X Jedi 2, A Cross Over
Chapter 1 "Planes, Trains, and Flying Saucers-- A Galaxy Far, Far Away"
  by JackeeC, Gheorghe2 and ginef (all at @aol.com)

DISCLAIMER AND DENIALS:
	The usual cautions apply.  We don't own any of this.  Others do, and 
hopefully the toys are none the worse of the excursion.  We sincerely hope that the 
fair use doctrine extends this far.  We are, of course, very grateful to those who built 
the toys.  We all deeply admire Chris Carter, George Lucas and Tim Zahn, and hope 
that they too, do not mind the liberties taken with their creations.

THANKS! GRACIAS! MERCI!
	Special thanks to our beta testers, idea bouncers and inspirations, found 
most especially in the AOL Star Ladyz forum, on the Jade list and among Jackee's 
special friends. Additional gratitude to PG, BB, holo, the twins, ghits, dunc, qwi, 
Natalie, the 'shipper list, Tracey the Grammar Goddess, Darin Morgan and all the 
others.  If you get at least ten of the inside jokes buried in the piece, than you 
become an automatic member in the club.  At some point toward the end, with jokes 
about Ewoks, copyrights, red shoes, and Winona Ryder flying, we realized that we 
were parodying our parodies.  Also thanks to the Ladyz and Marnee in DC who 
provided much needed local color and realism.  There really is a club in Adams- 
Morgan called "Heaven and Hell" and Langly might very well frequent it.

SUMMARY:
	XF/Star Wars crossover. Action/adventure with a case (sort of). UST (but 
maybe not between who you'd expect). Humor. Angst. Upsetting imagery. Third 
season spoilers. A few bad words.   For the unwary, we offer the following mini-
summaries--

STAR WARS / ZAHN TRILOGY
	According to the Star Wars cannon, three years after the end of Return of the 
Jedi, Han and Leia married.  Two years later, they had twins, Jacen and Jaina.  
Coinciding with the birth of their children was the rise to power of Grand Admiral 
Thrawn, bent on resurrecting the Empire. He enlisted a Dark Jedi, Joruus C'Baoth to 
help him, promising to deliver Luke and his sister and her children as acolytes.  
During these events, their lives became twined with the smuggler, Mara Jade.  Mara 
was a woman with a past.  The Emperor took her from her family as a child, training 
her to hear his voice from anywhere in the galaxy.  She became his servant, his 
personal assassin and his Hand.  She was sent to Jabba's Palace to kill Luke, and 
failed (obviously).  With the death of her Master the Emperor, she wandered the 
dregs of the galaxy committed to one goal, killing Luke.  At the end of Tim Zahn's 
Last Command, she and Luke are reconciled of sorts, and on the roof of the 
Coruscant Palace, he gives her his father, Darth Vader's, light saber, and touches her 
hand twice.  This exchange has led to revisionist history of a magnitude rivaling that 
of the UST and RST of Scully and Mulder.

X-FILES-- "COLONY", "END GAME" AND "TALITHA CUMI"
	Read this if you have no idea who the "mighty morphin bounty hunters" are. 
In the second season two-parter "Colony/End Game" anonymous e-mails tip off 
Mulder and Scully to the mysterious murders of identical abortion doctors across the 
country. Apparently these doctors are alien clones sent here to colonize our friendly 
little planetoid. In the middle of the investigation Mulder is called home by his 
estranged parents. His long-lost sister has returned. She explains that she was 
raised by these aliens and that the bounty hunters want to kill her (in addition to their 
mission to wipe out all the colonists) because she knows how to kill them (an ice 
pick to the base of the skull).  Meanwhile, Scully is kidnaped by one of the said 
bounty hunters. Seems these pesky ice picks for hire have the annoying habit of 
being able to morph into anything they want, in this case Mulder. Scully falls for it 
long enough to end up head first into a wall and is taken hostage. An exchange is 
arranged-- Scully for Samantha. Mulder thinks he can save them both. He gets Scully 
back, but Samantha is killed. In one of the most gut-wrenching scenes in XF history, 
Mulder has to tell his dad he's lost Samantha again. Next Mulder gets wind that one 
of the bounty hunters is returning to his UFO in the arctic. He chases after him in 
search of answers. He ends up getting his ass kicked by the bounty hunter and a 
bizarre retrovirus. Meanwhile, Scully has determined that "Samantha" wasn't Mulder's 
sister at all, but an alien clone. She then follows Mulder to the arctic and ends up 
saving him from the virus.   "Talitha Cumi" brings the return of our favorite bounty 
hunters, back on the trail of the colonists. Season finales are always a dangerous 
time for the Mulder family and this year doesn't disappoint. Mrs. Mulder suffers a 
massive stroke after a confrontation with the Cancer Man (photographed courtesy of 
Mr. X). It seems that Mulder's mom and our favorite black lunged monster may have 
a past. The whole mess ended with Mulder, Scully, the colonist and the bounty 
hunter poised for a messy confrontation.   X Jedi 2 takes place shortly after this 
confrontation. Since we have no idea how Chris Carter is going to resolve this little 
quagmire, you'll notice we've shamelessly glossed it over and have written on our 
merry way.

X JEDI
	Okay folks, if you haven't read X Jedi or if it was so long ago that the mind 
boggles and you can't remember it... here you go. But be warned, if you haven't read 
it, some of this may confuse you.  In the galaxy far, far away (GFFA) there was a little 
cylinder. This cylinder turned up in the war room of the Imperial palace at Coruscant, 
where as of Zahn's trilogy, the New Republic headed up by our favorite band of 
used-to-be rebels resides.  A young woman, Rea, working at a warehouse in 
Charlotte, North Carolina, also found the same cylinders.  After the warehouse burns 
down, our favorite Special Agents are called in to collect Rea.  She just happens to 
have a cylinder or three handy.    The cylinders begin Scully and Mulder's journey to 
the GFFA, where among other things, they visit Coruscant Palace and meet a Jedi 
Knight, his sister, and some other interesting people.  Agent Scully gets a new hair 
do and some really cool clothes and Agent Mulder decides that no draw string pants 
and beds that float are just two reasons why staying in the Galaxy Far, Far Away 
seems like a really good idea.    Regrettably, the investigation of the warehouse fire 
and being spirited away to another galaxy prevented Agent Scully from going on a 
date with a really good looking, nice guy named Ben Adams from Washington DC.  
Her favorable opinion became somewhat muddled when she and Mulder, in the 
woods behind the warehouse, witnessed Adams being enveloped in a beam of light 
and taken aboard an alien space ship.  Scully's opinion became decidedly negative 
after she, unfortunately,  ran into Ben in the halls of Coruscant Palace.  For, although 
she might have wanted to bring Ben home to meet Mrs. Scully,  problems would 
arise if Ben tried to bring Scully home to meet *his* family.  His father is none other 
the Cancer Man, the X Files villain you love to hate.  And the Cancer Man's  father is 
the Emperor Palpatine ** the evil, twisted wizened guy with long finger nails and 
sizzling blue bolts firing out of his hands.  Darth Vader threw Palpatine down the shaft 
at the end of Return of the Jedi.    Concurrent with Scully and Mulder's arrival on 
Coruscant, the GFFA folks discover a ship, the Hinderer, which is occupied with 
Force-strong children from Earth, led by a woman named ***Samantha***.  The Ship 
also is filled with Dark Side Force users, in a state of sleeping stasis.  Adams, 
proving that he is not just another blind date, appears on Coruscant, a galaxy from 
home, and steals the Hinderer, the children and the Dark Side users.  With the 
cylinders and the assistance CEStallia, the leader of a mysterious, very powerful race 
of Force-using telepaths, Dana Scully, Fox Mulder, Han Solo, Leia Organa-Solo, and 
Luke Skywalker travel through a "Gate" to Earth.  They rescue Chewbacca who has 
been taken hostage, wreck a little havoc, and then travel to the Gate, which CEStallia 
insists they must destroy to stop this commerce between the Galaxies.    In a very 
emotional scene, Mulder decides that he will return to the GFFA, and Scully decides 
to join him.  An added incentive for Scully, may it seem, be Luke himself.  She 
observes to Mulder at one point "what's not to like?"  All roads meet at the Gate.  The 
children from the Hinderer and Samantha are there, and wholly under the influence 
of the now awakened Dark Side Force users.  Adams is also at the Gate, as a 
prisoner.  At the Gate, Mulder learns that he has a strong Force gift and that Scully 
also harbors some latent ability.  Combining efforts the GFFA folks and the FBI 
agents destroy the Gate.  As the Gate begins to fall down around them, Luke has a 
vision of his possible future:  Coruscant lay in ruins; Mulder dead at his feet and a 
very frightened and untrusting Scully staring his way.  He decides to return Adams, 
Mulder and Scully to Earth.  Scully and Mulder are found at the edge of a meteor, are 
in a hospital, and when they awake, have no memory of where they have been.  At 
the end of X Jedi, a mysterious woman appears to Mulder, giving him a tea bag.  
With the infusion he has a vision of Samantha, his missing sister and the story ends.

BACKGROUND:
	A few months after the end of X Jedi, Luke Skywalker, Han Solo and Leia 
Organa Solo realize they've left some unfinished business on Earth. Meanwhile, 
Agent Mulder is experiencing an usual physical anomaly. And both Mulder and Scully 
are beginning to have alarming flashbacks about flying primates.  So, without further 
ado...we give you:

*****************************
Chapter 1
"Planes, Trains and Flying Saucers-- A Galaxy Far, Far Away"
*****************************

Coruscant
Imperial Palace
2.3 Standard Months After X Jedi

	Sounds of crashing and swearing reverberated down the Coruscant Palace 
corridor.  To the denizens of the Palace it signaled but one thing.  The Jedi Knight 
and his student were at it again in the Palace Gymnasium.
	Mara Jade slammed into her instructor seeing and blocking his feint, as their 
lightsabers collided. "So," she grimaced with the effort, "You going to try to tell me 
that I'm still too slow on the return."
	With the one bit of his brain he dared spare from the duel, Luke Skywalker 
wished that his first serious student had not been such a quick study.  Between short, 
rasping breaths, he continued his instruction, "I can tell, you're still thinking too hard, 
let the Force guide your muscle memory." 
	The goading seemingly successful, she moved in swiftly, with fury, but not, 
he realized, the kind of blind rage he had hoped to use as an example.  Through 
gritted teeth and blazing assault, she muttered, "And maybe you should learn to 
watch your rear guard."
	Pressing in, Mara forced his retreat into a pile of tumbling mats.  He tripped 
and fell backwards, and with a twist and thrust from her blade, his lightsaber flew out 
of his hands, across the room to land with a thunk and a roll on the gym floor.   
	She continued to advance, the blue humming tip to within centimeters of his 
throat.  For a moment he wondered whether after, all the times, the opportunities, the 
vulnerable moments, she would do it now, and finally, silence those voices that still 
howled through her.  The black clad avenger raised her saber high above her head, 
staring at her prone instructor, eyes glittering with intense satisfaction.  So poised for 
a fatal heartbeat, with a burst of glee, she swung her blade in an arc, closing it down 
with a fluid movement, convulsed with laughter.  "You should see your face," she 
crowed.  "I sure had you going."    
	"Very amusing, you maniac.  It's just a replay of the same nightmare I've had 
ever since I met you."  Luke, still sprawled in the tumbling mats glared up with little 
amusement.
	"Sure, Skywalker.  How flattering that you dream of me.  I've known it all 
along."  
	"Any dream featuring you, Jade, is a nightmare."
	Mara laughed again, not at all repentant for her rare, savored victory, and 
reached to take his upraised hand to haul him up.  She should have foreseen this old 
trick of his; too late Luke firmly grabbed her wrist and with a smooth strong pull and 
well placed foot, flipped Mara over his head and onto her back, hard.  Before she 
could struggle to her feet, Luke pounced, straddling her.  "A Jedi," he admonished, 
"Should watch her front as well as rear guard."    
	She was flushed, sweating, incensed at having been so deprived of a fair 
dueling victory.  He took the opportunity for further infuriating instruction, "Anger," he 
intoned pedantically, "Leads to the Dark Side." 
	With a growl she hissed, "You've never seen me really angry.  This is 
positively playful for me."
	He lectured further, "To be a Jedi takes the deepest commitment and most 
serious mind."   
	"Sure.  And I just bet that the Master who instructed you made a point of 
sitting on top of your stomach."
	Luke considered with somber reflection, "Actually, he made me carry him 
around on my back.  Once we move to the jungle phase of your training, I figure you'll 
be ready to do the same."   
	"Try again, Jedi."
	In spite of her acid response, for various reasons mostly but not entirely 
related to conserving her energies for the battles that truly needed to be fought, Mara 
had not tried to escape the clutches of her teacher.  Circumstances such as this one 
were common in her training, and the methods, although frequently painful and 
certainly unorthodox, seemed to be working.  Although there were plenty of  false 
starts and dead ends, progress was being made.  
	With the sound of booted feet stomping down the corridor, teacher released 
student for the day.  Standing, Luke called his saber to him, and only then offered to 
help Mara rise.  She ignored his proffered hand, "What's all the racket?"
	Whirring machinery and the deafening noise of cutters on rock echoed into 
the gym.
	"Some construction work." was Luke's response.    
	They made their way out of the gym, Mara turning towards the noise, 
although their routine typically called for a different direction.  "What for?" 
	Luke was mildly puzzled at her curiosity, "I told you about the visitors we had 
here a coupla months ago, didn't I?"
	Jedi and apprentice paused, calling upon memory lessons, far more difficult 
for Mara than for him.  "You know, the CEstallians, that bizarre trip to the other galaxy, 
the Gate, those," and here Luke winced only slightly with the memory, "Three people 
from Earth." 
	Mara was too distracted, making off in the direction of the work droids 
repairing the catacombed secret passages of the Coruscant Palace interior.  "Yeah, I 
remember now.  But why the work?  It looks like ..."  Luke caught up with her, as she 
stared intently at the droids working in a pile of dusty plasteel and stone, water 
dribbling in dirty pools on the marbled floors.  A plasterer droid was feverishly 
shoring up the inner passage way exposed by the Palace interloper.  Another droid 
waited, preparing to seal up the hole once again.
	Mara spun around, accusingly, "You didn't tell me anything about someone 
using the passages."
	"Yeah, well so?"    
	She stamped her foot impatiently, "Who got into them?" she demanded.
	"Some man they called Ben Adams.""
	Mara sniffed with superiority, "I've never heard of him."
	Luke sighed heavily, he had wanted a drink, a towel and something for the 
bruising she had given his arm, not twenty questions with Mara.  "No surprise there, 
since he's a whole galaxy or more away."
	Mara's air of condescension dropped abruptly, her eyes widening, "What?!"
	He suddenly saw as well, and whirling around, slowed long enough only for 
her to catch up, "Security has a vid of him."   
	They made off at a purposeful jog down the corridors, barreling over the 
slow moving, unsuspecting, human and alien alike.  Luke thought he knew already 
but queried, "Who knew about those passages?"  
	"Hardly anyone.  I did, the Emperor of course.  Maybe some of the retainers, 
the intelligence operatives. But..."   
	He finished for her, "Only those who were highly placed right?" 
	"He would have only told those who would have needed to move secretly 
through the Palace.  There weren't many he would have trusted with that 
information." They stopped at a branching corridor to argue over which way Security 
was, Luke prevailing, and ultimately having the right of it.   
	It might have been more prudent if Luke and Mara had signaled their 
entrance to the security suite in a way more subtle than bursting in, grimy, excited, 
and in badly tattered work out wear.  The duty officer's first instinct had been that the 
Palace was under attack by a shabby, deranged couple. 
	"Uhhh, excuse us Captain."  Luke was eyeing a blaster trained on his gut 
with concern, "We wanted to look at the security tapes from a few months ago when 
we had the intruder."
	 Captain Greet lowered his weapon, and was thoroughly grateful that he had 
stopped to aim before firing and potentially injuring the New Republic's only Jedi 
and the woman they had all learned to steer clear of.  Security had been warned 
about these two: odd behavior was to be expected, reported, but never discussed, 
and within reason and discretion, all but the most outrageous of requests were to be 
accommodated.  No one knew quite what to expect with Jedi training. 
	"Of course, sir."  Greet directed them to a terminal, and running a search, 
located the appropriate date and file.  Mara sunk to the terminal chair, watching 
intently as the image of Benjamin Adams slinking through the Coruscant Palace Ops 
control room and out to the catwalks above the private landing bays where the 
Hinderer had been docked."
	 Luke felt her shocked recognition, asking softly, "You know him?"  Mara 
shook her head in the negative, but with the control froze a frontal picture of the 
man's young, dark good looks, began entering a series of swift commands into the 
computer, splitting the screen.  Luke glanced over his shoulder at the mild disinterest 
of the Duty Officer, then muttered quietly, "Might want to be a little more discrete 
about just how much you do know about Palace security."   
	He heard a silent response, pleased that she was learning to converse on 
the private Jedi channel, "I'm looking for archived holos.  Not the sort of thing 
requiring clearance.  As if," she added with a smug silent smirk, "Security clearances 
would bother me."
	 Mara was rapidly scrolling through a menu on the split screen of what 
appeared, to Luke's surprise, to be a very old roster of Imperial Senators.  "What are 
you looking for in a Senate that dissolved 60 years ago?"
	She glanced up, serious, "Something I hope I don't find."  With a deep sigh, 
she returned to the roster and highlighting a name that moved too rapidly for Luke to 
see, entered a command, and a picture and then biographical information appeared 
on the split screen next to the frozen image of Ben Adams.  The two pictures were 
astonishingly similar, a family resemblance unmistakable:  dark predatory eyes, 
hooked nose, similar coloring, high domed forehead.  Mara buried her head into her 
hands with a curse, leaving Luke first to glance at Captain Greet who was pretending 
to ignore them, then to study the chilling biography of the Senator that accompanied 
the holo. 
	Luke murmured in a horrified whisper, "How?"
	Mara raised her worried, angry eyes to his, "I don't know.  But to borrow a 
trite and overused cliche, I have a very bad feeling about this." 
	Luke nodded with no mirth and reached for his comm.  His sister's response 
was so rapid, she had probably been attuned at least to the jolt of their discovery.  
"Where are you?  What's going on?" 
	Leaning heavily against the console, he formulated his reply, "Mara and I are 
in the Security suite.  Get Han and come on over.  We've just run into an old friend."   

*	*	*	*	
	Luke and Mara shooed the curious Greet away from their terminal, 
downlinked the holo and bibliography to the Security's suite's conference room, and 
retreated there to await a frazzled Councillor Leia Organa and her only slightly less 
rushed husband Han Solo.  The Solos abrupt charge into the Security suite almost 
caused another round of blaster fire from the now very tense Captain Greet.  He had 
specific instructions on dealing with such very important people:  leave them alone 
and report everything.  Shooting them by accident was generally deemed a poor 
method of seeking promotion. 
	Leia always wondered on entering a room her brother and Mara occupied if 
she was interrupting something.  She never knew if she was, or if she was, what it 
was.  Today was no different.  As she pushed into the conference room of the 
security suite, Luke and Mara were huddled over a computer screen, and with her 
sudden entrance, broke apart with studied, deliberate casualness.  Han strode in 
after his wife, closing the door firmly behind him, "What's going on?"   
	"Dim the lights would you, Solo?"
	Han did so, then composed his long limbs into the seat next to Leia.  The 
room's vid screen whirred to life, showing again the skulking Ben Adams.  "That's the 
man who broke into the Palace and stole the ship when Mulder, Dana and Rae were 
here isn't it?"
	Leia nodded "Yes," as Luke stilled the vid, split the life size image and 
imposed the other picture next to it.  He explained, "Mara found this holo in the 
archived biography of the Imperial Senate." 
	Leia suppressed an involuntary shudder, feeling, but not yet knowing the 
reason for Luke and Mara's visceral reaction, "Who..."
	Luke finished with a hard voice, "Meet Senator Palpatine, of the 433rd 
Imperial Senate, later self-proclaimed Emperor and enslaver and destroyer of 
worlds, lives and Jedi."   
	A chill stunned silence hung in the room, broken when Mara turned in her 
chair to survey those assembled with an accusatory glare, "Sooooooo, someone 
want to explain to me what a clone of Palpatine was doing lurking in Coruscant 
Palace.""
	"Not a clone," both Luke and Leia injected immediately.  Luke finished, "A 
strong Force user, no question of that, but he's not a clone."   
	They all turned to look again at the images, Leia suggesting, "Son?"  Then 
thinking aloud, she continued answering her own question, "Ages are wrong, 
probably grandson."   
	Han drawled into the silent space that followed, "I think the more interesting 
question is what a grandson of this galaxy's Emperor was doing on Earth."   
	"I may have some ideas on that," Mara began reluctantly, "But how about you 
all explain this to me from the beginning.""
	Leia and Han relayed the story, of the Hinderer, the ship they had found with 
the children and the sleeping Dark Side Force users; about the CEstallians, the trip 
to Earth; Dana, Mulder and Rae; of Adams' infiltration of the Palace and theft of the 
Hinderer from what had been the Emperor's private, and very secure landing bay, 
and Adams' attack on Dana; the return to Earth; and the final destruction of the Gate.  
During their long retelling of the story, and Mara's extensive questioning, Luke 
remained strangely mute, until they came to the very end, the battle and fall of the 
Gate.  With Leia's prodding, Luke finally offered reluctantly, "At the end, Mulder, Dana 
and Adams were unconscious.  We were all on the Falcon, the Gate was collapsing 
around us and ..."  He finished with a whisper. 
	Mara shrieked, "You did what?!?"
	Luke studied his feet, "You heard what I said.  I sent them all back."   
	She lectured with acid sarcasm, "Even apart from his obvious Force 
sensitivity, didn't you stop to wonder what someone from Earth was doing with 
intimate knowledge of Coruscant Palace, the ability to fly space craft, hell," she rose 
so quickly from her seat, it fell to the floor with a clatter.  Stalking the length of the 
antiseptic room, she raged, "Didn't you wonder how he knew the Hinderer was here?  
Or why he would want to steal an entire ship of Dark Force users?  Did you ever think 
that maybe if he had attacked Dana that this was not the kinda guy who should be 
wandering around a pre-space flight civilization?"  
	"Would you just lay off Mara?"  Luke swore at his self appointed judge, "You 
weren't there.  The Gate was falling around us, we had to get out of there, I was 
concentrating on getting Dana," he hesitated, blushing, "And Mulder back." 
	Mara swore just loudly for them all to hear, "I'll bet." 
	Leia thought of playing the peacemaker, but was too angry herself for not 
having thought of the incongruities before.  To her, Mara's tirade was justified, and 
for reasons Leia had suspected and that her brother's rather poor response had just 
confirmed, Luke had been focusing little attention on Adams.  They were only now, 
months later, beginning to appreciate the consequences. 
	It was Han who shifted the timber and direction of the conversation, "So 
Mara, did Palpatine have any heirs?"   
	His terse question, and turncoat tactic cooled her fire. With a glare, Mara 
returned to her chair and righting it, sat primly, answering Han's bluntness with a 
pained admission, "I don't know," she paused, "For certain.  Leia, were you aware of 
any rumors in the Senate?"   
	"Palpatine's progeny or lack thereof where a source of endless speculation.  
No wife of course, but there were innumerable concubines and under the Imperial 
charter he drafted," Leia's quiet snort conveyed her view of the man's conceit, "Any 
biological offspring could ascend the throne." 
	Mara picked up the tale, "There was rampant intrigue in the Court, 
particularly among the concubines.  Palpatine occasionally had me arbitrate their 
more contentious and tiring disputes."  A hint in Mara's tone indicated that it had not 
been her negotiation skills that had resolved the strife in the Imperial household. 
	Han mused aloud, "I suppose with that kind of domestic harmony, the only 
place an heir might be safe would be in another galaxy.""
	Mara nodded in agreement, "That's what I thought.""
	"Question is," Leia asked, turning to the practical, "What do we do now?"
	Mara stated the obvious, "Do any of us think it's a good idea to just leave this 
as it is?"   
	When Luke remained stubbornly silent, Leia said, "I feel a certain 
responsibility here.  The little we saw of him makes me think that he could be a very 
dangerous person.  And from what we know from Dana and Mulder, they have no 
experience dealing with Force sensitivity."   
	Han added glumly, "Adams was trouble even without knowing anything of 
his parentage.  I don't see how we can just sit here knowing that one of Palpatine's 
relatives might be lose."  The mild censure that Adams was in that galaxy because 
those from this galaxy kept sending him there was implicit. 
	It had seemed to Leia that there was only one alternative, and she had 
hoped Luke would volunteer.  When he did not, she offered, "I think we have to go 
back and find him.  He may be perfectly harmless and benign . . ."
	Mara interrupted this wistfulness with a quiet sneer, "Sure.  Good guys 
always slam women into walls and steal ships filled with Darkside users."   
	Leia's definite answer brooked no argument, "I think we have to find out.  If 
Adams is ours, from here, then he belongs here, not there.  We will have to bring him 
back."  
	When Luke finally spoke, his voice was heavy with guilt and misery, "How?  
The Gate is shut."   
	"I think," Han offered slowly, "the NR Space Agency has been working on 
intergalactic drive capabilities, but it's only theoretical at this point."  Although 
revealing such confidential information in Mara's presence was a breach of over a 
dozen laws, regulations and protocols, Han figured the former smuggler probably 
already knew everything there was to know about that secret research. 
	"New Republic Intelligence may have leads on who might have intergalactic 
drive."
	In response to Leia's weary suggestion, Mara muttered sourly, "Oh, that'll be 
useful."  Leia agreed, probably futile. 
	Luke exerted himself in an attempt to be useful, "What about the CE'Stallians 
themselves?"   
	Leia wished her brother would at least occasionally try to live on the same 
mental plane as the rest of them, "They've refused our every overture to join the New 
Republic.  Having resolved the Gate, they've become even more xenophobic.  They 
believe that we might be too tempted by what they are capable of doing and want no 
part of us."   
	In the long pause that followed, none of them said the word at the tip of their 
thoughts and tongues.  Han finally raised the unspoken, "Karrde.  I'll speak to the few 
independents I know, but most of em have thrown in with Talon Karrde.  If anyone 
has a ship that can get us to Earth, Karrde will probably know."   
	Leia began formally, "Mara, on behalf of...""
	 The former Liaison to the Smugglers' Alliance interrupted the Councillor, 
responding carefully and downcast, "I'll contact him."  Her voice was as hard and 
brittle as cold glass, "Be prepared to pay a real high price."   
	Leia nodded, wondering what they all did, what kind of price, and for whom.  

*	*	*	*	   
	It was, once again, all Skywalker's fault.  How someone who professed such 
wide eyed, demure, Galaxy scout innocence could so consistently and persistently 
screw things up was utterly mystifying.  Did he, Mara wondered, purposefully set out 
to wreck havoc upon the universe generally and her life in particular?  Had he set his 
life's mission to instigate as many crises as possible for those around him?  A day did 
not pass in which she thought that Skywalker was best suited as vronskr bait.  Days 
like the last few, and pretty much at every hour on the half she thought she should 
finish what Jabba had started, find a nice little Sarlacc somewhere and pitch 
Skywalker in.  Mere digestion was too good for him.
	 She was only on Coruscant because after a year and a half of persistent 
badgering, Skywalker had finally worn her down and got her to commit to six months 
of training.  That had meant leaving the Smugglers' Alliance, and a severe rift with 
Talon Karrde.  To secure her continued tenure with the Alliance, Karrde had come 
as close to pleading as that private, composed man could.  Mara was unsure 
whether he more deplored her betrayal, or what he had done to try to prevent it.   
	But for Skywalker's insistence, she would have never left the Alliance; and 
but for the Jedi's typical befuddled distraction with some woman a galaxy away, Mara 
would have never found herself in the unenviable quandary of now begging Karrde 
for a favor he in no way owed her.  It was a hell of bargaining position. 
	It took Mara two days of fingernail biting aggravation to track down Karrde, 
and another two days before he deigned to take her call.  She knew his game, 
suspected he probably already even knew the nature of her request, and was certain 
that he was enjoying turning the tables on her to withhold something he might be in a 
position to give.   
	"Jedi Jade, to what do I owe this pleasant surprise?"  Karrde affected a 
shocked look, "Oh, it is still *Jade*, isn't it?" 
	This was going to be far worse than she had even dreaded.  "Name hasn't 
changed Karrde, and neither has the title."   
	Karrde smiled, slurring, "That's not what the tabloids suggest."   
	"You know better than relying upon the Coruscant Enquirer for your 
intelligence."   
	"I do indeed."  As a point of demonstration Karrde began, "I understand you 
may require my services as a travel agent for a long trip?"   
	She had expected as much. "That is the itinerary planned."
	 "And I am to understand that your usual New Republic travel agents are 
unable to meet your needs at this time?" 
	"Wouldn't be bothering a busy man such as yourself if they could arrange the 
excursion." 
	"What is your interest?"  Karrde pretended extreme indifference, staring at 
his fingernails, "The names of reputable tour companies?"
	"That is certainly our hope."   
	"Ahh, but locating a trustworthy cruise line can be so difficult."
	Mara wondered what he was getting at. "True.  If you have other 
suggestions, we would certainly appreciate your valued consultancy." 
	"I do have some expertise in arranging these types of excursions."  His 
intonation slowing to carefully judge Mara's brutally suppressed shock, Karrde 
continued "Have you considered the merits of purchasing your own pleasure craft?" 
	Mara dared not betray her astonishment.  She had thought the best Karrde 
would be able to do was provide names from whom they could beg or steal a ship 
with intergalactic drive; he was instead suggesting delivery of the ship itself, and not 
merely its maker.  "I would, of course, value your advice on a good carrier, however I 
am not sure if I am in a position to make so large an investment in my own ship." 
	"Ahh, well, since you are only acting as an agent, it is difficult sometimes to 
discern what your customer truly wishes, and whether the convenience of your own 
craft offsets the necessary costs to purchase one."  Karrde gazed at her, and Mara 
stared right back.  "Perhaps," he said after a time, eyes dropping again, "When I call 
in a few days with my recommendations, your customer should join us."   
	"I will make that suggestion."
	"And Jade," Karrde ceased the studied consideration of his manicure, with a 
smug smile more like his old self, "I am sure you will impress upon your client that a 
truly special vacation is a costly undertaking."   
	"My client understands.  We will look forward to hearing your 
recommendations in a few days."
	As she began to disconnect, he added swiftly, "It's good to see you again 
Mara."   
	Mara meant it when she responded, "You too, Talon, and thanks."  Not that 
she thought for a moment that these warm fuzzies would interfere with Karrde hard 
on the trail of an enormous potential profit. 
	"Well that was a surprise," came Leia's voice from the corner, she far out of 
visual range of the net receiver.  "Do you really think he can get us a ship?" 
	Mara swiveled around away from the table towards the Councillor, "Hard to 
tell, I'd be prepared for anything.  I wonder what he meant by having arranged these 
trips before?"   
	Leia was busy entering notes into her data pad, "I thought that was 
interesting too.  She stood and began pacing the conference room with quiet 
frustration, "How do we begin to set the price for this kind of information or for a ship 
do you think?"  Hopping up on to the table next to Mara, Leia handed over the data 
pad with her impressions of the conversation with Karrde.  Mara added a few 
corrections and comments as Leia continued, her negotiator's mind whirring with 
possibilities, "We should have some basis for determining the value of his offer, 
apart from how large a percentage of the New Republic annual budget it's going to 
represent."   Mara noticed that Leia's feet were swinging quite a distance off the floor.  
	Setting the data pad on the table, Mara added, "I'd take a look at your R&D 
budget for that intergalactic drive project.  Karrde will know it down to the last credit 
when he calls back."
	"He probably knows that budget, timetable and status of the project better 
than the Senate does."
	 Mara laughed, "I probably do too.  But if you can get a working prototype, it 
could save years, and millions."   
	With a sly glance at Mara, Leia offered, "If we are only talking about a paltry 
million or two, I think we should have our Jedi Knight do the negotiating as penance, 
what do you think?" 
	Mara laughed again, "Now there's a thought, Leia.  The New Republic 
government would have to assess every one of its billions of citizens a coupla 
hundred credits to pay the price for your brother's bargaining skills."   
	Drumming her fingers on the table Leia muttered with irritation, "I just wish 
we had some alternative.  Karrde potentially has too much power over us in this."   
	"Han hasn't had any luck?"
	    "No."  Leia flicked imaginary dust from her pant leg, "And neither has our 
Intelligence department." 
	"The NR intelligence still operates as if it were a guerilla Rebellion instead 
of a functioning government."   
	Leia nodded, always vowing to not be surprised at Mara's perceptive 
analyses, "And Karrde has effectively subsumed our other, less legitimate sources."  
She returned to studying the data pad entries, then observed, "Karrde still misses 
you, doesn't he?" 
	Mara swiveled again, and in a habit that could be very annoying to those not 
used to a body in perpetual motion, stretched her legs irreverently onto the table, 
leaning dangerously back in her seat, "Yeah, I'd say even more than before." 
	"Do you think it's personal or professional?""
	Mara shrugged, "Some of both, obviously.  Aves has been a lousy liaison for 
him." 
	"I've heard similar reports.  Aves is a good man, but frankly does not have 
your savvy.  Which way do you think this cuts?" 
	Sighing, Mara considered, then finally said, "One of two ways most likely."  
	Leia became quiet, like Mara seeing the disquieting options, "Either he'll be 
a softer touch...."
	Mara concurred in Leia's view of that remote likelihood with a harumph, 
"Don't bank on it.  He's angry, and wouldn't be above refusing to deal with you just to 
demonstrate that the New Republic, or at least its Jedi, shouldn't be so cavalier with 
his valued employees."  
	Two sharp minds pulled at strings, contingencies and outcomes until Leia 
broke the silence, "We're probably in a seller's market here, Mara, with Karrde our 
only viable supplier.  What do you think is the deal breaker for him?" 
	Reaching for the data pad again, Mara made an entry then handed it to Leia, 
explaining "There's only one thing Karrde won't be able to say no to."  Mara tipped 
her head to contemplate the institutional, black white ordered acoustical tiles of the 
ceiling, "It's the most valuable, hell it's the only leverage you have with him." 
	Leia studied the cryptic entry and agreed, having come to the same 
conclusion.  She surveyed the predatory, restless feline and would be Jedi insolently 
lounging over the chair and conference table.  Leaning over she squeezed the toe of 
Mara's boot, "We may be overreacting.  It may not even come to this."  
	Mara scrapped her feet across the smooth polished table surface, "Sure, 
and if you believe that I've got some beach front property on Hoth I'd like to sell you."   
	Leia flinched at harshness, but pushed her misgivings aside, knowing Mara 
was probably right.   She hopped down from the table, "We've got some work to do 
before he calls again."   

*	*	*	*	  
	A summons at dawn a week later dragged them all from their beds.  
Karrde's timing was far too inconvenient to have possibly been accidental.  
Coruscant Space Port Control and Air Command were in hysterics.  Karrde had 
broken orbit with two ships.  His Wild Karrde signaled with the proper responder 
codes and was duly identified and accepted for what it was.  The ship in formation 
with the Wild Karrde however, was another matter.  There was no record of its 
signals, its origin: it was incredibly, an utter unknown and it was this ship Karrde 
proposed landing at the Palace Security Port. 
	Still in her nightshirt, Councillor Organa had a tense hour with the Security 
and Command, finally rousing Admiral Ackbar from bed to force the obstinate Port 
Control to let the unknown ship and very well known pilot land.  Even after the 
authorization had come, Leia did not permit it to be communicated to Karrde for 
another hour. The confidence and arrogance of Karrde's opening gambit was 
impressive, and she opted to play the game back at him.  The communications 
officer patiently explained to an increasingly impatient Karrde that given the unusual 
nature of the ship Karrde sought to land in the seat of the New Republic government, 
he was certain Trader Karrde understood the delay, and wasn't he sorry, but sir, he 
was just a lone lieutenant, everyone knew that bureaucrats who made such 
decisions had to be found, no one was awake.... 
	"No, Luke," Leia insisted in mid-braid.  "Under no circumstances are you to 
come anywhere near Karrde."
	When Leia had returned from Port Control to dress, Luke and Mara had 
already invaded her and Han's apartment.  Luke, rumpled and unkempt, had it 
appeared, rolled right out of bed, down the hall, and into his sister's apartment to 
share his agitation.  Mara had at least found something to wear that she had not 
apparently slept in, and although slumped into one of the cushy chairs, a tapping foot 
betrayed her own nervousness."
	"Why?" Luke challenged.
	With a silent plea to her husband to explain, Leia padded into the bedroom 
to find something to wear other than her bathrobe and slippers.  Luke was prepared 
to follow her but Han put a restraining hand on his shoulder, "Because it's bad 
strategy."   
	"Why?" came Luke's second demand.
	"Bunch of reasons.  One, Karrde blames you for taking his liaison and 
seeing you might make him raise the price higher.  Two, he might suspect Jedi 
manipulation."
	"But," Luke protested, "I'd never do something like that."
	
	  Mara injected in Han's explanation, "Karrde doesn't know that."
	"Three, well..."  Han began then thought the better of it under the angry 
scrutiny of blue and green glares.  He started again, "Three, you and me and Chewie 
are going to be checking out that ship." 
	Leia emerged, cool, collected, alert, "Actually, Han, I had thought maybe 
Mara should be involved with checking the ship and you and I meet with Karrde, what 
do you think?"  Jedi and would be Jedi erupted with protests, which Leia silenced 
with stamp and stare, as Han observed, "Takes a smuggler to know a smuggler?"   
	"He respects you."
	"But trusts Mara," Han countered.  "I think you should stick with the plan."
	"I'd appreciate," Mara growled from her lair, "being consulted on this."   
	Leia moved serenely over to Mara, slipping to the seat next to her and 
reclaiming her abandoned tea, "You know how high the stakes are here."  With a 
meaningful glance, Mara nodded.  Leia continued, stirring her cooling cup, betraying 
none of the anxiety, "Karrde has obviously done this to put us all off balance.  Don't 
let him do that.  Watch what he does and remember it.  Use the tactic to your 
advantage next time."   
	Han helped himself to another cup, "He's very confident we won't be able to 
say no with a ship sitting on our landing pad.""
	Leia turned to her husband, "That's certainly one take on it."
	"Or," Han finished in the silent room, "It's the first real big mistake he's 
made."    * * *   
	Leia had choreographed it all.  When Mara strode into the conference room, 
she trailing only slightly behind, Karrde had been waiting but a few minutes.   
	If Karrde was intending to be sour, some of his expression sweetened on 
seeing Mara, who per instructions, awarded him a warm greeting and smile.  It was 
not an act.   
	The handshake between Karrde and Leia was not so warm, but every bit as 
politely cordial.  As Karrde sat, Leia made a point of sitting next to him, with Mara 
across the table.  It was, Leia believed, more difficult for an opponent to disagree 
with you if he is seated directly next to you. 
	"Trader Karrde we were not expecting you so suddenly." 
	"Councillor, I apologize for any inconvenience."
	I'll bet, thought Leia, but with her gracious mask asked,  "Can we assume 
from your precipitous arrival that you have information for us regarding transportation 
for a long excursion?""
	 "I do indeed, Councillor.  As I explained, I have some experience with this 
type of travel."
	"That's a very interesting statement.  Have you traveled there yourself?""
	"Goodness no, Councillor.  I very much prefer staying close to home these 
days, wherever home may be."  It was a none too subtle barb; they knew Karrde had 
loved his base on Myrkr and it was only involvement with Jedi generally and 
Skywalker in particular, that had brought down Imperial wrath and forced Karrde to 
withdraw from the strange and wild place he had claimed as home.
	"But you have . . . friends?"
	Karrde shook his head with humor, "Oh no, certainly not friends."
	Leia persisted, politely, "Customers then?"
	"Perhaps.""
	"Well for discussion's sake we shall call them 'customers' who undertake 
these types of excursions."  She opened the bargaining, "Perhaps we should begin 
with a name, then."
	With a sideways glance at Mara, Karrde countered, "Names are power, 
Councillor. Names are costly.""
	 Leia inclined her head in assent, "Of course, on the other hand, you are 
likely to know better than we, the extent to which only a name might be useful to us.""
	His arched eyebrow indicated that Karrde had chosen not to grasp Leia's 
statement.  She explained, "If, for instance, the name was Rodian, such information 
would be very valuable, the mere name likely to lead to something useful.  If, 
however their name was Rumpelstilskin, well then it would be meaningless and 
worthless."
	Karrde smiled, "What is a Rumpelstilskin?""
	"I have no idea, Trader Karrde.  So do we understand each other?""
	"I think we understand each other very well, Councillor.  But you can certainly 
understand my reluctance to give away valuable information."
	"Can you tell me Trader Karrde whether your traveling customer and the 
maker of that very unusual ship on Landing Pad 22 are the same?"
	"I can."
	"And are they?" 
	Karrde hesitated, then making a swift decision, said smoothly, "They are.""
	"May we assume that your traveling customer or someone else has taken 
that unusual ship on Landing Pad 22 on an intergalactic excursion?"
	Again the hesitation, followed by assent, "Yes, you may make that 
assumption.""
	"Then, I offer you, for the mere name of the maker of the ship, a price equal 
to all costs incurred to pilot the ship here from your base and to return it there, 
including fueling, crew labor, and docking fees, contingent upon your provision of 
adequate substantiation for those costs, plus fifteen percent.""
	 Given the unusual nature of the ship, Leia had considered not making this 
offer at all, believing that the name would be of no value.  She firmly believed, 
however, that any race capable of developing intergalactic drive would not be 
unknown or unknowable to the resources of the New Republic.  It was worth parting 
with several thousand for this information, and she intended to make use of it in other 
ways as well.  Dickering over percentages in the language of diplomacy, they 
eventually settled upon 28.5%.
	Although he concealed it well, Leia sensed that Karrde, for all his concern 
for profit, was eagerly anticipating the disclosure.  From lips pulled into a satisfied 
smile, the word "Urmari" dropped, like a heavy rock into a pool, causing waves to 
ripple and spread, disturbing the still expanse.  For Leia and Mara both, the name 
was a jolt of pain and loathing, conjuring nightmare images of ruthless, cold hunters.
	Mara jerked out of her indolent slump with a curse, and cold disdain, "You 
trade with those bounty hunting pariah, Karrde?"
	  He shrugged affably, "Pariah who pay very well for some of the unique 
things that have fallen into my possession over the years."
	Leia tried sending a strong, "Quiet" signal to Mara, who either did not hear 
her appeal or disregarded it.  "What's happened to your principles Karrde?  Even the 
Emperor was careful in his dealings with the Urmari.""
	 "As well he needed to be, as you probably know, Jade.  But since neither I 
nor any of my current staff have any Force sensitivity, I deemed the risk minimal.  So 
successful in their assistance to the Emperor, they have, it seems, like yourself, 
moved on to other things.""
	 Stilling her own revulsion, Leia began before Mara flung the forming retort, 
"We will, as you had surmised before giving us the name, now want to move to 
negotiation for the Urmari ship."  The reviled word stuck in her throat like a claw.  "I 
would like your permission to send a team aboard to inspect the goods as it were.  I 
assume you have no objections?"  Karrde entered a sequence on his data pad and 
handed it to Leia, "This is the code to open the ship."  Leia glanced at and 
memorized it, then stood, "I would like to set that in motion before we go any further.  
If you will excuse us."
	She swept out of the room, Mara following, both of them rebuffing Luke's 
persistent mental queries as to what had so staggered them.  In the bustling corridor, 
they were quiet, pale, hurrying to the others, who when they met, were themselves 
flush with concern, having only Luke's report that something ghastly had been 
revealed during the negotiation.
	Leia shut the conference room door behind her, grateful for its solid 
reassurance against her back, buffeted by Han and Luke's demands for the news.  
"Urmari, Karrde says its an Urmari ship."  The name cut through the room like a blade 
on raw nerves, stunned silence punctuated only by a fierce protest from Chewbacca.
	Gesturing for them all to sit, Leia repeated to herself, we have to keep 
moving, we can't *think* about this now.  Aloud she said, "We don't have much time.  I 
don't want Karrde to think that we are as..."
	Mara injected in a surly tone, "Stunned?  Horrified?""
	Leia continued, "As surprised as we are."  She took Han's data pad and 
entered the entry code, "This will get you into the ship."  Handing the pad back to 
him, his fingertips grazed her palm in a evanescent moment of understanding.
	Han said, "Knowing it's supposed to be Urmari will help.  Threepio and 
Artoo should be able to interpret the diagnostics, interface with the computer.  On our 
way to the ship we'll dump everything in the Palace databank on the Urmari into 
Artoo, see what can kinda cross reference we can do.""
	She turned grateful eyes on her husband who had also seen the urgency in 
dealing with practical first, coping with the implications of Urmari and what they and 
Palpatine had done to eradicate the Jedi would have to come later."
	In response to Chewie, Han added, "And we'll see if we can interpret the 
ship's log.  We need to figure out if the ship can account for the time differences the 
way the Gate did."  He was already on his feet, motioning for Chewie and Luke, 
"Based on the coordinates from our last trip to Earth, we'll see if the ship has ever 
been in that, or any other galaxy."
	"Karrde said it had gone a long way," Mara contributed grimly.   
	"As soon as we can confirm any of this, we'll call you up.  Luke, you coming?" 
Han asked.  
	"Yeah."  Rising Luke turned apprehensively to his sister, "If Karrde is dealing 
with the Urmari, this explains a lot about him."  To Mara he entreated, "If you know 
anything . . ." 
	Mara cut in with icy contempt, the shock they all shared compounded for her 
by a sense of betrayal, "You *still* don't trust me, Skywalker?"  Luke retreated with 
Han and Chewie, not wanting another argument with his sensitive student.   
	Answering Leia's own unasked questions, Mara grumbled, "I've never seen 
an Urmari that I'm aware of and I had no idea Karrde was dealing with them."
	Leia's question was harsher than she intended it, "Do you think it's a 
coincidence that Karrde ends up dealing with purported Force stealers like the 
Urmari, that he trafficks in semi-domesticated vronskrs that hunt using the Force, is 
practically the only person in the galaxy who can keep Force repelling ysalamiri alive 
and used to live on the one planet home to both species?"   
	"I'm telling you, I don't know much more than you do."  Mara buried a 
clenched fist into a knotted forehead, "I wish to skies I did."   
	"We've been away long enough.  We need to get back."  Leia became gently 
firm, "Can you still go through with this?"  Not as if, Leia thought, there were many 
alternatives.
	Mara's "Sure" was committed and grim.    

*	*	*	*   
	Karrde opened with a bid Leia was hard pressed not to laugh at, the sum, 
representing over 70% of the New Republic's annual military budget.  As the grueling 
offers and counter offers ground on, Leia and Mara both knew that the numbers were 
high, far too high for the credit-strapped New Republic.  The feints and parries were 
clearly getting the better of Mara; in this kind of waiting game she would have done 
well to imitate the studied politeness of the Trader and Councillor.  Leia had been 
born to this mental jousting and Karrde was relishing the challenge of a worthy 
opponent. 
	During a brief break, Leia queried, "If you could indulge my curiosity, I have 
assumed that it was not mere happenstance that you have come to trade with the 
Urmari and had your base on Myrkr.  Perhaps you could share some of the story."   
	Karrde shrugged with feigned indifference, "We all know the tales of the 
Emperor's murder of the Jedi, and the various means he employed to accomplish 
the task.  The Urmari, of course, were reputed to be one of those means."   
	Leia suppressed the shudder, "Of course the more gruesome stories claim 
that the Urmari did not actually kill their victims, but merely drained the Jedi of their 
ability to contact the Force."  Leia attempted calm, adding, "In some languages, I 
understand that the word Urmari has come to mean 'soul-stealer.' "
	 Karrde remained unruffled, "Certainly I have never discussed their methods.  
By whatever means, they were undoubtedly successful and Palpatine assisted by 
supplying them with vronskrs and ysalamiri from Myrkr."  Karrde casually continued, 
his breezy disclosures repelling and profoundly unsettling the two Force-adept 
women with him.  "Vronskrs, as you know, are drawn to any strong Force aura; it is 
how they stalk their prey.  And the ysalamiri, well they have that unique quality of 
rendering Force users helpless like the rest of us."  The bitterness came only from 
the words, not the cheery tone.   
	"These animals obviously were very useful to an Emperor bent upon 
eradication of the Jedi and Palpatine supplied both to the Urmari.  Many years ago, I 
learned of  the unique qualities of this Myrkr wildlife, as did, you will recall, Grand 
Admiral Thrawn, likely from the same source.  With the resurgence of the Jedi, for 
business reasons, Myrkr was an excellent base."  Again a bubble of anger carefully 
contained behind of facade of gentility.  Karrde finished, ambiguously, "And after a 
time, an Urmari representative contacted me, anxious to resume the trade that had 
ended with Palpatine's death."   
	Leia shook off with difficulty the nightmare images every Alderaani child 
learned and feared, of a dark shifting image that would seep in as you slept to rob 
you of what had ever made you special and human, draining you and leaving behind 
only an empty shell, a brittle dried husk of your former self.  Her chiming comm 
mercifully interrupted. "Yes?"  She heard Han's carefully phrased answer, "All checks 
out as represented."
	Leia returned to Karrde, firing off in the measured language of negotiation 
and compromise, their offer, "With that verification Trader Karrde, we are prepared to 
deal.  We will offer you ten million credits for the Urmari ship."  Karrde derided, 
"Councillor, really--"   
	"No, Trader Karrde, there is more.  Ten million credits and the return of 
Mara Jade to the Smuggler's Alliance for one year."  Karrde's eyes flickered to Mara, 
who remained impassive and unreadable.  Leia had preemptively struck, playing 
their trump before Karrde had time to make the demand.   
	"Minimum three year commitment, effective immediately, and thirty five 
million."  Now Leia scoffed, "Three years?  That's a lifetime in the world of smuggling 
Karrde.  One year, ten million and not effective until we return from our planned 
excursion.""
	Karrde laughed, "Now Councillor, why should I accept such contingencies?"  
"And why should we accept anything less.  You are, not without justification 
demanding, a high price, but what assurance do we have that the ship will perform 
for the purpose for which it is purchased."
	Karrde arched an eyebrow, "You are demanding a warranty, Councillor?""
	Leia was implacable, "Indeed I am.  I will not insult your intelligence, Trader, 
by implying that I am prepared to trust you.  But, I do trust that you would not 
endanger Mara Jade.  She is going on that excursion, and if the ship does not 
function as represented, you will be deprived of your liaison.  Permanently."  Karrde 
again glanced at Mara but she only stared back at him, enigmatic.
	Locking her gaze, Karrde said slowly, "What warranty do I have that I will not 
be admitting a viper back into my organization.  A New Republic Jedi has little 
credibility in smuggling circles."  What else Mara might be hung unspoken.   
	Mara did not rise at the bait Karrde dangled.  Softly, with utter sincerity, she 
said, "You know me better than that, Talon." 
	"I know the smuggler, the liaison, the lieutenant in my organization, the 
person who once saved my life.  But the Jedi...?"  It was a bluff, Karrde wanted Mara 
back.
	Leia repeated, "One year, effective immediately on our return, ten million."
	"Thirty, two years."
	Leia countered, "We know what has happened to your profit margins since 
Mara left the liaison post.  This isn't about sentiment."  Instinctively, Leia felt to the 
contrary, and used that now to her advantage, "Her return alone is worth at least five 
million per year."   
	"Very well, two years and twenty-five."   
	Leia took a gamble, person versus profit, standing she indicated Mara 
should join her.  Over her shoulder she said firmly, "Two years and eighteen." 
	"Your final offer, Councillor?"   
	"It is.  With eighteen million credits, Mara Jade and the name Urmari, we 
might just acquire our own ship.  And you are not the only one who knows where to 
acquire vronskrs and ysalamiri."   
	Karrde clapped his hands slowly, truly impressed, "Well done, Councillor.  
So seldom does the reputation match the reality."  Leia turned back around, bowing 
slightly but with no humor as Karrde relented, "Eighteen million, seventy five percent 
payable now.  Mara Jade to the Smugglers Alliance for minimum two year 
commitment, and the remaining twenty-five percent, both payable upon your return.  
Mara, you'll see to the transfer?"  And with that Karrde rose and strode out of the 
room."
	Leia let loose a long deep breath, quieting her shaking resolve and limbs.  
She attempted to focus on Mara's reaction, but her own Force sense could not 
penetrate the smuggler's customary rigid composure, "You okay with this?"
	Mara thrust hands into her pockets, eyes meeting the floor, whistling 
absently, "Yeah. I guess so."
	Leia had wondered if this might be an opportunity for Mara to escape from a 
commitment she had not been prepared to embrace. Some could never be fully 
domesticated, some birds' wings were not meant to be clipped and Mara had chafed 
at her return to the caged life of Coruscant.  As if responding to Leia's thought, Mara 
added, "I don't think I'm cut out for Jedi serenity.  But..." Mara abandoned all pretense 
of nonchalance, entreating, "Don't tell Luke.  Not yet.""
	No, Leia thought, that was not a conversation she wished to have with her 
brother.  Aloud, she said, "Of course not. "  

*	*	*	* 
	Han dubbed the Urmari ship the "Flying Saucer," reflecting the vehicle's odd 
resemblance to a piece of dinnerware.  He could not believe that the huge, oddly 
shaped, brightly lit, and truly ugly ship was capable of what it was.  In defiance of any 
law of physics he had ever thought he knew, the Urmari version of a navicomputer 
indicated three trips to Earth already undertaken, six standard weeks to make the trip 
now, and that approximately one half of Earth's standard rotations would have 
passed since their last visit.
	  Han had itched to tinker with the ship's drive; on principle he preferred 
trusting his and his wife's lives only to those things that obeyed natural laws and that 
he could comprehend.  In truth, however, flying the Millennium Falcon was not all that 
different.  The key distinction was that pulling the Falcon together with spit and glue 
was commonplace;  trying the same tricks with alien machinery was likely to result in 
some fatal error of navigation or engineering and spectacular fireworks.  Neither the 
Urmari nor Karrde had thought to provide a User's Manual, and even Han did not 
think it was a good idea to ask.
	Violating the self-imposed prohibition on fiddling with anything, it was 
Chewie who discovered the ship's rudimentary cloaking device.  It had not been all 
that difficult of a task:  a big red button on the console said in Basic, "Push to 
Disappear.""
	Six weeks did give an even more insufferable than usual Threepio sufficient 
time to instruct them in some of the basic phrases in the language Fox and Dana had 
used.  Fortunately, translator comm devices eliminated the need for more detailed 
lessons with the fussy protocol droid and linguist.  Even so, Han figured the odds of 
Threepio surviving the trip at no better than even money.     

END--CHAPTER 1