The next day they set out from their compound, just two civilian workers headed into Yorkich following a business trip. The staff were actually happy that they were going to be gone the shorter amount of time and started drawing up battle plans using the new equipment. Shemric was glad it would give them something to do while he was gone. Before he left, Commander Neord pulled him aside for a private conversation, one that Shemric had been expecting.
"Sir, we have talked about this before and this escalation could bring down greater Imperial forces onto our heads," he started. "Is that what we want?"
"I guess the question we have to ask is this, 'Do we want to really hurt them, or keep nibbling at the edges?" asked Shemric.
Neord had no answer for that.
"I think we need to prepare for one final Op and then make contingency plans to get everyone off the planet or blended into the population," said Shemric. "I would love for the men to have something grand to finish their time here, but the survivors need to disappear."
Neord nodded but said nothing until he gave Shemric a finally warning about Julienne.
"She plays her own game in this, sir," he said. "It may not be the game you think."
"I am aware, commander," Shemric agreed, "but for now, I think our goals align. If she wanted to destroy us there would be easier ways."
"What if she is luring you away for that very purpose?" asked Neord.
That thought had not occurred to Shemric before. He stood, troubled, for a time and examined all his interaction with Julienne. Was it possible this was her end game? It was possible but he did not believe it. Either she had been lying to him all along and he could not tell the difference, or she was telling the truth now. For Shemric, there was only one possibility he could believe, so he did his best to reassure the commander that he would be back and they should continue planning the raid and the follow-up. Neord nodded but did not look very happy about it. Shemric decided it was the moment to ask the commander the question he had wondered.
"Are you going to stay or go when the time comes, Neord?" he asked.
Neord looked up in surprise and then covered it well. "I had a wife and children once," he said quietly. He was staring off down the corridor. "They were traveling on a commercial space liner to come out and visit me at a forward operating base on Lantilles. There had not been a lot of action of late and some of us had been gone a long time. A Sith fleet attacked as they were inbound. Civilian ships were slaughtered. I have never been home since then." He was quiet again for a time. "I have a place on Anaxes. A home we bought together. It is a mountainous place, but we liked it and we could never afford anything on Coruscant. Maybe I will go back and clean it out."
What was Shemric supposed to say to that? He did not, but reached out and took the commander's shoulder in his hand and gave it a squeeze. The older man looked up and did not quite smile. They parted and Shemric went looking for Julienne.
"Well, did the commander warn you against me?" she asked when he walked in. When he started, she shook her head and went back to packing. "I will take that as a yes." She nodded with her head to his desk. "That is for you, my lovely assistant." He went through the non-descript uniform and shoes. No one would notice him wearing this. Not with Julienne around.
"So we are a go tomorrow?" she said.
He pulled two bus tickets out of his pocket. She came over and took them from him and grimaced. "Overland transportation. That is going to be tedious."
"It is only for a day until we pick up the speed train," he said. "We are traveling a fair distance."
"And we won't assume our Sith identities until then, either," she said. "We will just board separately." She stared at him for a time. "We have not ever spent this much time together, Shem. I guess we will see if we drive each other crazy."
The bus ride was a tedious as Julienne had feared and only their ability to communicate without speaking broke up the monotony. At one point, a middle-age man who had been in his drink tried to hit on Julienne until she sent him to the back of the bus with a Force-enhanced suggestion. That was the only excitement they had for the entire nine-hour bus ride. They disembarked at the larger city of Yorkich. It was a factory town that received a lot of the raw ore and did partial refining before sending it on to Sobrik. It was also the end of the line for the Imperial Transportation Network which meant for them, it was the beginning.
They changed clothes in an alley that stank of refuse and emerged as Imperial agent and executive assistant. Julienne's dress was not quite a uniform, but it looked impressive as she secured tickets and demanded a private compartment.
What was that tantrum all about? he asked as he stowed their luggage and sat opposite Julienne in the small, four-person compartment.
Just making sure my commanding skills were intact, she said. And I really did not want to share. I would have tried for a sleeping car, but I did not want them to denigrate your reputation.
I am fairly sure my reputation is in tatters as it is, he remarked. I may not even be a Jedi when I return.
Then you can continue as my assistant, she said. I am sure you will love the Imperial Capital. Or not. It is a sickly, poisoned planet.
Sounds lovely, he said. The train had begun coasting over the flatlands here and rapidly picked up speed until they were moving as fast as a skimmer could have done. That is how they traveled for several days until it was time for them to part again. They had stayed in reasonably nice hotels and eaten well at restaurants as the population became more sophisticated as it neared the capital. They left the train one-day's journey from Sobrik and rented a nice room in a 50-story sky rise that was the nicest building in the town.
As they began to see more and more Imperials, Julienne's personality became more and more severe in public so that it was all that Shem could do to keep from cringing at times. She was haughty, terse and expected everyone to jump to obey the minute she spoke. After a few days, she had Shem trained as well.
And you do it so well, my ingratiating servant, she said as she picked up on his thoughts. She then proceeded to shout at him to take their bags up to the room. He unpacked as he had been trained to do and then swept for bugs, cameras or any other sort of surveillance devices while she made her calls in the lobby. He closed all the curtains tightly and accepted the rollaway bed that she always had delivered to their rooms. Of course, he had never once slept in the temporary bed and was beginning to enjoy the accommodations.
Then I shall make you sleep on the floor tonight, weak fool, she said. She opened the door a moment later and gave him a questioning look. He nodded and she closed it behind her as she entered. These heels are killing my feet, she said. Into the room, dog, I require a massage!
He snorted loudly. You had better be nicer to me than that if you want me to rub your feet.
Her low chuckled nearly always made him shiver when she gave it and this time was no exception. She walked past him and ran a hand along his jaw with her finger before disappearing into the suite's small room. Obeying her was not always onerous. She was laying face down on the bed, her hair splayed out on the sheets and wearing her aforementioned heels.
He stood and stared for a few moments. He knew that she could sense his eyes on her and seemed to enjoy it.
Has anyone ever told you that you have a very cute bottom, he asked?
Other than you, twice, actually, she replied. She seemed amused.
Did you disembowel them, he asked?
No, neither case required it, she said. There may have been minor dismembering though.
Shem sensed she was not joking and let it go. He crossed to the bed and carefully removed her heels and set them on the dresser. He was sure they were expensive. This had become an almost daily ritual both because she was not acclimated to wearing her business shoes all day. A subtle use of Force-healing enhanced the pressure of his fingers on her arches and toes until she was groaning in pleasure. She had purchased some massage oil after the first day and he used liberal portions to reduce the friction over her skin as he worked his way down her calves. He kneaded her back and shoulders as well, until he could feel waves of contentment rolling off of her. At least twice she had fallen asleep in the process and he had covered her up and let her nap for a bit.
I am not sleeping this time, lovely man, she said. And that was wonderful. I am not going out again, tonight. Turn off the lights.
Yes, ma'am.
Shemric slept so soundly that it was a surprise when he awoke to see it was the seventh hour of the morning. Julienne was just stirring and she turned toward him and opened her eyes.
"I think we slept in," he pointed out.
"Not to worry," she said. "We will just take a later train. Go shower, first. I am going to sleep another few minutes."
"How do you fall asleep so fast?" he asked.
It is a gift, she said. You sleep much better when I am around and wake up feeling better, so you should not be jealous.
He had not really thought about it, but it was true. He had been sleeping better since they had started sleeping together. She was breathing deeply about 20 seconds later and he shook his head and got out of bed. After he was finished in the bathroom, he shook her foot lightly, which was the only approved way of waking her if he did not want her to punch him in the face and apologize later.
I know, I know.
He carefully controlled his thoughts as she crawled out of bed and went to the bathroom. She would not welcome them that early in the morning. When she emerged, cleaned, dried and pressed, she looked every bit the Sith functionary again. And every bit as attractive as usual.
"Oh, do not start looking at me like that," she said.
"What do you mean?" he protested.
"You are undressing me with your eyes," she said.
He blinked and realized he had been imagining exactly that. All he could do was shrug sheepishly.
"Are you ready to go out on your own?" she asked.
"I guess we will see," he said.
"Don't worry," she said. "I'll be keeping an eye on you."
"And how are you going to do that?" he asked.
Let me show you, she said. In an instant she was inside his mind and he felt her looking out of his eyes. He was not sure if she had ever done it before, but he panicked and tried to force her out. The ensuing chaos was too much for his brain to handle and he passed out.
Shemric had dreamed quite vividly before, but this time he knew it was not a normal dream when he opened his eyes and found himself on a deserted island beach. He looked around and Julienne was lying on a beach chair next to him, sunning.
I would apologize, Shem, but … well, I think I may have sort of shut down your brain.
That seems unfortunate.
Well, I suspect we are breaking new ground here, Shem. Force users can often sense what others are doing but since we became intimate it has reach another level …She stood and offered him a hand and they walked that way down the beach.
So we are not leaving today?
I called for a late checkout, she said. Your body needs some rest. Feeling sensations and emotions that powerful can exhaust the physical. We are going to have to begin training you to set up psychic shields so that you can defend yourself. Less benign Sith than myself could reach in and turn off your brain in your current state.
You mean you have known about this kind of thing all along, he asked?
Of course, do not the Jedi look for those with psionic talents when you are young, she asked?
Not really, he said. Basic 'tricks' to influence minds and stuff like that, but nothing like you seem to be speaking about now, he replied.
Well, the more you train in it, the stronger you become, but you are also more vulnerable until you can shield yourself, she said.
It was so strange to be walking along on a beach, hand-in-hand with Julienne, talking about psychic attacks and defenses. The world with Juju was exceedingly strange.
You are hardly the only one to depart from the beaten path, Shem, she said. I am a Sith warrior—strolling along on a beach because my lover enjoys it. How is that not really weird?
Well I appreciate your effort on my behalf, he said, and gave her his most lascivious leer.
Her ripping snort of humor was out of place in the placid dream where waves lapped peacefully up the beach and bathed their feet. Neither of them spoke for a long time and they continued to walk around the island under a sky that did not change. Finally, they came back to the bungalow and the small pier.
That was lovely, he said.
You are welcome, she said. I have just about repaired all the connections in your brain so we are nearly done.
What was wrong? he said, alarmed. The carefully constructed world reeled a bit before resettling.
Calm down, it is not a big deal, she said. Fortunately for you, I am very good at this and when I am finished you will have psychic shields that no one will be able to get through.
What about you, he asked?
I am already inside, silly, she said. You do not have to let me in. Close your eyes and this transition will be a little less weird. He did so and then opened them again, blinking at the bright early afternoon light. Julienne lying next to him, looking at him with a smile.
Welcome back. I would say that we need to get going, but I am really comfortable. I may have just called the front desk and told them we were staying for another night.
Does that mean we can go back to sleep, he asked? It was really hard to separate his own sense of satisfaction from Juju's as they lay there together.
Does it really matter? You are thinking too much again. Just go to sleep.
Are we going to go for a long walk on the beach again, he asked?
NO! I do not get any rest when I have to keep that construct together. Just sleep, she said.
His eyes grew very heavy and he submerged himself in Julienne's sense of self and she took him off into unconsciousness.
They parted ways the next morning but the connection they had created stayed with them and it seemed that if he looked over his shoulder, Shemric would see Julienne watching him.
Keep your mind on the business at hand, said Juju.
Shemric jumped and looked around before he realized it was all in his head. Do not do that! he said.
It is hard enough for me to concentrate on two things at once, she said. You need to focus and keep me with you.
You are here, are you not, he said?
I am on a train with my eyes closed, she said. When I have to go out and function you will be on your own.
I am a big boy, mommy, he said. You do not need to hold my hand.
Oh, I know that, she said and the wave of amorous sensation stopped him in his tracks. She withdrew so quickly that it felt like he had been doused with water. He started walking again and grumbled at her but she did not respond. He could sense her direction, but little else.
He spent the day on two tedious bus rides where no one wished to speak to him and did not seem to smile much either. Because of his coloring, maybe they assumed he was an Imperial. Either way it was an uneventful trip. He descended from the bus and walked in the direction his electronic device indicated. Perhaps it was because he was watching the small screen that he did not see the Sith police until he was almost upon them. His eyes widened when he looked up and he may have panicked or looked like he panicked because they suddenly eyed him with more interest. He tried to walk by without them noticing by ducking his head and they let him go, but then he sensed one of them starting to follow him. This was not good. He was supposed to walk through the town and disappear into the forest at the other side and he could not very well do that with a tail.
After a few minutes of walking, his stomach growled and Shemric decided to turn into a restaurant that was all lit up on the next corner. It was small and weather-beaten, but the tables and windows were clean, so he took a seat and waited to order. The waiter gave him an odd look but said nothing and he thought the Sith might have decided to leave him alone until the man came in a few minutes later and sat down one bench over from Shem.
When the waitress brought his food, he nodded in appreciation and did not speak. She gave him another odd look but shot a more worried one over his shoulder at the Sith official and then went to take the man's order. Shemric ate quietly and wondered what he would do. He needed to leave the man or else his cover was going to be blown. He did not want to start any sort of manhunt this far from base without backup.
When the waitress came back with a check, he prayed she would not ask any questions and she did not. He offered her a credit chip and she took it and returned with the chip showing a remarkably reduced number. Things were expensive here.
When he got up to leave, the Sith was eating quietly and he thought he might be able to leave freely until the man spoke when Shemric was passing his table.
"You are a man of few words, citizen," he said without looking up. "What is your business in this city?"
Shemric was ostensibly there to deliver a package to someone in town, and he did in fact have a package and an address to deliver it. The problem was that if he opened his mouth, his accent would be noted.
Just speak to him. Juju's voice was a feather's brush against his mind.
My accent will not hold up!
Relax your mind. I will speak through you. Had they not already shared consciousness at such a deep level, Shemric thought he might have found her presence overwhelming if not repulsive. Instead, she just flowed into him and prompted him to speak. When the words came out, it was Shemric who said them, but Juju who altered them.
"Good sir, I am a messenger for J & J freight here to deliver a package," he said. Shem nearly started at the perfect Balmorran accent that came out of his mouth. The man's eyes lifted to his in surprise. That had not been what he had expected to hear. Shemric reached down to his satchel and withdrew the package. It is just a part for an old skimmer, sir, but it is an older model they do not make anymore."
The man looked him up and down and then flicked his fingers in annoyance for Shem to go away. He ducked his head and offered a greeting before departing.
That was well done, Shem, with just the right amount of deference, said Julienne. I have to go. See you soon.
She withdrew and Shem followed his personal device GPS again, this time looking up to pay better attention to his surroundings. He delivered the package and then walked to the edge of the small city and off into the woods after dark. The GPS led him to the pack full of things that Julienne had left and he quickly changed and started off up the lower slopes of the mountain on which the small city ended. He was supposed to spend a night in the wild and then cross the mountain and meet Juju on the other side. Near the eleventh hour he found a small hollow with an overhanging rock where he decided to spend the night. He had not heard from Julienne since the incident with the Sith officer and wondered if he should contact her. He decided against it. She said he sounded like he was shouting when he called to her.
He awoke stiff and uncomfortable at first light and became quickly conscious that he was not alone. He sensed … something, and a careful survey showed him that a local animal of a reptilian nature had snuggled up against him for heat in the night. It was recognizable enough with its odd striping and Shem knew it was highly venomous. Lovely. He lay still and attempted to gently prod the creature back to consciousness. It was quite sluggish, but it managed to waddle away on all fours until it was far enough away that he felt comfortable moving. It was a cool morning and he decided to get most of the travel out of the way before it became too hot.
The GPS provided a general sense of direction, but it was never meant as a navigator in rough terrain so Shemric had to backtrack through some places and do his best to find a pass through the mountains. As he gained altitude it cooled even more so that the early afternoon temperature was pleasant as he hiked. He saw small game on occasion and some other creatures that he had encountered before, but no people. Towards mid-afternoon, his hiking became rock jumping and then a few easy cliffs to scale before he reached a summit and looked down on the next valley. He could not see the depot itself, only a high mountain meadow that was completely exposed. If anything came along while he was crossing there would be nowhere to hide.
Rather than risk it, he decided to sit down and eat more of the food concentrate that was in the pack. He picked the shade of a rock that would provide cover and sat thinking for some time. If the reconnaissance on the raid was so complicated, how much harder would it be to actually conduct the raid and get away unseen? It seemed more of a long shot as he pondered the issues until the sun started to go down. When the light had dropped so that visibility was much lower, he started across the meadow in a slow jog, his strides squishing softly into the high mountain grass and patches of lichen. When he was barely two hundred meters out he heard the sound of a skimmer or some kind of craft. He looked around quickly and then sprinted back to the rock where he had been waiting. Under cover, he watched the slow ponderous passage of an old patrol skimmer; it was a model at least forty years old. By mere chance it passed right over him, its flying lights creating a bright sphere on the meadow as it skimmed low over the tree tops.
Shemric shook his head. Either that was good timing on his part or bad. He started off again and crossed the two kilometer space without incident. The rocky climb up the other side was done in the near dark, but once he passed the crest, the light improved as the sun had not yet set on that side of the mountains. When it was full dark, he stopped and sat down to think again. He had not covered nearly as much ground that day as Juju had planned for him. The GPS had him more than fifteen kilometers from their planned link-up point. It was not that late, but he was still fairly high up in the mountains and the rocky terrain would be very awkward in the dark without a flashlight. With a light, he would stick out on the mountainside for a considerable distance.
Of course, that was the moment Julienne decided to contact him. You do not seem very close. How far out are you?
Probably fifteen klicks, he said. I waited earlier to cross a large mountain meadow and it was good that I did. A skimmer passed over right where I was attempting to cross.
That far? Well, that is not good. I had already set up a shelter.
I can keep walking, but it will be slow going without light, he said.
I put some NVGs in your bag; did you even inventory it, she asked?
Not to the bottom, he replied, chagrined. He dumped out the pack then and used the small light for a few seconds to find the goggles in question. Sure enough, they were there. Well, I feel silly. I will keep on then.
I will pack up again and come to meet you, she said. Keep moving south and I will shoot you a new coordinate in a little while.
Roger, on my way, he said. Shemric repacked the bag quickly and moved off using the visibility of the greenish light image. They were a decent model and the depth of vision was not too bad. He made slow time at first until he dropped out of the sheer rock area and into the tree line. After about 30 minutes, she called him again and gave him a new location where she was setting up. She had actually covered more ground than him so it was less than five kilometers away and he reached her in another half an hour.
Welcome home, dear, she greeted him as she sensed him coming near. Dinner is on the table.
Dinner turned out to be a warmed-up meal from a restaurant and not concentrates, which was quite welcome. The shelter was a small two-man tent and they fastened their two small sleeping bags together to form one larger.
Mmm, mmm, was all she said as they cuddled up together. I am sorry you had to walk so far.
It was hardly the worst day I have ever had on my feet, he said. I should tell you about the day the war ended here and I decided to stay.
Please do, she said. I have always wondered but you did not seem to want to bring it up.
I never really thought about it. I had been here fighting the Imperials for the better part of a year when word came down we were withdrawing. I was in a personnel carrier, flying out of the city when I noticed a sizeable force below, pinned down by the Imps.
Please, show some respect, she teased. I hate that nickname.
Sorry, they were pinned down by the Imperial Army Regulars, he said and she giggled. I asked my master how they were getting out and he said there were no more transports to take them and an argument ensued. So I just jumped.
Nice. So your last contact with your Jedi masters was when you disobeyed an order, said Julienne.
More or less, yeah, he said. I landed in the middle of the mess and then tried to find the local commander. It turned out to be Neord.
He has been with you from the very beginning, then, she said.
Shemric detailed the fight to get underground and how they survived to blend with the population. It seemed like a very long time ago.
I suppose that puts a number of things into perspective, she said.
What do you mean, he asked?
Well, the men's' attitude towards you, she explained. They all feel like they owe you their lives, which they likely do. It is why they put up with me, I suppose.
Has it been an issue?
Not really, she said. They all look at me differently. Some think that by association with you, that makes me fine in their eyes. Some think that I am using you and have other motives. Some are borderline hostile. They feel overprotective of you.
And they discuss this in front of you? he said, slightly surprised.
No, well… once, I walked in on an argument and did not realize I was the cause until it was too late to affect a retreat, she said. Jose was arguing with Moral about it. They were right in each other's grills and I stepped in to mediate. Well, they backed off but then Moral realized it was me and said, "Really, you need the general's bitch to fight for you now?"
Ouch.
Jose took him down and beat his head on the ground for a while until I pulled him off. By then there was a pretty big audience so Jose stood up and started speech-ifying. "Not a one of you would be here to suck air without the general, so shut your kriffing mouths and mind your own business. We all owe him everything and if he wants to screw one of his officers, well, good for him. The next person that brings it up is going to get my boot up his ass."
He did not? With you standing there, asked Shemric ?
Oh, he very much did, in fact, she said, and she sounded very amused. He looked around then and realized what he had said and registered that I was standing there. He apologized to me there in front of everyone. We were friendly before that, but since then we talk more. No one really thinks anything of it, because he has a local woman and two kids. And he broke the jaw of one guy who accused him of getting a little on the side with me.
Soldiers can be direct and we are not really regular Army anymore here, he commented.
No, you are not. She was quiet for a long time and he thought she had fallen asleep. Not quite, she said. It was a faint brush on his consciousness. This feels too good. I cannot see how we are going to be able to part when it is time.
Why do we need to, he asked?.
I do not know, she said. But I know we must. It was the last thing she said and Shemric did not fall asleep quickly afterwards as he thought about it.
Waking up in the wild is a very different experience than doing so in a city, especially if you are not accustomed to the natural sounds. In this case, it was a great pleasure not hearing an alarm or the sound of vehicle traffic, or aircraft overhead. Shemric felt himself coming awake with a keen awareness of his surroundings, but most especially the woman whose form was closely molded to his own.
He sensed her waking up at nearly the same time but she did not move.
And why would I move? I am exactly where I want to be, she whispered in his mind.
We might get hungry if we do not move from here eventually, he pointed out. What is the plan for today, he asked?
We are going to move to a location I picked out yesterday that is far enough away to observe but unlikely to drawn any attention, she said.
What if they have thermal sensors he asked?
This tent retains 98 percent of its thermal contents. We will look like a rabbit or whatever they call the local fauna..
Very well, he said. She still had not moved and so he relaxed and tried to enjoy the sense of her without overindulging. After a few moments he felt a distinctly odd sensation of pulsing and he realized that their hearts had aligned and were beating in unison. It was … he had no words for it. When he looked down at her face again, she had raised her head and her eyes met his.
You are getting better about lying in bed and not worrying, she noted.
I cannot think of a reason to worry at this moment, he said.
It turned out that they spent more time sneaking and avoiding over flights that day than they did hiking. The trees were not particularly thick on this side of the mountains and so they had to take a roundabout route to the overlook location. It did turn out to provide a perfect view of the depot but it must have also been a navigating point for the occasional skimmer patrols because they were overflown half a dozen times in the four hours after they reached the location. After the second, they decided to set up the tent among some scrub bushes lower down the slope. They lay on their bellies and observed through binos what was going on below.
Juju also pulled out a scanner she brought along to monitor their radio traffic; it had decryption gear for the Sith codes and signals.
Have you had this all along? he asked in surprise when she brought it out.
She gave him a flat look. Of course, I tried to keep my best gear back for just the right moment. She stared at him. No, idiot, I picked it up on my last mission into the capital. Dear Acina left it for me along with the other depot information.
He nodded but did not rise up to her irritation. She admitted that she kept secrets from him. This would have been useful from the beginning.
She gave him another hard stare. You may as well just say what you are thinking. It is not that hard for me to guess. You don't really have many secrets from me.
Why can I not sense what you are thinking, then, he asked?
Why can I not run as fast as you do? she asked and gave him a frank stare.
He met her eyes and then nodded. Sorry. I should just be glad you are so talented at it.
Yes, you should be, now be quiet, I am trying to listen.
The hours passed slowly until dark and except for the skimmer over flights, the security was fairly minimal. After the fourth overpass Shemric observed that they had come by every 45 minutes. They waited for the next and sure enough, it came right on schedule.
Amateurs. Why patrol if you are going to be predictable, asked Julienne?
Well, it makes our job easier, he said.
When dark came, they got out and moved around a bit, taking turns watching and listening. They had planned to do the on-site recon around midnight, so they had napped several times and were both getting anxious by the tenth hour. That is when things got interesting.
The patrol is coming back early, noted Shemric .
I do not think so, said Juju. That is not the same craft. She listened while the flashing lights neared the depot and then set down in the main landing area. It was a fairly large military transport shuttle.
What is this, now, asked Juju? They were not scheduled for any new arrivals today. That is a heavy transport.
Please do not be an entire platoon of troops that jump out the back, said Shemric .
That would be a speed bump we don't need, she agreed.
She tuned in the landing chatter and it appeared the depot was as surprised to receive the shuttle as Shem and Juju were. Once it had landed, there appeared to be a heated discussion with a lot of arm waving between the load master and the shuttle crew, but eventually they all calmed down and went inside. Shemric had expected the shuttle patrols to increase in frequency after dark but the opposite actually happened. It appeared they were going out every two hours.
They should fire the depot security officer, said Julienne. This is embarrassing.
They observed until the eleventh hour when pretty much all the lights from the facility were out except for a few standing lights near the landing pad. It was not going to be that hard to move about once they were over the fence. They geared up in the dark and Shemric started when Julienne emerged in full Sith costume down to the black cape.
You are an idiot, she said and he could sense rather than see her shake her head. I am a Sith. This is not a costume for me. It is a statement. If I comes down to it, I can bluff our way out, but I doubt it will be necessary. This place is minimum security. I could rob them with a credit chip and a pocket knife.
It turned out that she had a lot more than a credit chip and a pocket knife. She brought the radio scanner with her and gave him an earpiece for starters. She also had a sophisticated device to defeat the motion sensors. Lastly, she handed him his own black cloak.
It is better for the darkness, she said. He thought she felt amused.
You just want to get me in black, he accused.
Maybe.
They moved down off the mountain at a slow jog, employing the NVGs and listening in for any activity on the scanner. They drew as near as possible to the depot without leaving the forest and then they set up the anti-motion sensor device.
It does not defeat the sensor; it just creates a loop so that it thinks it is seeing what it saw for the last thirty seconds. I am going to run and jump over. Wait until the green light comes on again before you go.
Can you jump that high, he asked?
She gave him the mental equivalent of a dirty look and then pushed something on top of the device. When the green light came on, she sprinted and leaped high over the fence to land in the darkness beyond. Shemric waited for the green light and then followed her into the depot. After landing on the hard permacrete, he sprinted to the darkest shadows and waited. He could sense Julienne moving and looked through her eyes for just a moment to see that she was under the large shuttle that had landed earlier in the evening.
I want to see what is inside before we move on, she said.
Shemric pulled his cloak down over his face and waited. He focused very purposely on riding her awareness with a light touch. As such, he followed her in through the bottom hatch and into the hold where she flicked on a small, pen light and began to examine crates. He sensed she was becoming excited even before she spoke.
These are anti-air missiles; the surface-to-air type on a launcher, not handheld, she said. Why would someone send these? The resistance does not have any air assets so these are wasted.
You think your boss sent us a present, asked Shemric? That would seem to be taking a rather direct hand in matters here.
It is certainly possible, but it would have to be done without tracing it back to her, said Juju. It sure looked like the folks at the depot had no idea why it was here. Your folks could get up to quite a bit of mischief with anti-air missiles in their hands.
Julienne moved up to the cockpit and again she seemed agitated. They left the cockpit controls unlocked.
It seems they are begging us to steal the thing. That makes me nervous.
I concur. She dropped out of the shuttle and followed the shadows to the entryway they had decided to enter. It had an electronic lock that she opened with her clever device she had used back at the hotel.
Why are we still going inside, he asked?
Something odd is happening here and I want to understand it, she said. They found their way to the main shuttle bay and entered it to find that the shuttle was loaded as if it was ready to be sent on a delivery run. Its controls were also unlocked. Julienne examined the load out and seemed more agitated than before. This is almost a perfect match for the gear and weapons that Acina told me to come and steal. We could fly these things out of here and not even have to conduct a raid.
And put them where, asked Shemric? These are both too large to fly back to base and they might be able to follow the heat signature via satellite and follow us right to home.
That is unlikely, but yes, possible, she said. I need to check on something. She left the shuttle and went to the console that controlled the door. She plugged a chord in the terminal and began to scan through what looked like the door-opening menu. If we could open the door without the normal flashing lights and blaring safety siren then we could fly right out of here.
And your instincts are not screaming at you that something odd is going on, he asked?
Of course they are, but it might be worth it anyway, she said.
I have a bad feeling about this, he said.
Let me see if I can get this door open, she said.
Let us wait for a while, he suggested with as much urgency as he thought she would tolerate. What is the rush?
The night is wastin', she said.
Give it an hour, he pleaded. One hour and I will do whatever you ask.
He could not see her eyes or her expression in the dark, but he knew she was considering him. He felt her nod and he let out a breath. Let us go to the roof and wait, he suggested.
They slipped through the corridors quietly and noted how few actually staff were awake and monitoring anything. They found stairs and then eventually a roof access that let them look out over the depot. They found a spot in the shadows and sat down. Despite the irritation he sensed from her she sat close enough to him to be touching and reached over and took his hand.
The time went by slowly but the night was pleasant. When perhaps, forty-five minutes had passed, there was a blare of incoming traffic into the command center. It was hard for Shemric to follow with the heavy Sith accents, but he could sense enough of what Juju was hearing for him to get the gist; there was a Sith interceptor inbound. In less than five minutes a sleek, darkly painted fighter craft appeared in the distance. A frantic ground crew signaler appeared and used his laser pointer to indicate where the fighter could land. Before it landed it did two circuits of the base and then settled to the ground inside the fence.
A pilot appeared in the flash of a landing light and then disappeared in the dark. He is not a Force-sensitive. Just a pilot. The command center has no idea why the patrol is here. She was quiet for a time. Something about a plot to steal weapons… now the pilot is arguing with the watch commander. The signal stopped. Now they are speaking in person, I assume. Julienne was quiet for a time before she spoke again.
How did you know, she asked?
I did not know anything, but when too many weird things happen, it is time to pay attention, he said. I do wonder if your master is trying to play both sides here. It would not be the first time you were sent on a suicide mission.
She said nothing while they waiting in silence. Another 15 minutes passed before the pilot returned to his ship and flew off.
Do you think he will be back, asked Shemric?
I wish I could say, she admitted. This is very odd. I almost want to create a disturbance to test a theory.
We lose surprise if that happens, he said.
Are you arguing we just steal them now, then, she asked?
Maybe an hour from now, he said.
I would argue that is just being timid, but you probably just saved the mission, so it strikes me that I ought to listen, she said.
Pull out your tablet, he suggested. Pull up a map. She did as he asked and he started to look over the terrain available to them. What about this … he began … we fly them here, to this forest and try to hide them under cover. That is less than twenty minutes of flying time. Unless this has been a trap from the beginning and they have an eye in the sky there is no way an interceptor can fly here and then come and find us in that time. We sit on them for a couple of days and then fly out at night again. Maybe back to our old base in the mountains. That place had a hangar big enough for both of them to fit. Or maybe we land right in the front yard, unload them and then fly them away again.
Shemric could sense Julienne's thoughts spinning but it was too complex for him to catch anything. She was impatient and yet, she was not suicidal. She would listen.
In the end, she agreed and they waited for more than another hour before moving. Her computer hijacking equipment managed to get the door open quietly and they waited a few more minutes to see if anyone came to check it out. They did not and she moved to the other two patrol shuttles that were on the field and scrambled their locking systems so that someone would need to completely reboot before they would open or fly again. They parted to the shuttles and synced their flight plans before starting their engines simultaneously. Shemric had been given the job of flying the big shuttle while Julienne had the smaller, more agile one. They were actually lifting off before any radio traffic began asking if anyone knew what was happening. There were not even any alarms.
Shemric's vessel was really a tub, not meant for fancy flying or any sort of trickery, so he watched the instruments nervously as they flew up over the mountain north and passed over ?from where he had started hiking two days prior. After twelve minutes of flight time Julienne reported that they had scrambled interceptors from the capital and so he was glad they were already over the heavily forested land he had picked out to hide. Juju picked a place to land and they dropped in under the high canopy and shut the engines off quickly. It was now Julienne's job to cover them with the camouflage netting while Shem tried to suck some of the heat from the engines to cool them down more quickly. It was not something he had tried before, but he had wondered if he could convert heat energy into Force energy in much the way he did with lightning and other forms of power.
In the beginning, nothing happened and he wondered if his theory was flawed. It should have worked, but nothing happened and he finally gave up and helped Juju cover the ships. It turned out to be a non-issue because search ships did not overfly them all night. They had landed near the third hour and spent the next two hours tensely waiting for dawn before they could check the effectiveness of their camouflage.
As the sun began to just peek out, they adjusted the netting and added leaves from the nearby trees to increase the effectiveness. After they were satisfied, they hiked for the better part of an hour under the canopy of trees before stopping in a dense grove and setting up their shelter.
I guess it depends now on how many ships they devote to searching, said Julienne.
And the flyers are not going to be very enthusiastic when they find out what was stolen, he pointed out. That should work in our favor.
I agree, now let us go to sleep, she suggested.
Again the shelter's sleeping pad turned out to be more comfortable than one would have thought and they slept undisturbed through the day. When night came, they hiked back through the forest back to the ships and found them undisturbed.
So do we wait another day or two, or just move them now, she asked?
Neord and the staff are not expecting us back sooner than three or four days from now, said Shemric. We could wait that long before anyone worries and by then the Imperials will be banging their heads from looking for aircraft movement. They can ground everything for a day or so, but then it will start to create some problems. I say we go back to our shelter and hang out and train with sabers for three days.
To this Julienne agreed and by the top of the night they were back at their shelter happily sleeping. The following morning they slept late and lay around in their tent, content to do nothing until nearly the top of the morning. At that point, Julienne shooed Shemric out to work on their lightsaber skills.
The unlimited space will be nice, she pointed out as they emerged wearing workout gear.
They spent three days in that secluded forest and indulged in fighting and sleeping and making love until both of them decided it was time to move on. They decided to try to fly all the way to their abandoned base in the mountains where they had first met. It had a large enough space to hide the ships and the terrain was favorable for hiding. They flew out in the darkness and flew slowly and carefully through the predawn hours before setting down just after sunlight and spending an hour covering the skimmers again.
It took them two more hops over the next day to make it all the way there and then they went on foot to the base to see who was about on the skeleton crew. It turned out Lt. Missell was the commander of the base which was used mostly as overnight housing for recon units moved up and down the line of mountains. She radioed the completion of their mission and within a day, Commander Neord had arrived with half the staff to see what they had brought back.
Once it had been brought in and inventoried, it was difficult for Neord to contain his enthusiasm. "This is even more than we thought we were going to get, sir. We can do some real damage with this. I can't believe you stole anti-air missiles." His attitude towards Julienne had not changed, but at least he did not frown every time he saw her.
Shemric went back to his old room and spent the next few days working out of that office while they came up with a plan to move the equipment. His raid with Julienne became the basis for all their planning for the next few months until it was time to strike. Unfortunately, others had different timelines, which was probably why they were eventually taken by surprise.