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Chapter Two: Boldly Going Where No NCIS Agent Has Gone Before!
On the planet of Dathomir, a ship was taking off from a small village, warrior women in red and green lizard skins trying to chase the vessel, in vain. The lone man of the group, dressed in expensive yet serviceable slacks and a simple shirt rolled up at the sleeves, dropped to his knees in defeat. A woman, his wife, placed a firm hand on his shoulder, ignoring the tears dripping down the man's face. Her own face was resolute. "We will find our daughter. We must prepare the ship."
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"Casey, was it? Can I speak to you for a moment?" Leia smiled at the woman; when she stood to follow Leia into the cockpit, Officer David stood also, only to be growled down by Chewie.
They passed Han on the way into the cockpit and heard him say, "You overgrown carpet, stop growling at them. They're allowed to stand up if they want to."
Leia shook her head as they sat down in the passenger seats. "Sorry if Chewie frightened you. Sarah vouched for you, so I trust you, and so will Han. The other two… well, Chewie's got to have some fun somehow."
Casey glanced at the door, a half smile on her face. "How did Sarah react to all... this?"
"Well…" Leia returned the half smile. "I gave her an opening. She took a blaster bolt for me, when she came to this dimension. The Gods sent her here to protect the kids. But Mithros sent her here in clothes that… befitted a homeless person. I assumed she was, and she jumped at the cover story. She said 'I've never seen any technology in the lower levels of the city, not really' so she was allowed to gape at everything she saw."
"And that cover story worked?" Casey almost scoffed, but looked apologetic when she realised her tone might have sounded… arrogant.
Leia smiled at the attorney. "Yes. She'd just saved my life from an attempted assassination, so I was inclined to believe her. And she was good with the kids. She blew her cover when she was kidnapped with the kids – she got beaten half to death when people held blasters to their heads. She didn't fight, in case the men got trigger happy. And then she escaped on a half destroyed freighter, and forced the kids to get in the only three available envirosuits when life support failed."
"She told me about that. It was on her 'top three' of stupidest things she's ever done. Getting on the freighter, that is. Not giving up the envirosuits for the kids. She won't tell me what the other two are." Casey shook her head. "Forgive me if I'm overstepping my boundaries, but… shouldn't you be more concerned? If it were my kids I'd be pacing a hole in the floor right now."
Leia's jaw tensed, but she shook her head. "The kids are targets. They've been kidnapped before; people have been after them since they were born. Either I focus on something else, or…" Leia grimaced. "They're scared. I can feel it." When Casey looked confused and sceptical, she continued. "The Force connects us. It's strong in our family… I can tell when the children are in pain, or frightened, or upset."
Nodding slowly, Casey stood. "I'd better go keep the others out of trouble. Or at least quiet."
Leia shook her head. "Just out of curiosity, how serious is her situation with the other two?"
"It's all circumstantial. They don't really have a case, but murder accusations are always serious." Casey sighed. "If only she'd take it seriously."
"She's not?" Leia's jaw dropped.
"She was joking the entire way to their office." The attorney replied dryly.
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The two NCIS agents were talking quietly when Leia and Casey reentered the entertainment area. Chewie was growling softly – he was in hearing distance. "You know, he can understand every word that you say." Han looked mildly amused when they looked up.
"Well then he knows that your friend is in a lot of trouble." Gibbs replied evenly. "She's the only person with the ability to kill that way in our dimension, so she's our prime suspect."
"She's the only person that we know of." Ziva corrected him absently, and received a slap on the back of her head as a reward. "What?"
"You don't undermine your boss in front of a suspect's friends." He replied, standing as he headed towards the living quarters.
"Where do you think you're going?" Casey asked, her eyes narrowing.
"To speak to your client." He tossed back over his shoulder, but Han blocked his path, being closest to the door.
"Not without me." Casey retorted.
"Not right now." Leia added. "She's resting. In case you didn't notice, she's injured. Or didn't that matter to you when you dragged her in for an interrogation?"
"Those injuries," Casey finished, "Were caused when she almost died saving our version of Earth. It's not even her home planet, but she was tortured in her effort to stop the White Martians. Have you ever been psychically raped, Special Agent Gibbs?" Leia gasped at the revelation.
He set an intense stare against her. "She's the only suspect we have."
"Find a new one." Sarah muttered as she pushed past him. Her eyes flicked to Casey, and she added, "And stop calling it that. It wasn't that bad."
Casey merely pursed her lips, but Gibbs had no problem speaking. "I thought you were resting."
Turning back to Gibbs, she glared at him. "I was."
"Too loud for you?" He baited.
"No." She replied.
"Nightmares?" Leia asked softly, and Sarah nodded with a grunt, moving to the food preserver, searching for something decent to eat.
"Ration bars. Yummy." She muttered, sarcastic.
"Go get some more sleep." Leia gestured back to the quarters, but Sarah shook her head.
"I'm gonna bone up on the Firkan system, see what we can't expect when we get there. Past Han's obvious expertise on the matter." She headed to the cockpit, and Officer David followed her. When Casey moved to stop her, Leia laid a hand on her shoulder.
"Let her go. Maybe Sarah can convince her of her innocence." Leia murmured, before settling in a seat, focusing on a datapad with the information the holonet had on the Firkan system laid out in front of her.
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"So we are in another dimension." Ziva looked to Sarah, who wasn't paying attention.
"Yep."
"And you swear you didn't kill those Marines?"
This caught Sarah's attention. "Officer David, must I constantly repeat myself? No, I didn't. I can help you find the man who did."
"I believe you. And call me Ziva, it saves on the breath. So, how do you operate this… computer?" She moved to touch the control panel.
"Don't!" Sarah slapped her hand away. "I swear, Han'll send you out the airlock if you touch any of the controls. The only people allowed to so much as touch the controls are Han himself, Chewie, Leia and her brother Luke."
"Ookay." Ziva searched the small room for a subject to talk about. "And that- that was a real android out there?"
"Threepio?" Sarah snorted. "Yeah. Did he introduce himself?"
"'I am See-Threepio, human-cyborg relations. I am fluent in over six million forms of-'"
"Ah, you let yourself be suckered into that one. Next time, just tell him to shut up." Sarah smiled, for once realising she might like the Israeli woman.
"I will." Ziva promised. "About those rules you gave us-"
"Gibbs won't follow them, will he?" Sarah asked, studying a picture of the temples with a frown.
"Not likely, no. He'll want to follow you to make sure you don't escape. He won't want to let you out of his sight."
"Right." Sarah sighed. "Obviously you can both use guns?" A snort was her reply. "If he wants to come, I won't stop him. To be truthful, I wouldn't mind some extra backup when we go up against pirates, provided your aim is true."
"Trust me, our aim is true." Ziva laughed. "Are… pirates… really so dangerous? I'd imagine someone of your experience wouldn't worry about your every day bad guys, rather just the ones with special abilities."
Sarah sighed, turning away from the screen as she tried to explain. "'Someone with my experience'? Ziva, most of what I deal with is raiders, pirates, Scanrans, other normal, human invaders trying their luck on Tortallan soil. Sure, my most memorable skirmishes are with the unusually gifted fighters, be they Gifted, not human or otherwise empowered, but most of my battles have been fought blade to blade with another normal person on the other side – the wrong side – of the fight. I haven't ever come up against space pirates, in fact, the only time I've been involved in anything remotely dangerous in this dimension was when a Dark Jedi kidnapped me and the kids and tried to convert us to his dastardly ways."
Ziva's mouth quirked in a smile. "'Dastardly ways'?"
Sarah returned the smile with a nod. "Yeah. I could have my very own solar system right now if I wanted it. But I decided to escape with the kids instead."
"And what is a 'Dark Jedi'?"
"An evil Jedi." Sarah explained, then realised that probably wasn't a good enough explanation. "Alright, Jedi use a power called the Force to do stuff like telekinesis, limited telepathy… and stuff…" Sarah trailed off, realising she didn't know enough to explain it properly.
"And these Jedi, they worship your Gods, too?" Ziva frowned. Sarah was confusing her more than she was helping.
"No. The Force… it doesn't have Gods. It just is. I'm not the greatest at explaining things, and the fact of the matter is, I don't know that much about it either. I'll let Luke – he's a Jedi Master, basically the most powerful good Jedi in the galaxy – explain it properly." Sarah returned to her pondering, staring out the viewport, the datapad on the Firkan system forgotten in her lap.
Ziva let her sit quietly for a moment, before asking, "What is that?"
"What?" Sarah looked up, to see the other woman pointing out the viewport. "Oh, hyperspace. We're travelling faster than the speed of light."
There was silence once more in the cockpit, until Ziva cleared her throat uncomfortably. "Can we keep the fact that I don't believe you killed the marines to ourselves? I don't think Gibbs would appreciate lack of support on my part in the… situation we find ourselves in."
"Sure. If you don't mind that I keep treating you like crap until you out yourself to your boss." Sarah flashed the woman a grin. "Just to keep appearances up."
"I think I can take it."
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Gibbs didn't take his eyes from the door to the cockpit once as he watched for the return of the Mossad attaché to his unit. She had disappeared with the woman the Director believed had killed three Marines ten minutes ago, and she hadn't reappeared. He'd never admit it, but he was getting worried, and wondered what was going on behind the closed door.
"Hey, furball." He tried getting the Wookie's attention. The creature only growled and turned back to the man who had left the cockpit, that had been briefly introduced as Han Solo, and Leia Organa Solo, apparently the President of the 'New Republic'. "Hey, I was talking to you."
He saw Casey shake her head from her seat across from him. "You have a real way with people, you know that? Excuse me, Chewbacca, hi." The Wookie turned and nodded to Casey, giving a questioning growl. "I know you don't want to listen to Special Agent Gibbs, heck, neither do I, but he'll make life on this spaceship a living hell if you don't answer him. Please, I've had enough of his attitude to last a life time."
The Wookie chuffed a laugh at the attorney before growling at Gibbs. The agent took this as all the attention he needed and asked, sarcastically, "Hey, where's the can?"
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"Casey?" Leia's voice was firm, eyes unreadable. "I'd like another chat, if you wouldn't mind."
"Leia-" Sarah tried, but the woman's face didn't soften.
"No, Sarah, I'd like another chat with Casey." The Chief of State reiterated, and gestured towards the cockpit. Casey glanced between the knight and the mother uneasily.
"Can I at least umpire the conversation?" Sarah sighed. "You're looking a little intense."
"You need more rest, Sarah. We won't need an umpire. Why don't you go lie down?" Leia tried smiling at the attorney, to reassure her, but Sarah narrowed her eyes, before giving Casey a nod.
"Go on. There's only so many places to hide on this ship, and I doubt you could find one that she doesn't know about." The knight fluttered a hand at her Earthling friend. "Try not to cave in too easily, have some self respect."
Casey recovered enough to smile back at Sarah. "Cave in? What are you talking about, I'm going to tell her everything she wants to know. I doubt it'll be any surprise to her, after all, she's known you for longer than I have, and even I know how much trouble you manage to find without putting much effort in."
Sarah just narrowed her eyes, and Casey followed Leia into the cockpit, and the door whooshed shut behind her. It was but a moment before the Chief of State and veteran of the battle against the Galactic Empire turned on her. "What were you talking about, psychically raped?"
Casey perched on a seat, wincing at the tone the woman used. "The aliens that were invading our planet, the ones that Sarah and her new friends in the Justice League were trying to stop, were allied with three others of a species that had significant psychic abilities. Our planet had no previous experience with aliens, we barely managed spaceflight to our moon about forty years ago. So Sarah felt it necessary to put out, I guess you could call it an announcement of the invasion, to make sure everyone remained calm, although I'm not sure the good it did in that regard. The White Martians – the aliens with the psychic abilities – identified her as the leader of the resistance fighters, and attacked her mind with their abilities."
Horror flashed across Leia's face, and the woman stared at the door leading to the entertainment area, where Sarah sat. "She was-"
"Twice." Casey interrupted softly. "The second time was when we were escaping the White Martian ship, with their prisoners. One of the Martians took us by surprise, knocked out two of our defenders, leaving Sarah the only one at the front of the pack with any real firepower. That's when he speared her through the shoulder and pinned her against the wall. He threatened us to surrender, or he'd… do what the other Martian did to her, but Sarah told Batman and Black Canary to attack anyway."
"And what is she doing being investigated for murder? I understand that she's a suspect, what I mean is…" Leia grimaced. "This is going to sound… uncharacteristic, for Sarah, but shouldn't she be hiding out in Tortall, or somewhere? At least until her injuries are taken care of."
"She did go back to Tortall, to get in a few days rest and say goodbye to her boyfriend, who was leaving-"
Leia raised an interested eyebrow, a small smile on her face. "Boyfriend?"
"It's only a new thing, I'm told." Casey let the smile spread to her own face. "I'm told it was quite the conquest – flowers and everything. He's a gardener-"
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Leia had pulled Casey back into the cockpit, a very serious expression on her face, and Sarah sighed. She knew what was coming next – an interrogation from the Chief of State of the New Republic, one in which Casey was bound to break. Well, considering that Casey had promised to reveal all to the woman, it probably wasn't a matter of the attorney breaking, but rather a session of girl chat.
The knight gave them three minutes for Casey to explain the circumstances of her injuries, and what the White Martians had done to her, which was almost definitely what Leia wanted to talk about, before she stood and made her way to the cockpit. Her hand slid over the activation switch for the door, just in time for her to hear Leia's confused voice as the door whooshed open.
"He's a gardener?" The woman chose the wrong moment to reiterate the occupation.
"He's a mage that specialises in plants, not a gardener." She replied churlishly as she walked into the cockpit. "Are you quite through with your little gossip session?"
The amusement fell from Leia's face so suddenly Sarah blinked. "Why didn't you tell me what happened?"
"I gave you the abbreviated cliff notes-"
"You barely even mentioned the alien invasion, let alone that you were mentally assaulted-"
"I really, really wish people would stop making a big deal out of that." She cut her off sharply, eyes flashing. "Because it wasn't. Just another injury in the line of duty, blah blah blah-"
"Injuries in the line of duty include things like your little freefall when you were being chased by those stormwings." Casey interrupted Sarah's tirade, her voice soft, eyes sad. "Not what the White Martians did-"
"They were injuries," Sarah glared, gesticulating with her hands for emphasis. "And I got them because I did my duty and protected innocent lives, and the lives of my friends. Ergo, injuries in the line of duty. You know, I think I liked it more when we were talking about Briar."
Leia and Casey shared a glance that held too much understanding for women who barely knew each other, and Sarah's eyes narrowed. Casey, however, took stock of Sarah's mood and changed the subject. To one scarcely better. "Anyway, I'm told Briar's not too bad on the eyes, but he's way too young for me. According to Black Canary-"
"Oh I'm gonna throttle her." Sarah promised in a growl, but Casey continued.
"According to Black Canary, he's quite gallant, too. He stayed with Sarah when he could have gone home to safety. And when she was sick he stayed by her side constantly-"
"Really?" Sarah asked, perking up.
"Oh, you didn't know?" Casey asked innocently.
She scowled at the attorney. "He was probably just intimidated by all the muscly men in spandex. Let's talk about something else."
"Like what?" Leia asked agreeably, sharing a smile with Casey.
"I don't know… hyperdrive mechanics." Sarah suggested, exasperated.
"I'd prefer to talk about Briar." The attorney revealed. "What kind of a name is that, anyway? It's the name of a thorn-"
"His teacher's name is Rosethorn. His sister's teacher's names are Frostpine, Lark and Niklaren Goldeye. It's the names they chose." Sarah was miffed at the tone Casey had taken, immediately jumping to the defence of her new boyfriend and his family. "It's just like Wildcat – you don't pay her out."
"That's because I've met her, and she scares the crap out of me." Casey informed her, startling Sarah into a grin, which faded into a scowl as Leia commented evenly, amusement twinkling in her eyes.
"But you're so quick to jump to his defence. Did he really woo you so thoroughly?"
"At least he isn't a scoundrel." Sarah returned, glancing significantly at the door leading to the Chief of State's husband.
"I'm told he has tattoos all over his hands." Casey provided for the other woman, and Leia raised an eyebrow.
"Not a scoundrel, huh? Attracted to the badboys, are we, Sarah?"
Sarah glared at both of the older women and stood in a huff. "If you're going to pay me out, I'm going to hang with the guys. At least they-"
"Oh, I wouldn't be so sure, once I tell Han and Chewie about this, you won't be safe anywhere on this ship." Leia teased.
The knight stared for a moment, mouth hanging open. "You… you wouldn't."
"Try me." The mother smiled wickedly, and Sarah's eyes narrowed.
"You're evil. You're both pure evil."
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"As interesting as space travel is," Ziva began, "Is there anything to do on this ship that might be more interesting than staring at bulkheads?"
Captain Han Solo looked up from the comm. unit, speaking to a holographic image of another man, for just long enough to snap, sarcastic, "Yeah, why don't you review your list of suspects for whatever crimes you think Sarah did, and find someone else to set up like a Hutt in an all you can eat spice bust."
Ziva just blinked. "Uh…"
"Just a moment, Luke." Leia, who was sitting next to her husband, spoke to the miniature man quietly first, before turning to Ziva. "You'll forgive him. Sarah's a close family friend, and we don't believe she'd ever do what you've accused her of."
"What's going on?" The tinny voice of 'Luke' came through the room, and could be heard over Ziva's sigh. Gibbs was sitting silently in the corner – she couldn't tell these people that she didn't believe Sarah had killed the dead marines. Instead, she had to bear their hostility, or, in the case of Leia, chilling politeness.
Gibbs, however, had no qualms further ingratiating himself with them, and he stood from the corner, making his way to the hologram and speaking to the miniature man. "She's our prime suspect in the murder of three men in our armed forces." When shock didn't pass 'Luke's' face, Gibbs just raised an eyebrow. "Doesn't that surprise you?"
"Anyone else, maybe, but Sarah seems to always manage to get herself in the worst situations." The man's voice was mildly amused. "What proof do you have against her?"
"The circumstances the marines were killed in."
"Is that all?" The man's eyebrows could be seen rising steadily, even on the tiny hologram. "Do you really convict so easily?"
"We do if she did it."
"Oh come on!" Sarah exclaimed from the doorway, Casey having just emerged in front of her. "Do you mind?! Get away from the comm. unit, go on. Go sit in the corner or something and keep your mouth shut. Seriously." Glancing deploringly at the attorney, she asked, "Is it assault if it's committed in another dimension?"
Casey sighed. "Yes, Sarah, it is. But it wouldn't be chargeable in a court of law. Still, I don't suggest-"
"I wouldn't actually." Sarah rolled her eyes. "Besides, the threat of violence doesn't seem to phase this asshole."
"Mature, Sarah." Ziva shook her head. "We are just doing our job."
Sarah turned on the Israeli and shook a finger at her. "No, you aren't. If you were doing your job, you'd be looking into all the possibilities, not just me. I have an alibi for the time of the murders – I was in the middle of a mission where I managed to contract the Ebola virus and get myself half killed by my worst nightmare and a Goddess that wanted to throw me into the equivalent of the realms of hell. Of course, taking the word of the people that saved your world on that just isn't good enough for you. No, people that aren't from your dimension must be liars. Tell you what, David, you and Gibbs sit quietly and stay out of trouble, and I may just take you both back when me and Casey skedaddle. Got it?"
Ziva narrowed her eyes, but the hologram spoke before anyone could react, in an attempt to diffuse the situation. "Perhaps now isn't the best time to discuss the issue. Your investigation will be there when you return, and we need to provide a united front against the kidnappers."
"Ahuh." Sarah sighed. "I shall try and refrain from giving into my violent urges, oh Master of the Force. Your wisdom is ever astounding. It's incredible."
"Those 'violent urges' will lead you down a dark path-"
"Lay off the lectures, Luke, I'm not one of your students, I'm so far from being a Jedi I might as well be a nerf, for all the predictive abilities I have. My power comes from inside me, not the Force, so I don't need to hear your lectures on the Dark Side." Sarah glared at the hologram.
"Just because you aren't a Jedi, or a Force sensitive, doesn't mean vindictive actions wouldn't lead you down a dark path-"
"Gods, Luke, give it a rest." Sarah shook her head tiredly. "Do this later, when I have the patience to listen to the entire lecture."
"I don't mean to lecture you, Sarah. That's the last thing I intended." He looked like he wanted to say more, but a red head pushed him out of the way and replaced him in the hologram.
"What's your ETA to the Firkan system? Are you still on track?" Mara Jade asked pointedly.
"Good, good. Let's stick to the important issue." Sarah grinned at the red head, who smirked wickedly in reply.
"I just figured those 'violent urges' would be better exercised against kidnappers and pirates, don't you?" The ex-Emperor's Hand asked innocently. She could hear Luke sigh in the background.
"Probably a good idea." Sarah agreed, before nudging Han. "So what's our ETA?"
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"I wonder what is going on at NCIS." Ziva mused aloud. "They must be wondering where we are."
Sarah glanced over from where she was sitting, speaking quietly with the Wookie and translator droid. "Yeah, probably. I'm assuming Dinozzo's told everyone I kidnapped you, killed you and have strewn your innards across the landscape. Like I said, sorry, but I can't get you home while we're travelling at lightspeed. Just hold tight and hopefully you'll be home tomorrow."
It had been a day since their journey began, and if all went well this time tomorrow Jaina, Jacen and Anakin would be safe and sound on the Millennium Falcon, the galaxy would be short one pirate group, and Sarah would take them back to NCIS. If all went well. "Look, if you guys are getting bored, Threepio can tell you the story of the Battle of Endor, or something."
"I do enjoy telling stories." The droid added. "It is one of my functions in the care of the children."
"He does these cool sound effects and everything." Sarah added.
"Bed time stories?" Ziva snorted.
Gibbs was sitting in the corner, quietly, and had been since the day before, getting up only to eat, drink and sleep. Now he flicked a glance at Ziva and raised an eyebrow. "I want to hear it." He stood and sat next to Ziva, murmuring, "We might gain some insight into the dimension we're in."
Threepio turned to the three earthlings completely, and began in his prissy voice, "Han Solo was encased in carbonite; Princess Leia and Chewbacca had been captured in their attempt to rescue him. Master Skywalker gave Artoo Deetoo and I to Jabba the Hutt, as a gesture of good faith…"