Dark Alliance - The Mirage

Alarms rang out. "Hey – I'm sorry – I have to go. But I'll see you soon."

Remy's actions were reflexive and not the way he'd choose to end communication with anyone – let alone Eevou. The truth was, he would not give Eevou being worried or angry a second thought until the crisis was over. After the dust settled, he'd go back to his quarters and have time to remember and feel awful.

"Captain, it's the Aleeyana and S. Winchester. They're under attack!" a young Lieutenant announced. Remy made his way to the viewport to see the Imperial Super Star Destroyer had taken an incredible pounding and was listing. The Aleeyana looked untouched, but she was sitting out of position. Remy knew this was by design and there was no way he was letting the enemy get their hands on that ship.

Directly ahead was an incredibly impressive formation of at least fifty medium, large and very large battleships. Remy was mesmerized by the formation and noticed a very specific ship – a New Republic Starhawk. Remy shook his head. "Stang!" he muttered under his breath.

"Captain?" the Lieutenant asked.

"Nothing. Transmit Key 13 Data," Remy ordered.

"Aye, sir!" a female called from across the Bridge.

Remy only knew one Admiral on a first name basis, and somehow, he knew that would be his ship and his Fleet – or what was present of it. Remy noted there were a large number of ships missing.

Most concerning was their proximity to Zaphthosis. The New Republic Fleet was closer than anyone anticipated.

"Captain, we're being hailed by Admiral Kyrell on the Rebel Victory, sir!"

"Put him through," Remy commanded.

"This is Captain Remy Kodix of the Mirage. Why have you attacked two of our ships while in transit in unrestricted space?"

Thane's voice came across the Bridge speakers loud and clear. "Captain Kodix! This is Admiral Kyrell. Nice to speak with you again. For the record, we did not shoot first."

"You'll understand if I don't take your word for it, Admiral," Remy said.

"The truth isn't a tricky thing, Captain, when you're dealing with honest men. I have a Fleet full of honest men. How about you, Captain? Are you? Dealing with honest men?"

"What do you want, Admiral?" Remy asked coldly.

"What do I want? Gosh… let me think… there's at least," Thane paused and counted to three in a not so subtle whisper, then said, "three things. Why don't we start with the easiest of the three. Your two little fight pickers have not transmitted Key 13 data. Would you kindly ask that they do this?" Thane said.

"I can do this," Remy replied. He nodded his head and gestured to the Lieutenant to take care of it. The Lieutenant relayed the order to the Comm officer.

"Good. The second issue would be your vessels firing upon us without provocation or justification. Really, Captain? Is that the way they do it in the Dark Alliance? Two ships take on an entire Fleet? It's tactically… well, insane. Unless," Thane said, "you have Luke Skywalker in a starfighter. You don't… have Master Skywalker… in a TIE… do you, Captain Kodix?"

Remy felt anger surge, but he suppressed it. "You surprise me, Admiral," Remy said calmly. "You were stationed on the first Death Star. You were a gregarious, friendly guy. I'm certain you made a lot of friends in the brief time you were there... before you defected," Remy said. "And you had some of our Academy friends there with you. Like Jude. She was there when you had Master Skywalker... in an X-Wing... correct, Admiral Kyrell?"

Thane nodded slowly. "Yes, she was there, trapped like most innocents, with a sadistic Sith Lord for an Emperor. She was also there when the Death Star destroyed Alderaan, as was I... and Nash." Thane paused, but Remy remained silent. "Jude told Ciena the only way they could justify the Death Star was if it was a deterrent, and that single act was necessary to prevent a war where hundreds of billions would die. They convinced themselves it was a deterrent, never to be repeated. I had seen more and knew better, but even then the unvarnished truth was beyond anything I could have conceived. The sick truth is that Alderaan's destruction was a punishment for Princess Leia not breaking when tortured. With Alderaan in view, they gave her the ultimatum: Provide the name of a Rebel base or Alderaan would be destroyed. She gave them what they asked for, but Tarkin decided to destroy Alderaan anyway. Princess Leia was restrained by Vader and forced to watch the murder of everything she knew and loved, just as we all who were there were made to watch and hide any sign of shock or despair. So, believe me, Captain Kodix, when I tell you that had June known the Death Star was seconds away from destroying Yavin when Luke Skywalker dropped his payload, she'd have helped him in the effort."

Remy had heard stories about the Emperor, but never anything like this. He glanced around to see his crew's reaction to Thane's words. They were steadily working. "I will look into the facts of today's engagement with our vessels," Remy said without a trace of emotion on his face or in his voice. His crew couldn't see it, but inside he was unsettled. Something had changed with Thane Kyrell. Spouting off all of this unsolicited and inflammatory information to a vessel that is likely crewed by a few Imperial loyalists seemed unnecessary and lacked purpose. But Kyrell was methodical. He was going somewhere with this and Remy was getting the idea he wouldn't be happy when they got there.

"Still looking for that Key 13 data, Captain. How about sending it over in the next – say – 2 minutes," Thane said. "Just to make sure we are clear, we did not fire on your ships first. You know me well enough to know that I don't pick battles. But I will end them," Thane said calmly.

"You said there were three things."

"Oh, that's right. I did, didn't I? Yes, yes, I did. What was the third thing? It's right on the tip of my tongue," Thane mused aloud. Everyone on Rebel Victory was now looking around at one another – some appearing amused and others comfortably confused.

The crew on The Mirage was all business. They were proving to be as hard as obsidian when it came to their duty – precisely how Remy liked it during engagements.

"I got it!" Thane declared loudly. "Whew! This would have been a sleep killer. Don't you hate when that happens? I'd be trying to remember –"

"The third thing, Admiral?" Remy interjected.

"Of course, of course – your time is busy. My brother's wife and daughter - we'd like them back," Thane said.

Dalven stood up, his mouth hanging open. The main door to the Bridge had slid open. Han and Leia walked in just in time to hear Thane's last words.

"Dalven's wife and daughter?" Remy clarified. Thane's lost his mind, he thought. "I'm sorry, but you want me to give you Dalven's family? Admiral, I think maybe—"

"I don't mean to be too demanding, but can I add something to that? Maybe you could get your boss to stop kidnapping people in my family altogether. That would be fantastic."

Remy glanced around his Bridge. His crew continued to remain hard at work, and for the first time Remy wished they would react. It would be nice to see confirmation that he wasn't hearing things.

"Admiral, I'm requesting that you disengage and allow me to escort the Aleeyana and S Winchester to a safe port. I give you my assurance that we will cooperate fully with any investigation into the accusations you have made today."

"You can have the S Winchester. She's pretty beat up and there may be injuries on her. As for the Aleeyana – we need to borrow her for a bit. You may move crews off of her – under New Republic supervision, of course."

"I cannot allow you to do that, Admiral," Remy said.

"Of course you can, Captain. In fact, as a gesture of good will, I'll take the other vessel to the scrap yard for you," Thane said. "Or I'll just blow it to bits in 15 minutes and save all of us the trouble."

Remy saw motion on his Bridge just before hearing his enthusiastic Lieutenant call out, "Captain! Reinforcements! Battlegroups 2 and 5 are here!"

Remy rushed to look port side and pulling up beside the damaged Imperial Star Destroyer was one AE Vanquisher (identical to the Aleeyana) and two AFS-2S Combat Cruisers like the Mirage. The other group, aft of the Aleeyana, was visible on the display. It consisted of another Star Destroyer and one AFS-2S Combat Cruiser.

Remy paused to allow Thane time to digest the changing scenery. The Dark Alliance was heavily outmatched, but it was enough to insure Remy wouldn't be leaving anything behind.

Thane was the first to speak. "Now this is interesting. You have two Dark Alliance vessels casually making their way…somewhere. And within minutes of them engaging us, you show up. And a few minutes later you have two more battlegroups arrive," Thane said. "Caaaptain, are you stalking my Fleet - again?"

"That is ridiculous, Admiral Kyrell. I just happened to be here at the right time. These other groups are responding to a distress call. This is not a battle any of us want to have," Remy asserted.

"Today," Thane said.

"Today?" Remy asked.

"This is not a battle the Dark Alliance wants to have today. But the Dark Alliance wants this battle, as evidenced by your trigger-happy compatriots. Then there is the production of all of the pretty new ships being built by the Dark Alliance's most loyal... Actually, what exactly is Anogen Ecks' role in the Dark Alliance? He's a loyal something. What could be so important that a wealthy man with a stellar reputation could be compelled to commit treason?"

"Let's focus on what is right here, right now, Admiral. You have bravery in spaids, Kyrell, but you also have brains. You know you are not in a position to commandeer a vessel now. We may be facing overwhelming firepower, but you'll never pull that off without suffering devastating losses yourself."

"Awful greedy, Captain Kodix. Friends share their toys," Thane snorted. "Alright, I'll tell you what. If you'll just confirm where you'll be setting in for repairs, as long as it is far away from my forces, we can call this a misunderstanding. At least, I'll try to sell it to the New Republic that way. I can't promise anything."

"We're going to leave peacefully with our ships, and there will be no information sharing," Remy retorted. "And just an observation - take it or leabe it - but I'm not sure you should be speaking for the New Republic right now, Admiral."

"He is not, Captain," a female voice asserted, "I am." Every head snapped up on the Bridge of the Mirage. "This is Senator Leia Organa Solo, and I am speaking on behalf of the New Republic. Let's talk privately, shall we Captain?"

"One moment," Remy replied. Remy looked at his Lieutenant and nodded, after which he moved to the anteroom. He switched on the Comm and said, "We're in private now."

"I'm afraid we are going to have to take your ships, Captain. Your forces did fire upon ours in New Republic space. They also did not transmit Key 13 data. For this alone, they are subject to confiscation."

The senator was correct. A stupid technicality was going to force them to surrender two of their most valuable assets.

"Remy," Thane said. His tone was much different. "Not knowing the truth will not save you any more than it saved Jude. Remember that. I want to believe you don't know… that you are still a good man." There was a pause, then Remy could hear Thane sigh heavily. "I don't want to fight, Remy. Not you. Not anyone. We've all lost too much already. "The New Republic does not want conflict. But we will fight if forced, and we'll win."

"Thane, we don't have your family," Remy said, exasperated.

"Nash Windrider does. He kidnaps young mothers and their babies. And pregnant wives – Ciena is having twins by the way. He took my mother, Ciena's mother and father, my baby sister, Dalven's wife and daughter. He's a monster, Remy. Just like Palpatine was."

"Prin…" Remy stopped himself and grimaced. "Senator Organa Solo, I'm very concerned about Admiral Kyrell's fitness for duty. It's dangerous to have a man in his condition controlling a single vessel, let alone an entire fleet. I have to consider this when reporting on this event. I don't want to, but… clearly, I do not have a choice."

"Do what you feel is necessary, Captain Kodix," Leia said. "But give yourself a few hours to consider two important things. First, how likely is it that I would allow anyone – an Admiral, no less – to make the claims Admiral Kyrell has made without knowing they were true?

Second, you saw what the Rebellion did with some rickety old ships, tape, and hope. We're the same people, only we have fleets of ships now. And in the end, there's something even more powerful on our side. We know what it cost to get here, and we know what we have to lose."

Remy didn't know what to make of any of this. It felt like a bad dream.

"Remy," Thane said.

Remy took in a deep breath and exhaled. "Yes?"

"Be careful. Nash is… dangerous. He isn't the person you knew in the Academy. He hasn't been for a long, long time. I admit, I am forcing your hand by saying these things in from of your crew. You can say I am unstable, unhinged, delusional – and your crew will back you up."

Suddenly, it all made sense. Remy stood silent, his heart racing and speechless.

"He's dangerous, Remy. You can't confront him or take him on – he's surrounded by people who are like the Jedi, but they are notthe Jedi. But you can do something. I know you can. We are asking for your help," Thane said. "I am asking for your help."

Remy took another deep breath and closed his eyes. "Take the vessels. We'll stand down," he said, and disconnected the Comm.


Dark Alliance Compound, Zaphthosis

Main Residence - Eevou's Suite

Eevou sat on the end of her bed enjoying the aftereffects of the drink. Eventually she fell back and stared up at the ornate light fixture. The crystal made her think of her glass with the divine liquid. I'd keep that locked up, too, she thought. The drink was the perfect anecdote to her earlier episode – at least while it lasted.

Unfortunately, it took only minutes for her other thoughts to catch up with her.

She could not tell Remy she missed him, but she could somehow talk to Nash about it. He did most of the talking, she rationalized. And I am not in love with Remy. I know I am not. Eevou closed her eyes and breathed deeply to recapture the blissful state of contentment she had been enjoying. I don't fall in love.

Her mind shifted to Nash's question: Why is it awkward? "You've got to be kidding," she said aloud, rolling her eyes.

It seemed logical that Eevou would no longer have the inclination to make herself available to Nash without being asked. Not after her telling him off, anyway. And Nash was not likely to want to share everything with her now that she and Remy had grown closer. The stakes were too high.

Eevou thought back to the night Nash told her he decided to formally use the name Dark Alliance. She smiled thinking of how it confused her at the time. The Alliance could probably be convinced the name "Dark Alliance" and the Dark Trooper armor were chosen for the purpose of intimidating the New Republic. But why take the chance? They could not, absolutely could not know, that the term was a literal reference to the Dark side of the Force.

If rumors spread that a group of Darth Vader's disciples were the driving force behind everything they were doing, things would get extremely complicated. Add the fact they'll be waging a battle against a growing number of Jedi led by Luke Skywalker? If people put everything together, a mutiny might be the Alliance's undoing before Nash had a chance to put the artifact and their powers to use.

"Why take the risk?" she had asked Nash. He just smiled that smile that had become all too familiar, and he said nothing.

When it became clear to Eevou shortly after Nash forwarded her the designs for the Troopers' armor, Eevou presented Nash with her theory:

"Hmm… I get it," Eevou said. "It took a while, but I know why you named the Dark Alliance the… Dark Alliance."

"I am waiting with bated breath," Nash challenged her.

"It's a pre-emptive strike," Eevou said. "You turn the truth into a rumor before anyone has a chance to know the truth."

"Come again?" Nash asked, a smile beginning to creep across his lips.

"It started with the Troopers' armor," she said. "You make it so obvious that anyone who sees the armor is going to think about Vader. You send them on small missions in populated locations - like Lothal. You then plant a rumor with a few media operations – along with photos of the Dark Troopers - that says Vader is alive and the Troopers are his soldiers. Even reasonable beings will be spooked by this.

But Vader will never appear.

Instead of Vader, they'll see news reports from official New Republic sources that tell about a renegade faction with a small fleet of ships whose sole purpose seems to be antagonizing the New Republic. Of course, in the reporting they'll learn the name of the organization is the Dark Alliance and they'll see the scary looking soldiers belong to them – not Vader. Beings love a good story, but they need to believe in what they can see, hear, and touch. So, the Vader rumors will fade. The truth as they'll see it is that the Dark Alliance wanted to look scary, hence the name and armor. Any subsequent rumor will be seen in the same light as the first one - merely fodder for scary stories and dinner conversation. This will come in very handy if someone catches wind of who we really are."

After what appeared to be a reflective pause, Nash said, "Quite perceptive as always."

"What I haven't figured with certainty is who will have to fall on the sword. You, or Anogen?"

Nash tilted his head and stared at Eevou. "Why does anyone need to fall on a sword?"

Eevou smiled and shrugged. "You have to give them someone when they ask for the leader – unless you want them thinking it could be Vader."

Nash glibly replied, "A very astute observation."

"And?" Eevou nudged.

"It will not be long before Mon Mothma figures out there was treachery in the Senate. She may already know. Anogen is already attached to that, there's his nephew - the spy, and he is building our ships. So, what do you think is the logical play here?"

"You often do what seems illogical, so I won't venture to guess. Just surprise me," Eevou said.

Eevou sat up and pulled her legs up on the bed to cross them and assume a pose for meditation. If she was going to do all of this thinking, it seemed a better use of her time. But her mind wasn't cooperating.

Eevou considered that maybe the awkwardness was more her fault. It was what Nash couldn't know – what she had gone to great lengths to hide from him - that was vexing Eevou the most.

Ever since that night she confronted Nash, Eevou had been struggling with very uncharacteristic mood swings. One moment she would be indifferent about Nash, and the next she'd be angry with him. What made it odd was that she rarely cared enough about anyone or anything to feel extremes of emotion either way. But when Nash would call the group together, she would feel the irritation gnawing at her as soon as she saw him. All she had to do was hear his voice and she'd see red. What made her angriest was her inability to predict or prevent it.

Maybe things will change, she thought. Once all of this is over and I have time to figure it out I —"

Eevou felt her heart begin to race again, and the sick feeling she had from earlier came flooding in. "Dammit!" she whispered.

Light tapping on her door distracted her. She rose and straightened her tunic. She walked to the door and it slid open. Nash was standing there staring at her with a determined look. He didn't say anything.

Eevou was about to ask if something was wrong but didn't get a chance. Nash stepped forward, put his hands on Eevou's face, and kissed her. It wasn't forceful. He was passionate, and he showed no interest in pulling back.

Eevou was caught off guard and confused, but old habits die hard.

Nash Windrider was counting on it.


Nash rolled over to grab his wrist comm unit he had tossed on the bedside table. It was the second time in a minute it had alerted him. "Windrider," he said, not hiding his irritation.

"Sir, it is the Mirage again. Captain Kodix needs to confer with you immediately," the man said.

"Very well, put me through in fifteen seconds," Nash ordered, then muted the microphone.

He sat up and looked over to where Eevou lay with her back to him. "I was wrong, Eevou. It isn't that you love him. It's that you are afraid to lose him. And deep down you know you will. Once he knows the truth, he won't be able to live with it – even worse his role in making it happen."

Nash put his hand on her shoulder, but she didn't move. "I'm sorry," he said, then unmuted the comm. "Hello Remy. What's the progress?"

"Admiral Kyrell just commandeered and left with the Aleeyana and S. Winchester."

"So, we get there in time, but Kyrell still insisted on taking the Aleeyana even though she didn't fire on them and withheld her assets. You did negotiate with him?"

"Yes, I did, but in the end, it wasn't Kyrell calling the shots. It was Senator Organa Solo, and the two ships failed to transmit Key 13 data. The New Republic was legally able to confiscate them both, " Remy explained. "All of our men are safely transferred onto other ships in the two battlegroups that arrived to help. I thought I would continue to my original destination and we can strategize face-to-face."

"That sounds wise," Nash said, then sighed in exasperation. "The Princess is on Rebel Victory. Of course, she is. All of the work we did to keep her on Yavin and she's back out running around the Galaxy again."

Eevou's pillow was damp from tears that had already fallen. Hearing Remy's voice on the comm was nearly unbearable. But it was his voice in her head that she knew would haunt her.

"I've missed you, Eevou... You make me calmer. I like that you say so much without speaking. I like knowing you are close by. I don't like thinking you could be somewhere out of my reach and something could happen to you. I've… missed you."

Eevou pulled her hand up to cover her ear while Remy's voice filled the air around her, but it did nothing to stop the voice in her head.

"I doubt very seriously I am the first man who has wanted to see you as much more than what you describe… I took a chance and feel happy and very lucky you came to me today. I was dreading being here if you were going to choose to ignore me. I would have survived it, but it would have hurt."

Eevou turned her face and buried it into the pillow. Nash was right. There was no other way for this to go. What she had been feeling was the truth trying to claw its way up the wall Remy had spoken about - the wall between what Eevou was willing to show him and what was true. The problem was that on the other side wasn't what Remy believed he would find. He was good, and he wanted to believe she was good. He even made her forget that she wasn't for a brief moment.

In the end, no matter what Eevou did or said, Remy was going to learn how wrong he had been. He was going to learn that the only thing waiting on the other side of that wall is a legacy of Darth Vader.

"Are you alright?" Nash asked.

Eevou still didn't roll over to face him, but she did nod. She felt Nash leave the bed and heard his movement as he dressed. A few moments later, things were silent. He hadn't left, or she would have heard the door.

"Eevou, I want you to know… Had I thought about it I wouldn't have…" She heard him sigh and approach the door. "I'll see you tonight."

The door slid opened and closed. Eevou waited a few seconds, then slowly sat up. She stared at the door – at the place Nash must have been standing seconds before. The sick feeling she had earlier was gone. Her heart was no longer racing. But the anger – well, that returned with a vengeance.

Years, she thought. How many this time? After Korus, Eevou vowed she'd never subject herself to that torture again. How did this happen? She'd rather die than endure the unavoidable moments of pain and recrimination headed her way. She'd have to make the rejection believable to put distance between her and Remy before the "event". If she could manage to avoid Remy after the "event", she might not have to face the harshest truth - she could pretend he doesn't despise her. Since dying on her own terms wasn't a possibility, she'd have to forget. And to forget, she'd need a project. A big one.

She was plenty angry with herself. She would have to deal with that at some point. But for now, there were more pressing matters at hand. She had to find a way to say goodbye to Remy.

And then, for Remy and for herself, she had to figure out how – and when – to make Nash Windrider pay.