Timper trained under Master Kai-De Ethis. His weapons training came from
Dooku, another former Jedi. As such, Timper is a considerable threat and
should be treated as such. He travels with an assistant, Ro Ispsi, who
doubles as a bodyguard.

In addition to his weapons skills, he is an extremely talented as a
negotiator and is not above using a Force-aided suggestion to sway his
audiences. Use extreme caution. He has no known family on Prakkis. His
biological family was killed in an uprising on his home planet of Ytall. ~~~~~~~~~~~ Ando Monfree turned from the viewer, his webbed fingers tented, lightly
tapping his lips. “Ideas?” he asked.

Sable Kir-Kaelen blew out a slow controlled breath. “He employs a body
guard, so either he made more enemies than he needs, he’s not as dangerous as
he seems, or there’s more too this than we’re seeing here.”

Ando nodded. “He’s dangerous. Anyone Nalyd employs is dangerous.”

“So he’s either on someone else’s list, or…” Sable looked at her partner.

“We’ve already found a weakness.” Ando finished.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was a good day. Rechecking his slate, Visi Timper chuckled again. He’d
netted an extra ten thousand this time and Nalyd would never be the wiser.
Not that he’d care. “Bastard’s making enough off me as it is.”

He glanced up in time to watch a tall brunette saunter across the yard.
Waves of dark hair fell down her back, a shocking contrast to the bright
yellow flight suit she wore. Her slim waist was circled by a loose black
blaster belt, the weapon bouncing along her leg as she walked.

Watching her walk, he noticed the numbers on her sleeve. A new registry
number, he thought. If they’d hired her, he’d not heard of it before. And
he knew everyone that worked for his boss. Nalyd hired and disposed of more
pilots than any other warlord in the quadrant. Visi knew it because he
handled both sides of it. Hiring meant background checks, DNA scans and
Force probes. Disposing… business was business and you never wanted loose
ends. Not that he minded; Nalyd paid well and the extras that came along
with the job made it more than worth his while. What bothered him was that
he didn’t check this pilot out personally, which meant someone went over his
head.

Damn. Ro was getting out of hand. Ro worked for him, not the other way
around. And this wasn’t the first time Ro used their relationship to bring
in undesirables.

Still he couldn’t fault him for taste, he mused as the brunette walked past.
Gold eyes, creamy skin all framed by that dark hair. Seeing her walk into
the bar, he smiled and decided he needed a drink.
~~~~~~~~~~

Ro Ispis sauntered across the yard. He was running a little late, not that
Vis would mind. But he still didn’t like that he was late. It meant that
something was out of his control.

He noticed the fish the minute he set foot in the square. Mon Calmari don’t
usually make it out this far and the only ones that did either had money or
wanted it. He wondered which one this was.

The fish shuffled across the walkway with that characteristic gait. He had
a blaster strapped to his leg, but from the way he wore it, Ro knew it wasn’t
something the fish used on a regular basis. Speeding his step, he thought to
himself, This would be easy.
~~~~~~~~~~

She sat at towards the center of the room and was drawing more than her share
of attention. Men were swarming around her like insects, and her light
bubbly laughter was quickly drowned out by masculine chuckling. Four males
stood around her table wanting her attention, and from the looks of it, she
was more than happy to oblige. Visi cocked an eyebrow and quickly ordered a
drink as he surveyed the competion.

Three of the men worked for him. No contest. The fourth was someone new.
He vaguely recognized the face, but Felians tended to look like each other.
The registry on his sleeve showed that he worked for a competitor. He
wondered if there was a bounty on this one. Most of the pilots, including
his own, had them. He took his drink and downed it in three swallows then
ordered another round. Picking up the glass, he walked over to the table.

~~~~~~~~~~~
He had to admit, the fish was quick. Ro was a bit winded trying to keep up
and when he saw the fish turning into the bar, part of him felt relief. He
needed a drink.

The room was crowded which wasn’t unusual for this time of the day. Ro
ordered a drink, knowing that Vis was waiting for him. Not that it mattered;
he’d believe any story Ro told him. Vis, with all his Jedi foresight, was
blind when it came to Ro.

Turning to face the room, he spotted the yellow jumpsuit long and the way it
clung to her body long before he saw her face. Female pilots didn’t come
this way often and when they did, he knew about it. She smiled at him then
turned back to her companions. Ro shook his head. Downing his drink, he
made his way over.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Visi shot looks at his pilots. “Don’t you all have somewhere to be?” The
men stuttered, nodding quickly before stumbling away. He glared at the other
pilot. The pilot glared back.

“What the hell do you want?”

“I want you to leave,” Visi replied, starting to lace the Force into his
voice.

The man blinked a few times, then stood slowly, his words menacing. “And if
I don’t?” he growled.

“Trust me,” Visi drawled, gesturing faintly with his glass. “You want to
leave. Now.”

The other man stumbled. “I want to leave… now.”

“And while you’re up, you want to bring us a drink.” He turned and finally
looked at the young woman.

She smiled teasingly. “Maybe I didn’t want him to leave.”

“Of course you did.” He took her hand and raised it to his lips. “You
wanted them all to leave.”

She waited a moment then took her hand back. “Maybe I want you to leave too.”

He raised his glass. “You want me to stay.”

“I want you to stay.”

He took her hand back in his and started to lead her out of the bar. “You
want to get to know me better.” She smiled and nodded, letting him guide her
out of the bar.
~~~~~~~~~~~

Ro was almost to the table when she stood up and slowly walked towards the
exit. Ro followed close behind, placing a hand on her shoulder just as she
stepped outside. “Don’t leave honey, things just got interesting.”

He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned slowly, hand inching to his
blaster.

It was the fish.

“Come. Let’s talk.” The Calmarian smiled at the young woman and handed a
few credits to her. “Thank you, my dear. You were most helpful.”

The young prostitute smiled in return. “Any time honey.” She took his arm
and slid up against him. “I meant what I said earlier. I’m very…
cooperative.”

Ando raised her hand to his cheek and nuzzled it softly. “Perhaps another
time. When I’m not otherwise occupied.” She stood a few moments more then
turned and walked slowly away, her hips moving in what she knew was an
enticing rhythm. Ando watched for a moment, then hustled the young man into
a nearby alley.

“I need to find Visi Timper.”

“Good luck, fish,” the young man spat back.

“Where is he?” Ando shook him hard then threw him against the wall.

“Why do you want to know?”

“He’s worth a lot of money to me. He could be worth a lot to you too.”

Ro swallowed hard. “What do you mean?”

Ando paused a moment, then smiled. “Never mind. I believe he’s already
been found.”

Ro pulled away. “What are you talking about? Who wants Visi… No…” He
turned and ran down the alley, Ando in quick pursuit. Ro noticed the fish
didn’t move like he did before. They kept pace with each other, and he swore
he heard the fish laugh. Gods…

He ran faster, screaming Visi’s name with every step.
~~~~~~~~~

Visi pulled her into an alley and leaned Sable against the wall. He put a
hand on either side of her. She smiled up at him, running her hands along
his waist and hips.

“Who are you?” she asked teasingly.

“Call me Vis. You’ll find that I’m a very useful friend to have around
these parts.”

“Oh, and why is that?” She pulled him closer, her legs rubbing between his.

He leaned over her, brushing her lips with his. “I can think of a few
reasons.”

Sable tilted up into the kiss, hearing the frantic footsteps grow louder.
Counting silently to herself she wrapped her arms around his neck and slid
the knife out of her sleeve. The blade flashed briefly in the light before
she plunged it into Visi’s back. She swallowed his grunt of surprise.

“VISI!”

Ando met Sable’s eyes as Ro fell to his knees over the dying man, whispering “ Vis…” He cradled Visi in his arms as Sable began to scream.

“HE KILLED HIM! YOU… YOU KILLED HIM!” Tears fell down her cheeks as she
started to pull on Ro’s arm. And all the while, the Force battered his mind
as she screamed, “YOU KILLED HIM!”

Ando put an arm around Sable. “You killed him…” he said to Ro, weaving the
Force into his words as well. “Gods man, you killed him.”

Sable’s scream echoed. “YOU KILLED HIM!” Two Jedi bombarded him with the
Force. And something inside his mind broke

Ro’s eyes glazed over, from tears and from suggestion. “No, I loved him. I
…” he looked at the body of his now dead lover. “I… killed him… I killed
him…” His voice became louder, more frantic. “I killed him-no I don’t
want him dead-I killed him… he’s dead… VISI!”

The regulators found him that way, still cradling Visi’s dead body. They
tried questioning him, but it was useless. The pilot was in hysterics, and
her employer, a respected Mon Calmarian trader, told them what he saw: Ro
Ipsis stabbed Visi Temper as he was occupied with the woman. Witnesses also
said they saw Visi leave with a yellow suited pilot, and saw Ro following a
yellow suited woman, corroborating the Calmarian’s tale. It wouldn’t be
difficult to recreate the story for the warlord.

~~~~~~~~~~

“Killed by a jealous lover? Isn’t that a bit used, Ando?” Sable had
changed back into her robes and brushed her hair back into her usual plait.

“As long as it gets the job done.” Ando keyed coordinates into the
hyperdrive computer. “I understand Nalyd is looking for a new negotiator,
having lost his, as well as his assistant.”

“Ipsis is dead?” Sable seemed genuinely shocked.

Ando nodded, studying his partner carefully. “You seem distressed.”

She shook her head. “It just seems like a waste. Such a terrible waste.”

Ando shrugged, then keyed the console. “Scramble code nine to the time
keeper. Doma Prinsel is no more.”

End Mark 1