*Suddenly during the conversation, a green pipe came up from out of the floor. Then with some grumbling noises a cyan colored Yoshi popped up. He hopped down with his big eyes scanning the room. The only piece of clothing was a secretary's hat on his head. In his hands were large pieces of paper. He nodded to Sharak and placed paper work on his desk. Then he eyed Szlaba with suspicion. He approached the jedi and went around him a couple of times. The Yoshi had a sudden urge to lick him... but instead the Yoshi placed paper work beside Szlaba which would detail for background information. Before the dinosaur left, he looked at Szlaba and pointed at the paperwork and shouted in a happy cheerful voice.*

YYYYOOOOSSSSHHHHIIII!!! Yoshi!

*With that the Yoshi dropped down into the pipe which disappeared soon after.*

*Sharak was slightly confused when the green pipe shot up from the ground. However as soon as he saw his "special" secretary, he knew what the little dinosaur wanted. Paper was laid on his desk that Sharak will take care of later. The Prime minister gave a chuckle as the dinosaur observed Szlaba... It was not doubt in Sharak's mind that Tanner would get a kick out of this. Once the Yoshi left, he looked at Szlaba with a smile.*

Yez, that iz my secretary... They have a unique ability to pop up anywhere with thoze.... pipez. You also might want to fill that out... Just az a warning, they can get a bit... violent if you don't do what they ask you... Heheh...

Szlaba grunted when Sharak mentioned the offer he had given to him after saving his life on Tatooine. As Tanner answered Sharak's question, hebegan to feel wary. What was the boy going to say now? He cocked an eyebrow at "impromptu." And then...the most random thing imaginable occurred. A pipe rose from the floor and a little dinosaur creature emerged with a strange...electronic like sound... It gave Sharak paperwork, and gave him paperwork, too. Szlaba frowned; it looked at him as if it liked him. Highly unsettling, and way, way to fast a show of friendliness. The strange creature that said "Yoshi" jumped back down the pipe with that strange electronic sound again.

Szlaba shifted in his seat and cleared his throat., trying to recover from the random, uncivilized event that just occurred. "Tell me...is that, eh, normal protocol in the customs of those, those, things? And...what does this word, 'Yoshi,' I believe it is, signify?"

He gave Tanner a black look and telepathically said, "You better not have concealed any drugs in my soup today!" He frowned as he picked up the papers and began to leaf through them. "Actually, except for the fact that I would be breaking custom to do so, I would very much enjoy to see that creature angry. You see, he expresses friendship far too fast for civilized behavior..."

*Sharak gave a slight shrug.*

They seem to somewhat come without warning az you can see. It iz a very useful way of transportation it would seem. Where do they all come from? Thiz one have not bothered to think about that or ask.

Sharak gave a slight chuckle and continued

The word "Yoshi" has many meaningz, for that iz really all they say... Hehe, you do not need to worry about that paperwork actually. Thiz one will take care of that. Az far az hiz friendlynezz iz concerned, thiz one would not bother to fret about it much. It could be the other extreme...

*Sharak just gave a mischievous look for a moment letting the last phrase trail off. But then Sharak needed more important matters at hand to continue.*

So, let uz move on about what the Council needz. What type of diplomacy are they interested in and do they want anything that would be beneficial to them?

"Yes, now to business, and a very grave business it is." Szlaba shifted in his seat and pressed his fingers together. "The Council believes a Sith lord has infiltrated your planet. They have sent me to request permission to conduct an investigation and to guard your person. They also send their warmest assurances of friendship. Knowing that I know you personally, they have sent me for the task."

*Sharak's smile slowly faded away as Szlaba answered as to his mission here. The news was...unwelcome. What is more disturbing is how the Sith lord managed to get on the planet in the first place... He'll need to speak to Jaraz about that late... The Barabel kept his composure and responded with a low tone..*

So, one haz come... We will hunt him down and drive him off our planet... Do you know anything else about thiz Sith lord?

*Sharak needed to know as much information as possible. In order to defeat someone like the sith, the Barabel had to know everything for the best outcome possible. With two Jedi here though, the balance of power was slightly against that sith...*

Szlaba crossed his arms. "That is the worst part about it. We know nothing. We have received information from captured smugglers about a dark lord already operating within your planet. The merchandise they carried in itself was not illegal--just scrap metals--but they tried to sneak them past customs dues. We suspect that such a move is to covertly create weapons on your planet rather than risk importing weapons en masse and thus risk suspicion."

*Sharak's eyes narrowed at the information. It slowly started to anger him. Before he replied back to Szlaba he opened a comm and sent a message to Jaraz..*

:: Jaraz... Thiz one wantz you to inspect any shipz that come to our planet... Thiz one haz found interesting evidence of some who could be coming to cause trouble... If you find any such onez, take their shipz and lock them in your cellz. ::

*Shutting off the comm, he looked at Szlaba straight in the eye...*

So, an uprising to overthrow uz? Thiz will NOT happen! We must begin searching for our prey... Iz there anything else that thiz one needz to know?

*Sharak was anxious to get the threat off of his planet. To hunt and slay this predator that would cause havoc to Sharak's kin... Without Skahbor here to advise him the young Prime Minister would have to do on his own... But he had Szlaba and Tanner with him which was more than welcomed. *

*Haraz barely made it to the doors of the building. By now other Barabels on his staff came and helped him. They immediately had medical attention given to him... while he kept going of course. He had two of the help him through the hall ways; guards looking at the Minister with a worried look. Finally, they made it to Sharak's office where he suddenly took the liberty of knocking back the doors.

For those who sat their, Haraz the Minister of Defense, was a large Barabel of a musclar build and green scales. He wore Imperial like armor and had a large blaster rifle slung on his shoulders; however, adding to this was his injuries. His scales were slightly blackened and he had black marks across his armor. He went down to one knee not exactly a sign of respect but simply the pain that he went through to make it back... As he let himself on the floor, he allowed the medics to patch him up while he spoke in a heavy and pained voice..*

Sharak... A Sith Lord... By the name of Kiesh iz here. He haz come to move against our kindred on our home here. We MUST stop him... I tried to kill him, but... he was too quick. He haz slaughter a few of the smaller clanz already. Give me a momentz rest and I will help you all...

*Sharak who had been waiting for his friend Szlaba to reply was somewhat taken aback that Haraz had found the very sith that they were discussing about. The Prime Minister stood up and knelt down by his Minister* placing a hand on his shoulder.

You have done well finding him... Do not worry az you can see we have Jedi on our side. You will have your chance to hunt Kiesh. I assure you, Haraz. Now what can you tell me about him?

*Haraz immediately spoke back with a temper.*

He iz az you know a Sith Lord... a Farghul except without hiz hair. He iz fast and relentlezz... Killed who I had with me...and took me out quickly. Told me hiz life story... Seemz that some of our brotherz that did mercenary work killed hiz band of thievez... He let me go so that he could have fun... But I will not let thiz down.. I want to kill him!

Szlaba opened his mouth to answer his friend when the door burst open. A high-ranking Barab warrior limped into the room, burnt and bloodied, and bruised. Szlaba listened intently at the officer's story through narrowed eyes. After the injured Barab's outburst, Szlaba closed his eyes patiently and inhaled slowly, steadily before delivering his reply.

"A Sith lord is no easy kill. Even the most Force-strong Jedi-Knight is tested to the limit of his endurance in a duel with one of them. We must exert extreme caution."

Szlaba rose to his feet. "Sharak, I suggest that you seal off all ports for the time being. No one gets in or out until Alater-ka is quarantined. Ration the resources in case the hunt takes longer than we expect."

*Sharak watched for a moment while they medics took Haraz away... The Minister refused at first, but followed the Prime Minister's orders. The Barabel then turned to his friend with a fire in his eyes. He listened to Szlaba's advice alertly. His face somewhat contorted at the decision that the Prime Minister would have to make... Alater-Ka was the ONLY spaceport for the entire planet. Any outside resources, including the weekly shipments from Felucian, would have to either wait for this to subside or go back until the threat was eliminated. Not only that, but if there any who would be turned for the Sith Lord's purposes, the city could not let anyone from the outside. If any Barabels were fleeing or seeking resources, they wouldn't have access which bothered Sharak greatly. As Prime Minister now, he had to think about these types of situations and where the sacrifice would have to be. Should they seal off Alater-Ka for the sake of safety over the possible doom of many or should they keep it open knowing that the Sith Lord could waltz in killing hundreds even with the somewhat large garrison here. Sharak's eyes became slighlty frustrated not knowing exactly what route to chose. Skahbor, his adviser, was on Felucia and could not help him at this time. This was his path now to lead his kindred, and the realization of hard choices that would have dire consequences hit him hard.

He gave something between a hiss and a sigh before speaking...*

Yez, we will seal off Alater-Ka. Thiz one wishez though to tack measurez to at least let other fellow brotherz into the city. Thiz one will not let them suffer while thiz one iz safe inside the city! That iz cowardice!

*He gave another sigh to calm himself from the stress of the situation.*

Thiz one will communicate with Jaraz to keep any shipz from landing. We will go into high alert and start the hunt soon....

*The Barabel looked at his Jedi friend and awaited a reply...*

Cowardice? Szlaba smarted under the remark chewing the inside corners of his mouth. The ignorant lizard could think what he liked! Szlaba breathed in and brought pleasant images to mind as his anger management councilors had instructed him, and kept his peace. Diplomacy remained priority;the cooperation of the Barab government was absolutely essential to accomplish his mission. He acquiesced to his friend's decision with the local gesture of submission. He executed it perfectly, trained to reflex from his studies of the local customs.

"It shall be as you wish, Minister, but we must be very prudent in how we do this."

*Sharak nodded at Szlaba's advice*

Yez, of course. Thiz one will take in every consideration...

*The Barabel thought for a moment thinking what the best next step would be. Of course, the Sith Lord would be hiding in a cave waiting, or possible traveling through the labyrinth of tunnels. Either way, according to Haraz this Kiesh WANTED to be hunted. This didn't disturb Sharak the least bit as his whole kind were hunters. Clasping his hands together, he gave a soft hiss and continued his thoughts. *

We will need to take a few otherz to go with uz, but not many az that will mezz with the hunt... Anything else that we should consider, friend?

*While Sharak waited for Szlaba's reply, he issued the order to seal up Alater-ka, but gave specific instructions on handling cases such as was described before hand.*

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

*Meanwhile in a small medical section of the building, Haraz was on a bed breathing slowly. His pain was almost unbearable. His way back to Alater-ka had almost cost him his life as he was barely able to drive the vehicle that took him back. Medical staff had treated to his burns and were letting the scales regenerate. Any other type of damage, the medical staff treated it the best they could. They also tried giving him a suppressant, but whatever dark energy he was jolted with seemed to have no effect of calming the pain anytime soon. But what truly went through the Barabel's mind was Kiesh. He wanted to hunt that Sith down and keep his tail as a trophy. His temper almost became a natural suppressant. No matter what, he would go and hunt him down, even if it might cost his life...*

"Yes," Szlaba said matter-of-factly. "We must, as you say, 'mess with the hunt.' Guards should be posted as normal, but the search party must dispose of of uniforms and suspicious weaponry. Give them concealed weapons or anything that is common for a citizen to carry. Keep loose, we must not look like a herd of Nerfs."

Szlaba sensed Tanner's discomfort. Dangerously close to fear. This he understood, remembering the time when he was nearly undone by fear dread on his first anti-Sith mission. Wariness is good, he was taught; it helped guard against overconfidence and impetuosity. But if left unchecked, wariness could evolve into something dangerous. "Do not fear. Fear is the first step toward the Dark Side. Remember everything I taught you and stay close. Do you trust me, Tan?"