"Why?"

Miriah watched Corso pace and sighed to herself. He'll figure it out, she assured herself. They were in the hangar where the Dreamweaver was docked, a sleek black vessel on her starboard side. She'd just told him of her idea, and as she'd figured, he wasn't taking it well. He made his way back to where she stood and stopped, waiting for her answer. "Two reasons. I want to see if we can figure out where Senya and Arcann are holed up, and I want the chance to fly this baby again." She grinned as she saw him relax a smidgen, and ran her hand along the black exterior of the ship she'd flown off of Arcann's flagship. "And, to be honest," she continued, "I'm tired of waiting for something to happen." He nodded, he'd figured she was restless partially because she was used to always doing something.

"And we take this ship, where, exactly?" he asked, and she moved closer to him. He could smell the peach scent of her shampoo as her short, ebony hair swung around her cheeks with every step. She put her forehead on his chest and his arms automatically went around her.

"I don't know yet," she admitted. "I'd like to get the group together to see if we can deduce the most logical place." He sighed, rubbing her back absently, trying to work his brain around this plan, knowing he wouldn't stop her even if he could.

"Sounds like a good start. And if we can't figure out where to search?"

"Then we pick a sector and go, see what we find," she said, and laughed at his expression.

Lana had gotten the message to assemble the group, and was making her way to the war room when she saw Theron just outside her door. "Heading to the meeting?" she asked him, and smiled when he produced a steaming cup from behind his back.

"Hot tea, just the way you like it," he told her, and his smile threatened to split his face when she kissed his cheek.

"Thank you, I needed this," she told him as they turned to the main hallways. "I hear your group made a little headway with the video feed?"

Theron gently placed his hand on her back, guiding her as they walked. "We have, I'm actually excited that we're meeting, I want to share what we've found so far." They saw a few of the group at the holo, and walked toward them. Aric and Maura greeted them, and they all waited for Miriah. After a few minutes, they saw Devin and Logan, her bodyguards this shift, and finally they could see her as she neared, Corso with her.

"Great! I have a plan, one that I need some input on," she told them. When she explained what she wanted to do, the room fell silent.

"Only way that's happening is if we come along," Aric said, his voice firm.

"Ship only seats two," Corso said quietly, and he didn't need to look up to see the disapproval in Aric's face.

"Why take that one?" Maura asked, her hand on her hip.

"Because it will be instantly recognizable as one of Arcann's. Either they'll see it and know we're close, or the galaxy will see it and assume we're on Eternal Empire business. Besides," she chuckled, "I really need to see what that thing will do." Her attempt at humor fell flat, the concern of the group almost palpable in the relatively small space. She looked around and noted the expressions, and sighed. "We need to know where he is, what he's planning. At this point, he might have succumbed to his injuries, and Senya is stranded somewhere." There was a little hum of conversation before Devin stepped forward.

"It's too great a risk," he said, shaking his head. "Too many unknowns, too much exposure. If we want to hunt them, there has to be another way." Miriah merely stared at her son as he spoke, and he felt her disappointment in the force. "Sorry, Mom, I love you too much and worry about you too much to say nothing." Miriah lowered her head at that, she knew he was only saying what everyone else thought.

"Okay, I can see that you all have strong opinions against this. So, tell me, what should we do?" she asked, and crossed her arms over her chest. She could feel the frission of anger starting, and took a deep breath to try and calm herself. In the moments of silence, she failed to tamp down that anger, and she looked around the group, none of whom would meet her eyes. "What? No brilliant schemes? No outlandish robberies or crazy allies to convince to hunt Arcann? C'mon people, you all have sent me on the most insane missions I've ever even heard of, yet you can't, or won't, give me an alternative plan?" She saw Corso take a step toward her, but froze him with a look. After another silent minute that felt like a week, Miriah held her hands in front of her. "Let me know when you've all figured this out," she told them, then whirled and quick stepped across the room toward the apartment. Devin and Logan scrambled to secure the area but she reached out with force and stopped their movement. When it was clear that she was out of the area, they all let out breaths they weren't aware they were holding.

"I just can't let her go off on her own," Aric said quietly, and around him the others nodded agreement.

"We need a clear direction, with convincing evidence, before we approach her," Lana said, and she turned to Nico. "Nico, I need a list of out of the way places both in this sector and the next over," she said, gaining his agreement as he walked to a workstation. "Theron and Aric, please put out some feelers with what's left of the military units on Coruscant, see if there's any rumors or stories." She turned to Corso. "Corso, I'm afraid you need some really pretty flowers or some sort of chocolate," she said in a gentle voice, and she saw him smile slightly.

"She'll cool off in a bit," he replied, "and I'll take her something special. In about an hour." Aric grinned and leaned in close.

"I think she's even scarier with her hair cut short," he told his friend, and got a grin in return.

Devin reached out to his mother using their force link. I'm sorry, he told her. I know you want to do something, but we all lost you once, and we're not up for that again.

I wish I could give you all that time back, but I can't, she said. What I can do is make the person responsible for it pay. I can't kill Valkorion again, but I can make sure his son cannot murder any more innocents.

Mom, please understand. I would rather live under his or Vaylin's rule for the rest of my days than risk something happening to you. Dad, Calypso, Logan, and I cannot survive that again. Miriah instantly felt her anger fade away, and the ache of her son replace it in her heart. She felt her eyes fill, and let the tears run down her face for a few moments before responding.

I get it, son, and I don't want to put anyone in that kind of misery. I'll be good and try to figure out another way to find Arcann and Senya.

Love you, Mom.

Love you, son, so much. I keep forgetting the years I was frozen, she thought, and how much it changed the people I love. She sat down at the small workstation in the corner and let her mind wander through possibilities, keying in trajectories and hyperspace routes, searching for a solution. She was deep in thought when the HK units reported that Theron Shan was requesting admittance. Theron, she mused. What does he have for me, she wondered as she made her way to the door. When she'd greeted him and they were sitting on the sofa, he turned to face her.

"We've figured out that it must have been Scorpio who planted the signal transmitter," he said. "Some of the coding was identical to that found in both her and the Prime units, and since the Prime hasn't rebooted since the Fleet ship mission, there's no other logical choice." He watched as she thought about this.

"Any idea when it might have been planted? I can't remember her ever being on our orbital station," Miriah offered.

"We aren't sure, but she could have programmed any of the small service droids up there to place it," he said, and saw her nod. He stood to leave, still a little uncertain of how she felt about him. She stood and walked with him to the door.

"Thank you, Theron, and please thank the intel guys for all the hard work done on this." Miriah smiled and he saw genuine gratitude in her eyes.

"I will," he told her. "And thank you for taking such good care of Lana when she was sick."

"Don't screw that up," she told him, a hint of laughter in her voice. "She's family to me." Theron shook his head and assured her he was working things out there. He left her feeling like he'd made a step in the right direction.

Corso saw Theron leaving the apartment and stopped him. "Is she still angry?" he asked, shifting the boxes in his arms.

"She seemed fine," he replied. "I told her about the transmitter, and she teased me about Lana. I think you're safe." Corso thanked him and made his way to the door. When he entered he didn't see Miriah, but he did hear the water running in the 'fresher, and took his packages to the kitchen to unpack them.

Miriah eased herself into the hot water and sighed. I hate losing my temper, she thought, but it seems like lately I'm living in a cocoon. She closed her eyes and leaned her head back on the rolled towel she'd placed there, letting the water jets soothe her. Wonder where Corso went, she thought. He probably figured it better to be away from me, and that makes me feel very small. She soaked until the water cooled, then stood and dressed in soft, lounging clothes. She took a little time with her hair and face, and when she reached the living area, realized Corso had returned. She turned into the kitchen to see their small table set with fresh flowers and candles, and her husband working at the stove, where delicious smells surrounded him. He looked up as she drew closer.

"Hey, beautiful," he said as she put her arms around him. "I thought you might be hungry, and figured I'd try to make you smile." She leaned against his hard back, and he turned to embrace her.

"I'm sorry I got angry," she told him. "I feel very restricted lately." She recognized that she'd always rebelled against anyone who told her she couldn't do something, but thought she'd grown out of that, at least some. Apparently not, she realized.

He kissed her gently. "I know," he told her. "And I know you've been under a lot of stress. But darlin', we only want to keep you safe."

"Devin made me realize that," she said, a blush covering her cheeks. "This is all lovely," she told him, and his kissed her again. For a moment they were both lost in each other, and when they needed air, Corso grinned at her.

"Food first," he said. "But it'll be a few minutes longer." He reached over and touched a nearby control, and music filled the space. He danced her around the small area, him happy to have her in his arms and smiling, her grateful that he understood her so well.

Devin and Mia knelt in the Voss temple area, the light surrounding them so brilliant the others nearby couldn't look at them. Devin reached out in the force, in an ever widening circle from Odessen, searching. Mia merely lent her own considerable force to his, searching behind him to see if his force presence had flushed anyone of interest out. When they'd exhausted both their range and their energy, they slowly drew back and the intense light began to dim. When Devin opened his eyes, Mia collapsed into his arms. "Wow, Dev. I've never done that before," she told him as he held her.

"It was a little more than I've done before, too," he admitted. "Couldn't have done it without you." He kissed her head and helped her stand. He was surprised that she hadn't seen what he had, and he wasn't even sure himself, but he would try again, he thought. Tomorrow, when I've had some rest. Maybe get Mags to help out. They walked out to the mess hall, but Devin's thoughts were on the spike of energy he'd felt just for a fraction of a second at the end of their session. The spike he thought was Senya.

A/N Music for this chapter is One Direction's History