Prolov exhaled as he rested his chin on his interlaced fingers. He stared at the walls of data on the pad on the desk before him and grimaced. The day to meet up with the First Order was quickly approaching and so much was left to do before the time arrived.

This situation is madness... He thought to himself.

Inside, he was a mess. Part of him found it difficult to believe that his fleet had traveled twenty-four years in time simply through a hyperspace malfunction as it was unheard of in recorded history. The other part of him was ready to follow his advice to Commander Badya and willingly accept the inevitable consequences accompanying such an abrupt change.

From his perspective during the meeting of the Council of Captains, he could see the officers under his command were just as nervous about this situation as he was, and what's more is their responses, coupled with their body language, clearly revealed they were frightened as well.

We all are frightened by this... Prolov reminded himself as he continued to walk down the corridors of self-examination mentally.

He also reminded himself that keeping the peace as well as the morale of the crew was the top priority. If the First Order were up to no good concerning his fleet, then a lack of confidence would give them even more avenues to accomplish whatever they may have in mind. And, if that turned out to be the case, he would be prepared to defend his fleet at all costs. History should have pointed that to the First Order by now.

A sudden ache radiating from the back of his head to just behind his eye socket caused him to wince. Perhaps he had been concentrating too hard and for far too long. He rubbed his head as he slowly pushed his chair away from his desk.

"Confide in her…" the voice called out again.

He turned his aching head to look around his office as if he expected to see the source of the voice either standing or sitting in front of him or even off in a corner. He listened for it, longing to hear it's comforting presence grace his ears once again.

He leaned back in his chair, folded his arms across his chest, and closed his eyes. As he relaxed, the room around him seemed to disappear. Instantly, he floated through the confines of space and time. He quickly opened his eyes as he came to rest on a bed of what felt like soft grass.

A warm breeze gently caressed his face as the sounds of crickets filled the air. Off in the distance, an owl sang it's repetitive nighttime chorus. Peace coated him like a comforting blanket, and at this moment, he laid back in the grass and stared upward as a majestic night sky wavered into view.

"Garren, which star system is that?", a young woman asked, breaking his concentration.

Garren Prolov rolled over on his right side and gazed at his girlfriend, Annalisa, lying on her back as she stared up at the sky. Her long blonde hair sprawled out in the grass around her head as she beheld the wonders of the night. She twisted the adjustment knob on the monocular as she continued to gaze at the stars.

"The system's star is small and white," she said as she placed her elbows on the ground to assist in holding the monocular steady. "And I see something that looks like a dark cloud near it."

Garren smiled as he looked down at her. He reached over and lightly touched the top of her head. He ran his fingers through her soft hair as he admired her beauty. She was the only thing in his life that could take his mind off of the spectacles of the heavens. Even though they were only teenagers in this moment of their lives, a love had burned furiously in their hearts ever since the day they met as small children during the S'Varian Festival of the Night Sky.

"I believe it's the Sycottha system," he finally replied as he continued to stroke her hair. "And if you look just to the left, you'll see a larger bluish object that is the planet Tumos and just above it is a nebula-like cloud which is all that remains of the planet Turasia. Tonight is the only night of the year the rest of the S'Varian Quartet is visible from our planet."

Annalisa chuckled as she lowered the monocular. Her sapphire blue eyes reflected the moonlight as they peered at Prolov. "It took you long enough to answer me. And I was beginning to think my astronomer boyfriend was losing his touch with the universe."

"Not hardly," Garren said as he laid next to her in the grass. She moved closer to him and placed her arm on his chest. He smiled as he gazed at the sky while he held her close. He gestured towards the stars with his left hand. "I've always known that I'm destined to walk among them someday. The stars will be my kingdom and my ship will be my throne."

She shifted her position so she could stare into his eyes. "Will you take me with you?"

He chuckled as touched her face gently. "Of course I will. What's a king without his queen?"

She leaned in and moved her lips across his. He embraced her as they engaged in a long moment of passion. He became lost in their bond as her long hair tickled the side of his face. He wanted to freeze this instant and relive it for the rest of his life.

When their faces parted, she looked down at him. "I know how special celestial events are to you, Garren. Tell me, what do you think about the prophesied S'Varian Alignment? Scientists claim they know the exact day and year it will occur. Let's make it our wedding day."

He laughed as he brushed strands of hair from her face. "That's decades from now, darling. We'll be old by then. Are you sure you want to wait that long?"

"Don't be silly, my love. We'll wed on that day while we are still young," she replied with a chuckle before lightly kissing his forehead. She moved her head to look into his eyes while playing with his dark hair. "We'll celebrate our anniversary as the years pass. When the Alignment finally comes, we'll ascend this hill with our children and grandchildren and watch it with them."

"Do you think you can tolerate me for that long?" He asked as he playfully touched her nose.

Annalisa leaned in close to him with her hair hanging down like a golden veil. "I'll be just as much in love with you then as I am now, Garren Prolov."

"I was hoping you would say that-" he replied only to be cut off when her lips met his in another passionate kiss.

He wrapped his arms tightly around her as he immersed himself in their love. It was as if the landscape melted away into the heavens. Her touch and her kiss were enough to lift him off of the ground and propel him into an ethereal state of mind where time froze in place. In her arms, he found all the comforts he could ever hope for in life. In essence, she completed him.

A chime suddenly rang out, bringing Prolov out of his thoughts. He pressed a button on his desk. "Enter."

As the door to his office slid open, he glanced down at the digital image of Annalisa Prolov. Her expression on her fair-skinned face was highlighted by a soft smile. Her blue eyes peered out of the image as if she were staring up at her husband. Her long blonde hair covered her ears and hugged her face like a gold shroud. Prolov smiled as he reached out and touched her face. He looked up as Colonel Tyaal Veriss strode in adorned in his TIE pilot's uniform. His left hand tightly grasped a helmet with red trim and the stages of a total solar eclipse emblazing the upper portions of the helmet. Veriss paused in front of the desk.

"You needed to see me, sir," Veriss said as he stood at attention.

"You don't have to be so formal, Tyaal. This isn't an official military meeting." Prolov replied as he motioned towards a chair. "Please have a seat."

Veriss quickly sat and placed his helmet on his lap. He straightened the red collar of his flight suit and gazed at Prolov. He observed the Admiral as he gazed down at the image of Annalisa. "I hope I didn't interrupt anything important."

"You didn't. I'm just reflecting on the past." Prolov replied as he pressed a control. The image of Annalisa instantly dissipated. He looked up at Veriss and leaned back in his chair. "However, I know you didn't come here for a history lesson, Tyaal."

"Of course, I didn't," Veriss said as he remained in a rigid posture. "And I also didn't come here on the presumption that the First Order is foolish enough to believe you will assume this Captain Phasma is Annalisa. That's one commonality we both share, Garren."

Prolov studied Veriss for a few moments. His dark hair with streaks of silver was an unkempt mess, pressed down and tousled by the pilot's helmet he had worn during his combat starfighter patrol duty earlier in the day. His strongly featured face was lined with age but still retained its boyish features accentuated by his hazel eyes. The man never smiled in the time that Prolov had known him, leading Prolov had often wondered if Veriss had been born without the facial muscles required to smile.

In spite of all of those features, Veriss had proven in their decades of friendship that he was a reliable and faithful individual. Those qualities had earned him not only the status of Prolov's assistant in the development of the TIEs comprising Phantom Squadron but also had elevated him to the distinction of becoming Prolov's best friend.

"I can't argue with that," Prolov finally said with a chuckle. "What else have you deduced from the files I asked you to examine, Tyaal?"

Veriss drew in a breath and relaxed his stiff posture before speaking. "They are more than likely banking on the assumption you will be comfortable with Captain Phasma due to her physical stature. And if that's the case, we must proceed with caution, Garren. Her physical characteristics suggest the possibility that she could very well be of S'Varian descent and we both know what that means."

Prolov nodded as he leaned forward. "We certainly do, Tyaal. Tell me, what else have you noticed?"

Veriss leaned back in his chair with a frown on his face. "She's cold. Calculating. Apathetic. Probably scolds her troops more than she praises them, that is if she even praises them at all. Taken all of that into consideration, she probably has the personality of an asteroid field."

Prolov chuckled and shook his head. "Sounds like the female version of you, Tyaal."

Veriss glared at Prolov with his ever constant hard expression. "All lame jokes aside, I also detected a hint of animosity between Captain Phasma and General Hux."

"Which is something we can potentially use to our advantage," Prolov acknowledged with a nod. "Though it will require us to be strategic in our endeavors."

"Doing so will be difficult but achievable within certain parameters," Veriss replied. He leaned forward slightly. "Garren, we mustn't forget that they have twenty-four years of history at their disposal. Our history to be exact. Even though there are substantial variables that can come into play, we must assume they know everything about us. Our strengths. Our weaknesses. Our tactics and our strategies. In essence, through studies of our historical exploits, they know us inside and out, and more importantly, they know you inside and out."

"And we know their origins, inside and out, Tyaal.", Prolov countered as he shifted in his chair. "It's one thing to read about history, but it's another thing entirely to live it. We have that advantage over them."

Veriss sat back in his chair and nodded. "I concur with you, Garren. However, we mustn't forget that such archives are susceptible to manipulation. The First Order has had ample time to distort historical events to fit a narrative and an agenda easily."

Prolov leaned back in his chair and grinned. "And that's where they want us to focus our attention. They want us operating from what we knew then rather than what is occurring now. General Hux mentioned that I should be aware of the current state of the galaxy. Tyaal, he wasn't inviting me to catch up on current events, at least not on actual current events. He wanted me to open myself to their interpretation, or as you put it, their distorted narrative. When taken into account, it becomes obvious they are the victims of their distortions of history. Yes, they know us on the surface, but they do not know us as intimately as they want us to believe they do."

Veriss nodded as he listened to Prolov. "Which means that we have the advantage of a strong intelligence division within this fleet. We have individuals like Commander Bayda and his team. The First Order's alleged historical records do not reveal as many details on our inner workings. They don't know as much about our intelligence division. And we can use that against them."

"Precisely," Prolov replied. "By the way, Tyaal, I commend you on the work you have done with them since we arrived in this period. Though I wouldn't celebrate just yet as I have another difficult assignment for you, I ordered the rest of the fleet to set course for Renda Noth in the event trouble should arise. To prepare for this movement, I need you to send two fighters from Phantom Squadron to Renda Noth to gather intelligence before the fleet's arrival. And you're not going to like the next assignment, my friend."

Veriss shrugged. "Try me, Garren."

Prolov pursed his lips as he leaned forward. "I want you to you prepare a holodrone and carry it on Phantom Two. Set course for S'Varia and release the drone that I'm going to program with a prerecorded message. Wait for their permission to land. If granted, then arrange a meeting with the current Adjudicator General to discuss the state of affairs on S'Varia. I need to know their political standings and who their allies are at the moment. I need to know everything that could be a benefit to us. We don't have much time to spare as this needs your immediate attention."

Veriss rose to his feet. "Consider it done, my friend."

Prolov watched as Veriss moved towards the door. "And Tyaal?"

Veriss paused and looked over his shoulder. "Yes?"

"Do try to avoid any entanglements like the one you experienced last time.", Prolov offered with a smile.

"I'll try my best, sir," Veriss replied as he stepped out of the door.

"This is risky and absurd," Captain Phelix Evin, a former officer in the Galactic Empire and newly promoted commander of the Resurgence-class Star Destroyer Oppressor, protested as his hologram glared at Hux. "Supreme Leader Snoke will not tolerate such foolhardy independent action, General!"

"Captain, Supreme Leader Snoke will reward us generously when we achieve success in this mission," Hux countered with a glare of his own. "We have to take this course of action. We are dealing with an individual who can become a dangerous adversary if we are not careful."

Evin chuckled as he crossed his arms. "I assure you, General, Admiral Garren Prolov is the least of our worries. The man was a true-to-heart Imperial through and through. His loyalty to the Empire was unswerving. I can attest to that."

"And that's what I'm afraid of, Captain," Hux said as he narrowed his eyes. "His loyalty to the past Empire could very well be a hindrance to becoming a loyal servant of the First Order. We need an insurance policy to prevent this unfortunate event."

Evin rubbed his chin and looked away for a moment. His hologram exhaled and turned back towards Hux. "Though I do not readily concur, I do see your point. Preventative maintenance couldn't hurt in this matter. I'll go along on the condition that we do not risk my ship on this endeavor."

Hux nodded. "I assure that you won't be of any risk at all, Captain Even. I have the Star Destroyers Vicarious and Malice standing by to assist you in this mission. As far as details, I will transmit them when you set a course for Endor."

Evin's hologram locked eyes with Hux. "And you will bear the responsibility if this fails to achieve its objectives?"

"Of course, I will." Hux offered with a sheepish grin. He watched as Evin's image faded.

And I'll also make sure that you will suffer for it, Evin... he thought to himself.