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“Well, I—” Jax paused, realizing that he’d formed no real course of action. “I’ll find out if this Sith still lives,” he said, somewhat lamely, “and—”

“And no doubt get yourself arrested and tortured by the Inquisitorius,” I-Five finished. “It’s a New Order out there, remember? If the assassin is still alive—a low probability, given the attrition rate in his kind of work—he is not the hunted. You are.”

“He was acting under orders,” Jax said. “Orders from very high up. Orders that may possibly have come from Palpatine himself.”

“And?” When Jax didn’t reply, the droid continued, “Do you dream of taking the fight to the Emperor? Weren’t you the one who told me not too long ago that the very concept teeters on madness?

“You’re doing everything one life-form can do, Jax. A great deal more than most do. Would you throw it all away to avenge someone you never even knew?

“I knew Lorn Pavan better than anyone, I daresay. I can call up memories of him that seem as real as you. And I’m certain he would tell you to let the past care for the dead.”

“So you didn’t tell me his killer was a Sith because you knew that I’d feel honor-bound, both as his son and as a Jedi, to bring closure to all this?” Jax shook his head in disbelief. “How? You didn’t even know me at the time.”

“I knew your father,” I-Five said. “And I came to know the Jedi over the years. And I saw the Zabrak. Nothing could stop him. Lorn wouldn’t have wanted you cut down like he was.”

Jax’s head was spinning. If there was the faintest possibility that a Sith did still exist, it was his duty as a Jedi to hunt him down. Added to that was the urge to avenge the father he never knew. But he had to admit that I-Five was making a lot of sense. As a Jedi, his first duty was to help the people, not pursue personal vendettas. Also, the galaxy had changed: to be identified as a Jedi Knight now wasn’t the automatic ticket to awe and respect that it once had been.

But he couldn’t simply let it go …

I-Five said quietly, “I was wrong not to tell you everything, Jax. It’s not my right to choose your path. But now that you know, should you decide to investigate this further, I can at least help level the playing field.” So saying, he opened the hatch to a small, hidden aperture in his chest plate, in what would be the upper left quadrant of a human’s torso. He reached into the chest compartment and withdrew a small vial. After a moment, Jax recognized the clear tube, about the size and length of his index finger, as the vaporizer delivery ampoule for a non-invasive epidermic injector commonly referred to as a skinpopper.

“This is, as far as I can determine, the sole remaining sample of bota extract in the galaxy,” the droid said. “Bota was a broad-based ergogenic plant native to Drongar.”

“I’ve heard of it,” Jax said. “It was the reason the Separatists and the Republic fought there … until it mutated and became worthless.”

“Yes. It is—was—what’s commonly known as an adaptogen: a panacea that has various, mostly salutary effects on differing species. To Neimoidians it’s a narcotic, to Hutts a psychedelic, to humans an antibiotic, and so on.

“During her tour of duty as a healer, Jedi Barriss Offee accidentally discovered that a dose of the distillate greatly enhanced her connection to the Force. She described it as being linked to all beings, all places, throughout all times.” The droid hesitated, then added, “Jedi Offee wasn’t one to overly indulge in hyperbole, so I assume that her assessment was a straightforward one, metaphysical as it may sound.”

“I believe you,” Jax replied. “How did you come into possession of it?”

“When I finally finished reconstructing my synaptic grid links, I remembered that I’d made a promise to Lorn once. He asked me to watch over you, if you’ll recall.”

“Hard to forget, with you reminding me at every opportunity.”

“Jedi Offee offered me the privileged status of being an envoy to the Temple by carrying the distillate with me back to Coruscant. When Den and I arrived, however—”

“There were no Jedi to deliver