Jedi Knight Kara Saje kept her face impassive as her shuttle descended into the bay of the Retrieval and her linked hands hidden in the sleeves of her robes. She watched through the viewport as they landed, noting the ranks of troopers waiting for her. She wondered if they knew anything about her, what they would say about having a shiny new General for this venture. She wondered if they were concerned about having her in charge as she was. Then she pinched her wrist and reminded herself to trust the Force, it would guide her in this as it always had.
"General," the pilot said.
Kara tried to smile at him, "Thank you for the smooth ride, pilot. Will you be staying, or…?"
"I'm staying," the pilot said.
"All right," Kara said and stood. She stepped out of the cockpit and headed into the hold, seeing the ramp already open. She turned to collect her bags, only to find a pair of troopers already there. She was tempted to reclaim the bags, but paused, wishing she'd had more time with her Master with his troops, but Master Honso had been killed in an early engagement, leaving her an orphaned Padawan until the Council decided to knight her.
Her fingers twitched in that familiar way. "Excuse me," she said, trying to remember the rank insignia, "there's a blue satchel in the pile, would you hand it to me."
"Yes General," one of the troopers said. "Here you go."
"Thank you," Kara said, trying another smile. She slung the bag over her shoulder, hoping to find a moment's peace to draw whatever vision was beginning to grow in her mind.
"General, sir," another trooper said, "I'm Captain Zip, I'm to escort you to the bridge."
"Of course, Captain," Kara said as she settled her bag. "Lead the way."
Kara remembered when she and Master Honso had returned from one of their missions and everyone had stared because she'd ended up dragged into a holoshow against her will. Compared to that, the attention paid by the troops as she walked past was bearable. She looked at them, the ones who saluted, and struggled to remember if she was supposed to return the salute or not. Maybe the Captain of the Retrieval, an experienced Captain from Judicial, would help her.
Her hands cramped, nails scratching her wrists with the suddenness of the urge to draw. "Oh kriff," she muttered, forgetting herself and scrambling for her bag.
"Sir?" Captain Zip asked.
"I need a moment," Kara said, fingers gripping her pad, "I'm sorry, just hold on." She yanked the pad out and the stylus with it, dropping into a full lotus as she began to draw.
In moments, she had a Twi'lek roughed out, in Jedi robes. The Twi'lek, female but unknown, was standing with her lightsaber engaged, over the bodies of clones in armor. Her face was drawn into a snarl as she faced off against one of the big droids. Kara flicked the stylus, turning the lightsaber blue before expanding to the world itself, enough for her to know that it wasn't one she recognized given the plant life.
Kara pulled up a fresh screen and kept drawing, now she drew an older Bothan in the naval uniform of Judicial. Around him, she drew a planet, Bothawui, broken shackles, the seal of the Judicial branch, and a child Botham with a brilliant smile.
She stopped then, waiting to see what else the Force needed, but there was no twitch or urge and she nodded, standing back up and glancing shyly at the patient Captain, "My apologies, Captain." She flipped the pad closed. "I- sometimes, the Force gives me images that I have to draw. It is easier to bear than other ways of seeing, but frustrating when it cannot be ignored."
"Of course, General," Captain Zip said.
"Let's go meet Captain Sei'lar," Kara said, putting the pad away.
Zip saluted and walked away, Kara took a deep breath and followed. She was pretty sure her attempt to look like an experienced Jedi General had just been blown out of the water. Now, she'd have to double down to prove she was competent, even if she was as green as the foam on lomin ale. So, she squared her shoulders, lifted her chin, and kept her eyes focused on Captain Zip's back. No use looking around like a tourist now, not when she knew they'd have a mission by the time she hit the bridge.
"Captain Sei'lar," Captain Zip said as they entered the bridge, "General Saje."
"General," Sei'lar said with a salute.
"Captain," Kara replied with a quick nod.
"We just had an emergency communique from Coruscant," Sei'lar said.
"Show me," Kara replied.
Sei'lar led her to the holotable and pulled up the message. It was Mace Windu, and Kara had to fight to keep from swallowing, Master Windu had always left her feeling like a youngling. "General Saje, congratulations on passing your trials. I know we'd hoped to give you time to adjust to your new command but an issue has arisen and the Retrieval is the closest Republican vessel." Kara tucked her hands into her sleeves, trying not to show how her heart had started pounding. "General Aayla Secura has crashed on Millius Prime, currently a Separatist world. Your mission is to retrieve the General before the Separatists can capture her. Once you have General Secura on board, you must convey her to the Valiant at a rendezvous point included in this transmission. Her arrival there is a matter of great importance. May the Force be with you."
Kara took a deep breath, considering the angles of the order. She wasn't ready, she didn't have any of her people organized, she wasn't sure they had the supplies necessary. Besides, she knew there would be troopers on that world, crashed with Secura, was she supposed to leave them?
"General?" Captain Zip said, and Kara realized she'd been silent for too long.
Assume the appearance of serenity, and in time you will become serene, Master Honso had frequently told her. It continued to be the most frustrating homily in her Master's litany.
"Captain Sei'lar, set a course for Millius Prime," Kara said. "Captain Zip, with me." She acknowledged Sai'lar's salute before she turned and headed back to the hallway to the lift. Once the bridge doors were shut, she turned to Captain Zip. "Captain, make sure your men are ready to deploy, including sufficient medical supplies. I leave you to decide the best deployment for them. My only requirement is a squad placed directly in my command. Their orders are simple if difficult. They must keep up with me, and watch my back." She hesitated, then allowed him to see her lingering grief, "My Master died because he chose to go alone instead of taking back up. I warned him, but he didn't listen to me. This squad's primary function is to ensure I don't go without back up."
"Understood sir," Captain Zip said.
"Once you've given your orders, I want you, the primary medic, and the lead shuttle pilot to meet me in a briefing room." She paused, "Actually, first show me to an appropriate briefing room, then start giving orders to your men. I'll be there going over the data from Master- General- Windu."
"Very good, sir," Captain Zip said with a nod, "If you'll follow me."
Soon she was settled into a chair at a table and her Captain was off to get things prepared with the troops. Kara pulled out her pad and stylus and pulled up the image of Secura. She stared at it for a moment, but as usual, there was nothing more she could add to the image. She dated the drawing and saved it. Then she reached into her bag for her other datapad and frowned as her fingers found something else instead. She pulled out the folded sheet of plasifilm and opened it. It was a very old drawing, one that should have been in her room on Coruscant. It showed her sitting with others, smiling and happy. They were all human, mostly with dark hair, but none of their faces were visible. A childish hand scribbled across the top this is my family.
She folded the drawing and tucked it back in her bag, promising to see it into her quarters as soon as she could. Then she found her other datapad, the one issued to her by the Jedi Council upon accepting her rank as General. This datapad had all the security features necessary for her job, an upgraded holoprojector, and uplink to the holonet. Waiting for her was the briefing for her first rescue mission. Reading over the parameters, she quickly confirmed that there was nothing there about Secura's troopers, and she desperately wanted to react. Instead, she began to plot.
Kara hadn't been a prankster like some of her youngling clan, and she'd avoided bullies for years, but Kara was a seer. She'd been infamous as a troublemaker years before her gift was identified, simply because she couldn't not react to her visions. While responding to her visions, Kara had learned quite a bit about being sneaky for a cause. It was this experience that she called on as she reviewed the information available to her.
By the time Captain Zip and the other two troopers arrived, Kara had a plan and very specific orders to give. "General, might I introduce Lieutenant Screech, our field medic, and Lieutenant Swoop, who leads our pilots."
"Gentlemen," Kara said when Zip lead the men in. She stood and nodded to the pair, "Have a seat, please." She sat back down and waited until the three men were ready. "I am General Kara Saje, welcome to the newly designated 425th, Search, Rescue, and Retrieval unit. Our new assignment is to provide search and rescue support as well as the retrieval of key artifacts and information. In a perfect galaxy, we would have time to begin the transition, to shift troopers off the Retrieval who are ill suited for the work, and begin training practices that will assist in the creation of ideal strategies. Unfortunately, this is a galaxy at war and time is a luxury we've been denied. In four hours, the Retrieval will drop from hyperspace over Millius Prime, where General Aayla Secura and an unknown number of troopers are awaiting rescue. My orders are to retrieve General Secura and deliver her to the Valiant."
There was a burst of frustration and Kara pushed her hands into her sleeves, projecting calm serenity. "Your orders are thus," she said, "Lieutenant Swoop, select a half dozen landing zones in reasonable distance of the last known location of the General. We will select one as a primary landing zone where a ship will remain on site, while the other ships will stand off in low orbit until called. Lieutenant Screech, you will set up a field camp at the primary landing zone for any possible injured troopers while Captain Zig directs his troops in a standard grid pattern. I will take a squad with me in a non-standard pattern to search for General Secura. Captain, you have until General Secura has been secured on a ship, and I have returned to the primary landing zone to locate all the troopers you can and get them on the troop ships. I can't stretch my orders to ensure we leave no one behind beyond that, and I am sorry for that. Any questions or suggestions?"
"Sir, about that landing zone," Screech said, "am I in charge of all of it?"
Kara tapped her finger a moment, "If you feel another trooper would best serve in charge of security, then speak with Captain Zip, I leave the distribution to him. I would like you to run the field camp this first time, but if it proves to be a poor choice we can decide later on a better system. This is only a trial period, we can change things when we know they don't work."
"You leave the distribution to me?" Zip said.
Kara smiled tightly, "Captain, between the two of us, you have more practical experience in troop movements. My Master- I was trained for small group tactics at best, handing me more than the squad I requested and I'm pretty sure the phrase disaster would be appropriate now. However, I was also taught to realize my limitations and to accept help from others. I can learn to command larger groups, but now is not the time to try."
"Actually, I'd say you've made a good start," Captain Zip said.
Kara nodded, "The only other thing you three should know going into this is that I have visions of the future. I draw my visions, which is unique and annoying, as Captain Zip witnessed earlier. If what I see has an impact on the mission, I'll let you know."
"Appreciate that sir," Captain Zip said, although Kara could tell he was uneasy about the Force.
"Is there anything else?" Kara asked. When she received three negatives, she nodded and stood up, "Then I leave you to get ready. I want to meet with the squad assigned to me half an hour before we come out of hyperspace. Captain, if you could have someone direct me to my quarters?"
"Of course," Captain Zip said as the three troopers stood.
"Dismissed," Kara said, accepting their salutes.