Bad Blood

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A heavy silence had settled over the ships interior.

All eyes were on Clarke as they awaited answers. The blonde kept her chin raised defiantly despite how overwhelmingly outnumbered she was. There was no quick escape this time.

'I will tell you whatever you want, as long as you agree to-'

The weak attempt at negotiation was instantly shut down by the Jedi who was quickly running out of patience.

'There will be no compromising. Do not take me for a fool.'

The force behind the words was enough to bring Clarke to immediate silence, swallowing the unspoken words along with any hope of securing a safe return to Coruscant without further trouble.

'Sharr. Toril. Get us in the air, we don't need the attention from the Coruscant security team right now.'

The Sarkhai, with her elaborate face ink, and the human male didn't need to be asked twice and swept past Clarke to ascend the stairs to where the flight deck was situated.

With two less crew members focusing their displeasure on the blonde, she felt the tension ease if only the slightest amount but it was enough to begin thinking clearly.

'You're right, I'll tell you whatever you want to know.'

Lexa descended the three or so steps down to the level of the lowest deck, her eyes not leaving the woman's for a second as she seemed to almost glide closer over the grated metal floor panels.

'The artefact. You have it.'

Her voice was low and almost inviting the stranger to deny the blatant fact that everyone now knew to be true. Clarke's thumb brushed against the fur coat without conscious thought as she still felt the urge to hide the object from the rest of the universe.

'Hand it over and we can go from there.'

The Jedi stopped a few paces from the blonde, motionless as she waited for her instructions to be met with compliance.

Clarke inhaled slowly and reached into the inner jacket compartment, her fingers grasping the triangular prism which was now the source of so much trouble. She questioned whether this was a good idea, after all was a Jedi really the right person to be in possession of this object? Not that she had any idea of its identity, though it must have been powerful if the Empire had gone to such an effort to capture it.

With the Jedi continuing to stare unwaveringly, there was little choice in the matter despite the potentially disastrous outcomes. Clarke withdrew her hand from the jacket, clutching the object in a tight grasp as she twisted her wrist, revealing the artefact to the waiting crew.

If the blonde had any expectations of what was to result from her compliance, than this was not even remotely what she would have guessed.

The entire room seemed to inhale sharply in unison. Lexa taking a visible step back as if she had been punched in the gut. Clarke looked at each crew member with a frown, her lips forming to ask the question that only she seemed to not know the answer to. What the hell was it?

'Oh my,' the G3P android uttered. Even he seemed to be more knowledgeable on the matter than Clarke, and now it was her turn to demand answers.

'You know what this is?'

The Jedi ripped her eyes away from the artefact to return Clarke's questioning gaze.

'You mean you've been carrying this around with you for over a day now and you have no idea what it is?'

Clarke shook her head and observed the artefact once more, unsure what all the fuss was about. She was no longer so eager to keep hold of it after such a negative reaction.

The Nautolan jumped into action and hurried across the ship to open a storage locker and retrieve a matte black lock box. There didn't appear to be anything special about the container, yet the Nautolan retraced his steps back to the blonde and held the box out expectantly.

A stir of nervous energy was creeping into Clarke as she attempted to guess what power this object could possibly hold. It was time to let the more experienced Jedi handle matters, at least until she had a better grasp of what was happening.

With only the slightest reluctance Clarke released her grip on the pyramid and placed it carefully into the container, tearing her eyes away from the enchanting engravings scrawled along every edge that seemed to hypnotise whoever laid their gaze upon them.

It was only when her attention shifted back to the Jedi that she noticed the tension running through Lexa's body and the strained expression that only dissipated when the container lid was sealed shut.

'Does someone want to tell me what's going on?'

The crew seemed to be on hold, waiting for the Jedi to take the lead and give orders, ignoring the probing question.

With a deep breath, Lexa collected herself, readjusting to the shift in the force before focusing on the task at hand.

'Secure it and ensure that it stays that way until I say otherwise. Finish packing up the containers and I'll deal with her.'

The crew dispersed to carry out their duties, only the Cathar remaining along with the Jedi to decide the newcomers fate.

'That,' the Jedi began, once the deck was less crowded. 'Is a Sith Holocron.'

Clarke's jaw almost dropped at the revelation, feeling her confidence wane slightly as she realised exactly how dangerous it was to be in possession of such an item.

'I see you've heard of it.'

Clarke had most certainly heard of the dark holocrons, the majority of the galaxy had at least some idea of their existence. In a similar way to the Jedi holocrons, they contained information that the more powerful Sith wished to be stored as a hologram for its intended viewer to find.

By all accounts they were incredibly difficult to make, requiring precise conditions and rare individual components to be produced correctly. Only those with immense skill and power had the greatest chance of creating such an item, which did not bode well for whatever dark information was stored in the device.

It was very possible that the holocrons could contain secrets meant for Sith eyes only and Clarke knew well enough how far the Empire would go to reclaim such a powerful tool in the war against the Republic, a war that continued to rage decades in the making.

Clarke's knowledge about holocrons was far from complete, hence why she hadn't recognised the item immediately, but she had a vague recollection of being told that the dark power emanating from the item could have a pronounced effect on force users.

The holocron clearly had some level of impact on the Jedi, so Clarke held no doubts that this was one of the more powerful holocrons to be discovered.

'What are we going to do?' the blonde inquired, her defences rising once more now that the surprise was fading. She was still being held on the ship which was no longer safely on Coruscant, so she was very much at the Jedi's mercy.

It seemed that her captor was also now recovered from the revelation of the Sith holocron and the hardness in her gaze quickly returned.

'I think you'll find that is no longer your concern,' she replied sharply, glancing over at the Cathar as if having forgotten his presence. 'Place her in containment for the time being.'

'What?' Clarke exclaimed without pause, instinctively taking a step away from the Cathar as she threw a furious glare at the Jedi. 'I gave you the damn holocron, I'm not the enemy.'

'What evidence do I have to back that up? Everything you have told me so far could all be lies. You withheld the truth about the holocron and I doubt you were honest about your intentions on Hoth so what else could you be hiding from me?'

Clarke just stared at her in disbelief, having wrongly assumed that cooperation would earn her at least a degree of leniency but it seemed she had expected too much.

'No, I cannot possibly trust you at this moment. You can tell me your story, and it had better be the truth, but first I have a few things to sort out. So you can sit in confinement and think about how much longer you will be spending there if you dare lie to me even once more.'

The Jedi was clearly not in the mood to argue and any fleeting ideas Clarke may have had about picking a fight soon passed when she sensed that no such action would get her very far with the current mood onboard the ship.

Clarke let her arms relax against her side and raised her palms in a gesture of cooperation when the Cathar loomed over to place a firm hand on her shoulder in guidance. The blonde shrugged away from the touch and strode across the deck without the need for force.

'At least let me take the damn coat off first,' she mumbled, ready to ditch the sweltering material now that they were far from the freezing planet of Hoth. Lexa nodded her agreement and a few moments later, with the clothes left bundled in a pile on the floor, Clarke was led the short distance to the prisoner confinement unit.

It was not a large area, only two small rooms side by side along a short corridor of the ship, seemingly converted from an old storage area. The blonde stepped with only slight reluctance into the first room, which was no more than two metres in width and length, and turned to question the Cathar only for the force field to spring into place inches from her face at the tap of a button on the door panel.

He didn't hang around for very long, only to check that she was contained securely before leaving her alone and pulling the main door shut behind him.

The light hum of the force field accompanied by the engines was the only sound that could be heard from inside the cell, giving Clarke no clues about what was taking place on the main deck. She sighed in defeat and lay down on the bench that lined the back wall, which was at least semi-comfortable.

Now she just had to decide exactly what information she was going to divulge to the Jedi when the questioning began. It had been made very clear that lies would not be tolerated but there were certain aspects of her life that Clarke was not about to reveal to anyone, let alone the woman holding her captive.

--

'Commander,' the G3P unit began once the prisoner had been taken out of ear shot. 'The device may be contained but there are many-'

'Yes, I am aware of the Empires interest in the device Nova, keep an eye on the scanners to ensure no one is following us.'

Lexa had already mentally calculated the chances of any enemies pursuing them from Hoth and, due to the chaos of the Imperial forces losing the main battle, it seemed unlikely. However, there was no doubt that they would be making calculations of their own to decipher where the device had ended up now that it was no longer present on Hoth and it wouldn't take them long to align the departure of the Helldiver with the same time frame in which the holocron had been taken.

The Jedi winced internally at her now automatic use of the nickname that had recently been assigned to the ship. A bet had been in the running for weeks now and, after a frankly shocking victory by Cal, the latest addition to the crew and most unexpected as a Cathar, had resulted in what could only be recognised as a memorable name.

It was far better, Lexa had to admit, than the alternative that Nova had been pushing for. Naming a ship Invincible was only asking for trouble and everyone was silently relieved when he had lost the bet, making the new name rather more acceptable in comparison.

The captain would usually name the ship but the Jedi was not bothered with such a tradition, allowing the crew a chance to have their own input. She almost regretted the decision and certainly would have thought carefully about doing anything similar in the future if they had been travelling on a ship named Invincible throughout the dangerous realms of the galaxy.

Cal emerged from the small corridor that housed the prisoners, the door shutting firmly behind him as he approached the Jedi.

'She is secure,' he said briefly, passing over the handheld device. Lexa tapped the screen with a light touch and the grainy image focused within a second to show the woman reclining back on the bench with an arm thrown behind her head.

'Good, search the jackets and put them out of the way in the locker. Ensure there's nothing else that she's hiding.'

The device on the Jedi's wrist vibrated softly and blinked with a sharp green hue to notify the wearer to an incoming hologram communication. It was only another second after that when the Sarkhai, Sharr, relayed the specific information down the Jedi's ear piece.

'Commander, you have an incoming call from Hoth. It appears to be from Kyla.'

Lexa was on the verge of postponing the conversation with the Cathar until a later time, at least until after the blonde stranger had been dealt with, but there was no time like the present. It would only attract suspicion if she went radio silent at such a time. She reached up and tapped the ear piece reluctantly.

'Relay the message to the holotable, I'm on my way.'

She disconnected the ear piece and, after a quick glance around to ensure that the crew were all busy with their tasks, ascended the stairs up to the main deck. The octagonal table was located centrally on the second level. It's sides were adorned with monitors and key pads, most of which glowed with a soft light. The circular holoprojector was only small in the centre of the table, a white glow emanating from the surface as it prepared to cast the waiting hologram.

Lexa keyed one of the red highlighted buttons on the keypad and composed her features as the three dimensional projection of her old friend focused into near perfect clarity on the machine.

'Kyla, I hope everything is well with you on Hoth?' the Jedi said in greeting, raising her head slightly to meet the holograms eyes.

'It is now. Both the pirate forces and those of the Empire have been crippled. Just a few stragglers to contain and question now.'

Lexa nodded at the good news, waiting to hear what this call was really about. After a lengthy silence the Cathar could see that her friend was not about to offer up any information and bit the bullet.

'I hear a mysterious Jedi joined the battle and defeated a Sith warrior. They doubt the outcome would have been anywhere near as successful without the help. I take it I have you to thank for the victory and for returning the two exceptionally compliant enemy soldiers to tell us everything they know?'

When put like that it was quite the commendable list and the Jedi gave the barest of nods in response.

'The battle was certainly unexpected, but I believe your fight against the pirates will now be brought to an end.'

The pirate forces under Zaroth were now either captured, scattered amongst the icy mountains or dead. Primarily the latter.

'Indeed. Do you have any idea what caused such a full force attack on the base?'

The knowing look in the Cathar's eyes suggested she already knew that Lexa was more than aware of what the incident had been about and yet was ready for the inevitable lack of answers to come.

'Whatever it was, the threat has been neutralised and the Empire has retreated. They won't be returning any time soon.'

Kyla nodded, not surprised when her question was skirted with ease.

'You could have stayed to give me a full report. The men would know who they owe their lives to had you not left in such a hurry.'

Lexa's jaw threatened to tighten at the prospect, but years of training allowed her to remain stoic and show no signs of her internal feelings on the matter.

'I have no time for such heroics. Lives were saved and the battle won, that's good enough for me.'

Kyla sensed her friend's unwillingness to speak more on the subject and respectfully dropped the topic.

'Then I can only wish you the best with whatever journey you have planned next, and tell my brother to stay out of trouble.' Kyla chuckled to herself and shook her head as an afterthought. 'Who am I kidding, how is that possible in your company. Just tell him to be safe.'

'I will.'

After a quick farewell, Lexa disconnected the holotable and the shimmering figure snapped out of existence. With that conversation sorted, and suspicion into her actions having been averted for the time being, there was just Clarke left to contend with.

That was another conversation that the Jedi was not looking forward to. She had been misguided by the woman's intentions once already and had no doubt that she would do the same again to ensure her survival.

She was a tough character, someone adept at getting out of unwanted situations by all accounts and it occurred to the Jedi how little she truly knew about the woman. With the battle breaking out not a few moments after meeting the stranger, and then the enemy pursuit back here to the ship, there had been no time to exchange life histories.

The only fact that she knew for certain was that the blonde had been at the base to find the holocron, and had lied without a second thought about having it in her possession. If not for being caught out in the lie, it was certain that the woman would have walked away without a backwards glance to find the highest buyer on the capital planet of Coruscant.

Lexa didn't even know where she was going to start with getting answers from the woman, but the sooner she spoke to her the better.

She descended the flight of stairs after a quick check in with Shar and Toril that the ship was making good progress, and proceeded to where the cells were located.

At a single touch of a button, the reinforced door hissed open and the Jedi stepped into the small corridor. Clarke was currently being held in the first force chamber on her left, still lying on the bench as she turned her head to view the unexpected visitor.

She was quick to rise to her feet when she saw the Jedi enter, the two woman locking eyes in a battle of wills to see who would be the first to speak. It was not long before Clarke gave in, she had done enough waiting.

'I take it you're here to make me talk,' she deduced, even though she was fairly certain that it was against the Jedi morals to use their powers for such matters. When it came to Lexa she wasn't sure of anything, she seemed to fall outside the very rigid box that the Jedi order shaped their members to fit into unquestioningly, and it was difficult to decipher exactly what her tie to the Republic was.

'No.' the Jedi stated simply, 'I am here to give you another chance to tell me who you are and what you were doing on Hoth. I don't want to be on opposing sides to you Clarke, there is no need for that, but it is your choice. All I expect is honesty.'

Clarke was almost disappointed by the lack of response from the Jedi, when previously there had been an air of threat or even anger from the now calm woman. Fury, sharp words, and action the blonde knew she could deal with. This seemingly forced peace between them she was not prepared for.

She opened her mouth to make a quick remark, possibly something to rile the Jedi into a rage if that was even possible, anything to reveal her weak spots. There was no time to dig herself further into the grave that she had been shovelling ever since arriving on Hoth, when the Cathar cleared his throat from outside to make his presence known and caught the attention of the Jedi.

'We have a large ship on our tail Commander, should we attempt to lose it?' he asked in a gruff tone, his light brown fur almost

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