Even in a controlled, sterile environment, the sight of a person attached to a med-station was unnerving. The sight of all those wires and tubes and fluids passing into a living being, however damaged and dependent, did not sit well with most observers. It simply added to their general unease over the knowledge of their own mortality and of their true lack of control over events. With all those connections, was the machine an extension of the man or the man an extension of the machine?

For Budo, as she busily monitored and adjusted the med-station’s controls, the question was irrelevant. She was both, and beholden to neither. She also did not fuss over questions of mortality or control. One was fact and the other inevitable. And neither was going to help Feld heal any time soon.

Feld stirred then and Budo looked down at him with her blue electro-lumenescent eyes. For a second, they glowed brightly, hopefully, then died down to a dull slate when he remained unconscious. She reached out then and, leaving non-essential processes to idle in her memories, brushed a lock of overly long hair off his forehead. She had always hated the Rinskii cut. Now, she didn’t mind as much. She’d cut it later, when he was back to his impetuous self.

After making sure the med-station was working properly, as properly as salvaged black market parts were supposed to operate, she left the room and rejoined the others in the bar.

The air was thick with tension and the scent of burning herbs. In the center of the bar floor, where a large games table had once stood, was a smoking brazier and the prostrate form of Sondra, laying backward on the floor on her knees. Her eyes were closed, but her mouth formed soundless words. Sitting in plush wing chairs facing her, were Bern, Ebony and Cel. Bern’s facial expressions betrayed her thoughts by shifting from curiosity to concern to anger and back again. Ebony was calmly working on some fabric swatches, though her fingers weren’t as deft as they usually were. Cel, was furthest away, calming taking in the scene and reserving judgement.

“How is he, Budo? Will he live?” CJ’s voice contained a mix of sorrowful concern and the promise of violence should the answer not be to her liking. Budo was concerned, but not for herself, as CJ’s gaze never left the cloaked figure before her. Like a panther, she stood with a disguised ease, her right hand never far from her holstered blaster and her left idly playing with a Deluvian Spike, a pen-shaped, nano-dart launcher.

“It is likely, but not certain,” Budo replied. “It would have been hopeless without you and Lippy’s black market acquisitions.”

Lippy, standing ready behind the bar, also holding the cloaked figure in her steely gaze, nodded. Her light saber lay conspicuously on the counter within easy reach of the Force. “It was only a matter of time before we’d need something like that. Trouble seems to follow us like a shadow.” She paused, then asked CJ, “So, what do we with her?”

The whirling weapon spinning around her digits paused as if frozen in time, then continued in its convolutions. “It all depends on what Mira… Fartacus finds out. Lippy, does moif know about our situation?”

The Jedi nodded. “He does. He sends his regrets, though. As much as he would like to be here, he did promise Han that the moifs would help in the search for Blue. He also said that he’s sure that we could handle the situation without him.”

CJ sniffed. “Frell,” she whispered under her breath. “Well Lippy, until Farty can check out their story, we can always lock her away somewhere. Maybe the freezer…”

Cel jumped out of her chair as the cloaked woman quietly challenged, “You can try.”

“CJ!” Cel shouted as the others turned their heads in CJ’s direction, “You can’t do that!”

“The frell I can’t!” CJ said angrilly, with more emotion than logic, as she gripped the Spike forcefully. “Feldy’s injured, maybe dying. SunKrux’s missing. And all we have are these two mysterious strangers with a highly dubious story. Frell, for all we know, they may be the reason behind Blue and Vicki disappearances as well. ” In a blink, CJ’s stance transformed from an easy wariness to a cocked weapon. “I want answers, by gawd, and I want them now!”

The room was silent, still. All eyes were on CJ. As the tension rose, Fartacus’ synthesized voice came over the comm system. “Lippy. Change the vidscreen to channel 107.”

Noone moved.

“Lippy? You there? Channel 107, please. I think you all’ll find it quite interesting.”

With a light touch of the Force, the vidscreens around the bar changed to channel 107. There, an interstellar newsfeed showed a modern city in near ruins. Amid the chaos, law enforcement aircars flew and crashed around the city. A voiceover described the scene, “Law enforcement has completely broken down. Many buildings are in flames. Two interstellar cruisers called to the planet have been destroyed by an unknown source. Others have moved out to extreme orbital range. In response to the cruisers’ destruction, a fighter squadron flew in low beneath the power screen that has covered the city in an attempt to take out the source of the rebellion’s destructive power. An amateur video capture taken from just inside the shield…” the vidscreen changes… “shows a battered airbulance racing outside the shield. Sources have confirmed that this airbulance was commandeered by persons unknown on the ground. Later, a class-P custom spacecraft was seen to leave an abandoned cargo spaceport on the outskirts of Dinara City. With the cruisers at extreme range, the spacecraft was able to elude authorities and escape to destinations unknown. While the identities of the person or persons seen leaving the planet are unknown, it has been speculated that these were agents-provacateurs who are ultimately responsible for the death and destruction seen here today. Throughout…”

The vidscreen abruptly went black. “It just goes on and on from there,” Fartacus explained. “I’ll keep scanning the various information feeds and let you all know if something new turns up.”

“Dayum,” CJ exhaled as she allowed herself to relax. “Feldy, what did you do?”

“Satisfied?” The voice from the cowl sounded smug.

“Satisfied? No. I’m not satisfied at all.” CJ turned on her heel and pushed brusquely past Budo as she left the main room of the bar. Only Budo saw a slight quiver in her lower lip.

With CJ’s departure, the room was quiet again. Finally, the cloaked woman broke the silence, “Well, since I’m no longer under suspicion, I think I’ll take my seat at the bar. Barkeep, I’d like an absinthe, if you please.”

Lippy sniffed and put a glass on the bar in front of the sitting woman. Next to the glass she put a bottle of amber liquid. As Lippy passed through the gap between the counters, the cloaked woman reached out and grabbed her arm. Quick as a flash, Lippy’s light saber flew through the air and appeared in her opposite hand, the red glow and sizzling air testifying to the dangerous situation.

The cloaked woman quickly withdrew her hand. “This isn’t absinthe,” she said simply.

With a cold glare, Lippy said flatly, “I know. The absinthe I save for Feldy and I’ll be frelled sideways before I give any to the likes of you.” Turning off the saber, Lippy stormed off after CJ.

Shrugging, the cloaked woman poured her drink and sat quietly.

Meanwhile, Budo walked over to where the other women were sitting. She stopped next to Bern’s chair, motioned to Sondra and asked her, “What’s she doing?”

“I’m not sure. She seems to be a mystic of sorts.”

Noting Sondra’s odd position on the floor, Budo noted, “She’s certainly flexible. I wonder if all mystics need to be so flexible.”

Ebony smiled as Bern and Cel chuckled at the observation. As they felt the tension release among them, Sondra stirred on the floor. Slowly, languorously, she rose from the floor to a kneeling position and stretched her sore muscles. She looked at the women seated before her and asked, “Any change?”

Bern glanced up at Budo before answering. “No. None yet.”

Sondra looked up at Budo and blinked as surprised recognition possessed her face. “I know you. Or your kind actually.”

Budo’s blue eyes flashed and closed to threatening slits. “I think not. You must be mistaken.”

“No, no. I’m sure of it,” Sondra replied. “It was on one of the luxury pleasure yachts plying the Zontra Pearls star cluster. You’re a bordello unit. Budo, right?”

Bern and Ebony snapped their heads open-mouthed in Budo’s direction, while Cel merely raised an eyebrow. Budo remained quiet as she scanned her memories and subroutine banks for the proper response. One process scanned for any personal location reference for the Zontra Pearls star cluster. When Budo’s processing completed three seconds later, her response was icy cool. “Ms. Thirdmoon. While others of my kind may have been either built or employed for such services, I can assure that no such programming exists within my memories to support such activities.” Turning to the other women, she continued, “I’ll be back at the med-station seeing to Feld. Summon me if you so need.” With that, Budo turned around and left.

“Our new arrivals can sure clear a room, can’t they?” Cel asked of noone in particular.