Janos squirmed uncomfortably in the high backed chair, squeezing his eyes shut in a moment of utter frustration as he witnessed the Jedi leaping from the highest window of the Sky Palace, leaving the Zabrak behind to burn in the explosion. 

His guests were understandably unimpressed with what they had seen. Not only had the Jedi escaped the ship, but she had gone on to save the two smugglers. It wasn't the grand viewing he had hoped for. 

The guests in question were the more powerful criminals beneath his status, and what he had intended to be a lesson in the consequences of betraying him, had turned into a complete disaster. 

Many times he had activated the earpiece to instruct the Weequay to cut the feed, but he soon saw why there had been no reply when the creature was shown being struck down by the Jedi's saber and sent crashing through the wide, glass window of the Zabrak's accommodation. It was no big loss to him. 

None of the guards were making contact so he was blind to what was happening on the planet's surface except for the hologram on the table in front of him. 

'You left Kranog in there to burn?' one of the criminals probed, his tone flat and unenthusiastic as he watched the debris crash down from the burning Sky Palace. This had not been a pleasant experience. 

Janos scowled and slammed his hand down on the control panel, diminishing the flickering blue projection until it faded from existence. 

'Yes! His betrayal had consequences, so let that be a lesson to you all!' he growled, his words not having much impact now that both smugglers and the Jedi had survived, diminishing the effect in the face of such humiliation. 

He rose in a sudden movement, the chair flying back as he did, aware that he would now have to plan another, far more painful demise for the three wretches. 

'Our men are dead, Kranog deceived into his own grave, and the Republic scum are still drawing breath,' a second criminal spoke up, an athletic male with shaved skull adorned with metal spikes and modern implantations. 'What part of this has been successful?'

'Don't question me! The scum will be dealt with swiftly, I can assure you of that.'

The gathering of criminals didn't look convinced and shared long glances with each other, much to the fury of Janos. He opened his mouth to spew threats and warnings to the questioning aliens, but the blinking of his holocron cut him short. 

'You have just signed your death warrant Jedi,' Janos snarled when he accepted the call and stomped to the corner of the room to speak in moderate privacy. 'To think I was going to show you mercy.'

The Jedi was clearly on the move, cloak drawn up to conceal her features but even then Janos could see the lack of concern on her expression. He was used to instilling fear into people, this was unprecedented and he didn't like it one bit. 

'The same mercy you showed to Kranog? I don't want your mercy Janos, but you will be needing it when the Republic guards turn up to arrest you. They were very eager to learn of your location, it would seem you managed to evade their search parties by retreating to the undercity some time ago.'

Janos wanted to call the Jedi's bluff but it was possible that she was telling the truth and, if that were the case, it was about time he made a quick exit. He had quite the list of illegal activities that would earn him at least a short stay in a prison cell and he had no intention of losing his standing to become a prisoner, rotting in a cell on some distant moon. 

'Regardless, just know that you and the smugglers will die for this, maybe not today or tomorrow, but very soon,' he promised, already formulating ideas of how to make their lives as difficult as possible.

'I doubt you'll manage to do a lot from the cell you'll be sitting in for the rest of your life, I hope it was worth it.'

The Jedi cut the channel and the blue projection disappeared, leaving Janos even more furious than he had been before. He pressed a finger against his earpiece and was only waiting for a moment until a high pitched, female voice inquired what she could do for him. 

'Clarke, the treacherous smuggler, have her records re-uploaded. If I am to be captured for my crimes then I'll take her down with me.'

The woman assured him that it would be completed as soon as possible and Janos turned his attention back to the gathered aliens who were muttering quietly amongst themselves. 

'The Jedi has sent Republic troops for us, the coward,' he spat, striding back to his chair to deactivated the main holo-table. 'We need to leave now, get to a safe place and then strike them down.'

He marched back across the room on his way to the exit when a simple voice spoke up and he stopped instantly. 

'No.'

Janos turned slowly, his rage fuming inside like a volcano ready to erupt. Had he heard correctly? Were his orders truly being defied? Someone would die for this.

'No,' the voice repeated, the bald man rising to his feet to correct his boss. 'The troopers are after you, not us.'

There was a heavy silence for a moment as Janos processed the words, for once unsure as to what was happening. His orders were carried out instantly under normal circumstances. Kill him, get me a drink, take them away, every word carried the unsaid threat of danger if not met with compliance. This was certainly new and most definitely unwelcome. 

'You dare to defy me?' Janos said softly, the overwhelming rage that he felt sharping his words like blades. 'I will have you shot for such disobedience. 

That angered the tall man, who pushed his chest out in a show of arrogance and leered at the crime lord. 

'You dare to have our people killed, let the enemy escape, and then threaten me with death? Perhaps it's your time that is up.'

A few nods circulated through the group of criminals and they began to rise to their feet in a show of solidarity for their brother in arms. Janos looked over the pack of rebellious low life's and chuckled at the grim determination on their faces. 

'I admire your courage, truly, but this is not the time for such stupidity. We are leaving now. Refuse and you die.'

He pulled free the blaster at his hip and levelled it at the bald man, hands steady as he prepared to make the deadly shot. 

The action was met with instant retaliation, the criminals lifting their own weapons and circled the room with precise movements until the crime lord was trapped by his own men. Janos sensed the danger he was in and carefully lowered the blaster, a tight smile fixing his face in an almost pained expression. 

'You will all be fully compensated for what has happened,' he began, hoping to appeal to the greed that he knew lay within each of them, 'You will want for nothing ever again.'

'We don't want your money Janos, we want your blood.'

A Cathar standing to the side of Janos readied his blaster, the urge to take revenge stronger than any amount of money that could be offered. 

'We all knew the people that you sent to guard the ship who were slaughtered because of your failure,' he snarled, having seen too many people suffer at the hands of the crime lord. 'Kranog had our best interests at heart, defeating our enemies and gaining legendary status. There were none as ruthless or determined as him and he died under your orders.'

Janos could sense the tide turning against him and knew that his chances of surviving this mob were growing slim. These traitors had turned on him as well. Even in death, Kranog was still a thorn in his side. Could he trust no one?

'Then let me gift you one last of my failures,' Janos threw back, lifting his blaster in the blink of an eye and releasing blasts into the surrounding criminals with unrestrained anger. If this was how he was to go out then let it be a bloodbath. 

-----

Lexa regrouped with Bellamy, Clarke, and the rest of the crew at a private spaceport where they wouldn't be located by any of Janos' attempts to exact revenge. 

'I hear there was quite the explosion,' Rakal noted as the three humans trooped back on board the ship. Cal emerged from the bunks at their arrival, eager to hear how the mission had fared. 

'No prisoners then?' he asked, having expected the slimy Zabrak to be escorted back with them. Lexa replied briefly, not having the time to go into full detail about what had taken place.  

'Kranog is dead, as is the Weequay bounty hunter. Janos laid a trap, not just for Clarke and Bellamy but for his own right hand man.'

Cal processed the statement for a moment before shrugging. 

'That's one less problem for us then, what about Janos?'

A shrill beeping emitted from the Jedi's wrist device before she could respond. It was from the Republic troopers on Coruscant.  

'Let's go and find out,' she said, taking the lead up to the top deck where she activated the holotable. Clarke stood at the Jedi's side, eagerly anticipating the news of Janos' capture, she was being optimistic but it was the news they were all hoping for. 

If he had indeed escaped and fled to the far side of the galaxy then there was no telling what formidable plan he would be hatching for them in the future. 

'Sir, it would appear that Janos will no longer be a concern to either you or the Republic,' the trooper reported stiffly, helmet hooked under one arm as he stood straight to address the Jedi. 

'How so?'

The trooper hesitated, as if choosing the right words to describe the situation. 

'His own men took care of it. They must have decided that it was time for new command. I suppose they didn't take the death of the Zabrak all too well, he was always popular with the local criminals.'

Janos had in fact been found dumped outside the cantina, body riddled with scorches from blaster shots that even he could not survive, so many that everyone must have taken a good shot at him. 

The crime lords reign was no more. 

Another would only step in to take his place, one not as cruel to his own people perhaps, but just as twisted and corrupt. That was the way of these guilds, power came with a price. 

'Thank you for the update private, is there anything else?'

The trooper nodded, an unusually grim expression on his face for someone who was in the process of announcing good news. 

'The shipment in question that you were sent to retrieve for Janos, it was already here at the cantina, ready to be transported with the crime lord to his next destination and it would seem he lied about its contents. It was by no means as innocent as expensive jewellery and rare antiques.'

Clarke's interest was peaked, it had always seemed suspicious to her that the high and mighty crime lord would be involved with a trade so innocent. He was more likely to be tied up in illegal transactions involving military grade weapons. 

'What was the shipment then?' the blonde inquired, noticing how the man seemed to swallow hard before replying, as if the words pained him. 

'Artefacts like none I have ever seen before,' he began, shuddering as he recalled the moment of recovery.  'At first glance there appeared to be nothing but luxurious materials in each crate but it was beneath such items that we found them.'

The man took a breath, steadying himself before continuing, this time with a firmer voice. 

'There were a few crystals carefully wrapped in the sheets, colours so stunning that you could scarcely believe they were real, but that was not the most interesting discovery. Aside from the few scrolls that we were unable to decipher there was one last item to be recovered.'

This is all sounded very familiar to the Jedi who had a good idea already what these items were but bit her tongue, waiting for the man to finish speaking. It would do no good to interrupt him now. 

 'In the final crate we discovered an amulet, a beautiful masterpiece it was, seeming to shine with an almost unnatural light when we removed it.'

The trooper paused for a second, his mind drawn back to that moment before a shake of his head cleared such thoughts. 

'But there was something...wrong with it,' he continued almost hesitantly. 'It's difficult to explain Sir, but it was just something that resonated as wrong with every part of our bodies. A feeling that you just can't quite put your finger on, but you know that it shouldn't exist.'

There was a short silence as the trooper finished his explanation, a little embarrassed at the description he had given but it had been perfectly accurate as far as the Jedi was concerned and she knew precisely what needed to be done. 

'It felt wrong because that's precisely what it is, forced into existence by Sith sorcery.'

The man paled as the realisation of what he had been inspecting sunk in. 

'You mean that's a...those were...'

'Yes,' Lexa finished for the man with a small nod, 'those were Sith artefacts.'

Clarke's gaze shot to Jedi, her thoughts flashing back to what the Zabrak had told her; that a Sith had been guiding events through Janos. She had assumed it to be a lie, but this only supported his claim. 

'Contact Master Eadon at once, tell him what you told me and the artefacts will be taken care of,' Lexa assured the man, not oblivious to the blonde's sudden attention, but wanting the artefacts to be in safe hands before she disconnected the channel. 'We'll return to Coruscant immediately, if you could inform Master Eadon of our plans.'

'Yes Sir,' the trooper agreed, his projection snapping out of existence when he ended the call. 

The crew had a multitude of questions for the Jedi just bursting at their lips and they struggled to contain their curiosity at the situation. 

'It felt wrong, just like the Sith holocron that we took to Coruscant?' Sharr said, almost before the hologram had even disappeared.  

Lexa nodded, it was exactly like that. 

'Non-force users don't have any connection to the force to truly feel the darkness emitted by such an object, but their entire being knows that its an unnatural item, one that is only best described as wrong.'

'Why was Janos in possession of Sith artefacts? He may be a crime lord but he's no Sith,' Cal commented, not daring to think what trouble the deceitful man would have caused had he been a force-user. It was best not to think about it. 

Through all the questions that were thrown at the Jedi in the minutes that followed the holo-call, only Clarke remained silent. Lexa could tell that there was something on her mind but she was clearly unwilling to say it in front of the crew. 

'Enough questions for now, we need to set off for Coruscant as soon as possible,' Lexa interjected. 'I need you all to assess the damage we took from the capture. I want full reports within ten minutes.'

The crew reined in their endless list of questions regarding the Sith artefacts and split up to survey the ship; some taking the exterior as others scoured the inner surface for any damage. There was little to be found on the upper decks and the moment Toril had finished his check and retreated down the stairs to help the others, Clarke could finally speak to the Jedi alone. 

'In the Sky Palace, Kranog couldn't help but let slip about rumours that a Sith was involved,' she started, voice low so that no one else would overhear. She didn't want to sound paranoid. 'I just shrugged it off, thinking that he was lying.'

Lexa was quiet and her expression gave nothing away. 

'We cannot rule out the possibility, but it could be that he was lying and Janos just happened to recover the artefacts by chance.'

It was a weak argument that Clarke had not expected to hear. The Zabrak's statement alone was little cause for concern, any criminal would lie to torment their victims, but the Sith artefacts virtually confirmed it. 

'Why would a Sith go to the effort of orchestrating our capture at the hands of some lowly criminal, since when did they sit in the shadows and leave potential for things to go as wrong as they did?'

'I don't know,' Lexa admitted, 'but there is little to be done about it now. We just have to secure the artefacts and make sure this alleged Sith doesn't get his hands on them.'

Clarke could tell that the Jedi was bringing the conversation to a quick end, but she didn't know why. 

'Is that it? We're just going to forget about it?'

'As oppose to what?' the Jedi countered, unexpectedly harsh in tone, 'we worry ourselves silly about a potential threat that may or may not exist? No, we do what we can and if this Sith really does exist then we will soon be hearing from him again. If not, then we go on with our lives, either way we don't waste time fretting over that which we cannot change.'

It felt like a lesson, one of many that the Jedi seemed prone to giving the blonde when she inquired about anything. This time though, it had not been what she was looking for. 

Clarke had expected more urgency to be present at the prospect of a Sith taking unwanted attention in them, not this dismissive attitude. 

Their was a strain to the Jedi's voice that Clarke had not heard before from her, a tight expression that did not align with her calm words. There was no time for the blonde to make anything of it when the Jedi stilled for a moment, listening to a voice in her earpiece. It was Sharr, confirming that the ship was cleared for any major damage and that they were ready to depart from Nar Shaddaa at long last. 

'I'll set the coordinates for Coruscant, you should go and join the others, get some rest if you need it.'

The words were called over her shoulder as the Jedi strode through the partitioning doors to the flight deck, disappearing from sight as the doors slid shut at her back. 

Clarke stared after her for a moment, shaking her head at the peculiar behaviour before she quietly stepped down the flight of stairs and re-joined the others. 

---

Lexa came to a stand still the moment the door sank back down to separate herself from the confused blonde. She had not meant to be so direct with her words but she required a moment to gather herself. 

She drew in a deep breath, eyes squeezing shut as she recited lines of the Jedi code to centre herself. 

There is no emotion, there is peace. 

Her breath was slowly released, controlled and steady as she fought the turmoil that threatened to rage within her. 

There is no ignorance, there is knowledge. 

She had been caught off guard. 

There is no passion, there is serenity. 

Another deep breath, finally feeling her calm composure returning. 

There is no chaos, there is harmony. 

Her past was not one to take lightly. There were many beings in the galaxy that wished her harm. Some more than others. 

There is no death, there is the force. 

She would not let him break her, not again. 

Emotions in check and composure returned, she sank down into the captains chair and began to flick switches on the console. 

It was time to return to Coruscant. She would have to speak to Master Eadon, he would have some insight on the matter. For now, she would focus on keeping her mind clear for the next few hours until they were back on the capital world. She refused to let thoughts of the Sith haunt her for the entire journey, she had more control than that. 

-----

The Sith had retreated into his private quarters and was seated cross legged on