As the war between the Republic and the Separatists intensifies, many are driven from their home planets, and it is up to Senator Amidala to secure aid for them. All eyes turn to the Banking Clan and the planet Scipio. In an effort to remain independent from the Republic and the Separatists, all operations are divided and money transactions are performed in a neutral zone surrounding the Main Vault. For operations to continue there must be NO WAR on Scipio. However, worry about the stability of the Banking Clan is brewing within the Republic as the wellspring of money may be in jeopardy....

The Republic diplomatic vessel Valorous soars past the snowcapped mountain peaks of Scipio and zeroes in towards the ice-bound fortress containing the Main Vault of the Banking Clan. The ship settles on a landing pad, and Padmé Amidala, her handmaiden Teckla Minnau, and Banking Clan delegate Nix Card emerge.

They are welcomed by a Banking Clan leader, Mak Plain. Spying this arrival from a nearby rooftop through electrobinoculars is the bounty hunter Embo. Embo activates a small seeker droid and dispatches it to spy on the transaction.

Padmé, Teckla, Plain, and Card leave their guards behind as they enter through the massive armored gates of the Vault. Within a rotunda hall, Padmé looks up the huge, holographically projected faces of the Core Five, the leadership of the Banking Clan. Padmé explains to Clu Lesser, spokesman of the Five, that she has been sent by the Supreme Chancellor to secure a loan.

Lesser is surprised that Padmé would have traveled this far, and calls for a special clan representative to deal with this matter. A door opens, and out steps Padmé's old flame, Rush Clovis. Padmé objects to Rush's presence. She calls Clovis as a known Separatist, insists he be removed from negotiations, and then storms off.

That night, a shadowy figure climbs through the balcony of the guest quarters where Padmé and Teckla stay. Padmé draws a concealed blaster pistol and points it at the intruder: it is Rush Clovis. The two Senators step out onto the balcony, where they can be spied upon by Embo. Clovis asks for Padmé's help to pressure the Core Five to gain access to the Vault.

Shots ring out from the night, narrowly missing Rush and Padmé. Unbeknownst to them, it is Embo who peppers the balcony with blaster-fire, but conspicuously misses. Rush tackles Padmé to push her away from the line of fire. When the attack ends, Rush points out that his life is in danger as proof of his claims and trustworthiness. Rush leaps off the balcony onto an awaiting hover sledge and disappears into the night.

Muun security agents depart from Padmé's balcony, satisfied that the Senator is safe. Padmé is in holographic communication with Supreme Chancellor Palpatine. He is greatly intrigued by what Clovis has revealed, and he fears that the security of the Republic may be at stake. Palpatine advises that Padmé trust her old friend and help Clovis, in the interests of finding out the truth.

The next day, before the Core Five, Padmé accepts Clovis as the Banking Clan's special representative. But she makes this contingent on being allowed into the vaults to supervise the transaction process. This horrifies the Core Five -- no outsider is ever allowed into the vaults. Clovis backs Padmé's request, citing the need for transparency following the mysterious attempt on the Senator's life the night before. The Core Five caucus and agree to the request. The vaults will be opened the next morning.

The next morning, outside the Vault structure, Teckla walks towards a massive power grid that feeds the Vault systems. The terminals crackle with electrical power. She slips the thermo charge onto the structure, but halts in her tracks as she spots a targeting laser-light that appears on her body. Teckla worriedly scans her surroundings, trying to find her attacker, but does not see Embo at all, who fires a single shot that kills her. Teckla's explosive detonates, overloading the grid, plunging the Vault into darkness.

As the Core Five Muuns panic, Padmé darts into the darkness. Emergency power keeps the mainframe running, but there is not enough power to disengage the lock-down protocols. Padmé plugs the data transfer device Clovis gave her into the mainframe, extracting the hidden files.

Back at her quarters, Padmé and Clovis compare notes. The data she has recovered prove that the vaults are empty. Just then, Nix Card and several Muun guards enter, declaring that Amidala is under arrest for espionage. Clovis' cry of protest falls on deaf ears as guards march Padmé away.

A few days later, a Jedi shuttle lands at the Vault platform, where it is met by Mak Plain. Anakin Skywalker and R2-D2 emerge. Padmé lies asleep in a jail cell, but awakens as Anakin enters. He chuckles at the predicament that Padmé has gotten herself into. Padmé is grateful to see Anakin, but saddened about word that Teckla is dead. Anakin contacts R2-D2 on the comlink, instructing the droid to keep the ship ready should they need it.

The hover sledge arrives at the chalet; it has been ransacked. Embo's probe droid spots them enter. Padmé looks through the overturned furniture, hoping to find Clovis or his data, but Anakin is content to leave Clovis to fend for himself. Clovis emerges from a lower level of the chalet, happy to see Padmé. She resists his embrace in Anakin's presence. When Anakin sees Clovis, he demands the banker hand over his files. As Anakin and Clovis bicker, Embo -- who is outside -- targets his bowcaster on Padmé.

Anakin senses the danger through the Force. He yells for Clovis and Padmé to seek cover as he ignites his lightsaber to deflect the incoming blasts. Anakin covers their escape as they rush to the hover sledge, avoiding Embo's blast.

The bounty hunter's pet anooba, Marruk, gives chase, but the sledge lifts off. Embo redirects his fire to the sledge's repusorlift engine. A hit sends the sledge tumbling into the mountainside where it begins to slide down. Embo gives chase by using his broad, disc-like hat as a makeshift snowboard, slaloming down the mountain.

The sledge slides into an ice gully and picks up speed. Anakin calls R2-D2 for help before concentrating on deflecting the incoming blasts. Embo fires at massive icicles looming overhead, causing them to cascade in a torrent of heavy ice. But with Padmé piloting, the sledge avoids the worst of the spills, and Anakin is able to Force-push Embo out of pursuit.

The sledge runs out of mountainside, and soars off the edge of a cliff, only to cross paths with the Jedi shuttle that R2-D2 has piloted to intercept in the nick of time. Anakin, Padmé and Clovis leap onto the shuttle's hull as the sledge tumbles into the ice far below. The shuttle takes off, departing Scipio.

Embo recovers from his fall. Faithful Marruk brings his hat to him. With a handheld communicator, Embo contacts Darth Sidious, his client. Sidious is pleased to hear of Embo's success, and assures the bounty hunter that he will deal with his quarry from now on.