Edit: Sorry, uploaded the wrong chapter earlier

Chapter Eight
The Pretenders

Long ago, Lara Notsil had vowed she would never set foot aboard an Imperial cruiser again. Since she had left the service of Warlord Zsinj and the Empire, Lara had forsaken her birth name and her past. Unfortunately, that left her struggling to find a future. She couldn't turn to the Republic, for her treasonous crimes against them would only bring about her execution. Still, that didn't cause her loyalty to the New Republic waver in the slightest.

That was what brought her here, to the bridge of the Imperial Star Destroyer the Ender. The Republic was in danger, and she felt it was her duty to put an end to the crisis. Many times in her past she had masqueraded as someone else, as an alternate identity. It was a skill that had brought her into Wraith Squadron, a skill that showed her the faults of the Empire she had served under for so long. It was that skill that brought her back into the service of the Empire, as an unofficial spy for the New Republic.

Obviously, she couldn't return under the alias of Gara Petothel, the name she was born with. Warlord Zsinj had discovered her secret, and it had nearly cost her life. Now she was Renica Nexilles, an experimental technologies specialist. She had forged the documents which had been submitted to the Captain of the Ender, declaring she had once worked for Seinar Fleet Systems before leaving to pursue her own career. She had sliced into the ImpNet communications a few days earlier and had learned that one of the leading designers of the Phantom project had disappeared off Nar Shadaa. She knew the Rogues had been involved, that was why Myn had shown up at Corellia. Even so, with that technician missing, the Ender needed a new designer to continue work on the Phantoms.

Unbeknownst to the Imperials, Lara Notsil's ultimate goal was to throw a hydrospanner into their pet project.

***


Lara found herself in the high-security hanger bay that held the Phantom Fighters. According to the official reports, twelve Phantom D-34 TIE Fighters had been commissioned and built. Since the initial construction, one tri-winged snubfighter had been stolen from the production facility on the surface of Telos, and another had been lost in combat only a week earlier.

During her service with the Empire, Lara had heard of several attempted, and failed, projects that deployed cloaking devices. Towards the middle of the Galactic Civil War, former Imperial Admiral Zaarin had developed a cloaking system that was used on a Corellian Blockade Runner. Ultimately, it had failed, leaving Zaarin disgraced. The power drain on a ship was too great, but somehow, Naolin had pulled it off this time.

She knew there must be some sort of weakness in the Phantom's cloaking device, but the trick would be to find it. She had everything at her disposal now, except for the knowledge that the missing head designer had. Kelin Sokyr had been neatly tucked away on Nar Shadaa, but he had vanished, and the Imperial officers assigned to him had been killed. Without him, it would be painful to unlock the weaknesses behind the Phantom.

"New to the Ender?" a new voice behind her asked. "I don't believe I've seen you here before."

Lara turned around, only to find herself looking up at a rather broad-shouldered pilot. It was Fel! She had seen holoimages of him all over the Galaxy, but he had disappeared after defecting to the Republic prior to the fall of Coruscant. What was he doing here, back in the Empire's service?

"Yes," Lara replied. "I'm Captain Nexilles."

What happened next surprised her. Fel moved right next to her and whispered harshly into her ear, "I know why you're here, Petothel…or is it Notsil now?"

Lara felt as if someone had knocked the wind out from her lungs. How could her cover have been blown so quickly? She had done everything in her power to cover her tracks.

"My quarters as soon as your shift is over," Fel said. "We need to talk."

***


Lara glanced around at Fel's quarters. Despite taking a demotion from colonel to captain, he still had one of the more luxurious living spaces the Ender had to offer. For a war-time pilot, she was a bit surprised to see all of the potted plants and shrubs he kept. Perhaps this was the softer side of Fel that many never saw.

"You're sure this room is clean?" Lara asked, casting a cautious eye around the room once more.

Fel nodded his reply, "I already swept it for bugs and taps, we're safe."

Lara nodded, staring at Fel for a moment, "Last I heard, you had vanished from Rogue Squadron's service, and no one has heard from you since. Are you still working for the Republic, or have you joined the Empire again?"

"That is of little importance now," Fel replied. "All you need to know is that we're both trying to end the same project."

"You're with the Republic, then."

Fel shook his head, "I'm neither with the Republic, nor this Empire. Now isn't the time for that, though. We need to deal with the immediate crisis."

Lara didn't like how enigmatic Fel was being, but did she have any choice but to listen to him? He hadn't blown her cover yet, but he easily could if she didn't go along with this. "I'm listening."

"We both know that this program must be brought to an end," Fel said, "but we've got to do it the right way."

"If you wanted this done so bad," Lara replied, "you could have dealt with it yourself. You've got access to the Phantoms."

"If I destroy them, then Naolin will just build more. Yes, we have to stop these starfighters, but we also have to put an end to the root."

"What exactly do you propose, then?" Lara asked.

Fel glanced at her for a moment before walking to one of his potted plants, picking up a small container of water to wet down the soil, "We have to deliver Naolin and Moff Celia into the Republic's hands. As fragmented as the Empire is right now, the Phantom project would never take off again without those two spearheading it."

"You want to try a similar stunt that the Republic employed against Warlord Zsinj," Lara said. "Apparently my exploits travel fast."

When Lara's cover had been blown during her service with Wraith Squadron, she had defected back to the Empire, serving as an unofficial double-agent. She had created a piece of software to piggyback on Warlord Zsinj's Super Star Destroyer that signaled its location to the New Republic fleet. Had she had more time to refine it, the plan could have gone off without a hitch, and the Republic could have brought an end to Zsinj's reign of terror much sooner.

"I trust you can get something in place," Fel said. "We'll implement it when the time is right."

They stood in silence for a few moments, contemplating the task at hand. It was up to the two of them to bring an end to the Empire's latest weapon, a daunting task to say the least.

"I have to know something," Lara said. "Where have you been?"

Baron Fel sighed and sat down on an ejector seat that doubled as a desk chair, "I received a message not long after Rogue Squadron's disaster involving State Pestage, an Imperial Admiral that had been sent to the Unknown Regions by Emperor Palpatine."

"Thrawn," Lara murmered.

"Precisely," Fel continued with a nod. "He offered me a position on board his Star Destroyer, commanding one of his elite TIE units…it was an offer I couldn't refuse."

"A few fancy messages and you abandon the Republic?" Lara scoffed. "Serves you right for following him into a dead end."

"You have to understand my motivations," Fel pleaded. "I can never raise a family with the government in turmoil. My wife is on the run from both sides, and wouldn't be welcomed in either side in its current states… Back then, the Empire was in shambles, and the Republic was weak. I thought Thrawn had what it took to bring stability to the Galaxy…but I was wrong."

"So why help the Republic now?"

"The lesser of two evils, I suppose. Without Thrawn, the Empire will never be as it once was. This Empire is dieing, and there is no reversing it. At least this way I can speed up the process a little and hope that the Republic can do better."

"You could return to the Republic after all is said and done," Lara reasoned. "I'm sure you could use your influence to ensure you and your wife could be happy within the Republic."

"It's not that simple," Fel said. "Mark my words, Notsil. This Republic is not going to survive much longer. The Empire may not bring an end to it, but something else will. Already it's clear that the same corruptness that doomed the Empire's government is beginning to creep into the Republic. The moment an epic crisis stares them in the face, they will crumble and crush the citizens they've sworn to protect. I will not subject my wife to that kind of danger and uncertainty."

Lara frowned and shook her head, turning her back to Fel and moving towards the door, "I don't agree with you about a great deal of what you believe, Fel…but at least we can agree that we need to put an end to the Phantoms."

With that, Lara walked out of Fel's quarters. What a task, she thought to herself. The future of the New Republic rested in the hands of two seemingly loyal servants of the Empire. Lara knew this masquerade was more important than any role she had ever assumed before.

"I'm sorry, Myn," Lara said quietly to herself, "But I have to get involved now."