sent her – to get information, didn’t she know that he wanted frequent updates. She was not concerned with his desire for information…he understood but he had hoped that the vurk jedi, Vorzar would call with an update. In fact he would be pleased with just about anything that would give him an excuse for his lack of sleep. “Getting updates from aides”… yes that would be good.

He heard a crash from a distant room. He sat up straight, straining his hearing. He heard a crunch and a scream, followed be the pings of blasterfire. Jace yanked the azure, silky, covers off his mind now fully alert.

Suddenly, the blaster shot were joined by more and it sounded as if there was an all out firefight taking place just down the hall. Marlena picked her head up off her pillow, her usually, severly combed hair unkempt from sleep.

“M-Matrik, whats going on?” she asked groggily wiping the sleep from her eyes.

Before Jace could respond, the Head of Security, the bothan Karn, burst into the room. “I need you to come with me sir!” he said urgently “We are under attack.”

Jace pulled Marlena out of bed and the two followed Karn down one of the richly carpeted and extravegantly adorned hallways of the building.

While running, Jace pulled his private comlink from his pocket. “Vorzar,” he hissed, “We are under attack. I need your help!” There was a pause and the signal went dead. Jace felt his heart sink. He did not know whether the messege had gotten to the vurk jedi before the transmission was cut. These intruders must be jamming the communications.

The trio bolted down the hall heading for the door to the emergency stairwell that was used in case of fires. Suddenly the door, flanked by tall, ornamental, vases, hissed open revealing a plasteel armor clad Ava and the muscular thug Orn. She carried no weapon but her gloves bristling with sharp metal studs.

Marlena shreiked but appeared too afraid to move, her shimmering green nightgown quivering in tandem with her shaking body.

Karn drew his blaster aiming for Ava’s head. Before he could get a shot off she lept forward kicking the weapon out of Karn’s hands. She punched him square in the head, the studs on her gloves peircing the skull killing him instantly.

Karn fell dead in a furry, bloody heap on the carpet. Orn grinned stupidly as Ava started towards Jace, only six feet away.

Suddenly the ceiling space between them gave way and collapsed to the floor, Jacen standing on top of it, landing between Jace and Ava.

Ava stumbled back, alarmed. She recovered quickly however and aimed a blow at Jacen. He ignited his blue lightsaber, spinning its twin blades, severing Ava’s arm at the elbow. She screamed in pain and fell to the floor clutching her stub, her face screwed up in agony.

“This party is over,” said Jacen as Vorzar and Gina dropped out of the hole in the ceiling, landing behind him. Vorzar drew his emerald green lightsaber.

Orn started forward swinging enormous vibroblades that were as crude and unweildy as he was.

“You got this, tin man?” asked Jacen inclining his head to the cyborg girl.

Gina glared at him, “Yes.”

Jacen turned to Jace. “Sir, we need to get out now.” Jace nodded.

Jacen, Vorzar, Jace, and Marlena raced down the opposite hallway as Gina faced off with Orn. The latter seemed to be under the impression that this fight was going to be a cakewalk for him…he was in for a surprise.

“This is the best Jace could do?” he taunted. “A little, teenage, girl?”

He charged forward, swinging his massive blades wildly, paying no heed to the shattered vases in his wake. He swung the swords at Gina who ducked under them aiming a kick at his leg. The man fell to the ground with a resounding thud, dropping his swords.

Gina bent down, picked him off the ground with one arm and threw him into a wall, leaving a large dent in the once flawless surface. Orn got up blinking stupidly, only to be pummeled by lightning fast blows from the cyborg girl. Her fist made contact with his nose with a crunch, dark blood gushing out.

Orn fell to the floor, where Gina grabbed hold of his calf, twisting it violantly until it broke with a snap. Orn gasped in pain his teeth gritted. Gina lowered her face into his.

“Who is the little girl now?” she asked before ramming her head into his, breaking Orn’s skull, killing him.

Jacen and Vorzar flanked Matrik and Marlena Jace as the raced down the hall. “You are Jacen Zarek?” asked Jace as they ran.

Jacen nodded. A team of Jace’s guards dashed through a side door, joining the group.

Blaster fire rang from the next room – the room they had to go through to get out. “Stay here with the senator,” ordered Jacen to the guards, “Vorzar and I will handle what is in there!”

Jace’s guards complied, forming a protective ring around Jace and Marlena, their breatplates shining in the light of the ornate glow lamps that lined the walls. Jacen accessed the control panel of the door and, with Vorzar close behind, lept into the fray.

Blaster bolts sailed wildly throughout the room, which previously to the battle, must have been a large, elegant dining room. One wall was nothing but a huge floor to ceiling window, and through it, the nightscape of Coruscant could be seen, everyone outside unaware of the conflict within the building. Tables were overturned, used as shields against the fire. Jace’s blue clad bodyguards on one side, the assailents on the other.

Jacen brought his blade up to meet the bolts, deflecting them back at the attacker: a dusty brown haired man with a scar surrounded by warbots – Daksh Tavon. Daksh pressed a button on a small remote, and the droids turned their attention away from the guards and to Jacen instead. They fired, releasing the deadly bolts of energy.

Jacen spun his double blades blocking the first volley, some stray bolts passing through the edges of his robes and a couple singing his hair. They were close…too close. Jacen used the force to sense where the next bolts would strike. They shot at him with blinding speed but through the force everything seemed to slow down. He could feel his heart pounding, sweat dripping from his brow, his rapid breathing.

He spun the twin bladed saber like a dervish deflecting the bolts back, taking out two of the droids. Gathering the force Jacen charged at the droids, vaulting into the air above their shots. With a swing in midair, Jacen disabled a droid, landing on his feet, swinging his blade cleaving another droid neatly in half. He turned jamming his blade into the torso of another, it’s shots missing him by so small a margin that he could feel their heat on his skin.

Before he could act further, the droids, along with the Daksh were blown off their feet, crashing into the wall, the droids shattering into tiny pieces. Jacen looked for the source of the attack. It was Vorzar, his palm outsteatched, fire in his eyes.

“You jedi consulars are handy in a tight spot,” said Jacen. Suddenly, he caught a gleam of light behind his vurk friend.

“Vorzar, move!” he shouted. The vurk, hurled himself to the side just as a grenade exploded where he had been standing only a moment before. Two of Jace’s guards were not so quick and were incinerated in the blast, their dying screams echoing throughout the room.

The, green twi’lek, Fal’eak, snatched anothter grenade from his belt, pulling his arm back and casting it at Jacen. Using the force Jacen reversed the genade in midair, sending it back towards the twi’lek, who had not been expecting this move and was unable to react in time. With an ear-splitting bang, Fal’eak was blown to bits.

The room was now empty of enemies. Jace’s guards came out from behind the tables. One came up to Jacen and Vorzar.

“Thank you for your help, master jedi,” he said “But the building is not clear, there is another – stronger than these.” The guard swallowed, “He- he just tossed my men aside, as though they were nothing more than rag dolls and his eyes – his eyes! They glowed blue, like lasers they were.”

Jacen threw Vorzar a signifigant look, both jedi thinking the same thing – another cyborg.

------

Senator Jace and his bodyguards had dashed down a flight of stairs because the elevators had been disabled as part of the automatic security lockdown. Although Jace had insisted on waiting for Jacen and Vorzar, the guards had told him that it was necessary to move. They were almost at the entrance to the stairs that lead to the hangar, when a man rounded the corner at the opposite end of the hall.

He was tall and pale, with ebony hair and piercing blue eyes. Levin did not slow his pace in the slightest as the guards aimed their rifles at him. These guards posed no threat to him.

They opened fire, the bolts piercing Levin’s flesh, but mearly bouncing harmlessly off of the metal underneath. Levin’s eyes glowed bright blue as he drew his own blaster carbine. With unnerving accuracy his gunning down the guards that surrounded Jace. They fell to the floor, helpless against the towering cyborg.

Jace had picked up one of the fallen guard’s blasters aiming it at Levin’s head. The bolts struck home, but had just as much effect as those of his men. Jace felt as though all of his muscles had turned to jelly. There was nowhere to run. He and Marlena were cornered. He steeped in front of his wife, to shield her. “You can have me,” said Jace, doing everthing in his power to keep his voice steady. “Let Marlena go.”

“You are the primary target,” said Levin without an ounce of emotion, “But she dies too.”

Jace griped his gun tighter, feeling a terrified Marlena’s nails sink into his leg as she clung to him for dear life. Levin advanced, getting closer, his gun aimed steadily at Jace’s heart.

Without warning, Levin fell face first onto the ground, as though pushed from behind. Gina stood behind Levin’s prone body, her eyes glowing green. “Run,” she commanded Jace. Jace still stunned, grasped Marlena’s hand and the two ran at break-neck speed down the opposite corridor.

Levin got to his feet, and Gina strode briskly towards the other much taller cyborg, each machine knowing what they faced – one of their own. Her eyes glowed like to solid green orbs.

Without hesitation, Levin punched Gina square in the jaw with such force that her head spun 180 degrees so that her face was aligned with her backbone. But her head spun back, clicking loudly with each inch, like the sound of gears turning. Once it was facing forward, Gina jerked it to each to each side as thought locking it in place her eyes glaring at Levin.

“My turn,” said Gina coldly to Levin, not showing the slightest pain or shock.

She bent her legs and jumped, swinging her right foot around at blinding speed, delivering a kick to Levin’s chest, calculating the point that would cause the most damage. Her foot made contact, and Levin skidded backwards on his heels down to the far end of the hallway, slamming into the wall.

Before Levin could react, Gina ran at him, grabbing his arm and swinging him into the adjacent wall, his head hitting it with a metallic pang. Relentlessly, Gina brought her elbows up to meet Levin’s face, breaking the skin. Blood trickled down Levin’s face a small glint of metal underneath.

Levin pulled a dagger from his belt, jamming it into Gina's neck. This stopped Gina's blows momentarily, but a moment was all Levin needed.

He side-kicked Gina sending her falling to the floor. This didn't stop Gina for a second. From the floor she grabbed Levin's ankle and pulled him down with her. He tried to get up but Gina deftly whacked his face with her outstretched hand, leaving three thin, bloody gashes on his cheek from her nails.

Gina lept to her feet, stomping a thick-souled boot onto Levin's head. As the boot made contact, she could hear the sound of crushing metal. Her instant x-ray scan of Levin's endoskeleton showed that she had crushed a critical point in his head.

With Herculean strength, Gina picked Levin up off the floor, grasped his skull and began beating it against the wall with one hand. With the other she removed the dagger from her neck, snapping it in two as though it were a toothpick.

Levin using the wall as leverage pushed back with his feet, managing to escape Gina's grip. He threw a left hook at her face, making contact, leaving a splotchy purple bruise, oozing blood, marring Gina's otherwise flawless face.

Gina, as though she could not feel the bruise, grabbed one of the large ornamental potted trees that lined the hall, holding it up by the tunk like a sword. She swung it with such ease, as though it were made of feathers, the pot glancing off the side of Levin's face, leaving a long cut spurting blood.

Gina's programming urged her on. Protect Jace. Terminate hostile cyborg. She activated her advanced combat protocols.

Levin chopped through the trunk of the tree severing it into two pieces. But Gina, anticipating the move, ducked underneath his strikes, spinning around, gaining momentum, struck. Her fist swishing vertically through the air and clipping Levin's chin.

Levin aimed another blow at the cyborg girl, but she caught his fist in midair with her hand. She twisted his wrist violantly, the wrist taking the forearm with it, until the whole limb was facing the wrong way.

Suddenly Gina felt something smash into her abdomen and fell to the floor, only to be picked up by the taller cyborg, lifted off the ground and thrown into a wall, landing on her back on the floor.

Levin stood over her, straddling her torso. Gina brought her knees up to her face, determining Levin’s weakest skeletal point, and kicked with her full power, sending Levin flying across the hall with such force that he broke through the wall, leaving a gaping, smoldering, hole where an expensive oil painting had been.

Levin, apparently deciding that he could not win this fight, took off in the direction that Jace had gone, Gina hot on his heels. He was headed for his primary target.
---
Jace made his way back to the dining room that Jacen and Vorzar had dissappeared into, praying to gods unknown that the jedi were still in there – they were. Jace sighed in relief, sprinting to them.

Jacen, Vorzar, and Jace were the only ones in the room. Before Jace could speak, Jacen interrupted.

“Senator, we have a problem. We believe there is another cyborg in the building.”

“I know,” said Jace darkly, “Gina has engaged him. I tried to shoot him…but my blaster had no effect.”

“I’ve seen what Gina can do,” said Jacen, “She will be able to handle it. Our primary goal should be getting you out safely, senator.”

Jace nodded. But as if to dispel this plan of action, the glass doors to the dining hall shattered and Levin charged into the room, Gina right behind him.

The cyborg girl made to strike, but Levin kicked out hard behind him, sending her to the floor. She turned over but didn’t get up. Levin turned his full attention to Jace, his eyes glowing.

Jacen and Vorzar stood protectively in front of Jace, their lightsabers raised with confidence, though Jacen was unsure how much of an effect the sabers would have on this metal man.

Quick as a flash, Levin drew a small holdout blaster from his belt shooting at Vorzar. The attack came so quickly and unexpectedly that Vorzar was not able to parry all of the shots and two peirced his right leg. He dropped to the floor. The wounds did not look life threatening, but he could not fight with only one leg.

Now it was just Jacen and Levin, one on one. Levin’s attack had come so rapidly…Jacen could feel his leg muscles turn to jelly. He was outmatched – not by skill, but just sheer brute strength. He held his saber in a defensive position. People had died, Jorrin had died to get the information that would help protect Senator Jace. He would not let them die in vain. A thought struck him. Cyborgs did not understand emotion, he had learned that much from Gina. The unknown can frighten people more than the deadliest weapon. It would be against the jedi code, but he had no choice, the code wasn’t designed for these dire situations.

Jacen let all his anger that had been mounting all day surge through him. Anger at Virago’s capture, Jorrin’s death, Norian locking him up…he felt hot, hyper, power caorse through him, and he let it out.

Whith a cry of fury Jacen unleashed a blinding set of blows, destroying the holdout blaster and making several gashes in Levin’s face and torso. Levin kicked out with his right leg, but Jacen stide-stepped it, dabbing the tip of one of the blue blades into Levin’s eye. Sparks flew from the cyborg’s head. Jacen felt himself grin viciously. Even these cyborgs were not immune to the lightsaber.

Levin may have been strong, but he did not have a jedi’s agility. Jacen, danced around the towering cyborg, ducking under a punch that came so close, that he could feel the air sweeping through his hair. Jacen swung his blade upward, cleaving Levin’s chest. The cyborg, ingnoring the damage of the lightsaber’s blades, batted the hilt aside before slamming his palm into Jacen’s abdomen.

Jacen fell to the floor, gasping for breath. He felt like the wind had been knocked out of him. Levin stood over him, a gun pointed directly at Jacen’s heart.

“BANG!” A large bolt of energy collieded with Levin’s head. The cyborg staggered from the impact. “BANG!” A second bolt stuck the side of his head, and Levin reeled back. Jacen didn’t have to look far for the source of his savior.

Gina stood a mere two feet away from Levin, a huge heavy repeater grasped tightly in her hands. With deadly accuracy she fired shot after shot into Levin’s head, blowing all of the skin off the right side of his face, exposing the metal endskelton underneath.

Levin had stumbled back so far that he was mere centimeters away from the glass windows, on the other side of which was a grand balcony.

Gina flipped the gun in her hands, taking hold of the barrel, ignoring the heat from it that was burning the skin on her hands. She slammed the butt of the stock into Levin’s face, sending him crashing through the glass window and onto the balcony.

Jacen got up and followed her onto the balcony, where Levin stood, very close to the edge.

“I know what you will do with me,” said Levin mechanically to Gina. “You will take the memory chip out of my head and use it againsy my master. I can’t allow that to happen.”

Jacen realized what Levin was about to do a split second before he did it. Both he and Gina lunged forward, but Levin hopped the balcony railing and jumped, from the miles high balcony.

Gina managed to grab hold of one of Levin’s fingers and for a moment he hung, literally by one finger. But it snapped off, sending Levin plummeting into the darkness below. All that remained of him was the finger, that Gina still clutched in her hand.

The battle to save Jace was over. But they had to move quickly. A battle in the headquarters of one of the Galactic Senate’s most popular members was bound to arouse Coruscant security and CCI. Jacen could not afford for Norian to take him into custody again.

Jacen went back inside. Jace was helping Vorzar to his feet, though it appeared that he would be able to walk.

“Senator,” said Jacen. “I’m sorry but I have to leave now. I-”

“Can’t have CCI arrest you again,” finished Jace, “Vorzar told me…and I want to help you. I can’t truly thank you enough, master jedi. You saved my life and risked everything to get here in time.”

“Thanks,” Jacen mumbled, modestly.

“I can never fully repay you but I can help. There are star ships down in the hangar, all equipped with food prep units and spare clothing. Vorzar told me about your padawan, Virago being taken. Take any ship you like and flee the system – search for him. I will cover for you when CCI gets here – you were never here as far as they will know.”

“Thank you, sir,” said Jacen taken aback at Jace’s generosity as he shook the senator’s hand. “I don’t know what to say.”

“You don’t have to say anything,” said Jace looking at Jacen approvingly. “But you best hurry. Security will flood this place any minute now.” He turned to Gina. “But before you do, here,” he said pulling a holo-text from his robes. It was titled “Psychology: Understanding the Mind. “I hope this will help.”

Gina wordlessly accepted the holo-text. She turned to Jacen. “We know who has Virago and we know where her base of operations is – Nar Shaddaa.”

Jacen nodded, “You can fill me in on the ship.”

A few short minutes later, the star ship Centauri blasted out of the hangar at Jace’s campaign headquarters. It shot away from Coruscant, heading for Nar Shaddaa.


Jacen Zarek, Vorzar Kahbei and Gina

Centauri, Hyperspace


Gina managed to grab hold of one of Levin’s fingers and for a moment he hung, literally by one finger. But it snapped off, sending Levin plummeting into the darkness below. All that remained of him was the finger, that Gina still clutched in her hand.

The battle to save Jace was over. But they had to move quickly. A battle in the headquarters of one of the Galactic Senate’s most popular members was bound to arouse Coruscant security and CCI. Jacen could not afford for Norian to take him into custody again.

Jacen went back inside. Jace was helping Vorzar to his feet, though it appeared that he would be able to walk.

“Senator,” said Jacen. “I’m sorry but I have to leave now. I-”

“Can’t have CCI arrest you again,” finished Jace, “Vorzar told me…and I want to help you. I can’t truly thank you enough, master jedi. You saved my life and risked everything to get here in time.”

“Thanks,” Jacen mumbled, modestly.

“I can never fully repay you but I can help. There are star ships down in the hangar, all equipped with food prep units and spare clothing. Vorzar told me about your padawan, Virago being taken. Take any ship you like and flee the system – search for him. I will cover for you when CCI gets here – you were never here as far as they will know.”

“Thank you, sir,” said Jacen taken aback at Jace’s generosity as he shook the senator’s hand. “I don’t know what to say.”

“You don’t have to say anything,” said Jace looking at Jacen approvingly. “But you best hurry. Security will flood this place any minute now.” He turned to Gina. “But before you do, here,” he said pulling a holo-text from his robes. It was titled “Psychology: Understanding the Mind. “I hope this will help.”

Gina wordlessly accepted the holo-text. She turned to Jacen. “We know who has Virago and we know where her base of operations is – Nar Shaddaa.”

Jacen nodded, “You can fill me in on the ship.”

A few short minutes later, the star ship Centauri blasted out of the hangar at Jace’s campaign headquarters. It shot away from Coruscant, heading for Nar Shaddaa.

*____________________*____________________*_______ _____________*

In his quarters on the Centuari, Jacen slipped out of his bulky jedi robes feeling the soothing rush of cool air hit his body. It felt good to be rid of them. Narr Shaddaa…from what Jacen heard about it, it was one of the most dangerous places for a jedi to go at the moment. The exchange had a long memory and greedy bounty hunters were unlikely to forget the bounty put on jedi by the crime lord Goto. He would have to try to blend in and wear more smuggler-type clothing. But Jacen was glad of an excuse to wear more comfortable clothes.

He dug through the footlocker full of clothing provided by Senator Jace. Underneath a pair of harded leather gauntlets he unearthed a pair of charcoal-gray cargo pants and a black sleevless shirt made of tight-fitting ultra mesh. He grunted in a satisfied way and pulled on his new garb.

Jacen sat down on his sleep cot and for the first time since Marit had woken him back in the Jedi Temple, hie felt calm. Virago was still missing, but just doing something to find him rather than going on wild goose chases for chips or interoggating Nakaya, he was doing something more direct. He was going to Narr Shaddaa to find traces of Mandy. Anything that could lead him to her…he would go to the heart of the problem and with the information, take the fight to her. It felt, pacifying to feel like he was getting somewhere, finally making progress.

Just sitting there Jacen realized that he had not had a drink in what seemed like ages, his throat and tongue swollen. He stood, his sore muscles twinging and his bare feet protesting at being layed on the freezing cold floor.

On his way to the food prep unit, Jacen passed the open circular door to Gina’s quarters. He glanced inside while walking passed; but stopped short, surprised at what he saw.

Gina what sitting on the edge of her bed her psychology holocron – Understanding the Mind, the one she received from Jace laying in her lap. As Jacen looked closer he could make out the words on the top of the page: Suicide Prevention.

She was reading the book, her head cocked as it always was when she was studying something. She glanced away from the the page, averting her eyes to something shiny resting in the palm of her hand. It took a moment for Jacen to realize that the object was Levin’s robotic finger. He eyes glowed green for just an instant before returning her gaze back to the page.

“You want to say something,” said Gina, not looking up from her book. It was not a question.

She is very perceptive…more than I thought, thought Jacen. “It’s just…that other cyborg…he is dead right? I mean he could not possibly survive that fall, right?”

Gina looked up from her book. “Mandy will have ways to get another one. I does not matter if he is destroyed or not. There will be another, and more after that. They will keep coming and they will find us. They always do.”

“If, one does find us and tries to stop me from finding Virago and helping Jace, I’ll blow his brains out,” said Jacen aggressively.

Gina did not respond in the slightest to Jacen’s sudden bought of passion. “Cyborgs do not have brains. It is impossible to destroy what does not exist,” said Gina uncomprehendingly. “Besides, if another comes, he will not engage us directly – we are programmed to learn from the tactical error of ourselves and others.”

“How could you possibly know that it won’t directly engage us?” asked Jacen, getting annoyed with Gina’s answers.

Gina’s eyes, not glowing, but their normal shade of brown, bored into him. “I wouldn’t.”

“The only way that is comforting,” said Jacen coldly, thinking back to Levin’s ruthless murdering during the fight, “is that underneath the skin, in the core of your chip you’re exactly like him.”

Gina studyed him for a moment. “Except I’m on you’re side…and I am superior in combat.”

Jacen smiled grimly, “That you are, tin man.” He turned to leave. His conversation with Gina had left thoughts buzzing around in his head. Gina was looking for answers, just like him.

He had been though much today; but the fight was just beginning. They would keep coming, these cyborg’s. If not Levin, than another, they would find them. He, Vorzar and Gina were going to Narr Shaddaa, one of the worst places for a jedi to go. They were going to find Virago and there was no telling what they would encounter along the way. The journey had just begun and if Gina was right, it was going to be one hell of a dogfight.

----------------------------------------------------------------

I know, I know, another two poster. But I figured since I've made you wait this long it should at least be a nice long chapter. This would have been out much sooner but I have been swamped at school and my dog passed away a week ago, so I was not in the mood to write.

Thank you all!

~HOP

to admit it, I was a little, tiny bit disappointed with the fight against Levin. I was hoping for a more hands on, fist on fist fight against Gina and Levin, but oh well. It was still well structured and well written nonetheless.

Another great addition, HoP. It's been over a month and its been worth the wait IMO.
Nice work.

And I'm really sorry to hear about your dog passing away. A death of a pet is never a good thing. They become as close to you as another human being.

wOOt! Another chapter!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :xp:

Sorry about your dog. :(

Good chapter! I'm really liking the way the story is going. There are several places where the commas are in the wrong places, but in a chapter this long, it's hard to fix 'em all, so it's no biggie. Good job, HOP!

Thank you both for the praise and sympathy. Ooh, those damn commas, I admit I don't know how to use them very well.

@BFA: You know I was thinking the same thing about the fight...I cut some stuff out to make the chapter shorter, but I see what you mean...I think I'll edit the fight and highlight it so it's easy to find.

Oh, and just for reference, Gina is not sad about Levin dying or anything. It's just that she tries to solve evrything logically - consult a book or something.

So perhaps you noticed the absense of the story's two biggest b!tches (Mandy and Norian) Well the other characters will have to face their wrath next chapter. They are not going to just go away. But next chap Gina will get introduced to Nar Shaddaa nightlife and she will get those infamous pink gauntlets and belt. :xp:

Maybe Aruil will find that lucky pebble of hers...

~HOP

Gina in pink?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! Ooo, I'd forgotten about that!

Haha, I'd hate to be the guy in the Nar Shadaa Nightlife who makes a pass at her...I get the feeling she'd take serious exception to that! :lol::lol::lol:

Muuuuuuuuuch better, HoP! Very nice addition to the fight. It's give it more intensity than what it had before, imo.
Well done! :D

I'm also sorry about the four-legged friend of yours. I lost a cat too from that tainted pet food recall about two years ago. I know what it's like.

Anyway, same criticism about commas. I know; you heard it enough, but my advice would be to leave them out if you're not sure. An absence is better than having one in the wrong place.

The story itself is leading to an interesting path. The Jacen and Vorzar dialog interwoven with the action sequences was excellent. It is difficult enough to do a solid battle scene alone, but including dialog in the right place... brilliant!

I'm sorry about your cat...that must have been terrible. I can't imagine you got much of a warning. The one saving grace was that with my dog, we put him down (due to a basketball-sized tumor) so I had time to prepare and make his last days good ones.

This whole comma thing is getting to be a problem. I think I'll hit the grammar books and try to learn. But from now on if I don't know, I just won't put it.

And thank you. I'm hoping to make a decent arc out of the Nar Shaddaa visit.

~HOP