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The Slave trade was an abominal thing.
To barter and profit from the misery of others was a wretched crime, but it was a crime without punishment, especially where the Republic could not enforce its laws.
If he could, Pash would have enforced justice on the entire industry. But it was too large, too well ingrained in the outer rim. In addition, some species viewed it as perfectly legal and just.
There was only so much one man could do.

The Slave Trade was what brought Pash to Nar Shaddaa. The Council had heard rumors of Force Sensitive children being bought and sold at record prices, but that the Sith weren't involved.
The fact there was an underground market on Force sensitive children was reason enough to investigate, but the idea that the Sith had nothing to do with it made it all the more curious.

Pash had outfitted himself for his mission: Stealth suit, fake ID's, High Density (HD) Slugthrower pistol (silenced of course), Sith alchemical sword at his hip, Garrote whire, throwing knives, his lightsaber(Concealed), and his light bending cloak screen.

In addition he was packing a few extras to aid in his disguise as a Mercenary. He wore his Casual garments over his stealth suit, over which he wore an urban camoflague poncho. A Blaster Carbine was slung over his shoulder and he had a personal datapad/comlink with falsified records and information on his left foream.

His Alias, crafted for him by Republic Intelligence, was that of Garik Darkstar, a Gun for hire and professional Dog of War of Corellian ancestry.
His knowledge of Oly's Corellisi would serve him well in the deception.
Having been brought to the Corellian Sector by tramp freighter, "Garik" was pounding the pavement, keeping his force presence down and his ears up for a lead to begin his investigation.

As he walked, he caught sight of a pair of Sith Assassins. While not in uniform, he could tell them by their gait. The sight of them reminded Pash that the Sith had an Academy on the Smuggler's Moon.
One false step, and he'd be up to his neck in Dark side sneaks.

They didnt seem to notice him at all and passed right by him without so much as a suspicious glance.

They could be acting of course. Better do some acting of my own.

With that, Pash turned for the nearest cantina like any real Mercenary with cash would do.

The Blast blew out a high window of the Compound. Blaster fire began to spatter in return.

Altair drew his saber with the force, the emerald blade burning into existence with a snap-hiss, and hurtled for the main entrance, the Cultists missing him due to his Force Sprint. Suddenly his saber snapped up and deflected a stream of howling, angry plasma. The Heavy Repeating Blaster blared its call, stopping the Knight in his tracks, his stance hardening into Soresu, and sending the bolts away.

Suddenly the fire stopped. One could see the barest shimmer of a Stealth Field as Killem pulled himself onto the roof. "Handled boss," His comm whispered.

"Thanks Tanon," Eisenor replied as he sprinted the last 10 meters to the reinforced barricaded door.

Gideon severed it diagonally and its wielder sent it flying inward with a Force Wave, scattering the cultists within.

"NOW!" The Jedi shouted into the comm, and his Purge Team broke cover and made for the entrance. A full company from the Planetary Defense Force was on loan to Altair, and he was making full use of it. The well disciplined troops moved quickly and with much discipline. Altair danced, his Saber ending Cultist after Cultist, as his troops stormed inward. Blasterfire called back and forth, but the mind-slaves were no match for the PDF troops, and Kail, who was leading them.

The same did not go for their leaders, however. There was Optheen, the insane Sith Alchemist, who rolled a bomb into a squad of Corulag soldier. One that sprayed acid and rendered their last moments ridiculously pleasant. Their mewling screams would haunt those who heard them for years.

Optheen just giggled madly, tossed another one, and danced away. Eisenor caught it with the force and sent it flying into a wall where it could do no harm.

"You're no funnofunnofunnofunnofunnofunatall!" Optheen chittered at Altair as he send a pair of Sith Cocktails at him. The Jedi launched himself over them with the aid of the force, and landed behind the bald man with the rediculous grin. With a short gesture, Altair divided the madman.

And then he rolled across the ground, just as a massive axe thundered down and shattered the plasticrete.

'That would be Aaa, the enhanced Gamorrean.' The Investigator thought as he turned to see the 3 meter tall, massive, pig faced beast snarl and charge. He was extremely fast, and his huge Vibro-axe swung out lightning quick. Altair moved out of the way, unable to block such a massive weapon effectively. Roaring in rage, and spraying his foul breath and spittle, Aaa surged forward, swinging his axe again and again and again. The Jedi ducked and weaved, dodging and feinting until his opening appeared. Then, with a flick of his wrist and a careful Makashi technique, severed the Gamorrean's hands, and with an equally precise motion, his head.

Danson Kail punched a trio of holes in the chest of Obron, the twisted Veteran who had trained the Cultists in warfare, with whom he had been dueling for the past few moments.

Killem slit Gliaw's daughter, Partha's, throat from ear to ear. Like so many others, the wraith-like near human seemed to simply just appear, do his bloody work and then fade.

With their leadership broken, the cultists began to rout.

"Where's Gliaw?" Kail called into the comm. During the battle there had been no trace of the corrupted noble, probably the most dangerous member of this cult.

Reaching out with his feelings, Eisenor searched the building until he felt the polluted aura of the Neo-Krath's leader.

"I've got him," Altair murmured, and then hurled his Lightsaber into the ceiling, and cut a man-sized hole with it. Avoiding the foot-thick duracrete slab that fell, he jumped through it, retrieving his blade as he went.

The second floor was dark, the lighting having been deactivated. This would be a problem for any prospective assassin, but Jedi need no light.

Gliaw's blade met Gideon as it shot for Altair's kidney's. They broke, and the Jedi spun, holding the blade parallel between them. Illuminated by the Emerald glow of the Saber, Altair could see his enemy for the first time, face to face. The handsome face, the curly hair, the youthful physique. The maddened smile, the bloodshot eyes, the sweat streaming down his forehead.

The noble darted in, launching a horizontal downward slice, followed by a pair of straight stabs. Altair parried them all, and then said "It's over Gliaw. Surrender."

"It's never over! I am invincible to your tricks scum!" He screamed back, and his blade quivered with the Dark Side.

'A Sith Sword!? He is well-equipped indeed!' The Jedi thought as he defended himself from a frenzied rush of attacks from the insane Cultist. Gliaw was among the best duelists on the planet, but he was no match for a Jedi.

Much less Altair Eisenor.

After fifteen seconds the Investigator hacked off the noble's sword arm, and transfixed his knee. He collapsed with a disbelieving shriek, and lay there spitting curses at the Jedi and the 'help' and especially Altair Eisenor.

"It is done Nouvel. Give it up." Altair intoned, bringing the point of Gideon to the leader's throat.

"NEVER!!!" He screamed, and reached for his belt. His hand almost reached the side pouch before his head rolled next to it.

With a sigh Altair deactivated his Saber. This killing was so...wasteful. He wished he could've brought these people back to the light, but that was not his purpose. He was a Guardian, not a Consular. Only when the people involved were Irredeemable was he called in.

That didn't make him feel much better, but with scum like Nouvel, it was something.

"Gliaw has been neutralized," He said into the comm. A chorus of cheers went up through the building. The rest of the cultists were either killed or surrendered over the next hour.

After that, Altair began his search.
===

The search through the compound was performed by Altair, his retinue, and several Droids, again on loan from the PDF.

It had gone on for several hours, and just as Kail burned out Optheen's lab (after M5 had categorized it, of course) with a Plasma Grenade, Killem called out over the comm, "Boss, come here and take a look at this."

"On my way," The Jedi replied. Killem was on the second floor, very near where the duel between Altair and Nouvel had taken place. The near-human was standing next to a wall. He was grimacing.

"What is it Tanon?" Altair asked as he walked next to him. "There's something behind this wall. A room of some kind," The Infiltration Expert responded, "And I have a bad feeling about it."

Altair nodded, and closed his eyes, giving himself to the Force. Almost at once his nose was filled with the smell of burning sulfur and his head began to hurt. Opening his eyes and blinking several times, he added "You are right. There is a room here. And it is centered in the Dark Side. Back up."

Killem did as he was told.

Altair reached out again, searching for the catch or switch that would open the door. He found it, and the black stone of the wall swung out with a hiss.

The room was large, maybe 7 by 7 meters, and in it was all manner of artifacts.

Gliaw had sponsored a number of Archaeological digs on Old Sith worlds, that much the Investigator knew. These must be his prizes.

He walked in, seeing dozens of ancient tomes, Sith Blades, devices and several more unpleasant things. There was even a full sized Basalt Statue of an Ancient Sith Lord. But the darkness that was making Altair's stomach churn came from none of those.

It came froma simple small box on a pedestal in the center of the room.

As the Jedi approached it, he steeled himself. The Darkness felt like it was choking him off. His vision was seeming to tunnel.

Altair pressed the button, and the box peeled away.

Altair Eisenor gasped in wonder. The device was small, golden, and pyramidal.

"A Holocron! A Sith kriffing Holocron," He whispered in wonder.

The Investigator almost didn't notice the statue begin to move. It's stone fist shot out impossibly fast, but Altair's Crushgaunts intercepted it, turning it away.

Backing out of the room very fast, and drawing his saber, the Investigator squared against this ancient defense mechanism. And then he screamed out and almost doubled over in pain. It felt as if something cold had clawed at his heart.

Altair felt the presence of pure darkness, and closed his eyes, seeing through the Force. Before him, hovering above the Statue which was still advancing, was an emaciated figure, clad in black rags, its face an elongated mask of hate, and its eyes glowing red.

A Wraith.

With a shriek it shot forward, just as the Statue began to attack. Altair deflected the Stone Fist, and avoided the specter.

It turned and rent at his back with its claws, and with another scream, Altair's closed eyes began to bleed. This thing was killing his soul, and if he wasn't careful, the Statue would kill his body. The Fists pounded in, slamming chunks out of the ceiling and floor. Altair's desperate dodges, guided by the force, were barely able to keep up.

He began wrapping himself in the Light Side of the Force, letting it guide his actions. The Wraith hissed in pain, and fell back a bit. The Statue began to slow. Altair began to chant the Jedi Code, and he opened himself even more to the Light Side. Now he was a luminous being, wreathed in blue-white light. The Statue groaned and the Wraith shrieked in Pain. Altair's movements became easier, and the bleeding stopped. The statue was met by parry after parry after parry as the Force filled Altair more and more.

Suddenly he extended his hand, and the Light Side shot into the Wraith which roared in pain, thrashed, and ceased to exist.

The statue simply stopped moving, its fist extended and its face frozen in a snarl.

Eisenor let the Force go, and the unbelievable vitality that had filled him faded. He felt a little fatigued, but nothing to worry about.

There was work yet to do however.

Killem was astonished, but was used to such things by now. "You alright Boss?" he asked.

"Fine Tanon. Just a bit tired. M5, come here at once. There is a whole library that needs categorizing." The Investigator said.

The droid tootled joyfully through the comm, and rushed to join his master.

It was to be a long day...

The space yacht came to a touchdown on the smuggler's moon, as a welcoming party of a hutt and his favored bodyguards en masse made sure buisness would not be "interrupted". The ubrikkian vessel sat dilligently, as the ramp touched down. To lead the procession, a small black Kushiban and an Iskalloni trooper stepped out, before being followed by a rotund Grey hutt, bearded and slightly scarred.

the grey hutt remarked in Huttese.

Az'zip replied.

Asura noted, as the two headed deep into the recesses of Nar Shaddaa

Stryder nodded to the girl and motioned to the blond humanoid next to him.

"This is Weapon Master Caladon, one of my chief advisors and a longtime ally. Master Caladon, this is the Padawan of Jedi Gohgei, Aurora Sunstar."

Caladon bowed slightly to the girl. "Welcome to Ankara, Padawan Sunstar."

"Come, Padawan." Stryder beckoned. "We have a speeder waiting that will take us to the Keep. There we will continue your training in the Jedi Order. Be warned though, that our regime is considerably different from Gohgei. I'll expect you to be open minded as to such things as a proper jedi should."

The actual walk from the yacht would not take long; like most successful hutts, Az'zip was rather corpulant. So much so that the sheer 'walk' to the landing pad had nearly drained him of breath. His special transport, a hover vehicle, had to be augmented specially for his gross tonnage. The ride with two hutts, therefore, was more like a convoy of hovercraft than a simple ride.

Neither hutt spoke to the other during the ride; it was possible to talk via the coms between the two vehicles, but Asura had other plans. After about fifteen minutes, the private residence and palace of Az'zip the Hutt was reached, as two hoverslabs were given, one to Az'zip, the other to Asura, to ease their way around the palace. Security was fairly tight as usual, and the dealings made over the last three years had greatly improved the AI systems and droid security.

Az'zip asked rather boldly.

"My master, as you so call him, is rather wise to all my actions, including when he's not directly in front of me. Should I have found a way to kill him by now, I figure that I would have destroyed another ghola of his just to taunt me. He is even harder to catch when on buisness. In my estimation, should I slay him, I really ahve become great. Until then, that sleemo, e chuta, still has things to teach me," the kushiban returned.

Asura interjected.



Asura rebuked, pointing at the iskalloni trooper.

"His statements are accurate," the cyborg confirmed.













For a moment, the two hutts had a staredown. Suddenly, Az'zip began to laugh a hearty hutt laugh. Asura followed suit, as the two shook hands on it.

Aurora smiled and bowed once more as Lord Stryder introduced Weapon Master Caladon.

“Thank you, Weapon Master Caladon.” She replied to him before looking back to Lord Stryder.

"Yes Lord Stryder, I understand.” She nodded as she readjusted her bag before following them to the waiting speeder to stow her gear and settle in for the ride.

Ritt sat in his room, bored out of his mind. Even a Jedi can meditate for so long before one cannot benefit any more for the day, especially someone like Ritt, who hadn't mastered this particular virtue. There weren't any simulators on board the Bathurst. That had to be done on the planet if needed. The Hammerhead was just too small, and didn't have room for such useless equiptment.

Heading to the deck, he met with Captain Tuing, who had recieved his orders from Tett.

"Lemme guess, we're going to prep this station for scuttling at a moment's notice," Ritt asked.

"Affirmative." The captain responded.

"I figured. I would have suggested it earlier, but in case Stryder actually felt like this station was worth keeping, I thought it best not to push the issue," Ritt responded, staring out at the space and the station the way only his race could.

"You don't like it?" Tuing asked.

"I dunno. Knowing him, he probably expects us to hold rear guard as well. I just don't like waiting for the enemy like this. We're just asking to be trapped."

"I'm sure Stryder knows what he's doing. And the sith in this sector haven't exactly been known for their competance. Chances are, the Ashla would have already made another strike into the area before they mobilize. They'll probably get mad, go into committee, and hit deadlock. And when that happens..."

"They'll turn it into a korriban deadlock. They'll be locked into inaction until one sith is dead, and then get moving. But we're just three ships. And only one of them even has fighters. If the sith came in with six squadrons of fightercraft, we'd wind up losing some fighters sooner or later. Especially if one of the other Hammerheads was slouching at the helm, and we have to wind up saving their rear. They already know they're not up against standard opponents. My unnamed squadron isn't exactly hard to tell apart from the rest of the republic. I mean, if the outrageous color schemes aren't enough of a giveaway, the hard points and missle blisters definately tell others we're not normal. Plus, with a force this small, winning the battle so quickly, they're bound to figure something's off. I just hate feeling like the worm on the end of a hook. Nobody realizes it, but when you go fishing, you usually don't get the worm back with the hook."

"You're a bit of a pessimist for a Jedi when you're not flying or knowing when you're gonna fly next," Tuing retorted back in a snippy tone. "You're a Jedi Ace, not a General or something. You take orders, not give them. Think of this as Stryder's confidence in you and your squadron. Speaking of which, when are you ever going to break the deadlock on the naming process?"

"Whenever one of us is removed from the squadron. No more tie votes then," Ritt sighed.