Anakin once visited Coruscant’s underbelly, as an escort for Supreme Chancellor Palpatine’s secret visit. Festering within the 2685th level of Coruscant, it is a feeding ground to the best and worst criminals—bureaucrats among them. Slaves and contraband are bought and sold on the hour, while others gamble with their lives or ill-gotten gains on the roll of a chance cube.

Others are content to seek entertainment, watching holographic projections of exotic dancers in various states of undress—the likes of which will no doubt be traded as slaves in exchange for credits or other services. Games of chance are often obscured under the sheer volume of patrons gathered around the game tables. Smaller round tables serve for social or business gatherings, with more discreet booths tucked into alcoves along the walls.

Having undergone unfinished renovations at some point, the ceiling has been raised to resemble that of a warehouse. Smoke gathers among the durasteel supports, making a buffer for the intense red and violet beams lighting the cesspit below. Zeltron perfumes are among the most common smells in the establishment, while the rolling of dice cubes make for the most recognizable sound above the music. Fights don’t often break out, and violence is often dissuaded at the sight of armoured bouncers several heads taller than most humanoids

Why do I get myself into these situations?

Appius had to muse the thought to himself as, once again, he descended into Coruscant's Club Kasakar. It took some convincing to get the bouncers to allow him back inside, especially after the chaos he and Erinyes caused when they were here just over a year ago. Still, it was nothing a quick dose of Force Lightning couldn't fix, and they were more than happy to let him in afterwards.

"Oh, look. They fixed the bar!" The Mandalorian muttered to himself. Patrons of the establishment were keen to give the Taldryanite a wide berth. The hives of scum and villainy loved to escape to the lower levels, especially at night. The club's strobe lighting flashed across every available space. Loud thumping from the high-powered speakers played music at irritating volumes and the smell was atrocious. Appius almost forgot why he hated this place the first time. The stench of sweat and body odor filled his nostrils even behind his visor. It was in times like this that the Quaestor wished he'd had it pressure sealed. Even the Zeltron perfume that attempted to cover the smell did very little to help.

Regardless, Appius' reason for being here sat at a round table with a set of unscrupulous sabacc cards in his hand. He sported bright yellow eyes which gave him a mysterious and exotic appearance. He was notably slender and pale in complexion, whilst his dark hair was tied back into a small ponytail. His lips curved into a small, victorious smile, and the Mandalorian approached the Human as the sabacc player slammed his cards down onto the table.

"Looks like I won again. Sorry, guys!" the dark-haired man declared triumphantly. He dragged the central pile of credits towards him with both hands as Appius placed a palm on his right shoulder.

"Aru."

"Appius! Hey, you're just in time! You want in?" Aru gestured to the now vacant seat, the previous occupant having skulked away with no credits in their pockets.

"What do you think you are doing here, Aru?" the Taldryanite questioned. Yet, Aru appeared bemused at the question and shrugged.

"Celebrating?" the Arconan hoped his answer would satisfy his fellow Magistrate in this situation.

It didn't.

"You know Ciara has work for us back at the Academy, right?" Appius prodded further.

"Oh, come on. I just got my doctorate from the Academy. Loosen up a little bit, Appius. Come have some fun!"

Luckily, Aru couldn't see Appius visibly blink behind his visor. The Taldryanite had to wonder who in their right mind decided that giving Aru Law the prestigious rank as a Doctor of the Shadow Academy was a good idea? Still, that was a question for Ciara later.

"Ciara will skin both you and me if I don't bring you back to the Academy," Appius continued.

"Fine, fine," the Mystic yielded. "Just one more game."

"Aru!" the savant scolded.

"I'll make you a deal, Appius. Have one game with me. Just one. If you win, I'll comply and head back to the Academy. If I win, you have to celebrate with me. How does that sound?"

The Savant was about to retort with a strong hell no! But, then Appius had a different idea. Sure, he could resist, and potentially break into the second fight in Club Kasakar within a year. Or he could play along, win whatever game Aru had in mind, and leave with no mess and no fuss. The Mandalorian was always getting into fights, such was the nature of his line of work. So, for once, this seemed much more agreeable.

"Alright, Aru. I agree."

The moment the words left the Juggernaut's lips, the Mystic began shuffling the sabacc cards in his hands gleefully.

"However, we are not playing sabacc."

Aru immediately stopped shuffling and grimaced.

"Is there a problem with that?" Appius said, smirking behind his visor.

"No, not at all," Aru then smirked as an idea flashed in his mind. The Arconan smiled mischievously and gestured to the vacant seat. "Barkeeper! It's time for the Aru Gauntlet!"

"The Aru Gauntlet!?"

"Another one so soon!?"

"This I gotta see!"

Patrons of the club surrounded their table as Appius took his seat. Somehow, the heavily-armoured man had a distinct feeling that he made a terrible mistake.

"What the hell is an Aru Gauntlet?" the Taldryanite dared to ask amongst the mutterings of the crowd.

"A series of shots, one after another until one of us yields, throws up, or passes out," Aru answered bluntly as a waitress in a very skimpy outfit delivered the first of the drinks to the table.

"What!? You're insane! How often do you come here that they have a challenge named after you!?" Appius exclaimed.

"You did agree to anything so long as it wasn't sabacc," the Arconan Aedile reminded. "Come on, Appius! Drink, drink, drink!"

The crowd joined in on the chanting, egging the Force Disciple on. Appius cursed his Mandalorian pride. He'd agreed to it, and it wasn't sabacc, so he had to do it. The Juggernaut removed his helmet and placed it on the table in front of him. Appius then called upon the Force to summon a shot glass to his hand before chugging the beverage down his throat. The crowd jeered as the familiar burning sensation trickled down the Taldryanite's throat. He recognised the taste as one of the Taldryan Consul's favourites. Tsiraki. Appius lightly shook his head and placed his glass back down on the table, just in time to watch Aru down his Tsiraki shot like it was nothing more than water.

"That was a good little warm-up. Now, how about we get on to more interesting stuff?" the Mystic suggested as he passed a rainbow-coloured beverage to the taller Human.

Of course it's frakking rainbow-coloured. Why wouldn't it be? Appius mused. At least it looked appetizing. So at least there was that? Yet, as the liquid entered his mouth and touched his tongue, his taste buds instantly rejected the foul taste, like something spooned from a sewer. The Juggernaut gagged and brought his hands to his lips to stop himself from spewing. The crowd watched with anticipation until Appius forced the beverage down his throat. He shuddered and shivered, and the crowd cheered at his achievement.

"Damn it, I should have saved that one for later…" the Arconan shrugged and downed the beverage himself, much to the surprise of everyone, including Appius. Aru tapped his hands against the table as he seemingly struggled with the vile liquid himself. When he finally swallowed it, the crowd erupted into applause, and the Shadow raised a hand victoriously.

"What the frakk was that?" The Mandalorian had to question.

"We have it on Selen. It's called Dajorra's Demise. It's a drink that separates the men from the boys."

"And the sane from the insane, clearly," Appius couldn't help but retort.

"Shall we get on with the next one?" Aru calmly suggested, reaching for two shot glasses next to his right hand. Appius reluctantly accepted as a light-headed feeling began to overcome him.

Note: For the best experience I recommend reading this post while listening to this song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QD0Sg_fQpIY

“Barkeep!” Law signaled with a weird gesture Appius couldn’t quite understand. “...and put that special music on!”

A static noise started rumbling on the speakers of the establishment, growing louder and louder until the bassline was presented. It sounded like the whole room was melting with such a freaky vibe. Appius had never heard anything like that before.

The Mandalorian stared into his fellow Magistrate, only to find him with his eyes closed, enjoying a smoke of a large tabac roll and slowly bobbing his head to the music.

Truly, how the hell does he do anything at all? He’s a degenerate! Appius sat in front of the Qel-Droman Aedile, trying to ignore the insanely loud music. It was then that the barkeep placed a circular board on their table. It had a rotating base, which Aru immediately gave a spin.

“Now,” the Aedile began, “here’s how it’s gonna be. Ten drinks, five each. Only the barkeep knows what’s inside. Each one you pick, I’ll pick the one opposite to it. Last man standing wins!”

Appius watched the board spin around several times.“Alright,” he stated, “seems easy enough.”

As the Taldryanite went to reach for one of the cups, Aru interrupted.

“There’s just one catch,” the Aedile smirked, “one of these cups is loaded with spice. The kind that’s illegal even within outlaws.”

I knew it! It was too easy to be just a 'drinking game'.

Appius let the board spin a few more times as he mulled over his choice. The loud music was making it hard to think, but the Savant focused the best he could. He then let the Force guide his hand and made his choice. The cup he had picked had translucent liquid. He gave it a whiff, immediately recognising the distinct and potent smell of Gingenny grog. But at least he knew that drink.

“Here it goes!” He downed it in one gulp, closing his eyes and inhaling hard between his hard pressed lips.

Aru followed by grabbing the opposite glass and drinking it without looking at the content. An action he came to regret, for he wasn’t prepared to drink such a fiery drink in his first attempt.

“Boy!” he yelled, “That was strong.” Law slammed his glass on the table and smiled widely towards Appius. “Now this is fun! Another!”

Everyone watching cheered on them. There was already a betting pool in place, being managed by the barkeep. The odds were in favor of the Qel-Droman Aedile. The name wasn’t called after him for nothing. But others believed Appius could beat the man in his own game.

Glass after glass, both the Magistrates endured and persevered through the game. When it came to the last shot, the Mandalorian felt his vision blur and couldn’t really control his hand.

“Last one,” he said, dragging his words, “and then we’re getting out of here.”

“Sure thing mate,” Aru wasn’t in a much better shape himself. Hours of previous drinking, smoking and now more drinking would leave anyone senseless, “let’s do this together:”

Appius and Aru grabbed their glasses and tried to cheer by touching them together, but failed. They both laughed hard and then drank their last cup.

“There, Aru.” Appius tried to sound mean but couldn’t contain a giggle. “I played your game, and I’m still standing. Let’s go!”

It was at this moment that the Savant felt his head spin like crazy. He stared towards Aru, but in his head he saw a butterfly with a top hat. Then he looked at his hands and saw Wookie paws.

“Aru,” he mumbled, “what the hell is going on?”

The Aedile, clearly used to being in such a state laughed and leaned over towards Appius.

“You see, when I said there would be spice in one of the drinks, I lied. All of the cups were filled with spice.”

Appius’ face was of awe, struggle to cope with the effects and joy at the same time.

“You tricked me!” Those were the last words he remembered for the next hour.

---

“Well it’s all for me grog!” everyone sang in unison, “me jolly jolly grog.”

Appius and Aru were dancing on the stage, arms around each other's shoulders.

“All for me beer and tobacco!”

The others present were clapping to the rythm of the song.

“For I spent all me tin, on the lassies drinking Gin, far across the Galaxy I must wander!”

“Appius!” Their moment was shattered by the arrival of a female Chiss.

“Ankira?” The sight of Ankira Irr, his lover, caused him to sober up considerably, although still not enough for the Savant to walk properly.

Besides the blue Chiss, an equally blue in tone Twi’lek stood with her arms crossed. Her facial expression was of no surprise, for she was all too accustomed with finding Law in similar situations.

“As I told you, here they are.” Amis Jumah blandly said to Ankira.

The Mandalorian managed to safely drop down from the stage, which in his head looked way taller than it actually was. He then dragged his feet towards the Chiss, lifting his right hand to touch Irr’s face, which was covered by her helmet.

“Ner cyare,” he said as romantically as he could, “so good to see you. But you’re cold. Are you sick?”

The Mandalorian’s eyes twitched as he struggled to avoid barfing all over Ankira.

“Look at the state you’re in,” she said, “is this what you meant with I’ll go fetch Aru?”

“Honestly, you shouldn’t be mad.” Amis intervened, “When you get to know Aru, you’ll understand Appius stood no chance.”

In an attempt to defuse the situation, Aru tried to gently boop Amis’ nose with his index, but his grogginess failed him and the Magistrate ended up sticking his entire finger inside her mouth, causing her to gag and blush slightly.

“Whoops,” he laughed.

Appius aslo giggled at his fellow Magistrate mishap, and tried to do the same. Only, Ankira was wearing her helmet. He poked it several times, getting more impatient with each failed attempt.

“Come one Ankira!” his words were dragged and sounded nasal. “Take it off! Let me touch your face.”

The Savant was too groggy to even attempt to dodge the incoming slap. Ankira Irr hit him hard and his face turned towards Aru that snorted. However, Appius decided to slap the Aedile as well as revenge.

Law’s face was of disbelief and awe, but only for a brief moment, as he too slapped Appius back, turning the Mandalorian back to his wife.

“Hello gorgeous,” Appius addressed Ankira as if he had met her for the first time, “ come here often?”

She sighed.

“I’ll be waiting in our room, if you manage to get there…” Ankira said and turned away to leave. She then addressed Amis. “Coming?”

The blue Twi’lek nodded. She was all too used to see Aru in this state. no words were going to bring him back, at least for now.

They both left, leaving the cantina in silence as everyone stared at the comedic duo. Appius and Aru were struggling to stay on their feet, leaned against each other.

Finally, Aru turned his head towards the counter.

“Barkeep!” he yelled, “Prepare the Sarlac Pit!”

Sarlac Pit? Appius was all too confused now. Were they in Tatooine? Last he checked they were on Coruscant…

“Where is the Sarlac Pit Aru?” he reached for his saber. “I shall slay it for my people!”

“There’s no Sarlac you fool. It’s another game, hehe.” The Aedile’s laugh was mischievous.

With help from two other customers, the barkeep placed a large barrel on the floor. Then, he poured an entire bottle of pure whiskey inside. Every client there lined up to grab a bottle from the counter, and when their turn had come, they too poured it entirely into the barrel. Each drink was different, and as the barrel filled up, the most unusual cocktail was being mixed in front of them.

“Here’s how it works,” Aru explained, “each person here pours a different drink inside. Then we give it a mix. And finally, we each take a large cup of whatever is inside that thing and we have to drink it in one go! How cool is that?”

Appius wasn’t feeling too happy about it. He wasn’t too sure his stomach would be able to hold even one more drop of alcohol, let alone what was probably the Galaxy’s most deadly beverage.

“I don’t know Aru, this seems dangerous.”

“Nonsense. I do this all the time!”

His words weren’t reassuring at all. Seeing his usual state was a daily reminder for Appius and everyone who worked with Law to lay off the drinking.

Nonetheless, he witnessed the Aedile pick up his own bottle from his robes and pour its contents into the barrel.

“Your turn! You doing this or what?”

Appius blinked at Aru, glancing at the barrel just steps in front of him before looking back to the Mystic again. Whatever remained of the Savant's rational thinking told him to stop what he was doing immediately and quit whilst he was ahead.

Yet, he didn't. For the first time in a very long time, the Mandalorian experienced a feeling he hadn't had in a very long time. Freedom. The freedom to cut loose and just have fun. Appius couldn't remember the last time he didn't have any worries. The last time he could recall was Mandalore with his father and Clan when they were all still alive. It was such a distant memory now. For so long the Juggernaut had fought and fought with worry invading his every thought. For so long he was on the run, unable to stay in one place for too long lest he bring danger with him wherever he went.

Perhaps Aru was on to something? Maybe, just maybe, Appius could cut loose, just this once. With the crowd egging him on, the Mandalorian staggered over towards an empty glass on the table beside him and grasped his right hand.

"Barkeeper! Bring some tihaar!" Appius exclaimed over the chanting around him. Luckily, or unluckily, the barkeeper was just able to pick up the Savant's request and brought a bottle of crystal clear liquid towards the barrel. Appius clumsily grabbed the bottle, popped the top, and poured the contents in with the other drinks. After a volunteer from the crowd mixed it all in with the broken leg of a barstool, the Ektrosis Quaestor plunged his glass into a now murky, mud-coloured concoction that only an insane or highly intoxicated man would dare to drink.

Thankfully, Appius was a little bit of column A, and definitely column B. He raised his glass in the air, much to the chagrin of the crowd that jeered him. The Taldryanite tilted his neck back and chugged the liquid down him like sweet, sweet honey. Luckily for him, it wasn't a foul taste, but it was weird. All the flavours that mixed clashed and cancelled each other out. What remained was a sickly, sweet taste that surprisingly left something bitter and sour on the tip of his tongue.

The crowd erupted into applause, and even Aru had to cheer at the Mandalorian's bravado.

"Yes, Appius!" the Arconan applauded as he gave his fellow Magistrate six thumbs up.

Wait… six? Appius thought to himself in his drunken stupor. The spice lingered on the Savant"s every breath. There was a reason he never touched the stuff. Force-sensitive or not, it was highly dangerous, especially for first-time users.

The Juggernaut felt his head wobble and stomach churn. The humidity in the room made sweat drip from the older Human's brow as his legs began to buckle under his weight. The music blared and irritated his ears, giving him a painful migraine.

Before he had a chance to fall, Aru wrapped an arm around the taller man and kept him upright.

"That's my guy! I knew you could do it! High-five!"

Aru released his hold over Appius and raised his hand. Unfortunately, the Shadow didn't get the response he was looking for. The moment he let go of the Juggernaut, the older Human's body collapsed to the club floor like it was nothing more than a lead weight.

"Oops," the Arconan commented. "You guys think I added too much spice?"

The Mystic gestured wildly and threw his arms out to his sides. Aru was nothing if not a showman for the crowd on occasions like this.

Little did he realise just how right he was. Appius began to twitch on the ground and convulse. The Mandalorians eyes rolled into the back of his head as the contents of his stomach spilt out onto the ground.

"He's thrown up!"

"He loses!"

"Aru wins the gauntlet!"

The Barkeeper raised Aru's hand in victory, and even under the effects of spice and alcohol, the Qel-Droma Aedile managed a smug smile.

"Alright, Appius. Games over, I win. You can get up now," the Arconan gloated.

There was no answer.

"Appius? Hey, come on. Get up. Please?"

Aru nudged the fallen Juggernaut with his foot. Still no answer. The Shadow clumsily dropped down to his knees and shook the heavily-armoured man in an attempt to wake him up. Failing that, Aru reached up for a glass of liquid from the table above him. Regardless of whatever it might have been, the Aedile poured the liquid onto Appius' face.

Still nothing.

The music stopped, and the crowd chattered and whispered amongst themselves.

"Appius? Appius!?" Aru slurred his words as he shook the man beneath him.

In his intoxicated state, there was no way the Arconan could sense if his fellow Magistrate was ok. The crowd gave Aru a wide berth and stepped away from the body, fearing the worst.

Sweat dripped down the Mystic's forehead. His heart thundered against his ribs and his dilated eyes widened. Ruka always warned him that his antics would get him into trouble someday. Aru could already hear the Miralian's voice in the back of his mind.

"You gotta cut that franging stuff out, ja. You gonna get someone killed!"

It looked like today might be that day.

"What's going on in here!?"

The voice of Amis Jumah boomed over the crowd, causing Aru to recoil in horror. Ankira Irr followed right behind the Twi'lek. The lack of music had the two women concerned and they re-entered the club to investigate. Though, the moment the Mandalorian woman saw the love of her life on the ground lifeless, she rushed to his side and shoved Aru out of the way.

"You," Ankira seethed. "What did you do to him!?"

"I… I… I…" Aru stuttered and raised his hands defensively. The only reason the Arconan didn't currently have a blaster bolt between his eyes was because Ankira was more concerned about Appius.

"He's overdosed on spice," Amis interrupted, much to the Aediles relief. The Twi'lek dropped beside the downed juggernaut and placed two fingers on his neck.

"There's no pulse," Amis whispered. "Why did you have to do it!? You done messed up, A-Aru!"

"Please, Amis. Help him!" Aru pleaded.

The Twi'lek gave a slight nod of her head. For all of Aru Law's faults, despite being a reckless drug-addicted alcoholic, he cared when it mattered most, as evidenced by when he freed Amis from slavery. The young woman reached for a twin set of syringes in her antidote kit and plunged the first into the Mandalorian Force Disciple's neck.

"This one is to counteract the toxins in his bloodstream. This one…" the Field Medic carefully placed the needle into Appius' neck. "Is to kickstart his heart."

A few painful, agonizing seconds passed where nothing happened.

"Come on, Appius. Please, for ner cyare?" Ankira whispered, her voice barely louder than the nattering of the crowd. Almost like it was on command, Appius' chest heaved and drew breath, his eyes opened, and sweet relief swept over the club. The crowd cheered as Ankira held onto him.

"Anki…" the Juggernaut weakly rasped.

"Shush. It's ok. I've got you," Ankira responded.

Amis backed away from the pair as Aru wrapped his arm around her shoulder and led her towards the exit, staggering with his footsteps as he did so, forcing the Twi'lek to hold him upright.

"What are you doing?" Amis inquired.

"Getting out of here, watch me vanish!" Aru responded confidently. Regardless nothing happened as the Shadow would have believed. The Mystic skulked off towards the nearest exit with the Field Medic supporting his weight, thinking he was invisible whilst Amis rolled her eyes at his antics.

Unbeknownst to the drunken Arcona and the Twi'lek, Ankira placed a tracking beacon upon Aru's clothing when she shoved him earlier. Once Appius had recovered, she was going to hunt that miserable scum down and make the Arconan pay for what he did. One way or another.

“Frak it!” said the Mandalorian. He then turned towards the counter and pointed towards the biggest bottle he could see. “Barkeep! How much for that one?”

“Two hundred credits a shot,” the bartender answered, “the whole bottle is ten thousand credits.”

Ten thousand! The shock quickly vanished as Appius felt encouraged by everyone looking at him with excitement.

“Here you go!” he slammed a bunch of credits on the counter.

After he got the bottle, he opened it and sniffed it before pouring its contents. What the hell is this?, he thought. It reeked of old water mixed with earth.

Nonetheless he emptied the bottle into the large barrel.

“Now this is more like it!” Aru yelled.

Out of nowhere, or at least that’s what it seemed to Appius, the Qel-Droman Aedile had acquired an enormous wooden spoon and was now mixing the surely deadly beverage inside the barrel.

“Appius!” Law called. “Your lightsaber.”

“What about it?”

“Stick it inside and ignite it.”

“Alright boss.” The Taldryanite wasn’t questioning anymore. All the alcohol, the spice, the loud music. Everything had severed his ability to think at this point.

Reaching for his hilt, Appius pointed it towards the barrel and turned it on. Immediately all the alcohol inside was ignited in several different colors. That, with Aru’s vigorous mixing, caused a rainbow colored flame tornado to spin around in the center of the barrel. Then the Mystic scooped a glass from inside the barrel, slurped it and spat towards the flames.

An enormous fireball briefly lit the entire club, before vanishing into smoke and a myriad of smells. “Now it’s ready.” said Law.

They covered the barrel with a lid to kill the flames. Afterwards, both Aru and Appius grabbed a cup and readied themselves opposite to each other.

“I’ll do the honors,” Aru informed, immersing completely his glass and pulling it out full to the brim, “to Appius!”

His yell was followed by a cheer from everyone watching as he downed his drink like it was nothing. Although, the Arconan struggled to keep his eyes open and his throat felt like it was melting.

“Your turn.” he said.

Appius mimicked Aru’s movements, filling his glass to the top as well. The Mandalorian then drank its contents. His tongue was so numb that it only tasted like water. But the aftertaste was like a punch to the stomach, causing him to gag violently. He managed to avoid barfing in front of everyone.

“What now?” Appius stumbled on his words. “I played your g-game and hiccup I survived everyt-thing A-Aru. You’re co-oming with m-me.” He said as he pointed menacingly towards Aru.

Only it wasn’t the Qel-Droman he was talking to, but one of the pillars of the club.

“HAHAHAHA!” Aru burst out. He too was mistaken with whom he was talking to. “Appius, you need to lay down.” he said while speaking to the barrel. “You hear me? Oi APpIUS!”

Then Aru stuck his entire head inside the barrel and screamed his lungs out. To everyone watching, they could only hear the bubbles of his screams popping as he ran out of breath.

“Aru!” Appius was getting impatient. “For the last time, LET’s GO!”

The Taldryanite put his arm around the pillar and pulled hard. Since it wasn’t going anywhere, Appius circled around it and tried to push with all his body weight.

“Kark damnit Aru!” He tried to punch his fellow Magistrate, ending up punching hard with his bare hand on the metallic pillar. “Geez! You’ve got strong abs mate.”

Meanwhile, Aru had managed to take his head out of the barrel and was now dripping in alcohol. “Man Appius, you’re sweaty as hell. You gotta go see the doctor.”

All this was accompanied by extreme laughter and banter from the others present. But not much was going to happen, since Appius had fallen asleep while hugging the pillar, and Aru was unconscious for having tried to lick all the alcohol in his jacket that he thought to be sweat from Appius.

---

“Rise and shine!” the bartender said, spilling a glass of water over Appius’ face.

He blinked several times to allow his eyes to adjust to the very bright lights on the ceiling. After he looked around slowly, he tried to speak, but his throat was drier than Tatooine.

“Here.” This time the bartender offered him a glass.

“Thanks,” the Taldryanite said after drinking.

Then Appius stopped. His eyes narrowed and he sniffed the cup he had been given.

“Can I have a lighter please?” His request was immediately followed by being given what he had asked for, as if the bartender was already expecting it.

The Magistrate ignited the lighter and got it closer to the cup. It lit up in a blue flame.

“I knew it!” he yelled. “What the hell!”

The bartender started laughing really hard. And in a blink, his image shifted to Aru Law.

“Gotcha real good!”

“Law!”

Appius tried to get up, but he felt his head spin. And everytime he looked to the sides, his head would pound hard. He managed to sit by the pillar and gazed angrily towards Aru. How the hell is he able to walk? Like nothing happened yesterday?.

“I need to get back to Ankira,” he said, “and you need to get back to the Shadow Academy. There’s work to be done.”

“Oh don’t worry about that, mate.” Law handed a datapad over to Appius. “I’ve taken care of everything:”

Appius watched in horror a picture of himself kissing the same pillar he was leaning one very passionately. Then his heart sank as he realized Law had sent the picture to all the staff in the Shadow Academy, and also Ankira and a few others.

“Aru!” He yelled. To no avail. The Qel-Droman Aedile was now gone.

“Uh, Mr. Appius is that right?” asked the real bartender.

“What?” said Appius furiously.

The bartender handed another smaller datapad to the Madalorina and stepped back several paces.

Several lighting bolts appeared and surrounded Appius as he looked with dead eyes to the bill he had to pay.

“I see now why he has so much debt…”