Terrin, dear gods, where are you?

He'd been informed just recently that Galen was unconscious and unrousable. He frowned.

Where were the damn Jedi when you needed them? If she didn't come out of it this would just kill Terrin.

Where was Terrin?

He turned, pacing only a moment, about to return to the main deck of his ship now safely in hyperspace when one of those said illustrious Jedi, Cella Poliani, came to him. She whispered something in his ear, as though it were some secret she didn't want anyone but him to hear.

And just maybe it was at that.

Aaron frowned more deeply, turning again to the motionless form of Galen.

This wouldn't do. They'd just barely gotten her back. They couldn't risk losing her again. The Jedi, for once, was quite right.

He mulled, thinking of something far beyond the everyday matters of running a business.

Matters of life and death, love and war.

He turned to Poliani. She looked tired and distressed, despite the rest she and the others received aboard the Hornett.

"Go with your friends aboard the ZZ'Shzq, then--the Force-shielding is necessary, as you say. And maybe you should take K'kihl with you as well. He's been more than just that here, we couldn't have done it without him. I sense though that he would want to help out with protecting Galen. See if you can find her some sort of better medical care than we have here, but be careful. We definitely can't risk Admiral Actar finding any of you. Just do me one other favor?"

She tilted her head in question.

"While you are at it, see if you can figure out just what happened to my partner..."

The Jedi nodded solemnly and headed off. Not long after that a ship dropped out of hyperspace, now IDed as a light-freighter called the Baroness. In only moments the ZZ'Shzq dropped from the ship's main hanger and sped off into hyperspace, destination unknown. Behind her, the "Baroness" slipped back into hyperspace on a path that would take her to the unknown world of Bastion...

"Sir," a deck officer said. "Captain Barnes has arrived. He awaits you in the conference room."

"Thank you, Officer Lent," Pallaeon said as he turned to Captain Slaric. "You have control of the bridge. Prepare the fleet for hyperspace and notify me when we are on our way. Make sure the Hornett is safely with us as well. Tag her as one of ours, owned by me, and make sure she is IDed as the Tigress, an Eclipse-class Super Star Destroyer."

"Yes sir," came the Captain's reply.

With that, Pallaeon left for the conference area. When he arrived, Captain Barnes was waiting.

"Thank you for your assistance, Admiral," Aaron said, standing to shake the esteemed Imperial's hand.

"It was my pleasure. But now that we've declared war on Actar your company might be in jepordy." Then, noticing his commlink was beeping, he held up a hand a moment to stay Aaron's reply.

"Sir, we have just taken to hyperspace as a complete fleet," said the deck officer's voice over the frequency.

"Very good, Officer. I will be back on deck shortly." Then he turned to Aaron who was frowning. "You are concerned as to the wellbeing of your company, I assume?" he asked, understanding.

"Yes, I am. But then, We seem to have more than just a little financial security at the moment...thanks to you again."

Pallaeon nodded, and indicated that Aaron should sit. He did the same.

"Your headquarters are secure?" he asked Aaron.

"Yes sir. We have no planetary headquarters, and what we do have is very well protected, and is now even more protected than ever."

"Indeed," Pallaeon replied, understanding. "We shall make sure this continues. The safety of your company is very important with Actar's take over. You are needed immeasurably, and will be protected with avengance."

"Glad to hear that," Aaron responded. "We will continue to supply you through avenues untraceable."

"And I am glad to hear that, Captain Barnes. Now we wait and pull back, carefully protecting ourselves. Actar has many enemies that have suddenly been empowered by our boldness. It might not serve him well to act out of sheer revenge from both a political and tactical angle. He technically shouldn't even be able to tell what hit Coruscant, considering both our ships were involved and neither was transmitting her true identification. But we shall wait and see just how this Admiral who was once at least honorable now reacts..."

"M-may i spe-ak with you?" he stuttered.

Aaron arched an eyebrow at Rathal's curious behavior.

"Yes sir," came the crewman's reply.

With that, Aaron lead the way to a conference area. He sat at the large wooden conference table across from Rathal, eyeing him rather suspiciously.

What the Sam Hell was this guy mucking around with his former employer for?

Rathal looked the man dead in the eye, not a the tiniest bit of falsness visable in his gaze "im not quite sure...all i know is that it has something to do with Galan..."

---Narcolm---

"Rathal, make him understand i wish to speak in peaceful terms...all will be revealed..."

--Rathal--

Aaron sighed, wishing for the life of him he knew where Terrin was to help him out with this. "Just who is your employer, and where does he propose we meet?"

"You tell your employer to meet me at these coordinates..." here he wrote a set of coordinates down on a datapad..."or there will be no further discussion."

Rathal gazed at the coordinates a moment, considering.

"no Rathal, i will simply give him the message now...---"

--As rathal---

"He told me that i am to tell you his message here, if you are not willing to meet with him at the givin coordinits, he doesnt like taking chances...." Suddenly a perspective about rathals demener changed, as though he wasnt quite sure about his own actions

--As narcolm, through Rathal--

"A man's wife? Just what man might you be referring to?"

"i work on behalf of one calledterrin Daner, I was instructed to find his wife, and return her to him..."

One that was just about ready to suck him in if he gave into it.

This was all just too spooky.

He paced the length of the room just once, then whirled to face Rathal.

This had something to do with the Sith. It just HAD to. All this Force-weirdness...Terrin possibly involved...

"Mr. Danner will be very disapointed to hear that..." then he thought to himself, one thought came through his mind so strongly, that the taken body of rathal sputtered it out, even though it was not ment to be spoken "and im sure ill pay dearly for it....hmmm"

"though you probably have not ment to, you have helped me, if only a little, i now know that galan is not on coruscant, i thank you for that... IS there perhaps anything i could do to change your mind about this? perhaps, arrange for you to see Terrin?"

"Khar delba, though as of now, that information is useless, terrin is a guest of the sith, and i do mean guest."

narcolm then seperated from rathal just a minut, the poor bounty hunter passed out imediatly, free now from the mental link, narcolm tried to send a message to graysith mentaly"Graysith, if by some mirical you hear this, a friend of terrin's has galan..though he will not say where, and is not very willing to believe me... What shall i do?"

he then sent his mind back the rathal, the unconcience man came awake again, once again under the control of narcolm

This has to do with your partner. Keep him talking.

"Terrin? A guest of the Sith? Now that's a new one..."

---Nar/rath---

" I dont know terrin well, so it might, or might not be a strange thing to think of, but its true, i dont know the detials, but i think it is true, because he wanted exactly what i have been sent to do, to happen...he wants his wife back... i cant tell you anything more about him, except that he is well... I dont know anything else, you have gotten all of my information. So, will you, or will you not help me?"

"I was hoping it would not come to this,but there is one way..."

the link suddenly got put to a pause. Narcolm returning to his own place in space

--Nar---

He dared not tell him Galen was unconscious...he would know soon enough...

...and sent him back into his own, and now much smaller, reality.

What the hell had he just gotten himself into? What had Terrin gotten himself into? What was going on here?

The Universe suddenly was shrinking into an entirely too small domain...

He bit his lip a moment, his mind still spinning.

He'd given Terrin his word.

Rathal sat, confused, his head pounded, he had passed out no doubt, and now Aaron was gone... Suddenly Aaron reapeard and spoke to him, realizing that something must have happened between his two employers while he was unconcies, "Umm..." he sputtered, "Where should narcolm meet us?" he continued, sending a message two narcolm, through the link that he hoped was still present.

--Narcolm---

Narcolm sat in the ship, looking at recinis.

"Graysith is straightining the situation out, we should have the information we need very soon."

Recinis merly nodded, his face an emotionless thing. Narcolm then let his mind wander again to rathal, just in time to recive the message that said "They are helping, i will send you a meeting place soon..."

Rathal nodded to the man, and sent over the coordinites, along with the message.

--Narcolm---

Narcolm recived the message with a smile, and punched in the coordinites, he taped the ship into hyperdrive, and looked to recinis.

--Narcolm--

Narcolm sent a comm message to one of the ships.
"we are expected..."
--Comm closed

"well i guess we just sit back, and wait now..."

Then, without further ado, the SSD locked on to the TIE defender and brought her in, right next to the ZZ'Shzq.

He then looked to recinis, and stood, the other following suit, the exited the ship, and aprouched those that waited.

"You will find Galen Danner aboard that yacht," he said, indicating the ship just behind him. "Take her and go quickly. Be wary--there are those who seek her even now," he explained. Then he added, "Let Terrin know that Admiral Actar has somehow driven her to unconsciousness. Maybe, just maybe, there will be something you all can do to bring her back..."

Narcolm looked at Aaron for a moment, then nodded, he then looked to Recinis, and nodded again, looking back to Aaron he said,

viewing the unconcies form of the woman reached deep within recinis' heart, and pushed his orders to the backgrounds of his thoughts, and bringing his own thoughts forward.

thinking quickly recinis removed his soft robes, and raped them about the woman, after this was done he lifted her gently in his arms and began walking out of the ship.

--My robes will keep her protected in spaceflight, she will not be able to tense against bumbs and jars by herself-- He thought to himself.

Exiting the ship he eyed narcolm, and gave a grim nod, then entered the ship, and began straping the woman into a seat in the craft.

Done with that, recinis sat down himself, as narcolm entered, looked at the woman, and then at Recinis. Narcolm then sat down, and began requesting leave of the Super star destroyer.
--Comm to SSD--
"thank you again" Narcoml sent.
Soon they were into real space, and after that into Hyperspace.

"They have brought the whelp to me," he commented lightly...

...and opening a portal through the All, reached out and stepped through amidst the flare of sith flames and into the cramped interior of the modified TIE fighter, which even now was fleeing for Khar Delban space.

His turquoise eyes glared at those before him, stopping at Recinis.

"I trust you were delivering her to me," he purred in a deathly whisper. "I would hate to think you were acting as a traitor to the Sith.

"But you need not go out of your way any longer."

Before they could react, he raised one great clawed hand, blasting them with the All from frozen startlement and into utter immobility. Turned his horned head in the confining interior, now reaching out to where the unconscious Galen now lay. And in one great and omnipotent movement snatched her to his chest and held her in a grip of steel. His claws gripped her flesh, and he glared over the top of her head at Recinis and Narcolm.

"Give the Chosen Daughter my greetings," he hissed, "and advise her to be wary. She knows not with whom she is dealing in me."

With that he released them from his control, and disappeared back through the flames which had carried him here, taking Galen with him.