CHAPTER 24

Commander Mar walked into a small, poorly lit room. Admiral Ackbar was sitting at a table, across from General Rieekan.

"Yeah, so that's what happened. He just called me up and asked if he could surrender all of his divisions," Rieekan said. "So I was like, sure, let's do it!" Rieekan finished his story.

"Commander Mar, come on in. What's the latest?" Ackbar asked, after listening to Rieekan's story.

"We took three Star Destroyers, a carrack class cruiser and a Super Star Destroyer. Two of the Star Destroyers are in pretty good shape. One can make repairs here, and the second will only need a couple of weeks in the shipyard. The third one we're not sure yet if it's worth salvaging or if we should scrap it for parts."

"What about the other one?" Ackbar asked.

"Somehow, the carrack didn't sustain that much damage. That one will need one or two weeks in the yards, and then a few weeks of repairs underway," Mar reported.

"And the Super Star Destroyer?

"It took us four days just to recover all of the prisoners and clear any pockets of resistance on the ship. It will take weeks to search the ship and see what's salvageable. The ship itself is a floating scrap pile, but we can figure out what to do with that later. But there's bound to be some useful information in her databanks."

"Anything else?"

"That's it for now."

"Alright Commander. Why don't you go enjoy the parade?" Ackbar suggested.

"I think I might do that," Commander Mar said.

Mar walked out of the door. Ackbar looked over at Rieekan.

"He's a good officer," Ackbar said.

"They're hard to find," Rieekan said. "The good ones keep dying in battle."

"Yeah, I lost Mok, and the crew of the Naboo. A few hundred made it off the ship alive, but most were lost."

"I went to inspect the Second Division. They had got hit the hardest," Rieekan started to say. "So this soldier walks by me," he stopped for a moment and looked down. "His left leg is mangled. His right arm is in a bandage. He has a bandage around his chest, one of his friends is helping him walk," he continued. "He stops. He takes his arm off of his friend, and stands up straight, and he salutes me," Rieekan said, as his eyes got a little glassy. His face was red.

"What did you do?"

Rieekan took a sip of his drink. "I saluted back. I didn't know what else to do," the General said.

#

"Oh my goodness, Han, we made it in time for the parade," Leia said as she walked off the Falcon.

"Let's get over there, before it's over," Lando said.

"Luke should be leading this parade," Han said with a smile.

They walked past soldiers, spacemen, and ewoks. Some people were dancing. There were tables setup with drinks and people selling things.

"Han look, it's a lightsaber necklace. Should I buy it?" Leia asked.

"Yeah, that would look great on you," Han said sarcastically.

"Well, I'm getting it," she said, as she paid the short Sullustan.

"Luke, you ok?" Han asked.

"Yes, Han, I'm fine."

"After all we've been through kid, you can't smile."

Luke smiled.

"I'm good Han. I need to go talk to Ackbar, give him a quick report. Then I'll be right out."

"Alright Luke, see you in a little bit."

Luke walked over to the small building where he was told Ackbar would be. He walked into a small room and found the Mon Calamari sitting with General Rieekan.

"Commander Skywalker, why aren't you enjoying the parade?" Rieekan asked.

"I guess I just don't feel like celebrating," Luke said.

"Pull up a chair, Luke," Ackbar said.

Luke sat down. Rieekan poured a drink and pushed it over to Luke. He took a sip. They sat there in silence for a minute. Ackbar started to speak.

"Thirteen men were killed in an explosion in the Montuak's engine room. I ordered them to start up their engine room," he said, before taking a drink. "That's war," Ackbar said in a solemn voice.

"That's war," Rieekan echoed, raising his glass.

#

"Han, it's one of those shooting games," Leia said.

"You want me to win you a prize?"

"I'll win my own prize."

They each sat down at a gun.

"Come on Chewy, maybe I can win you a prize," Lando joked, as he and Chewy sat down at their guns.

The bell rang and they all started shooting. When the bell rang again, everyone checked his or her scores.

"I got 416," Han said.

"None of us won," Leia said.

They all looked down at the last stool.

"Nice shooting," Han said.

"Thanks."

"I'm Lando."

"I'm Tesla," the tall, black haired woman said.

THE END

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