| abstract
| - Special Agent Evening Delwynn sat in her office, adjacent to her quarters. She was reclining in her desk chair; the back of her head set gently against the wall; her eyes closed. Her office was plain, containing very few features that would stand out anywhere, let alone on the Mally. A couple of certificates graced the wall behind the detective, but the only significant decor were three potted plants on a shelf, with two holopictures that alternated in between the plants. The shelf was opposite her desk, near the hallway access door. Delwynn sat calmly, contemplating, attempting to connect the dots that she had been given. Master Greystone and Shalli quietly entered the office and sat in the two seats to the right of the doorway; the door whisking open and shut as the only sound that could aurally be noticed. Neither spoke initially, as Delwynn did not open her eyes. She was not fazed by their entrance, and she knew exactly who had entered because of the perpetual silence. Without opening her eyes, she pointed to a datapad on her desk. Although not trained as a Force-user, but rather as a keen investigator who was trained in espionage at one point, she sensed Shalli rise and pick it up. The beeping on the datapad was the only thing to break the silence for three more minutes. "Regueny has been abducted, Gallien is in a holding cell, Lind is dead, and I have a headache!" Delwynn harshly smarted. "We can leave," Shalli responded somewhat unsympathetically as she stood. Master Greystone put his arm against the Omwati Jedi, forcing her gently back into her seat. "She doesn't mean a literal headache, Shalli," Greystone remarked. Finally, Delwynn opened her eyes, staring softly and plainly at Shalli. There was no somewhat-callous façade hiding her true emotion. Still, Shalli could not read her thoughts or feelings. She was, in a general sense, upset, but everything else was veiled. Obviously, the Omwati surmised, she was troubled over the recent events. Perhaps this was the "headache." Nevertheless, something else seemed to be bothering Agent Delwynn: something much deeper, more troubling. "Well," Delwynn added, "the tips we received on Regueny before led us to Gallien and Lind. Perhaps there is something else we are overlooking." "Who did the tipster say they were working with?" Master Greystone asked. "They didn't. Conveniently. All they mentioned was that Czerka was potentially involved." "Evening, could our source have been on the inside?" "Perhaps, Master. I think it was actually someone on the periphery, though. The details are too sketchy other than images of Regueny at various places, with various thugs." "It might be more beneficial, then, to start with Regueny, himself." "Possibly, but we don't have him." "So, what do you suggest, Eve?" "I think we have four options. First, we can interrogate Gallien and see what she knows. Although, right now I doubt she knows much at all. Second, we can simply let Regueny go and not follow after him. There is no logical reason for him to have been abducted, unless he was about to turn himself in, or he planned to rat out other people. Since we have no indication that the latter part is true, this abduction makes absolutely no sense. Third, we can go after Regueny and interrogate Gallien. Then, we drop her off on Coruscant to be tried for criminal activity. Fourth… well, I have no fourth option at the moment." Master Greystone chuckled at her remarks and stood, saying, "I guess you've made up your mind, then." Shalli was puzzled. What did Delwynn decide? All she did was list her options. The Jedi Master then moved toward the exit, but stopped in front of the holopictures. After a quick glance, he turned back to the Special Agent. "Any luck finding the man?" Shalli was now completely confused. Who was this "man?" Did it have something to do with the case, or those holopictures on the mantle over her head that she just now noticed? "No," Delwynn replied, looking away. "The computer is still searching. It has been searching for five years." "He'll be found." "The galaxy is not a small place, you know." "Yes, I know, Evening. I also know that he will be found." "The irony is, Master, I don't even want revenge any more." "That's a good place to be. Eleven years has helped that in some ways." "No, Master, it hasn't. The last eleven years were a struggle to prevent such emotion from taking hold." "And, in the end, you will be vindicated. The Force works mysteriously, Evening." At that, Master Greystone turned and exited the room. Agent Delwynn dismissed Shalli, but the Omwati did not move. She was more stunned then anything else. The entire atmosphere of the office had turned to sadness, but the Omwati was not able to identify it as such. In those moments, Shalli simply sensed that the aura within the room reflected her superior officer. She attempted to glance up at the holopictures, but decided against it. These were Agent Delwynn's deep thoughts, in her own private sanctuary. It would be better to leave her be. So, the Jedi stood, faced Delwynn, saluted and departed, pondering what had been briefly shared. Eventually, she thought, she would learn the truth. Until then, it would simply need to remain hidden. — — — In the maintenance bay, alone, sat Asana Lani. The Lethan Twi'lek had her eyes closed, the side of her head gently pressed against a storage bin. She had not slept for hours and was in need of a break. After the team returned from the skirmish, she retreated to her favorite place on the ship. It was not the most comfortable location to doze off, but it was mostly private and in a familiar environment. In a way, this was her lab; Delwynn had given her permission to arrange it as the young Twi'lek saw fit. Now, on a small cushion, in the corner, she sat half-asleep. The near-silent humming of the computers and machines was of no bother to her, but when the door slid open, she noticed that her peaceful sanctum had been compromised. "Asana?" Danstari inquired, not seeing anyone as he entered. "Over here," she unenthusiastically responded, waving her red hand; her eyes remained closed. "What do you want?" "I have some more questions about the boss," Danstari said, peering around the room until he spotted the Twi'lek waving him over. "Then, come sit over here. We'll talk… while I sleep." Danstari obliged the Twi'lek and moved to sit next to her, to her right, on the floor. Asana neither moved nor opened her eyes as the Lieutenant adjusted his position and attempted to make himself somewhat comfortable. He touched her on the forehead with his right palm, gently, as if attempting to wake a sleeping child. Then, chuckling, he poked her twice above the nose. "Stop that, you nerfherder!" she shouted, finally opening her eyes. "Nerfherder?" the pilot replied with an almost silly-attempt to look offended. "Yes, nerfherder." "Come to think of it, I've never seen a live nerf outside a zoo." Asana's annoyance subsided, and she laughed at the premise. "City boy, are you?" "Oh, yeah. Born and raised on Coruscant. Never even left it until I entered the Judicial Forces." "Interesting, city boy. So, what did you want to know?" "Does boss always sneak up on people at random times?" Asana started laughing. "You mean, like she did in the spaceport corridor?" "Well… kind of like that. How did I not notice her?" "Ha! She didn't want to be noticed. And, while she's good at sneaking up on people, it is never random." "Come on, Asana. How can you say that?" "No, it never is. She only does it when she wants to." "You think it would be hard to miss her since she seems so tight and tense all the time." "No, Waron. Not 'tense.' 'Intense.'" "What?" "I can call you that, right?" "'Waron?' Yeah, sure. Nobody else does, but I don't care. Anyway, what do you mean, 'not tense?'" "She really isn't a tense person. In fact, she seems quite relaxed most of the time. She just takes her work very seriously. She has very high standards and just tries to make all of us be the best we can be at investigating." "Funny. I'm not an investigator; I'm a pilot." "So, I'm a forensics specialist and self-trained droid technician." "Yeah, but you were trained in forensics. That's part of this job." "That doesn't matter when working with Delwynn. She makes you do anything and everything." "Like what?" "Like, two weeks ago on Alsakan I had to rummage through seventy bags of rotting garbage to find a random datapad." "That's disgusting, Asana. Still, I really didn't sign up for this." "I know, you were chosen." "'Reassigned' would be more accurate." "Is that bad? What happened?" "I was just a pilot for various government officials. I was with Senator Valorum for a couple of years, and he suggested that I would be good in investigative work." "So?" "I'd never considered it before, Asana. Apparently Senator Valorum asked Delwynn if she needed a pilot. I guess that is how I ended up here." "Are you unhappy about it?" "No. I just never saw myself as an investigator before. I wanted to be a pilot in the Defense Force." "Well, Waron, I'm glad you're here. As much as I love that little droid, you have been more fun to be around then Emra, already." The lieutenant just sulked in the corner, recalling his recent blunders. — — — Shalli had made her way into the meeting room adjacent to the interrogation room. Along that adjacent wall was a one-way view screen which allowed the Omwati to see Catiene Gallien waiting. The young woman, only twenty-five years of age, was sitting in there quietly, fiddling with her long brown hair. Her white clothes had been lightly soiled by the purple dust of Qina during the attempted abduction. Her eyes were glazed, as if fatigued, yet Shalli sensed no emotion from the woman. In fact, as she had sensed nothing from Delwynn earlier, she once again sensed nothing from Gallien. None. Then again, the Jedi Knight had never been very successful at sensing emotions or intentions of individuals. This was her one glaring weakness that almost kept her from advancing through the ranks. Surely, she thought, someone as naïve and open-minded as this young woman could be read. Yet, she sensed nothing. After a couple more moments of prodding the aura in the Force, Shalli saw Agent Delwynn enter the interrogation room. The investigator shuffled some papers inside a file, and tinkered with a datapad. Delwynn neither looked up nor regarded the young woman in any manner. Other than her preparatory work, she seemed to be intentionally avoiding the young woman's eye contact. The delay was not just making Gallien nervous, but also Shalli. The Omwati finally began to sense something from the young woman. Fear. And, that same fear penetrated Shalli's almost non-emotive soul. She had never seen an interrogation done by someone other than a Jedi; and, with Delwynn not bound to the Jedi Code, the Omwati did not know what to expect. "How are you feeling?" Agent Delwynn asked. "Fine," Gallien stated flatly. "Do you need something to drink?" Delwynn inquired, calmly. "No," the young woman responded. "Why am I being held like a prisoner?" "Unfortunately, these are all the accommodations I can provide for you. Would you rather that I let you go and wander Qina alone? I personally don't think that would be safe." "No, not particularly, Agent…" The young woman paused. Her face became awash with the same fear from her soul. As the moment passed, she seemed to be fighting back tears. "Delwynn. Agent Delwynn." Delwynn took a couple of deep breaths and reclined in her seat. To Shalli, this did not appear as an interrogation. Rather, it seemed almost more like a counseling session. Delwynn was acting in a manner that was calm and almost comforting. Her presence seemed to be more of a security screen than an intimidating force. After a couple moments of Gallien wiping her eyes, she looked up and spoke. "Why were those green bug-eyed monsters trying to kill me? I'm just a financier." "Those Rodians must have thought you knew something." "But, I don't know anything! I just handle money for people. That's my job. I do what my clients want." "Well, Miss Gallien, the meeting with Senator Regueny might have been a set up. I believe you probably weren't the main target, though." "That's still not very comforting, Agent Delwynn." Gallien put her hands over her face as she leaned forward. "What have I gotten myself into?" "I don't know, but I will find out." "Have I done anything wrong?" "I don't know. That still needs to be looked at." "By the Force, I hope not." "Don't worry. I am going to find the truth, and if you did do anything wrong, I'll make certain you have a chance to make it up." Agent Delwynn stood, walked around the table to Gallien, whose hands were still over her face. The agent put her right hand on the young woman's left shoulder for a moment, whispered something quietly and turned. The young woman simply nodded and acknowledged what Delwynn had said. Delwynn looked back over her shoulder as the door to the corridor opened. Gallien was still postured at the table wither hands over her face. The agent then lowered her head, and quietly walked out of the room, the door closing behind her. Shalli stared blankly ahead as Delwynn exited the interrogation room. At the same time, the door to the meeting room whisked open and Danstari entered. Turning her head, she watched the lieutenant as he strode into the room, walking in his normal confident, almost cocky posture, all the while bearing his trademark mischievous smirk. Both did not seem to notice, however, that the door did not close behind him. "What did I miss?" Danstari asked. "Just Delwynn being nice," Shalli responded. "No fireworks?" Danstari inquired, arcing his eyebrows in mischief. "What did you expect?" the Jedi retorted, hastily. "This young woman has been through a lot in the last couple of hours." "Still, Delwynn seems like she would be as tough as a boma in interrogation." "In the Jedi Order, we would take it easy on her right now." "Maybe, but Delwynn isn't a Jedi." "No… no, she's not." "Eh. Anyway, that young lady is quite pretty." "She's also a key suspect in a smuggling ring," Delwynn said, appearing behind Danstari. "Sorry, boss," Danstari replied. "Shalli," Delwynn turned, "what did you sense from her?" "Honestly, Delwynn, I did not sense anything other than fear." "Nothing deeper?" Delwynn pressed, visibly not pleased. "Nothing," the Omwati remarked with a tinge of sadness. "I couldn't get beyond her expressions of fear." "I'm going to go back in there in a moment and press her a little," Delwynn remarked. "Keep your eyes open. I want to know what she is feeling and thinking." "What about me, boss?" Danstari asked. "Stay focused," the agent commented. "She's not your next pickup." Delwynn exited the meeting room, the door finally closing as she entered the corridor. Shalli turned to face Danstari. With a mischievous grin, she started chuckling, saying, "She has you pegged." "We'll see. She just likes to sneak up behind me." "If you weren't always getting in trouble, she wouldn't have to." Danstari just laughed, taking his fist, he gently pushed her shoulder in a jovial gesture.
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