The battle outside had ended quickly, a quick but fierce confrontation. The crew of the Ebon Hawk remained mostly intact. Only Carth had sustained a minor injury, a slice to his arm from a vibroblade. The bodies of the thugs lay strewn about, already being reclaimed by the sands of Tatooine.

Bastila now stood behind the fallen Calo Nord, having come to render aid as soon as she had dispatched her opponent. She had just rounded the corner as her Padawan had delivered the killing blow. She had felt his anger surge, felt the pain he held within.

He looked up to see her standing there, mouth slightly ajar, her face a mixture of surprise and scorn. Silence fell between them as he deactivated his lightsaber.

"What have you done?" Bastila asked accusingly.

"What do you mean?" he responded defensively.

"He was beaten, he was unarmed!" Her voice began to rise in pitch.

"He threatened our crew! He had the resources to build a suit of armor that was invulnerable against lightsabers! He killed dozens of Jedi. I thought you would be happy he's gone," Venar countered.

"We do NOT kill the defenseless! It's not the Jedi way!" she shouted.

"Not the Jedi way?! And what about on Taris? In the Sith base? You struck down him down even though he was beaten!"

The words stung her. Yet as soon as she heard them she knew he was right. She had made the same error he had. Pangs of guilt flooded through her. She realized he could sense her feelings as she saw his face soften and his tone lower.

"Look I'm not saying you were wrong," he began.

"No," she interrupted. Her voice was still raised but it was directed more towards herself now. "No I was wrong to do that. I let my anger get the better of me. Even if we had good reasons for doing so, if we let ourselves lash out when we are angry then we are already on the path to the Dark Side. We have a great power bestowed to us, and it falls to us to use that power responsibly. We don't get to decide who lives and who dies. We are defenders, not warriors."

"You say that," Venar said evenly, "Yet here we are, Jedi, involved in a galactic scale war."

"We fight for freedom and peace, not for the glory of war," she corrected.

"We are still fighters nonetheless," Venar said, "Perhaps you and the rest of the Jedi prefer to lie to yourselves but I have no delusions about what we are."

"And what is that?"

"Warriors."

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Dacytus Rham found himself deep behind enemy lines on Dxun, one of Onderon's moons. He was only a Padawan, but after his master was killed he had no choice to take command of the elite commando platoon that followed his lead. A light rain descended upon them and walking through dense mud through the thick brush was slow going.

His brown tunic was matted and dirty though they had seen minimal fighting. This was mainly a reconnaissance mission. Reports suggested that this world was the location of the Mandalorian's main base of operations and staging ground. Their orbital scans had picked up a large series of structures deep in the jungle. It had been assigned to him and his master to lead a scouting party. Their goal was to make visual confirmation of a Mandalorian base of operations here on the moon and report on the defensive capabilities of the base. They had done just that. It had not been without cost though. His master, Jedi Knight Wenden Llydos had been spotted by a patrol and cut down. With the mission complete, it was up to him to lead the men back to the pickup point.

"Sir, I'm picking up movement up ahead," one of the republic soldiers said.

"Halt," Dacytus ordered his men, "move into defensive positions." The soldiers readied their weapons and made themselves scarce, many of them getting into prone positions. Dacytus peered through the jungle ahead. It seemed quiet and still as the rain continued to pour down upon them. His hand lowered to the hilt of his lightsaber. Still, he could see nothing. Zzzwhap! Suddenly, a blaster bolt whizzed through the air striking the soldier in the head next to him.

The jungle erupted in a volley of blaster fire before the soldier's body even hit the ground. Dacytus ignited his lightsaber deflecting blaster bolts with the green beam of energy. Up ahead through the trees he could see Mandalorians running through the brush. He was taken aback by how many of them were descending on them. There must have been hundreds of them. They numbered only twenty-nine.

"Contact the fleet!" Dacytus shouted as he hunkered down into the undergrowth, "Tell them we've been cut off from the extraction point! We need reinforcements! Now!"

An explosion ripped through a tree several yards in front of them, splintering it and sending it tumbling down. Dacytus did his best to deflect incoming fire as the Republic captain radioed for help. "We need to hold them off as long as we can!" He reflexively deflected an incoming bolt back at one of the charging Mandalorians, striking him square in the face plate of his helmet.

The Republic soldiers continued to lay down fire against the oncoming forces, and they picked off many but many more kept coming. There was no shortage of targets. Explosions from grenades peppered the battlefield sending debris flying and churning up smoke which began to impair visibility.

Dacytus picked up movement off to his left. He spotted three Mandos emerging from the bushes, one of them brandishing a rocket launcher. He sprung into action, propelling himself through the Force, leaping into the air he sent out a blast of energy from his palm, slamming the rocket-wielding Mando onto his back. Dacytus spun through the air throwing his lightsaber into the chest of the second Mando. He landed on his feet and ripped the third Mando's blaster rifle from his grip and pulled it through the air back into his left hand, firing three shots into his chest, just as his lightsaber found its way back into his right hand.

Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain strike his shoulder and he lost his grip on his lightsaber as he fell to the ground. He clutched the blaster burn as more blaster fire whizzed over his head.

"Jedi Leader down!" he heard one of his men call before feeling himself being pulled away behind the trunk of a large tree.

"Are you alright, sir?" One of his soldiers asked.

"I'm fine. What are our losses so far?"

"We've lost fifty percent of our men. We have fourteen men left, three of them are wounded."

"What about our reinforcements?"

"Unknown, sir," the soldier looked at him with a worried gaze. "What are your orders?"

"We have no place to go. We keep fighting."

"Sir!" he heard one of the men call from the line, "Republic dropship overhead!" He could indeed hear the low hum of an airship nearby. He peered out from behind the tree to get a look of the battlefield.

Suddenly, a single figure fell through the canopy, a long flowing robe trailing through the air. He landed on his feet, igniting a brilliant blue lightsaber of a cross-guard design, a design used mainly by the Jedi Crusaders under Revan's command. The figure looked in their direction momentarily, giving Dacytus a quick glimpse of a mask under the brown hooded robe. Revan.

Blaster fire was suddenly focused on the newcomer as he turned and with outstretched hands bent the trajectory of the incoming fire around him and sent it back into enemy lines.

"Come with me," he heard a voice say suddenly. He turned back around to see a second Jedi with blue tattoos running along his shaved head standing there with an outstretched hand. Gradually his tattoos faded to a pale gray, his eyes turned cold and he was taken out of the memory, brought back to the present. Dacytus Rham, though, had long since ceased to be. Now, only Darth Bandon remained.

He looked up at his master with nothing but cold hatred. This was the first audience he had had with him in what must've been weeks. He had been locked away and chained in a deep isolation chamber, forced to rely on nothing but the Dark Side of the Force to keep himself alive. His mouth had been sewn shut. Two metal rods had been grafted into his skin which ran from the bottom of his chin up just beneath his nostrils.

"You've survived three standard weeks in the isolation chamber," Malak said. "Only those with a mastery of the Dark Side can achieve such a feat." With a simple gesture, the Dark Lord freed him from his restraints, the Force-resistant cuffs falling to the floor. "It will serve you well," Malak continued, "I'm sending you on a mission to kill two very important Jedi..."

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Venar stood at the bottom of the boarding ramp of the Ebon Hawk, his arms crossed, leaning against one of the pistons that raise and lower the ramp. He watched as, a few yards away, Mission gave her brother one last hug. A breeze flowed through his robes as he watched the two embrace. The twin suns were beginning to set on Tatooine, adding a fitting tone to the setting.

"Are you sure you don't want me to stay?" Griff asked, glancing over in Venar's direction.

"I'm sure," Mission nodded. "You don't need to protect me anymore. Nobody does. I've found my place, now it's time for you to find yours." Her brother nodded.

"You've grown up so much," he said. "I'm proud of you. Mom and Dad would be proud too."

"I know," she said, blinking back tears. "Don't worry about me anymore. Besides, I have like three Jedi and a Wookie looking after me. Not that I need them to."

"I don't imagine you do," Griff said. He gently leaned down and kissed her on the forehead. "So long, Mission." He turned to go and began walking away towards the spaceport entrance. Mission watched him go and as she began to turn, he called out to her one last time. "Hey Mission!"

"Yeah?" she called back.

"May the Force be with you!" With that, he disappeared through the spaceport doorway.

She gazed up at the setting suns as they descended behind the horizon. She felt sad watching him go, that she had even been the one to suggest it. It was odd that after all this time of wanting to be reunited with him, that now she was watching him go. She turned and walked back to the ship, reflecting on her decision.

"For what it's worth," Venar said, still leaning against the piston, "I'm proud of you."

"Thanks," she said, "I think."

"You did the right thing," Venar said, "And I believe that you're right. You belong here, with us."

"I do. I know that. Thank you," she quickly wrapped her arms around him in a hug for what lasted only a moment.

"Oh uh, you're welcome."

"Don't listen to Bastila, you're a great Jedi," she said before walking up the ramp.

Bastila and Carth were busy looking over the nav computer, plotting their next course of action when Venar walked in. The holo projection of the galaxy swirled in the air as if they were looking at an actual miniature version of the galaxy. Carth stood with his arms folded and a hand on his chin as he studied the map.

"The information we've uploaded from the star map charts out a small section of the unknown regions but it's still not a lot to go on," Carth said, "It's still too risky to explore out there without more data from the star maps."

"I agree," Bastila said. She glanced at Venar as he entered the cockpit, "We were just looking over the data from the star map. I believe Manaan should be our next point of interest."

"Manaan," Venar said, "I've never heard of it."

"It's a water world full of underwater cities inhabited by the Selkath, the native fish species," Bastila explained. "They're highly advanced and they maintain a single massive floating city to trade with off-worlders. They are an independent world, not allied with the Republic or the Sith and they have upheld their strict stance of neutrality in the war."

"The Sith leave them alone?" Venar asked skeptically.

"Their major export is kolto," Carth explained. "Kolto is used to treat wounds on the battlefield and is extremely effective. Without kolto, either side would face a massive disadvantage in the war, even with Malak's massive armada. So the Sith have no choice but to respect their neutrality."

"Both the Republic and the Empire maintain an embassy in the main city and any act of aggression even verbally is dealt with by local authorities," Bastila continued, "Any such violations would do much to harm either side's trade opportunities with the Selkath."

"Which means I think it's best if you and Bastila go alone," Carth said, "Find the map down there and then leave as soon as possible. We should keep the ground party as small as possible. We don't want to attract any attention to ourselves."

"You don't want to come with us?" Venar asked.

"Frankly, I find it disgusting that we have to play nice with those Sith animals," Carth replied, "I'm afraid I might be more of a liability than I'd like to admit in this situation."

"That's nonsense-"

"No don't try to talk me out of this, "Carth said stubbornly, "You're going to need someone with a clear head down there."

"Perhaps Carth is right," Bastila said, "I believe this might be a good learning opportunity for Juhani."

"Fair enough," Venar said, "I'm sure she wouldn't mind some fresh air after being cooped up on the ship for so long."

"Very well," she said, "Plot a course for Manaan and let us know when we arrive." She patted Carth once on the back of the shoulder as her and Venar turned away headed down the corridor.

"You should fill Juhani in on the situation," Bastila said in stride, "Then we should get to bed and hope we share another vision."

"You know, if you wanna snuggle all you have to do is ask," he teased.

"Not even in your dreams," she said walking away, trying her best to hide her grin.

With a hiss and plumes of steam pouring from the hydraulics, the Ebon Hawk set down in Docking Bay AA42. The spaceport was much larger than the one on Tatooine. It was the tallest building in the area and spanned multiple levels.

They had gotten a look at the city when they descended on the planet, a massive maze of skyscrapers and buildings built on a giant circular metal floating platform. From orbit it looked like a lone disk floating in an endless sea of waves. Up close, it was much more impressive.

Venar and the others admired the unique architecture of the Selkath homeworld: large dome shaped ceilings, white and gray walls accented by pale blue trim, state of the art technology integrated with almost every corner of the spaceport. Everything was clean and had a shine to it, a welcome change given their last destination.

The Selkath were an aquatic people with a distinct pair of cephalic lobes that hung down off the tip of their snout. Despite them also having retractable venomous claws, they were largely a peaceful people.

Venar paid the docking fee with the port official before joining Bastila and Juhani. As they stepped out of the spaceport and onto the street, they couldn't help but be in awe of the beautiful architecture and the technological marvel that was Ahto City.

"How are we going to find this star map in all this?" Venar asked, "We don't have much to go on this time."

"I confess our vision didn't reveal much this time," Bastila agreed, "However, our reliance on the Force has gotten us this far."

Their vision from the night before was brief, and showed them a glimpse of the star map. They saw the ancient structure located on the bottom of the ocean floor in low lighting. The water had churned and a large shadow was cast over the star map. Then the vision was over.

"If our vision was correct," Venar continued, "Then we have a serious problem. Only Selkath are permitted beneath the surface, how would we get permission?"

"We can try appealing to the Ahto High Court," Bastila said, "that could take some time, however."

"Time we may not have," Juhani said.

"I agree," she replied, "The longer we stay on this planet, the higher chance we have of Malak becoming aware of our presence."

"I think our best bet would be stopping at the Republic Embassy here," Venar suggested, "See if there is anyone there who can help us."

"Yes!" Bastila chided, "That's a great idea. I'm sure whoever is in charge there would be eager to help the Jedi Order."

"We may want to guard our tongues while we are here," Juhani said in a hushed tone as two Sith troopers came walking past in the opposite direction. They weren't permitted to carry their blasters out on the streets but they were still clad in their full suits of armor. Juhani could feel them glaring at them through their helmets, pushing down the surge of anger that rose up in her.

"What are the chances we haven't been recognized already?" Venar uttered in a hushed voice.

"I'd say pretty slim," Bastila responded, "We must move quickly."

The Republic Embassy was its own building and considered as sovereign territory of the Republic itself. Once inside, the rules changed. Soldiers carried their weapons openly and any activity that went on inside was Republic business only.

The place was abuzz with activity. Staff hurried about pushing loading carts full of kolto ready to be packed and shipped off-world to the warfront. Supervisors poured over the carts checking and double-checking the manifests and making sure everything was in order. Some were on their communicators chattering with Senators and Representatives off-world, setting up meetings with local Selkath officials. The Republic knew that if they were going to gain an edge in the war, gaining the Selkath was the best way to do it. Venar mused that the Sith likely realized this as well. With both sides eagerly trying to persuade the Selkath into an alliance tensions were high. Yet the locals maintained their neutrality.

The three Jedi made their way to the rear of the embassy to the command room. There they were immediately greeted by a General Roland Wann, a dark-skinned man with combed back gray hair and military style mustache.

"Welcome, Jedi," he said in a firm but calm voice, "You arrived at just the right time."

"You were expecting us?" Bastila asked.

"No, but I was alerted there were Jedi here as soon as you entered the spaceport," he explained.

"Indeed," Bastila mused, "Let's hope the Sith aren't as informed as you are."

"I highly doubt that. I assume you are here on important Jedi business?"

"We are General," she explained, "We are searching for an important ancient artifact. However, we believe it lies at the bottom of the ocean."

"And you need access to the depths either with local permission or without their knowledge," he surmised.

"Precisely."

"Indeed. Well I believe we are in a position to help each other." He looked around for moment as if uneasy. "Come with me." The three Jedi exchanged intrigued glances with each other as they followed General Wann to the very back of the embassy through a set of guarded sealed doors. He lead them down into the a large sub-level of corridors beneath the embassy.

Venar looked around at the empty hallways. They looked relatively new almost as if recently constructed. It was definitely of Selkath construction though. He got a feeling that whatever was occurring down here was certainly off the books. As if to confirm his thoughts Roland said: