The hum of the engines, ever-present, brought Luke Organa out of his meditation. It was the subtle shift as they dropped from lightspeed, in fact, that did the trick. The Riptide had a slight shift in the modulation in the engines when it dropped to sublight, something he had noticed the first time. It wasn't something he could ignore any more. He sighed, resigned to the fact that they were going to hit atmosphere in a few minutes.

The Riptide was nominally a courier craft. It had enough room for five crew, but for this mission, it was just him and the pilot.

Luke walked from the rear compartment towards the front of the ship, his boots tapping against the metal deck plating. He entered the cockpit, where his pilot, teacher, and protector was sitting.

"How does it look?" He asked as he fit into the copilot's seat. He checked the engines. Power was nominal. Systems looked good.

Ahsoka Tano smiled over at Luke. "Right on time. We're on course for Dac. The Mon Calamari delegation has sent us details. We're to meet in one of the orbital stations." She relaxed back against the pilot's chair for a moment. "How're you feeling? Ready to represent Alderaan?"

Luke nodded, summoning his control from his lessons. "Yes, Master Tano." He said, tucking an unruly lock of hair behind an ear.

She closed her eyes, as if taking a moment to compose herself. "How many times do I have to tell you not to use that title? The Jedi Order's long done."

Luke fidgeted with his tunic. "At least once more, Ahsoka."

Ahsoka snorted. "We're on approach to Dac's central shipyard." She gestured to the large artificial ring that surrounded the aquatic world. Luke watched as it grew larger and larger. The huge star liners that the Mon Calamari constructed seemed just tiny, insignificant fish among a much larger reef.

The docking procedure was routine as could be. By the time the docking had completed, they were situated in the shipyard's many hangar bays. Ahsoka grabbed a case, slinging it over her shoulder. She had to brush her montral to make sure it wasn't caught on the strap. "Come on, Your Worship. Let's get going."

Luke rose, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. He went back to his quarters, grabbing the more formal of the coats. He checked his hair quickly, to make sure that the looked presentable. His father's voice rang in his head. In this instance, he was the voice of Alderaan.

Sixteen years old, and the voice of a planet. Luke wasn't sure he had heard of anything like that. He joined Ahsoka on the boarding ramp, descending on it as they walked into the hangar.

The hangar itself was warm and, surprisingly, damp. Most controlled environments preferred cold and dry air, keeping the atmosphere controlled at all times. Luke remembered reading up on Dac and its climate, and it made sense to him that the Mon Cal shipyards would have an internal atmosphere that would be comfortable to the workers.

The hangar itself held a number of the new Blade Wing fighters, enough for a squadron. Ahsoka caught his wandering eye, whispering. "Eyes up. Here comes the Admiral."

The door to the hangar opened, and in shuffled Gial Ackbar. The head of the Mon Calamari defense fleet, he wasn't a particular impressive figure. An average height, wearing a simple pair of trousers, a tunic, and vest. He bowed his head politely. "Prince Luke Organa, welcome to the Dac Orbital Shipyards. I am Admiral Gial Ackbar."

"Admiral," Luke began. "It's an honor to meet you. This is my protector, Ah-"

"Ahsoka Tano," Ackbar said, with something near haunting reverence. "Commander Tano, I-Well, I suppose it's not Commander any more, is it?"

Ahsoka shook her head. "No, Admiral. It's been a while since I've held any rank. I'm merely here as a bodyguard. Shall we get seated down before we get to business?"

"Of course, of course," Ackbar said. His voice was like someone gurgling, distorted slightly. Luke had to pay attention to him. Ackbar and his two aides led Luke and Ahsoka away from the hangar. Ackbar walked with a military clip, so much that Luke had to hurry just a little to keep up at times.

They reached the conference room, a white room with seats around a rounded table. As they sat, Luke asked. "You called her Commander Tano. You met her during the War?"

Ackbar's face twisted in a mockery of a human smile. "Indeed. Back then she was a Padawan."

Ahsoka took a seat in one of the chairs, folding her arms across her chest. "That was a very long time ago." She noted. "I'm just Prince Luke's bodyguard now."

"Indeed," Ackbar settled himself into one of the chairs, this one a levitating one that seemed to be specifically calibrated for him. "We are given to understand that the government of Alderaan, specifically that of House Organa, wishes to purchase ships from us."

"Yes, Admiral," Luke felt a mynock in his stomach, but he forced himself to concentrate. "The Alderaanian Defense Corps would like some more system patrol craft, and the Mon Cal ship yards are legendary for their excellent work."

Ackbar tilted his head to the side, something Luke knew to be akin to the raising of an eyebrow for a Mon Cal. "I was in the belief that Alderaan preferred Corellian models in their defense fleets." He folded webbed hands together. "Mon Cal ships are often..difficult for humans to use. Our physiology is quite different."

"We're aware of the usual design differences. However, with the Empire's tighter economic sanctions on Corellia, we are left with having to turn to newer sources for pirate discouragement."

"Could you not petition for an Imperial presence on Alderaan?" It needed to be said. It was due diligence on both of their parts.

Luke offered his most pleasant smile. "Admiral, the Empire has better things to do than patrol Alderaan." He pulled a datapad from his coat. "However, we would be willing to discuss sending a few human engineers to Dac so we can assist in making what patrol ships we commission to be more suitable for humans.

"Kuat is a lot closer to Alderaan." Ackbar noted.

That made Luke laugh, an honest sound that he couldn't help. "Kuati are arrogant and petty, generally with issues about their mothers. Besides, Alderaan appreciates style. A Kuat Drive Yards cruiser is one of the ugliest things in the galaxy."

"Don't let the Empire hear you say that." Ackbar laughed. "My, Ahsoka, you seem to have found yourself an interesting ward."

A knowing grin crossed her features. "You don't know the half of it."

Once they were back on the Riptide, they powered up the encrypted holocomm. It took several minutes for the system to power up, search for a signal they could leech off of that would reach Alderaan, and dial up his father.

Bail Organa was an impressive figure who had certainly aged well. He only had flecks of gray in his dark hair, and for all the time, his adopted father still made quite the commanding figure.

"Luke," He said. "Negotiations must have been quick."

Luke allowed himself a private moment of joy. "It helps that the Mon Calamari seem to lean towards our point of view." He offered a little shrug. "We'll need to send them engineers so they can figure out how to design for a human interface. But if we pay, they'll make the ships."

"Excellent. It's an old design, but the Thranta cruisers in a Mon Cal design team will be just what we need." Bail scratched at his chin. "You did good work, Luke. When you've finished on Dac, come home. We have something we want to discuss."

Luke nodded. "Yes, Father. I'll have us head home as soon as we can."

"Excellent. Organa out. May the Force be with you."

"And with you, Father." The holographic image of his father's face disappeared, and Luke sighed. There was so much work to do.

The rest of the negotiations were mostly haggling. It wasn't a particularly intensive progress, but it was good experience. Mon Cal cuisine was interesting, to say the least. He hadn't even known that he was eating seaweed until Ahsoka had told him after the meal.

The hyperspace trip back to Alderaan was due to last at least a week. Luke wasn't looking forward to another week of studies cramped up on the Riptide, but there was worse company.

He was in his quarters, a pang of homesickness rushing through him. He missed Alderaan, his family, and his close companion Winter. He sighed as he flipped through the latest files on mining treaties.

There was a faint rap on his door. "Luke?"

He checked the chrono on the dash of his work station. It was already time for more practical lessons. "Coming, Ahsoka." He said, and deactivated his screen.

He got up from his seat and opened the door to his quarters. Ahsoka was dressed in her simple vest and tunic, with loose pants that allowed freedom of mobility, leaning against the frame of the door. "We've got work to do, Luke."

Luke followed her to the cargo hold, which was mostly full of crates of rations and supplies. There was a large space cleared out, for them to practice.

"Your mind's wandering," Ahsoka noted. She unpacked a case, pulling a few stones from the case. "Want to talk about it?"

Luke tried to put it to words. This was something that Ahsoka liked to lead lessons with. Clear the mind of the worries of the day, and allow it to dwell just on one thing, the Force.

"I'm looking forward to coming home. Our time on Dac was…interesting, to say the least, but…"

Ahsoka smiled. "You'd rather be working in something a bit more active with the Rebellion." She guessed. There was a hint of a familiarity in her smile. "You're just like your father."

There it was. The mention of Anakin Skywalker. Luke wanted to ask more questions. "You were younger than me when you were a Commander in the War."

She shook her head. "I was reckless and a kid who was put into a situation that no one should be." She set the stones between them in a line. "We start with one, then two. You want to get to all four." Ahsoka instructed him.

He nodded, and he slowly moved to kneel. He placed his hands on his knees, and opened his mind to the Force.

In the chaos of life, diplomacy, and the Rebellion, learning about the Force with Ahsoka was something entirely set aside from it all. In the depths of hyperspace, in the cool air of the ship, the only things he could feel were himself, his teacher, and the stones in front of him.

He let the Force flow through him, opening himself up to its power. He focused on the stone to his left, focusing on lifting it. It came easily to him, and it rose slowly. It was exhilarating. He kept his focus on the stone, keeping it hanging a few feet above the ground.

"That's it. Focus on it, and start levitating the next one."

Luke brought his focus on to the next stone over. He could feel his control on the first stone waver momentarily, and it dropped a few inches. He forced himself to regain control on the first, sectioning off a part of his mind to focus on the next stone.

The next one lifted, and it joined the first, hovering a few feet off the ground, stationary.

"Good," Ahsoka said. "Now, have both orbit around you."

As Luke started to focus on them, moving them with his mind, the ship rattled, and he felt the change of the ship to sublight engines. The stones dropped in front of him. "What was that?"

"I don't know. Nothing good." Ahsoka rose as the proximity alert glared through the ship. They both rushed to the cockpit as the rumbling turned from shaky rattles of the Riptide to a more firm vibration. Ahsoka groaned. "They've got us in a tractor beam. Sithspit!"

Luke filed into the cockpit behind Ahsoka, watching as the Interdictor cruiser loomed in front of the view screen. "What do we do?"

Ahsoka checked the readings on the pilot's console. "We can't take on a cruiser on our own, especially not in this rust bucket." She sighed. "We play it calm, you take the lead."

Luke saw the comm panel on his station blink. "We're being hailed. Putting it on." He hit the receive button.

"Riptide, this is the Imperial cruiser Assessor. You are ordered to stand down, shut off your engines, and prepare to be boarded." Said a cool, female voice over the comms.

Luke didn't hit the send button to transmit a reply just yet. He looked over to Ahsoka. Her blue eyes looked right back at him, and he realized that he was in command here. "Cut the engines, Ahsoka. Let's talk our way out of this."

She nodded, and cut power to the engines. Luke hit the button to transmit. "Assessor, Riptide. We are standing down. As we are flying under a diplomatic banner, I will have words with your commander."

"Prince Organa," the female voice purred back. "I look forward to meeting."

Luke didn't transmit his reply. "I've got a bad feeling about this."