Chapter 7 – Twins meet Twins
I'm done with the next chapter for this story. This is easily the largest chapter so far in this story. This chapter contains a few scenes I was looking forward to write. From the title of this chapter, I think you can imagine who is going to meet who.
Hope you enjoy.
;-
The planet Kaal, Yushan sector, Imperial Base.
Dax Navaro, Commander of the Imperial base on the planet Kaal, walked nervously towards the hangar bay. The message he had received yesterday had been shocking. Apparently, several high-ranking Rebels had managed to infiltrate his planet. This was an unacceptable situation. After the destruction of the Death Star, the apprehension of the Rebels was one of the top priorities of the Empire.
His worry over the current situation was not just because of the Rebels, but of the other guests that would soon arrive at his base. He had received orders to follow their every command. Their identities were what worried him. The two of them were very high-ranking Imperial agents. One of them was one of Vader's personal agents and the other was an Emperor's hand. They both reported directly to the Emperor and Lord Vader.
A shiver of fear crept along his spine. Lord Vader's way of dealing with failure was well known throughout the Empire. If they failed to follow the commands of these agents, death was likely to follow.
What, or rather who, that made him worried was his second in command, Victor Novar. Victor did not care much for Imperial VIP's. He had demonstrated that much a few weeks ago during a presentation of their troops. He hoped that Victor had bothered to read his message. They could not afford a screw up.
He arrived in the hangar where the Agents' ship had just landed. He stood in attention with a company of Stormtroopers, waiting for them to disembark. The ramp lowered a moment later and they walked out of the ship.
Dax studied them for a moment. One was a human like him, a young woman with red hair. The other was a Togruta with orange skin and a blue-white pattern in her montrals and lekku. The two didn't look like much of a threat at first glance, but from their weapons and equipment, he figured that that was just a clever ruse. They were both undoubtedly very lethal.
He saluted them when they reached him and his troops stood at attention. "Welcome to Kaal, agents," he greeted them.
"Commander Navaro," the human woman replied. "I am Mara Jade, this is Aeris Bonteri." She gestured at her Togrutan companion. "I trust you have been briefed on the situation?"
"Yes Ma'am," he answered. "I am aware of the situation and of your position in the Empire. My men and I are at your disposal."
"Good, then let's not waste any time," Mara replied. "According to our intelligence, the rebel that destroyed the Death Star is still on the planet. I'm certain that you can understand the importance of bringing him to justice."
Dax nodded, but remained silent to allow the agent to continue.
"The two of us will search the city in order to locate the rebel," Mara continued. "we will require you to maintain ready with all of your men. Once we locate the rebel, we will engage him and signal you. At that point, your troops will encircle our position and block off any possible escape routes. We will also require your pilots to remain on standby, should the rebels manage to escape the surface. In that event, your troops will need to set up a space blockade to prevent any ship from leaving."
Dax nodded again. It was clear to him that these agents had already set up a very detailed plan of attack. For his own sake, he hoped that nothing would go wrong. "Understood Ma'am," he replied. "I can help you coordinate the troops from the main command center. My second in command, Victor Novar, is in charge of our air squadrons and oversees communication with the orbiting Star Destroyers."
The agents shared a look, seemingly discussing something without even speaking. "I will join you in the command center to set up the deployment of the troops. Aeris will oversee the air containment. Afterwards, we will start searching the city for our target."
"Understood ma'am," Dax replied. "I will show you the way to the command center. You two," he said as he pointed at two troopers. "Escort the agent to the aerial command center." The troopers saluted in return. After that, both parties escorted the agents to their destinations.
;-
Victor Novar sat in his command center. The human commander was quite annoyed. According to the message Dax has send him the day before, a few VIP's would be present at the base again. He had stopped reading the message at that. It was their job to maintain order on the planet, not to provide entertainment for a bunch of stuck-up VIP's.
The elevator chimed, snapping him out of his thoughts. Two troopers walked out, followed by some Togrutan girl. "This is our VIP? This little brat?" He thought annoyed.
The girl walked up to him, a neutral look on her face. "Victor Novar," she said. "I am Aeris Bonteri."
"Welcome to Kaal, Ma'am," Victor replied, nicely playing along to make the girl feel important. "What can we do for you?"
The Togruta gave him a strange look for a moment that he couldn't place. "You are to have all of your pilots at standby. They must be ready to launch on command and set up an aerial blockade," she told him. "It will be up to them to prevent any ship from leaving the planet. The cruisers in orbit must join in on this blockade as well and prevent any ship from entering or leaving the planet." She gave him a serious look. "It is of utmost importance that no ship is able to leave this planet without permission. Do you understand these orders?"
Victor had to struggle to keep a straight face. "Who does think brat think she is? Like we will actually do that." He nodded the girl. "Yes Ma'am, when do you require them to be ready?" he asked in return.
"Immediately," she replied. "When we give the signal, they must act immediately."
"Of course, Ma'am. I'll get right on it," he told her. "As if…"
The girl nodded. "Good, see to it that you do not disappoint," she replied and left the room again. The two troopers followed her out.
After the elevator doors closed, one of his men walked up to him. "Sir, should we carry out those orders?" he asked.
"Ignore them," Victor replied. "We're not here to entertain those VIP snobs. Carry on as usual." The men around him nodded and continued their work.
;-
A short time later
Mara Jade and Aeris Bonteri regrouped inside the hangar where their ship was. Both of them were now dressed up in civilian clothes. The planet Kaal was a tropical world, this city a popular resort amongst the citizens of the Empire. They were disguised as the usual tourists. Harmless in appearance, but looks can be so deceiving.
"Is the second in command informed of his duties?" Mara asked Aeris as she reached her.
Aeris nodded. "Yes, he is," she replied. "If they carry out their duties as we ordered, there is no chance that Skywalker will escape our net." She smiled with some dark glee. The chance for her revenge so close at hand.
Mara noticed her look. "Just remember that the Emperor wants him alive," she reminded her fellow agent.
"I am aware of that," Aeris replied. "But that doesn't mean that we can't rough him up a little." She smiled at the thought of harming him. "It would help if we had a face to go with his profile though. We can both hunt him with the Force, but more intel would have been helpful."
Mara nodded. "You're right about that," she said. The intelligence that they had showed that Skywalker was on Kaal, but they had no further information on him. The Rebels had done a good job of keeping some of the identities of their best saboteurs secret. "Let us just hope that Isard can finally be helpful."
"She'd better," Aeris replied with mild annoyance. "That woman is a pain." She shook her head. "It doesn't matter now. Let's just begin our search."
"Indeed," Mara said. "No point in wasting time." Both agents nodded and departed the base through a secret exit that lead to the center of the city.
;-
A few hours later
Mara Jade sat at a small cafeteria in the center of the city. Her search for Luke Skywalker had not yielded any results yet, much to her frustration. She hoped that Aeris had better luck with her search. Their capture net was in place, but it would be pointless if they couldn't locate their target first.
Right now, she was just sitting, enjoying a cup of coffee. With her disguise, she looked just like any other girl simply stopping for a coffee break. She looked harmless, but she was keeping a close eye on her surroundings all the time.
"Here alone as well?" A male voice asked next to her.
Mara turned around and looked at him. He was a young human man, a bit older than herself. He had blond hair and was somewhat attractive, not that it mattered to her. She stealthily scoped him with the Force, he didn't seem like a threat to her. She gave him a small smile. "Yeah, just taking a break from work," she replied. "What about you?"
He shrugged. "I was supposed to meet some friends here, but they haven't arrived yet," he said. He sighed. "They probably mixed things up again. I'm Ben by the way."
"Alice, nice to meet you Ben," Mara replied, giving him a false name and a false smile. "So your friends have difficulty keeping track of time?"
Ben chuckled and shook his head. "They like to do things their own way and that has a way of getting them into some difficult situations," he said amused. "But they're resourceful, so they can manage."
"They sound like an interesting bunch," Mara replied.
A beep was heard and Ben checked his datapad. "Yep, they got the date wrong again," he said lightly annoyed. "Then I guess I'll just meet them here tomorrow."
Mara finished her drink and got up. "Well, good luck with that. I need to get going," she replied kindly.
"Thanks, have a good day," Ben said with a smile.
Mara gave a small wave in his direction and walked off, continuing her search for Skywalker.
;-
At a different part of the city
Aeris walked through the streets, looking around and pretending to be just another one of the tourists. So far, there had been no trace of Skywalker. The Force was quiet, no trace of another Force user nearby. Mara was present in a different part of the city, of course, but the two agents were masking their presence in the Force to avoid being detected by the Rebel Jedi.
She had been searching for a few hours now, but there was nothing to report yet. "That coward is probably in hiding, if he even is here…" She paused momentarily at that thought. "If Isard send us on a wild chase for nothing, she's going to regret it."
Aeris took a moment to look around the area she was in. It was a large open center, a number of market stalls surrounding a small park. All around the place, families were walking around, going about their daily business.
A pang of pain spread through her as she watched the smiling, happy children with their parents. A setting that she had never known. "Skywalker… You'll pay…" With a trace of rage building inside her, she continued the search.
;-
Later that day
Mara sat on the ramp of their ship, waiting for her fellow agent to return. She herself had not had any success in locating Skywalker. Either their intel was wrong or Skywalker was in hiding somewhere. There was no other explanation for it.
A few minutes later Aeris walked towards the ship. Her whole appearance portrayed her frustration with being unable to find Skywalker. "No success either?" Aeris asked her when she reached the ship.
"Nothing yet," Mara replied. "Either he's not here yet or he's in hiding somewhere, not doing anything." She got up. "If this turns out to be a waste of our time I'm having words with Isard."
"That woman causes way to much problems," Aeris said annoyed. "I don't understand why the Emperor would keep her around."
"I'm sure my lord has his reasons," Mara replied. She checked the time. "It's time to contact him, let's go." Aeris nodded and the two of them boarded the ship.
;-
Several minutes later
The connection established and the holograms of the Emperor, Lord Vader, Ysanne Isard and several other Imperial intelligence officers appeared. Both Mara and Aeris bowed for the Emperor and Lord Vader.
"Mara, what news have you to report?" the Emperor asked. "Were you successful in locating the rebel?"
Mara shook her head. "I'm sorry Master, but we haven't found him yet," she replied. "Skywalker appears to be in hiding and not doing anything. Either that, or our intelligence was wrong and he's not even on the planet." With the last part she looked over at Isard.
Lord Vader turned to Isard as well. "Are you certain that your source can be trusted?" he demanded to know.
"Yes, my lord," Ysanne replied. "The information came from our infiltrator in the rebel alliance. According to him, Skywalker should be on Kaal right now."
Aeris gave her an annoyed look. "I hope you have some better information than that," she said. "If we have to keep searching this city without any good leads, Skywalker can slip right through our fingers."
"I have to agree with Aeris," Mara said. "We have created a powerful capture net, but it'll be useless if we can't even locate him on this planet."
The Emperor turned to Isard as well. "Miss Isard, you understand the importance of their assignment, do you not?" he asked in a calm but slightly menacing voice. "What other intelligence have you managed to gather? You always praised your informant."
"We have received new information, my lord," Ysanne quickly replied. She could sense the trouble she was in. "Despite the rebels' talent in keeping their identities hidden, our agent has managed to get more on Skywalker." She quickly pushed numerous buttons on the console in next to her. "We have a face to go with him now."
Mara pressed several buttons on the console in front of her and Aeris. The face of Luke Skywalker appeared in front of them. Mara stared in shock at the screen.
"So that's him, huh?" Aeris asked. "Are you sure of this Isard? He doesn't look like much." She studied him closely, memorizing every part of his face.
"Yes, I'm sure of it agent," Ysanne replied. "This is the rebel that destroyed the Death Star."
The Emperor studied the image as well. "He indeed looks like the child of Anakin Skywalker," he said. This immediately drew Aeris' full attention. The Emperor noticed this with a smile. He also noticed his Hand's shocked reaction. "Mara, what is it?" he asked her.
Mara looked up at the holograms again. "What kind of sick joke is this?" she asked in frustration and anger.
"What do you mean?" Aeris asked in slight confusion. The feelings of her fellow agent confused her.
"He was right next to me," Mara replied. "How did he manage to hide himself from me?" For a moment, she trembled with anger. "How can this even be possible? I won't accept this."
"He was next to you?" the Emperor asked her. "And you could not sense him?"
Mara looked back at him. "I'm sorry Master," she quickly replied. "I don't know how he evaded me, but I will make up for this." She turned back to Aeris. "I know where he's going to be tomorrow. He's meeting his fellow rebels. We are going to wait there and take them all down." She looked at the Emperor again. "He will pay for this deception."
"Very good," the Emperor said. "Capture him and bring him to me."
"Yes, my Lord." Both agents bowed and the transmission ended. They then went to prepare for the next day.
;-
Kiola
Mina Bonteri
Maris and I have arrived on the next planet, Kiola. Compared to the other worlds I've been on so far, this place is like paradise. We're currently walking through the capitol city of Azuar. The city is located on the northern land mass of the planet and is surrounded by amazing beaches and crystal clear oceans. The buildings surrounding the spaceport are all a bright, glistening white with sparkling glass fronts. A great deal of nature was also spread throughout the city.
"I wish I'd started my search on this planet," I think with a smile. "On second thought, perhaps it's best that I didn't. Leaving this place would have been very difficult." Despite the darkness of the Empire in the galaxy, the Force is still bright on this planet.
I've read up on Kiola before we arrived here. It's a very popular vacation destination for a lot of people. The Empire may be in control of the planet, but fortunately they haven't ruined the planet like they have other worlds. From our position at the spaceport, the only real Imperial influence we can see is the large base that is situated outside the city where once a great forest was.
"Let's go and take a look around, shall we?" I ask Maris as I turn towards her. She eagerly nods back and we leave the spaceport.
;-
A short time later we're walking down a boulevard next to a large beach. At one side we have a long row of bars, restaurants, stores and hotels. On the other side, we have one of the most amazing beaches I've ever seen.
We stop walking for a moment to look around. I let my gaze wander around the beach. There are a lot of families on the beach. A lot of happy children running around and playing with their parents. Sadness fills me as this is a scene that I have never known and never will. "How I wish things could have been different…" I think with regret.
I look at the families on the beach for a short moment longer. Then I shake off the feeling of regret and focus my attention back on the present. "If I can just find my sister, we can still be a happy family."
I turn back around to look for Maris. For a moment, I can't find her. Then I spot her a short distance away. She's talking with two strangers. I study the two a moment. They're both Twi'lek females with different shades of blue skin. From their shapely figures and formfitting and slightly revealing clothes, I can instantly tell that they're street girls.
Street girls are legal on Kiola, one of their interesting and somewhat unusual traditions. This tradition has been around for ages and it has always worked well for the people of the planet. Fortunately for them, the Empire didn't change anything about that. Unfortunately for them, a lot of high ranking Imperials like to take advantage of the legal prostitution on Kiola.
As I walker closer to Maris and the two girls, I can hear what they're saying. The two Twi'leks are asking Maris if she's interested in having a good time.
"W-what…? I don't… I… eh…wha…" Maris stutters out in shock at their question.
I can't help but laugh at her shocked reaction. "I had no idea a Zabrak could turn that color." I walk up besides the stunned girl. All three of them look at me. "I'm sure she appreciates your offer, but we're not looking for that kind of fun right now," I tell the two girls.
"Aww, that's too bad," the Twi'lek with darker skin replies. She gives a flirty smile at Maris.
"If you change your mind, you can find us around here," the Twi'lek with lighter skin says with a wink at Maris.
I don't need the Force to see that Maris is getting very uncomfortable. I really have to struggle to avoid falling to the floor with laughter. "Thanks, we'll just have to see later," I reply. The two girls give a flirty wave and walk away a bit suggestively.
Looking back at Maris, I can see the embarrassment clearly written on her face. I can't help but laugh a bit at that look. Despite how awkward she feels, she manages to give me a bit of an annoyed look. Still, with the overwhelming red tint of her cheeks, it's looks pretty amusing. "Come on, let's keep looking around," I tell her. "Unless you changed your mind about those girls."
I laugh again at her shocked gasp, her face becoming even redder. A short moment later, she laughs as well, a bit awkwardly maybe. Then we continue with our look around the city.
;-
Later that day
Maris and I are now walking through the back streets of the city to continue our search. It's gotten a little colder, so we're both wearing our robes now.
Despite our somewhat awkward meeting, Maris is turning out to be great company. Fortunately, the Dark Side does not have such a powerful hold on her. We've done some meditating and Force practice together, she's doing quite well. "Now all she needs to do is doubt herself less." I think as I study her a moment.
"Is something wrong Master?" Maris asks as she sees me look at her.
I smile and shake my head. "Nothing's wrong, don't worry," I reply. "And you don't have to call me Master, just Mina is fine."
"A-alright," she says a bit nervous.
It's clear that she still needs to overcome the death of her Master. "I'm not surprised, to be honest. Who knows how long they've been together." I know the pain of losing someone all too well.
"Uhm… What are we looking for exactly?" Maris asks a bit confused. "There doesn't seem to be anything here." She adds as she looks through the empty street we're in.
We stop walking for a moment. "As I told you, I've been trying to get in touch with the Rebel Alliance," I explain. "Since I can't exactly ask someone on the street, I've been allowing the Force to guide me. I've searched several planets already, but found no leads yet. So, I'll just keep going until I find something."
Maris nods, but she has a bit of a questioning look on her face. "I see, but can the Force really lead us to them?" she asks.
"Don't you worry," I reply. "Once you gain a better understanding of the Force, it will not seem that impossible anymore." I give her a little smile. "With the right training, you'll become a powerful Jedi. Then later you'll look back to this question and laugh at it."
Maris smiles back. "I hope so," she says. "But I have a long way to go."
"Don't sell yourself short," I reply. "You're pretty good already. If you let go of all this doubt, you'll find you're capable of a lot more than you think." Maris smiles back at me in earnest this time. "Come on, let's keep going." Maris nods and we continue walking through the streets.
;-
About twenty minutes later
As we walk into another street, I suddenly start to sense something in the Force. Something is headed towards us and for once, a good feeling accompanies it. "Could this be the lead I've been searching for?" I ask myself. The Force is urging me to follow this feeling.
"Hey Mina?" Maris says. "I can feel something headed towards us. It feels… important… somehow." She turns to me, hoping that I can explain it to her.
I nod at her. "I can feel it too," I reply. "I think this is the lead we've been looking for." I use the Force to search around the area a bit. "Come on, let's head this way." I point to a smaller series of back streets. "Whatever it is, it's coming from over there." Maris nods and we quickly move towards the streets.
These smaller alleyways are completely empty, but we can both tell that there is something heading towards us. I can see Maris reaching for one of her lightsabers underneath her cloak. I give her a look that to take it easy. She nods and eases up a bit.
With the Imperial presence on the world, using our lightsabers is a last resort. The one thing we don't need is unwanted attention. The Imperials can give us a lot of trouble, so we're just going to try and avoid that.
The sound of rapid footsteps moves towards us. Then, a hooded figure runs around the corner and moves towards us. The person stops in shock a few feet away from us. Despite the hooded cloak, her facial features are ones that I instantly recognize. "Princess Leia Organa," I say softly.
Leia Organa looks at us in shock. With the aid of my montrals, I can hear several dozen footsteps approaching our location. With the aid of the Force, I can tell they aren't friendly. "She's in trouble, that's for sure."
I quickly look around. There is a small space between a number of large boxes at the side of the street. "Maris, can you hide yourself and someone else as well?" I ask her.
The question surprises her. "I don't know," she replies. "M-maybe for a moment, but not long."
I nod. "You can do it, don't worry," I tell her. I turn my attention to Leia Organa. "Quickly, over there," I tell her, pointing at the small space.
She looks very hesitant. "How do I know I can trust you?" she asks in return.
The sound of marching footsteps is getting closer. There is at least a dozen men approaching. "Hate to say it, but I don't think you have much of a choice," I reply. "We're not here to harm you, I swear."
Leia nods uneasily and quickly makes her way to the space. Maris goes over there as well. Leia moved into the small space and Maris follows.
A look of surprise appears on Leia's face as the young Zabrak took hold of her arm and closed her eyes. Leia did a double-check as the girl vanished before her eyes. She was even more shocked to see her own body disappear as well. She looked back at the other girl and was also surprised at her actions.
I look at the two disappearing before nodding. Then, I throw myself backwards onto the ground. "Watch where you're going you crazy Bantha!" I shout angrily. At that same moment, a group of Stormtroopers runs around the corner. I had already sensed them coming of course, but I pretend to be shocked and afraid by their sudden appearance.
Leia looks at the scene in, not sure what to make of it. For now, she was hidden from the Stormtroopers and the other girl was apparently trying to fool them. The two strangers seemed to be on her side, so she decided to keep quiet.
I give the group of Stormtroopers a fearful look. "W-what is going on?" I ask them, making sure to add a little tremble to my voice.
The captain of the Stormtrooper squadron moves up to me. "Miss, don't panic," he tells me in an official tone. "We are in pursuit of a dangerous Rebel traitor. Did anyone pass through here?"
I fake a shocked gasp. "T-that women was a Rebel?" I ask in return. "S-she ran that way. Towards the little alleyways." I point at the alleys to my right.
"Alright, we'll go after her," the captain tells me. "It might be best for you to return home, it's not safe in the streets with the rebels around."
I nod and the captain signals his men. They all ran off into the direction I had just pointed towards. As soon as they were gone, I get up and smile in the direction of Maris and Leia. "That was way too easy," I say as she walk towards them. "The average Stormtrooper IQ is way too low."
Leia and Maris appear again as the young Zabrak stopped using her powers to hide. Drained from the effort, she sank to her knees, panting a bit.
I quickly make her way towards her and kneel at her side. "Hey Maris, are you alright?" I ask concerned.
Maris nods. "Just a bit tired, that's all," she replies. "Just give me a minute."
I nod back at her. "Alright, you just rest a moment. You did great," I tell her. I then turn my attention towards the princess of Alderaan. "Leia Organa, it's good to finally meet you," I say with a smile. "The Force must favor you for you to run into us here."
"The Force?" Leia asks confused. "Wait, does that mean that you're a…"
I open my robe a bit, revealing one of my lightsabers. I give the princess a quick wink. "My name is Mina, this is Maris," I introduce us both. "I've been searching for the Rebels for a long time, but I never imagined that I would run into you of all people."
"Well, I'm glad to have run into you when I did," Leia replies. "But why have you been searching for us? Are you with the other surviving Jedi?"
I shake my head. "I've heard of the group of Jedi that survived, but we're not with them," I explain to her. "However, we are both Jedi." I give Maris a small smile as I say this. "I've been searching for someone for some time now. I'm hoping that you and your allies can help me. Asking the Empire is out of the question. That would be very bad for me, if you know what I mean."
"I understand," Leia replies. "The Empire took away a lot of people." She shook her head sadly. "I'll do my best to help you. I certainly owe you one for this."
I can't help but smile at her. "Thank you, you have no idea how much this means to me," I tell her. "But, how did you end up here being chased by Stormtroopers?"
Leia sighs and looks down. "We were supposed to get in touch with a local Rebel cell and enlist them to our cause. The Empire likes to abuse those poor girls on this planet, so we hoped that they would side with us against the Empire. Unfortunately, it turned out to be a trap," she explains. "Our contact sold us out to the Empire. The men with me were killed, but they gave me a chance to run."
I sigh as well. "I'm sorry for your loss," I reply. "Losing friends is never easy." She looks at me again and nods. "Do you still have a way off planet?"
Leia frowns a bit. "I'm pretty sure that my ship is either under watch or destroyed, so no," she says. "Do you have a ship?"
I nod. "Yes, it's not too far from here," I reply. "We can use it to get away from this rock. The only problem is that probably every Stormtrooper is probably looking for you right now." I take off the small bag I have with me. "Fortunately mom told me enough about disguises," I think with smile. I have a number of make-up items, including face paint, with me. "Hmm, with what I have here we should be able to disguise you a bit." I study Leia's face and my things a moment. "With this short amount of time, the best I can do is make you look like a Zeltron. Hope you don't mind."
A bit of a surprised look appears on Leia's face. "I guess not," she replies. "I suppose it's our best shot."
"Alright then, let's get to work," I tell her and open up the make-up box.
;-
A few minutes later
Maris, Leia and I are now making my way back to our ship. Leia now looks like a red skinned Zeltron with dark hair. The disguise is not perfect, but with the Stormtroopers looking for a Human woman with light skin, they probably won't bother to look at her twice.
"This is the closest I've gotten to finding my sister yet. I hope this all continues to go well." A feeling of hope fills me. A feeling quite rare in these dark times. "First we need to get off this planet. If we can get the princess of Alderaan back to the Rebel Alliance, they will owe me a debt and hopefully I will be able to use their intelligence to locate Aeris."
There are Stormtroopers running all over the area around the small spaceport where we parked the ship. A few of them checked us out as we entered the spaceport, but seeing as none of us had much resemblance to their target, we were able to pass through without much difficulty.
It surprises me that the spaceport isn't in complete lockdown. "I suppose that they want to lure Leia back to her ship. Like she'd actually fall for that," I think amused.
The three of us slowly make our way back to the hangar where my ship is. To everyone else, we just look like three friends returning to our ship after a little trip. No one pays much attention to us, save for a few flirty comments here and there.
We enter the hanger a short moment later. Fortunately no one is in the hangar. I take out the remote and lower the ramp of the ship. Behind me, I can sense the obvious surprise in Leia.
"This is your ship?" Leia asks as we walk towards the ramp. "No offense, but will we be able to get away from Imperial ships if we need to?" she adds quietly.
I look at her a moment. "It's meant to look like that," I reply with a smile. "But don't worry, she's got some crazy engines. Come on, let's get onboard." Maris and Leia both nod and we board the ship.
After finishing the start-up sequence, I take off with the ship. Maris and Leia are behind me in the cockpit. I make sure to follow the Empire's rules for space traffic, just to avoid any unwanted attention. I plot a course to a planet a couple of lightyears away. I can sense the relief coming from Leia as I pull the lever and the blue lights of Hyperspace appear in front of us.
;-
The planet Kaal, city center.
Luke Skywalker sat at the same café as he had the day before. He had met with the Rebel supporters on Kaal and made the arrangements for securing their help for their cause.
Things were a bit delayed because Han and Chewbacca hadn't shown up yet, but they were on the planet now. The two of them were now busy with a few of their new allies to unload supplies for them and load up some gifts from them. As soon as they were done, Luke would discuss a few more things with the contact before leaving the planet.
Suddenly, there was a slight feeling of dread in the Force. Luke didn't know what it was, but it was making him uncomfortable. His datapad beeped with a new message. He checked it to find a short message from his contact. Their second talk would have to wait, apparently the Imperials were on the move for something.
Luke knew that that could only mean trouble. "Han, come in," he contacted his smuggler friend. "I think we need to leave Kaal, fast. Ready the Falcon, I´m coming back to you."
"I hear ya kid," Han replied. "Our friends here just told me. Can you get over here?"
"I'll try to," Luke said. "Just keep communications open, I'm going now."
"Got it, we'll wait for you," Han replied. A roar in the background signaled Chewbacca's agreeing as well.
Luke got up and checked if he had all of his things before walking away from the café. A few steps later, he suddenly heard a voice call out. "Hey Ben, do you have a moment?" the voice asked.
Luke turned around and saw Alice, the young woman he had briefly spoken with the day before. "Hello Alice," he replied kindly. "Sorry, but I don't have any time at the moment. I have to go." He turned back around and started walking again.
"Don't worry, Luke, this won't take long."
Luke stopped dead in his tracks. "Did she just…" The feeling he had felt in the Force before was now echoing all around him. The Force was screaming danger at him. He turned to face Alice once more. The summer dress she had been wearing was floating away on the wind. She was now dressed in a black combat suit and she was armed. A cold look of determination was on her face as she drew a lightsaber and activated it, a magenta blade casting an eerie glow on her, even in the sun.
He had barely time to react as the magenta blade sped towards him. Luke quickly activated his own lightsaber, the blue blade materializing just in time to block a strike that could have left him very hurt. The two entered a blade lock and stood there.
"Luke Skywalker, so we finally meet," the woman replied. "Your lucky streak ends now, Rebel."
"Who are you?" Luke asked. It was obvious to him that whoever she was, she was not an amateur. "I could be in big trouble here."
She gave him a small smile. "My name doesn't concern you," she replied. "But you may address me as Emperor's Hand."
Shock filled Luke instantly. They had all heard the rumors about the Emperor's personal agent. And now she was here, after him personally. "This is not good." Thinking quickly, he gave a strong push with his lightsaber, followed by a Force Push to force her back a bit. He pulled out his comlink again. "Han, come in!" he said. "I need to get out of here, now! There's a…"
He gasped in surprise as his comlink was shot to pieces. The Imperial agent stood a few meters away from him, smoking blaster in hand. She put the blaster away and pushed a button on a comlink on her wrist. "There's no way out now, Skywalker," she called to him.
Luke wondered for a moment just what she meant. He got his answer when he saw dozens of Stormtroopers block of the streets around them. "I'm in trouble," he thought worriedly. "I hope Han got my message, otherwise I'm doomed." He saw the agent move into an attack position. Luke moved into a defensive stance and awaited her strike.
He didn't have to wait long as the agent charged him immediately. She unleashed a powerful strike aimed at his side. With the limited training that he had received, he was barely able to block her attack. The agent didn't give him much time to recover as she unleashed a series of fast and powerful strikes.
Luke was forced to move backwards to avoid being harmed by her strikes. She wasn't letting up at all. The rumors surrounding the Emperor's hand were not exaggerated one bit. This agent definitely lived up to them.
With a well-placed strike she broke to his defense. Luke could tell her next swing would be to disarm him, perhaps literally. He quickly used the Force to jump backwards several meters. He could tell that he had no chance to win against her. The only thing he could do now was wait and hope that Han would get here quickly.
The Imperial agent looked at him with mild annoyance in her eyes. She moved back to a neutral stance, seemingly waiting for him to strike back. Luke knew that taking that bait would be a very bad idea. To his surprise, the agent suddenly looked at something to her right.
Luke could sense a sudden extreme flare of danger through the Force. He quickly turned to the same direction, just in time to see a burst of red lightning race towards him. Luke screamed in pain as the red lightning caught him and send him flying into a wall.
He rolled stunned on the floor, groaning in pain. His lightsaber was lying a short distance away from him. Looking up, he saw a figure standing where the lightning came from. He shook his head to clear out the slight blur in his eyes.
The second person was wearing a hooded robe, so he couldn't identify him at all. "Her…" he thought surprised. While he couldn't see her a face, the figure was definitely female. From her appearance, he could tell that she wasn't human either. The silhouette of her hood revealed two horn-like things and maybe some lekku.
"Skywalker, at last…" the second person said as she began to move towards him. "Now it's time you pay…" She drew two lightsabers, the orange blades appearing menacingly at her sides. "I've been waiting for this for so long." There was a great amount of fury in her voice.
Aeris looked at her prey intently. "Sixteen years of preparing, now is the time I get my revenge," she thought pleased. She walked closer to him, hands eagerly gripping her lightsabers. "Get up," she told him. "Get up and face me." She moved into a combat stance, ready to take him down.
She could feel his worry, his fear. It was invigorating to her. Skywalker was already in pain, but moved to stand up. He called his lightsaber back to his hand and looked between her and Mara with slight fear.
"Here I come," she though with excited fury. She was about to charge Skywalker when the hum of engines overheard attracted her attention. "The Millennium Falcon!" The ship spun around and moved lower to the ground. A bit of shock overtook Aeris as the cannons underneath the ship swung around to her and Mara. The two of them jumped backwards as a barrage of lasers streamed towards them.
"NO!" Aeris screamed with rage as the ramp of the ship lowered. With the stream of bolts flying towards her, she could do nothing but watch as Skywalker jumped up the ramp and ran aboard the ship. The ramp closed behind him and the Falcon started to speed away.
Aeris grabbed her sniper rifle from behind her back and fired a number of blaster bolts and something else towards the ship. Then she activated her comlink. "Commander Novar, deploy all fighters and capture that ship, now!" she smiled darkly. "You won't escape this time."
"Yeah, we're on it. We'll send a few fighters your way in an hour or so," the commander's voice replied.
"What?!" Aeris said in startled shock. "You had your orders!"
"Whatever girlie, we don't have time to entertain you snobby VIPS," he replied with annoyance. "Just go away and stop bothering me." The connection ended with that.
Aeris looked up at the sky with wide eyes. Her shock turned to horror and rage as she saw the Millennium Falcon disappear into space. "NO! I was so close!" She screamed with rage. "I had him. I had him right where I wanted him…" she said angrily, voice trembling with rage.
Mara moved up next to her. "We need to report to the Emperor right away," she said in a collected voice, but there was a trace of anger underneath it. "His defiance will not go unpunished."
Aeris collected her thoughts and let the Dark Side store her rage. She would take out a part against that fool of a commander that had dared to defy her. The rest, she would use against Skywalker next time. "Let's go," she replied with a growl in her voice.
The two agents then made their way back to the command base.
;-
That's the end of the chapter.
Mina has met with Leia and they are now on their way back to the Rebel headquarters. Once there, she and Maris will meet several Jedi as well. With Maris' turn to the Dark Side and the knowledge of what happened to her mother in the past, how will things go between them?
Luke barely escaped Aeris and Mara. But he's not out of danger yet. Aeris is full with rage and it's all directed at him. Will he survive their next meeting?
I'd like to thank daviddavies5851 for letting me use his planet Kiola. The planet is a part of his story "The Order Redeems". If you want to learn more about it, go to his story.
I've decided to continue this story up to the point of the sister's meeting and then later their reunion with their mother. I imagine that there's going to be about 4 of 5 chapters more.
I'm going to write a new chapter for Tale of a Togruta next.
Until next time.
