Precious Objects

[Seth Darkserpent]

The dream was as it always had been. Seth Darkserpent floated among a series of faces. Some he recognized, others he didn't recognize at all. The background of this setting was completely black. Suddenly he stopped floating and was pushed to his feet. Standing before him was his Master and Jeseth Cloak, shaking their heads at him. Seth Darkserpent couldn't recall doing anything wrong, but their disapproving expressions were like a dagger in his side. He tried to speak to them but his mouth would not open. His lips were pursed together and held shut by forces unknown.

Jeseth's figure began to dissapate until it was whisked away into nothingness. Only Gav stood before him now, staring at him with those dark eyes. Gav's body also began to crumble until nothing remained of either of them. Seth was alone once again, trapped in a sea of a darkness. He tried to move, but his joints began to lock up. Seth felt the anger inside of him began to brew. His blood began to boil as it always did when he called upon the Force for added strength.

Seth Darkserpent felt nothing at all. The Force was not with him.

Another figure appeared before him, a face unrecognizable behind a shroud of darkness. That person stepped forward and turned out to be someone he could not recall ever meeting. The person walked toward him and leaned forward to whisper something in his ear. Instead, he felt a sharp pain in his left side. Seth felt the feeling return in all of his joints, including his neck. Quickly, he stared down at his side. A jagged dagger proudly sunk into his skin, and blood began to pour. Off in the distance he heard a sound...


Seth woke up to the sound of a child crying, and almost forgot where he was. The memory of the dream was still fresh in his head. This was definately a recurring dream, since he'd have it at least once a month. Seth had guessed that it represented his fear of failure toward his Master. Failure had been a big factor of his life before he became Seth Darkserpent. He vowed to himself that he would never fail again. Over the past few months, Seth discovered that failure was a necessity toward perfection. He wondered why it still tormented him so. Such didn't really matter anyway, since Darkserpent fed off of this fear.

After the memory of the dream had washed away, new memories arose. These memories were more recent, and thinking about them gave him a headache. Just a few hours ago, he had departed the planet of Vjun. Although, it had seemed more like an escape at that time. He had taken with him Lady De'Ville's young child Jax Tondry. This was not a fit of madness that Seth had experienced earlier in his life. It was more of a complicated plan that would work out for both parties if done properly.

Darkserpent wanted something from De'Ville that he couldn't have. It was a talisman that had been given to her by Garrett Blade, madman extroadinare. Blade put a spell on the talisman, insuring that no one could remove it from Lady De'Ville's neck. This talisman was of great importance to Seth Darkserpent and he needed it at all costs. At that time, taking De'Ville's child and luring her to Garrett was an excellent idea. He could have simply asked her, but this way he knew she would come for him. Unfortunately, there was a glitch in his intricately designed plan. He did not know where Garrett Blade was located currently.

That was why he'd set a course for Nar Shaddaa. Seth didn't know if they would be arriving there soon. He wouldn't count on it seeing as how Hutt space was quite far from Vjun in the Lambda sector. Darkserpent didn't feel as if he were pressed for time, but he knew it was limited. De'Ville was on the pursuit and would follow him to the ends of the Universe to get her child back.

The child's crying increased to a wail, echoing throughout the confines of Seth's transport. Pushing off the small cot, Darkserpent ambled toward the refresher in a dazed fashion. He cleansed his face with cold recycled water. The feel of the water on his face instantly woke him up. He slipped on a dark robe and exited his small quarters on the ship. The baby was still situated in the cockpit . Seth had used the co-pilot's sheet to create a makeshift bed.

Remember Seth, this child must be preserved. Your whole plan depends on it... Seth reminded himself quickly. It was this simple fact that kept him from falling into a maddening rage. If Seth were of the light side, he could probably use the Force to soothe this child's mind. Perhaps if he tried it would work...

He focused his thoughts and gathered calm thoughts. Seth could feel the child's emotions through the Force. Jax longed for his mother again, a notion that gave Seth an idea. He emitted pictures of De'Ville through the Force and toward Jax. He was sure the child was receiving these pictures. Jax was force sensitive and seemed particularly strong for his extremely young age. The child stopped crying for a moment, and looked around confused. Seth smiled at his own victory and began to walk toward the doorway.

A few seconds later, Jax Tondry began to cry again.

"Sithspawn!" Seth hissed. He raced toward the cockpit again and gave the baby a threatening look. Nothing seemed to work on this child and Seth's tolerance was running thin. I'll have to distract myself with something else. He paced over to the NavComputer and checked the settings. They still had lots of time to travel. Seth shut the sound of crying out of his head and moved back toward his quarters. He would have to prepare for the mean streets of Nar Shaddaa, but he wanted to look inconspicuous enough. First he placed on certain pieces of his armor, that would fit nicely under clothing. Then he chose a simple outfit from his sparsely packed wardrobe. This outfit had been here since he stole the ship.

A minute later Seth looked at himself in the mirror. He looked like a spacefaring idiot. But it would work well. He would be carrying no weapons, other then the Force as his ally. That would probably be enough to deal with nosy criminals and other fiends. Of course he would have to do something about Jax too. Nar Shaddaa was no place for a child, especially one as young as this one...

...Seth was drawn out of deep thought with surprise. His ship was silent for once, absent of the crying that had ensued minutes ago. Quickly he paced back to the cockpit and stared at the child on the makeshift bed/seat. It was silent, and unmoving. Seth reached out with the Force, It isn't dead...Then it must be sleeping. Thank the Gods!

The Dark Jedi grinned to himself, glad that he could finally do something in peaceful silence. He situated himself on the pilot's seat and pulled a small datapad out of his pocket. Seth had never been to Nar Shaddaa before. It would be wise of him to learn more about the "Smuggler's Moon" before he arrived there.

Sparing no more attention to what was around him, Seth got to work and began to take notes...

[Jax Ivanrue Tondry]

The infant squirmed in the makeshift cot, and puckered up his little lips for another wail. He was hungry, and wanted his mother. Jax began to cry again, a rasping, pitiful sound, as his tiny three month old stomach growled.

[Lilaena De'Ville]

De'Ville paced the floor, musing on how she would kill Darkserpent when she finally caught up to him. Cloak was sitting in the pilot's seat in the cockpit, looking over some charts while she roamed the rest of the ship.

She had already exercized for the day, taking out some of her anger practicing with her saber. The fluid motions of the lightsaber appealed to her, and she flipped the hilt up and into her hand as she paced. Jax was pulling on her mind, or perhaps it was her heart...

He was not with her, and he was in danger. Lilaena clenched her fists after returning the saber to her belt. "Cloak, how long is this going to take?" Impatience coloured her words, but she didn't care how ungrateful she sounded. Her child was compromised, and she was singleminded in her pursuit of him.

[Seth Darkserpent]

His thoughts wandered absently across the vast expanses of time and space. Other places with other people came to mind. Most of the people he was familiar with, while others he could not remember ever meeting. He let the Dark Side guide his soul to its destination, wherever that may be. A complete vision appeared in his head of a jungle moon. It orbited a rather familiar gas giant and served as the final resting place of the first Death Star. Seth had been to that jungle moon once ago, mere months ago. The moon was littered with temples that rightfully belonged to the Sith, yet the Jedi had inhabited the whole moon. This moon was none other than Yavin IV. A particularly important setting in Galactic history. It had so much Sith heritage, and yet the Jedi called it one of their homes...

Seth's fist slammed down onto the cold hard floor of his starship. The pain immediately surged up his arm, causing him to shout out in surprise. He was seated on the floor in a meditative position. He glanced downward to the book of verses that was still on top of his lap. Seth had used this book to fall into a trance in hopes of tracking down De'Ville. If he tracked her down, he could find out how near she was. Seth wondered for a moment if she had any companions with her. It would probably be correct to think Lilaena De'Ville would travel alone. He couldn't shake the feeling that she was travelling with someone, possibly Cloak or another Dark Jedi. If this was the case, Seth's mission would be even more difficult then it already was. He could deal with one Dark Jedi...but two?

The child was crying again in the next room. It's emotions were strong in the Force and they read clearly through Seth's mind: Jax was hungry. Seth closed the book and slid it across the floor. The book rose off the floor and was lightly placed atop Seth's cot. He would resume meditation sometime else, but now he had to tend to this child. What in the Force am I going to feed it with...? Seth frowned at the thought, realizing he had no idea what to feed Jax. All this ship had was rations and simple beverages, nothing special.

Seth opened a few of the storage compartments and began to scavenge for food. He'd only stole this ship about two months ago, so the food would probably still be fresh. Seth thanked the stars that food was never an issue with himself. He could go for a maximum of four days without food. Everything on this small transport seemed to be quite limited to Seth. He resolved to steal a nicer one on Nar Shaddaa. Perhaps that would throw De'Ville off of his case for a few moments. What are you thinking Seth? She has a bond with her child...She can feel him through the Force.

The Dark Jedi's mouth curled into a grin as he thought of an idea. Seth took his mind off of the idea, lest someone was listening in on him. Such a suspicion seemed to be ridiculous, but anything was possible if one possessed the Dark Side of the Force. Seth Darkserpent knew that some Masters were able to reach great heights of power.

Quietly, Seth continued to scavenge for anything that could be considered food.

<center>***</center>

Twenty minutes later, Seth found himself mushing rations with a spoon. He didn't know if the child had teeth, and didn't want to risk opening his mouth. At this point, the child was still crying off and on, wanting food and its mother. Seth knew it was these emotions that allowed De'Ville to feel her son through the Force. Perhaps if he fed the child it would stop crying and sleep a little...Unlikely from what Seth had observed so far. This was his second time dealing with an child.

During a training mission with his Master Gav Mortis and Jeseth Cloak, Seth Darkserpent was responsible for watching over a young boy named Usun Boheim. Usun knew how to eat, drink, speak and...throw food at Seth. Those were major advantages that this child did not possess yet. Once he thought about it, Seth didn't even know how old Jax Tondry was. He guessed around 6 months at the most.

"Quiet child!" Seth closed his eyes and took control of his emotions. This wasn't the best time to explode with anger. That would only make Jax cry even more.

A few minutes later, Seth found that feeding Jax was even more difficult than finding the food. At first the child rejected the mushed up rations, by spitting them out. Seth tried to feed Jax more of his makeshift food, but the baby refused. Darkserpent hung his head low, silently thanking Gav for teaching him control. Seth waited a minute or so for the child to realize it was still hungry. He wasn't sure if this technique would work, but it would make the child force himself to eat the mush. Seth brought the spoon up again, miraculously Jax opened his mouth and received the mush.

This child is going to be the death of me...This child or his mother...

[Seth Darkserpent]

Before the ship could revert to realspace, Seth took the comlink in his hand and left his weapons system powered down. The reversion to realspace would bring him dangerously near the edges of the spacelanes, but would save him much more time then having to travel across the system. He had no doubt that De'Ville was right behind him, yet the fact failed to scare him. All it did was drive him on further and faster, as he thought of new ways to stall the woman from catching up to him and claiming her child back, before he claimed his ultimate prize. Jax was awake but had seemed to achieve some momentary silence. This was a legitimate signal that Lady De'Ville was very near, and gaining on them like a predator would to its prey.

Darkserpent kept his eye on the monitor, eager to exit the dreaded hyperspace lane. He'd seen enough of it the past few days, and wanted to seal realspace again. Furthermore, he was beginning to experience small doses of claustrophobia inside of this boxed hell hole. He made a mental note to steal a faster and larger ship, perhaps even on Nar Shaddaa. The moon was a haven for smugglers and vagabondish bounty hunters who wanted to compare their ships. The thought of nabbing one here seemed very appealing, yet he had to keep the child's safety in mind. This fact came into play heavily with his decision making. Obviously he would have to find a way to conceal it while he made his rounds to the various bars around town.

The starlines finally became stars again, as the small transport exited the glamour of hyperspace. Seth was rocked forward in his seat from the transition, but that failed to do anything to him. Usually the reversion made him a bit queasy, but such was not the case this time. He realized that there was much to do, which meant he didn't have the luxury of feeling queasy, or anything of that sort.

"Unidentified ship, you are in Sith Order airspace. Please identify yourself or we will be forced to gun you down." A bland voice emerged from the small metal box on the side of the main control panel. Seth could tell from mere observation that this particular speaker did not see too much action, rather then the smuggler dogfight here and there. He had no desire of being destroyed, but he did not want to notify the traffic controller of his presence. An idea appeared in Seth's head like a Christmas present unwrapping itself. A most sinuous smile curled across the expanse of his face as he considered the idea. "Repeat, unidentified ship, you are to identify yourself immediately!"

Seth snapped back into reality and keyed the communications systems on. He brought the voice piece up to his mouth, "This is Vanguard IV manned by Lord Darkserpent of the Sith Order. Transmitting proper identification codes...now." Seth punched in the proper numericals as one would do to a datapad. The numericals flashed across the receiving end screen, as the traffic controller double checked them with his superiors. Darkserpent motioned with a hand for the child to come toward him. Jax floated across the cockpit area and into his hands as if he were being carried by a long dead spirit.

The voice returned, yet it seemed more surprised this time, "Lord Darkserpent, you will be cleared immediately. Please follow the side of the traffic lane and dock on Landing Pad 1153. We have reserved this special docking space for your arrival and the proper mechanics are being notified to tend to your ship, as we speak."

Seth reflected on that thought, knowing that he would not be leaving with the same ship. Still he did not force himself to say anything. "Ah, your efforts are appreciated." Darkserpent held the child in one arm and spoke in the other, wondering what he was going to do with it. "My superiors have sent me here from Corellia. Most of this trip is to tend to personal business, but I am to warn you as well." Confidence and conviction flowed through his voice as he spoke.

"Is that so, Darkserpent?" A new voice spoke now, probably a superior of the man he was talking to before. This new man spoke with much interest in what Seth had to say. "Yes, in a short while...A woman known as Lilaena De'Ville, traitor and banished from the Order, will be arriving in the system. She seeks to land on Nar Shaddaa and begin an insurrection, hoping to sway the various mercenaries to her side. I suggest you send patrol ships and starfighter support to bar her path for as long as you can. It is very important that the planetary authorities are notified of this as well."

"Very well. Understood fully, Darkserpent. We know of De'Ville and her banishment. We will have our patrol fleet on survellaince of all ships entering this system." The voice returned, with a hint of wonder in it. He was probably wondering why this had to happen on his work shift.

"Wait, there is more." Seth said calmly.

"Ah..?" The man replied, with obviously no abilities for manners. He was about as conversational as a Wookiee in complete rage, yet Seth did not care at this point. The man would carry out his job as ordered, or he would be executed.

"Yes. She seeks to get on planet with an imposter of our own Lord Cloak. This man fits the picture, speaks with a medically altered voice and has all of Jeseth's clearance codes. I must continually stress that this man is not Jeseth Cloak. He is a pawn trained by De'Ville to get her where others cannot. In the event that they should arrive, I also stress that you do not destroy this craft. The Sith Masters wish for De'Ville to continue living. Death is too much of an honor for her." Seth spoke with much passion, despite the fact that he was lying. He needed De'Ville alive for that amulet. "Once I leave the planet, I will contact you again. You are to sustain her in one place and disable her engines if you must, but leave her to me. Once I contact you, order all ships in her position to return to their regular stations."

"All of your orders are being complied now. Your presence and information is appreciated." The man replied, finally showing his ability to use manners.

Seth keyed his comlink off and followed the edges of the spacelanes, as he kept course to the proper coordinates. The planetary shield grid in that section ceased to exist for a few moments as his ship passed through. Darkserpent veered the small transport to the designated landing pad that was set for him. At this point the child began to make noise again, but that wasn't much of a bother. Seth found himself less annoyed by the wailings of young Jax Tondry.

In his head, he slowly recounted the list of objectives that were waiting to be completed. Upon landing he would seek the help of a bounty hunter known as Kal Jericho. He would pay most of what he had, and possibly this transport to find out where Garrett Blade was located. It was determined that the Force would not tell him, so he was forced to use bounty hunters. Yet in the end it would all be worth it.

"Please quiet down, child. If all goes well you shouldn't have to wait too long to see your mother." Seth elbowed the repulsorlift activation button and took his hands off the controls. The ship landed in its designated spot with much ease. Fortunately, the traffic controller station had also summoned a aircab for Seth. The long faced Ithorian waited for Seth to emerge from the ship. Everything seemed to be running smoothly thus far, Seth uttered a silent prayer to the Lords of the Sith to have it kept that way.

[Lilaena De'Ville]

De'Ville sat rigidly in the copilot's seat, trying not to look angry and nervous. She was more angry and nervous, but there was a thread of fear in the back of her mind. Nar Shadda and the planet, Nal Hutta, were under the jurisdiction of the Sith Order.

The very same Sith Order that she had been a council member of nearly exactly a year in the past. She had discovered her pregnancy upon her banishment from the Order, and the infant was only a few months old. Her fingers tightened on the armrests as the ship fell out of hyperspace.

Cloak was ignoring her. He had been silent this entire trip, occasionally watching her pacing like a caged lioness, but mostly lost in his own thoughts. De'Ville cracked her neck, and waited for him to contact the spaceport on Nar Shadda. Darkserpent would be waiting for them. Unless they got here first. In which case, she would be waiting for him.

Either way, she would get her son back, and Seth's blood would flow on the duracrete of the Smuggler's Moon.

[Garrett Blade]

The air in the Ops room quickly turned cold and drafty. The heaters were working fine, but the room was freezing. The lights flickered before going out, and the auxiliary reds came on. A rather ominous atmosphere lurked around the room, as if telling of something out of place. Just as the Commander was about to execute the order to intercept the incoming vessel, he gasped as a shadow placed a firm hand on his head and spun him around.

"You will disregard the Sith's orders and will carry on as normal, ignoring the new vessel and allow it to land. If there is so much as a scratch on it...you'll wish you were me. Is that clear?"

The voice was quiet, yet all the more intimidating for it. The Commander swallowed hard...

"Y...y...yessir!"

The shadow left as quickly as it had arrived. The Commander spoke into the comm-system...

"All units stand down. I repeat, all units stand down. If anybody fires on or intercepts the incoming vessel they will answer directly to me!"

[Seth Darkserpent]

The Smuggler's Cantina in the lower levels of the Corellian district of Nar Shaddaa was as it would be any other night. All kinds of species sat at the tables enjoying their lomin-ale or whatever it was they preferred to drink. The majority of the beings in the cantina were humans, which did not come as a surprise. It was widely known that humans breeded whenever they had the chance. One could only wonder if it was the human population that outranked every other species in number. After all, Palpatine was known to have a dislike for non-humans and urged this upon his men. Though it was clearly obvious that the humans in the Smuggler's Cantina were not of the Imperial navy. They shared their drinks with non-humans and considered them as equals or even partners. Nar Shaddaa had always been devoid of Imperial presence one way or the other.

Outside of the cantina, a thousand airspeeders and air taxis whizzed by the lower levels, picking up sentients and dropping them off. The walls surrounding this level led deep into a lower level abyss of darkness that would give one vertigo by just looking down into it. The abyss threatened to swallow one up like a black hole's maw. More often then not, an unfortunate person found him or herself being thrown into this narrow abyss. This was a common way to murder one's foe, but none could be too sure that the foe would actually stay dead. Very few lived down in the lowest levels, not to mention the filthiest levels, of Nar Shaddaa, the smuggler's moon. This was not to say that the upper levels were any more luxurious. The walls spanned with graffiti of all kinds, garbage was littered across the street. How could anyone live in such filth?

Cheering could be heard from the inside of the Smuggler's Cantina as another bar fight broke out. A Devaronian and a Shistavian wolf-man were pitted against each other in a fist fight. Naturally, the smart observers placed their bets on the Shistavian. Not only was the wolf-like creature quick in movement, but his claws were deadly. It would only be a matter of moments before the Devaronian was beaten into submission, or even worse killed. It was not unusual to murder someone on Nar Shaddaa, although the bartender would not appreciate it. The fat spindly little creature that was called "Bartender" watched atop his high stool, cheering on with the rest of the patrons. Most were drunk and unaware of what was happening, yet they still cheered on with not a care in the galaxy.

One of the bouncer at the door silently crept along the wall, trying to avoid the fight. He ducked low behind the bar counter and nudged at the small Bartender. The tender literally jumped off the stool in small fright, and took a few extra moments to regain his senses. He stared at the bouncer and opened his mouth in a wide snarl, revealing two white fangs. The bartender's beady black eyes narrowed with anger, "What is it Tokah Mir? I don't pay you to surprise me like that! Now get out and do your job for once, you useless human." The bartender himself was not human, but one couldn't really refer to him as anything else. Obviously he was some sort of half-breed that couldn't be classified as anything in particular.

"Hey, it ain't my fault. I'm jus' tryin' to do my job here, man." The bouncer leaned forward and spoke in a low toned voice. "There's this guy outside, and he don't look too nice. He's asking for admittance, but we told him to scram. He won't move a muscle, even when we tri--"

Everything in the bar stopped for a full few seconds at the sound of a loud smash. The second bouncer sailed into the bar and hit the floor hard. Pieces of wood and transparisteel settled on the floor behind him and in front of him, where the door used to be. Now all that was left was a gaping hole blocked by a wall of darkness. Even the two combatants stopped wrestling for a moment to shift their eyes toward the door. A dark figure walked in, nearing seven feet tall. His figure seemed to pour into the room like a vat of dark oil would pour into a large container. The man's face could not be seen at all through the darkness of a mask that he wore. What seemed to a cloak was wrapped around his body, covering anything he might have underneath. This sudden entrance had everyone with their eyes on the dark entity, wondering if the alcohol was really starting to screw up their heads.

The dark figure spoke, "Where is Kal Jericho?" The question was very subtle and clearly spoken. A few did not even answer, while the rest just gave shrugs and replied with unsure answers. "Do any of you know this Jericho man?" The dark figure hissed again, his patience running very thin with these drunkards. Once again, the majority did not even respond. A few nodded their heads, confirming that such a person exsisted. The dark man had thought as much, having heard of Jericho through a few other sources. Time was running thin and the proper actions needed to be taken to buy more time. The first ploy had failed miserably, due to some unknown entity that allowed De'Ville passage onto the moon.

"He comes in here a few times looking for some jobs or something to drink. I think you can find him at the Corellian Cave, just a few levels higher up." The bartender responded, his words dripping with uncertainty and fear. The dark one could tell easily that this man was lying and just wanted him to leave as quick as possible.

"I want to speak with Kal Jericho." The man snarled at the patrons, striking fear into some of the more sober ones. One pulled out a blaster and pointed it at him. He ordered for him to get out of the bar. The dark figure just stared at the blaster and used his power to redirect the barrel to point at its owner. A few moments later it fired, and the man slumped to the floor with a gaping hole in his burnt chest.

The dark figure moved his hand and pitched a holorecording to one of the nearest men. The man caught it and dropped it, mistaking it for some sort of explosive device. As it hit the floor, the holodevice turned on filling the room with some more light. A picture of a woman floated around the device, as big as one's hand. "Do you know who that is? It is a woman named De'Ville wanted by the Sith Order for tresspassing. She has a sizable bounty on her head, four million credits." It was a lie, but credits drove people to obey orders. "She is on this moon, somewhere. If you deliver her to one of the authority figures on this moon you will receive your reward. Spread the word."

The dark man used his own force of will to fill these patrons with confidence and determination. About half of the bar shuffled out, relinquishing their blasters and weapons. Two that had nodded earlier when asked if they knew Kal Jericho were stopped by an unknown force. They stared at each other in horror, unable to move their legs at all.

"Find Kal Jericho, now! Tell him that I am waiting." The dark figure snarled. "I will personally kill you both if you don't." Both of the males nodded and left the bar to find Jericho. The hunters would all be killed by De'Ville if they found her, but at least they would spread the word and possibly stall her some more. That much could be hoped from these men.

Inside of the cloak that wrapped around the dark figure's body, a small child's head poked through the upper folds. Earlier on, it was placed under some sort of sleeping trance that kept it quiet. None of the patrons noticed the child's skin or small breathing in the dimness of the cantina. That proved to be a good way to keep the child safe and unnoticed.

[Kal Jericho]

Once a normal moon. Nar Shadda took a turn for the worst in a short time. And that was centuries ago. Now, Nar Shadda was a very important smuggling centre, as well as being host to an infinite number of other illegal activities. As the moon grew in infamous importance, it was paved over with layer upon layer of docking towers, landing bays, cargo warehouses, and trading plazas. Some even say it resembles a "little Coruscant" - but a Coruscant in which the dirt, decay and danger of the undercity had spread everywhere. Visitors who don't watch their backs on the Smuggler's Moon will get their throats cut, their pockets looted and their bodies tossed down a bottomless freight shaft.

What a life. Living each day on the edge. Living each day as if it's your last. Because chances are - it is! Some say the Corellian Sector isn't what it used to be. others say it's never been better. Though one would like a definition of better for a place such as Nar Shaddaa. But the majority believe that life on The Smuggler's Moon is what you make of it. One such person stood in a darkened alley, up against a duracrete wall with his feet slightly apart. He zipped up his pants, turned and walked towards the dimly lit street. Kal Jericho was a typical fringe rogue. He kept to himself most of the time - opening up to a bottle of liquor now and then. He always had time for the lovely ladies of Zum's strip-joint on level thirty-two, next to his local boozer. And the other 50% of his life was pimarily devoted to his occupation. Mercenary-for-hire as he liked to call it. Basically, Kal did anything that payed well. Terrorist (though nobody knows he's done it), smuggler, assassin, bounty-hunter, tracker, bodyguard and even an Imperial Guard a few years back (but that's on the same level as the terrorist thing). Currently, Kal "advertised" himself as a bounty hunter. But he was always sure to carry out a little background check before accepting any bounties - on both his employer and his target. Many a time has Kal been double-crossed by an employer who turned out to be far bigger and more important than they had first let on. Thankfully, this was a person who always learned from their mistakes. And Kal jericho never makes the same mistakes twice.

After a fifteen minute walk, followed by a five minute elevator ride, Kal found himself at the entrance to one of his more secondary choices for a drink. The Meltdown Cafe was ran by a human who wasn't too fond of him. Naturally, the blame resided on the Trandoshan who came looking for trouble. Trouble being Kal Jericho of course. Three years ago, a Trandoshan bounty hunter came strolling into the Meltdown Cafe with a concussion rifle, curtesy of Klathurba the Hutt, and demanded Kal to accompany him to his ship. It was something to do with a Twi'Lekk dancer and a hefty sum of credits - 125,000 or so - it was a long time ago and Kal couldn't remember exactly. Not that it was that important anyway. The Trandoshan rode the body bag all the way to the Corellian Sector morgue, and Kal rode the Trandoshan's ship to Carratos to pay fatty a visit. The whole thing was settled, and Kal managed to get away with his life in tact.

Jericho took a seat in one of the boothes that seated four people, in the middle of a group of three bothes towards the front of the bar. He ordered a glass of lum. It was warm. Never mind - nothing's perfect. "Nothings decent on this tincan!" mumbled Kal to himself. Not even the inhabitants he thought, as he swigged back a few mouthfuls whilst staring at the smogged-up windows that overlooked one of the more grand shiplanes that lead to the eastern docking tower. Beings of multiple species went idly about their business. One such being was standing across an unstable-looking walkway, on the other side of the shiplane, staring right at the unsuspecting bounty hunter. The figure was secluded beneath a black cloak with a hood on. Smoke emanated from the hood. The being flicked some ash onto the rain-soaked walkway. He then took a comlink from his pocket and activated it.

"I've found him!"

[Lilaena De'Ville]

De'Ville turned to Cloak, watching his face as the ship reverted to realspace. He piloted it into a secondary space lane, and she moved her head to fix her gaze on the glimmering moon ahead of them.

He was there, she could feel him. Afraid, and hungry, but unhurt and alive. De'Ville reached out for his mind, grasping with her minute abilities. Be safe, Jax. I'm coming.

[Jeseth Cloak]

Jeseth glanced at the Dark Jedi-turned-parent and let her know with his eyes that he would do his best to assist her. He didn't particularly like children, but if it would subside her anger then he would help her to retrieve the human spawn. It may in the end bring her to owe him something in return. How grateful would she be for the return of her child? His fingers were dancing along the control panel, imputing codes which he rarely abused. For some reason there was a delay in the authorization that was very uncharacteristic. Seth had beat them here. Perhaps a trap awaited them on the surface.

The ship the two Dark Jedi traveled in veered off it's course sharply and suddenly dodged behind an immense cargo vessel that was within range. If he had timed his actions accurately (which he most definitely had), then to the ground control it would appear as if the ship had just vanished from their scans. De'Ville looked at him, wondering what he was doing.

Jeseth just shrugged and continued to plot his flight pattern alongside the other ship, so close that a few millimeters more to the left would cause a fatal collision. "I'm taking precautions." Was his silent answer to the woman's gaze. He had to keep concentrated and didn't have time to explain his actions.

[Lilaena De'Ville]

She tightened her grip on the armrests as Cloak nearly crashed into a cargo ship. "Precautions?" De'Ville raised an eyebrow. "I would hate to see you desperate."

Her anger bubbled inside her, keeping the Force so near to her that she could feel the prickle of lightning in her fingertips. De'Ville kept a tight reign on the power, using it to keep track of the infant on the planet. She pulled up a map of Nar Shadda on the console in front of her, and pointed to a general area. "He's there. I feel him there."

De'Ville turned her gaze back to Cloak, as he concentrated on not flying into the cargo ship. A little courtesy? Perhaps. It was worth a try. "Could we..." She frowned, and coughed lightly. "I know this is a system under the control of TSO. I trust you can get me down there, brother."

[Jeseth Cloak]

"I think I can." She was obviously not interested in what Jeseth thought he could do. The time he had bought them paid off. A few ships came into orbit, making it easy for Jeseth to descend towards the surface without notice. The ship received a few unauthorized landing notices, but he ignored them and plowed straight into a very crowded market area. Luckily it was a slum that wouldn't be missed by anyone with enough power to draw attention. Strange, she calls me brother when it is in her best interest to be like kin...

"Well, now you've seen desperation. Start moving. We're in the general area, but somehow I don't know how even a council member will be able to explain this. Especially not if Seth's already denounced the said council member as a traitor." The Dark Jedi leapt out of the chair, kicked open the loading ramp with a fury of Force enhanced strength. His saber activated and cleaved down a few bystanders that survived the heat of the exhaust jets. it was a work art painted with fire and blood. De'Ville gathered her things and headed out of the smoking ship just as a thermal detonator rolled by her and back up the loading ramp.

"Alright, start running. The ship crashed upon entry due to a navigational malfunctions." A few seconds later, they both heard and felt the detonation. It had been left a considerable distance behind them.

[Seth Darkserpent]

Seth felt a sudden power make itself known about twenty minutes from his current location. His head jerked to the upper left corner of the dingy buildings and skyscrapers. Darkserpent's eyes narrowed when he realized that Cloak and De'Ville had managed to land on-planet. His only hope for stalling them was the Bounty Hunters that he sent after them. Unbeknowst to the hunters, but they would never receive their pay. Darkserpent was desperate to get off this planet and locate Garrett Blade as soon as he could. This race had begun to shift to the more dangerous side again. Now his life was in danger, but he still had what De'Ville wanted, her precious child. She also has what I want...That precious talisman.

A man stood a few meters away from him, off to the side of the dark walkway. This man looked rather rugged himself, reminding Seth of some of the bounty hunters and smugglers he'd seen in the bar. There was something about this man that seperated him from the rest. As far as Darkserpent could tell, he looked intelligent enough to know what was going on. His presence made Seth wonder who exactly he was. A moment later the man took out his communications device and spoke into it. Something inside of his head told him to approach this man, perhaps it was the Force.

"You." Darkserpent simply stated. His voice echoed through the empty steet.

Seth walked toward the man, filling the air with sounds of soft clanking noises caused by his personally fashioned boots. He kept his cloak shrouded around his body, not necessarily for the cold, but for the effect of terror. That effect seemed to work on the drunkards in the bar only minutes ago, but this man seemed to be unaffected. The man gave him somewhat of a condescending expression. His face seemed to read, "What the hell do you want?" Darkserpent was mildly impressed, but this man would probably never know. It was that moment that something dawned on him.

"You are Kal Jericho, I assume. Who else would feel comfortable enough around a potential business partner?" Darkserpent's voice took on a raspy tone. "I am Seth Darkserpent. A member of the underground Sith cult in the Corellian sector."

The smoke around them seemed to increase over a few minutes' time. It billowed out of every whole as if it were being controlled by some sort of machine. It seemed that in a few more minutes they would be covered in a thick grey fog comprised of smog and unhealthy materials. Darkserpent's dark visage seemed to blend in with the night sky, but he was still very noticeable.

"My time is limited, but I need your information broking skills. I am trying to locate a man by the name of Garrett Blade. You have probably heard about many of his famous exploits." Seth reached into his cloak and pulled out a datapad. "I am willing to pay in the millions."

Seth thanked his lucky stars that he'd cashed in on some of his archaelogical finds. The buyers had payed him a lot of money for his different finds. He hadn't really had any desire whatsoever to open his own account or make credits, but they had come in handy.

"So do you have what I am looking for?"

[Lilaena De'Ville]

Lilaena stopped running abruptly as the smoke and flames behind them billowed upwards. Cloak paused, and looked back, rapidly losing patience with her. She held up a hand, and cocked her head to one side, as if she was listening.

Her eyes narrowed, and she darted down a side alley, scattering a group of Rodians throwing dice. They cursed and shot after her, but missed. She ran through a building that was in her way, dashing up two flights of stairs and flinging herself from an emergency escape balcony. Feet motivated by fear and anger, and pulled forward with the Force, De'Ville shot over the gap between buildings, landing hard on her feet on the other side.

She stayed there momentarily, getting her bearings through the Force. There. From this vantage point she could see two shadowy figures in the alley below her. Ears sharpened through the Force, her heart thumped as she caught the sound of an infant's cry.

De'Ville leapt down from the building, drawing and igniting her lightsabre in one smooth, practiced motion. Darkserpent whirled around to face her, his black cloak swirling around her child. Lilaena growled, and started to attack as Seth's sword appeared in his hand, the metal reflecting the light from her blade.

A hand touched her shoulder, and she whirled around, causing the man behind her to duck away from her sabre.

[Kal Jericho]

"Ahh, the direct approach. I admire that in a man with a mask!"

Kal looked up at the rainy, black, polluted sky. He raised his collar slightly to keep the moisture out. He then returned his eyes to this man clad in black. Mysterious. Bulky. Smelly. Dangerous-looking. Troublesome-looking. Just like some of the cargo's he'd hauled in the old days.

"Yeah. I know who Garrett Blade is, alright. But he's a very dangerous man. Not the kind of guy you go looking for!"

Kal was already worried. If Blade was involved, then it must be pretty serious or pretty stupid. Either way, innocent people were going to get hurt if it didn't end soon. Seth Darkserpent. He'd heard of him before, but not much at all. And even then the name was mentioned in context with Garrett. This was a BIG guy. All that armour - he looked like he meant business. And to top it off, a cloak and a mask. And just what the hell was going on under that cloak. There was a lot of movement going on, as if something was fidgeting or wriggling around in there. Then, completely unexpected, a small, childs leg popped out from under the fabric. That was the last thing Kal expected.

"That a baby under your cloak or are you just happy to see me?"

Then, the infant let out a loud cry, as if calling out for help.

"I'm guessing that's not your baby. And it's got something to do with Blade. Just what the hell is it you want with him?"

As he spoke, a woman descended from one of the rooftops and ignited...a lightsaber. Kal wasn't too fond of lightsabers, as the last time he was around one he nearly got it lodged up somewhere whee the sun doesn't shine. She attacked Seth, but he parroed her saber with a sword. Not wanting to be caught in something he shouldn't, Kal placed his hand on her shoulder, attempting to get her attention and subsequently calm her down. But she spun around and swung for his head. Instinctively, he ducked underneath the woman's lightsaber blade and drew his heavy blaster pistol as he rolled to one side. He aimed and fired at her, but she managed to deflect the shot back at him. He leant backwards, arching his spine to its limit, before collapsing to the ground and rolling behind a large metal garbage container up against the filthy alley wall.

"Just what the hell is going on here?"

[Lilaena De'Ville]

Lilaena pointed her saber at Darkserpent. "You defy the Hand!? Give me my child!"