The crew divides their separate ways for the evening. Jester stays with her mom, to tell the fantastical tales of places she has visited and people she has met since beginning her new adventures. Yeza, Nott, and Luc settle into a room themselves, with Jester ensuring they have plenty of food ordered and sent to the room.
Which leaves Caleb and Fjord.
After deciding it would be too awkward to sit in the main dining area, dressed as shabbily as they are surrounded by patrons flaunting their extravagant evening wear, they instead retreat to a shared room on the second floor of the Chateau. Marion had said there were plenty of rooms for each to have his own, but Fjord insisted they not take up any more space than necessary. Marion glanced at them curiously before dismissing the subject. Caleb also glanced curiously, but suspected it had something to do with his very recently checkered past.
Fjord and Caleb sit across from each other on their beds, mostly silent, eating dinner that Jester again ensured was extravagant. There is a huge variety of heavily-spiced meats kept warm on silver trays, plus an entire tray of pastries and desserts.
"I just saw the bounty go out on Nott," Fjord says, flipping through a stream of holograms floating above his palm-sized projector. "They know her face, but don't seem to know she traveled with a family. She will definitely have to disappear for a little while, though. Hunters might lose interest."
Caleb doesn't respond. He knows there is no way to remove a bounty on one's head unless the hunters don't think the credits will be paid. The Empire is famously reliable. Even dead, prove of a body delivered for the contract would earn a fraction of the bounty and make a humble hunter quite wealthy.
But as Caleb had watched Nott interact with her family over the past day he had known her, he felt suddenly that he needed to do all that was in his power to keep them safe. Even if that meant going up against the Empire. Especially because it meant going up against the Empire. The way her son looked her was enough to convince him.
"Nothing out on you, though," Fjord says, shutting down the projector. His eyes flick over to Caleb's face, watching for a reaction.
This brings Caleb back from his thoughts and to the present conversation. He glances over at Fjord, but doesn't respond, and his face remains blank.
"Look," Fjord says. "I'm not the smartest, but I think I know what it means when a man with a crew cut and clean-shaven face wearing clothes fit to be worn under armor starts running away from a planet invaded by an Empire."
Again, Caleb is silent.
"You're a deserter, aren't you?"
Caleb sighs, and looks up at the ceiling. "I deserted, yes, but I wouldn't call myself a deserter. That would be an easy title to hide behind."
Fjord says, "I've never met a deserter before. I've barely even heard rumor of it, although I'm sure it happens."
"It is not terribly common," Caleb admits. "They train us well to believe in our purpose."
"What is your purpose?"
Caleb unbuckles the holsters around his arms, and tucks the gun under the pillow while he speaks: "We fight and kill for the glorious Empire. Unite the galaxy under a single rule. Eliminate feuds and squabble between all lifeforms by making them bow to the one true Emperor."
The name is at the tip of both their tongues, but neither are brave enough to speak it aloud. There is not much known about the Emperor, but even speaking his name is said to catch his attention.
"So why Felderwin, then?" Fjord asks. "It isn't exactly a planet rich in resource or trade."
"As long as there are lifeforms to be subdued, the Empire goes there. Sometimes the most valuable resource is the fear that is ignited and spread to other planets. One brutal invasion in the system is enough to conquer all the planets."
Fjord sighs. "Well, I guess you just have to protect Nott from the bounty hunters while also helping Jester and I make our life-saving shipments to atone."
Caleb's shoulders hunch over. "That is a very bad idea."
"You want to keep Nott safe from the Empire? Jester is already pretty set on you both joining our crew, and there is little arguing with her."
Caleb shakes his head. "She is very enthusiastic, but I'm afraid I cannot. If my face isn't on a bounty, that means the search is taken up by Imperial hunters instead. And I fear them far more than your typical bounty hunter."
"We keep a low profile, and we move around a lot," Fjord says. "It wouldn't be a bad deal."
"Why are you so eager to expand the crew you claim to not need?" Caleb asks. "Especially to someone ex-Empire? One who would pose such a risk?"
"Well, for one, you are completely correct that I don't require a crew, but it sure is nice to have one. I didn't realize how lonely everything was until Jester joined." Fjord's voice trails off, and he leans back against the headboard of his bed.
"It's funny how loneliness works in that way," Caleb replies.
"Well, second, I feel like it's my purpose, almost? That feels too strong a word. Long ago, someone had taken a chance on me when no one else would, so I feel like I should return the favor for people who are in need a chance."
"That's very honorable of you, but it sounds like you could get into a lot of trouble with that mindset."
"I wouldn't call it honorable, just a debt to be paid. Trusting people enough to take a chance on them has gotten me into more trouble than I care to admit, but it also led me to meeting Jester. Me from before would have never taken that chance, and I would be missing out on a lot without her." Fjord closes his eyes. "But you really are welcome to travel with us, for as long or as little as you require."
"You are a good man, Fjord, but I don't want you all tied down to a dead man walking."
Fjord opens his eyes to look over at Caleb. "What is your plan then? Wander around the galaxy until they find you? Would you even put up a fight?"
Caleb's eyes flash with more emotion than Fjord has seen from him yet, a vivid glimpse at a previously unseen potential. Fjord can't tell if it was determination, or something more sinister that shines in his gaze.
"I would fight. With only myself to look after, I wouldn't have anything to lose. I could make Nott disappear from the shadows. No one could track her."
"Probably a lot easier to do if you're traveling with us though. Just think about it," Fjord says. "We look out for each other. Takes quite the load off your shoulders."
"A load off the shoulders doesn't help when the Empire knocks at your door and kills you before you can answer."
Fjord leans back, and laces his fingers behind his head. "You say that, but I know you will join."
"I just presented every reason I would not be joining your crew," Caleb replies. "They are very good reasons."
"I know, but that's from me asking. But when Jester asks, you will agree."
"You think I would change my mind so easily?"
Fjord laughs and replies, "Oh, I'm sure of it. Nobody can say no to Jester. That's just a fact."
Caleb shuffles uncomfortably. Even imagining a disappointed look on the tiefling's face makes him doubt himself. He tries to switch the subject. "So what is Jester's goal then, in joining your crew? Does she really intend to do supply runs until its appropriate for her to return to Nicodranas?"
Fjord lets out a deep sigh. "Jester has had this idea of wanting to find the rebellion since we met, but I don't think she has ever mentioned that to her mother. She says that her dad is part of the rebellion and she wants to find him, but I don't even think the rebellion exists anymore, let alone has her father leading it." He glances over at the ex-stormtrooper. "Have you ever encountered the rebellion? Are they even around anymore?"
"I personally have never encountered the rebellion, proper. Before my more recent promotion to Scourger, I didn't have any interaction with the front lines. I can tell you they exist, though, in their small clusters, extremely well hidden throughout the galaxy. They won't be found unless they want to be found, and it takes a lot to draw them out."
Fjord straightens. "So they aren't a myth, then? Tell me, do they have Jedi, too?"
Caleb scratches his head. "No. Jedi are extinct. If any did remain, the Sith Apprentice would waste no time in killing them."
"I wonder if they really could bring balance and peace, like the legends say," Fjord says, thoughtfully.
"I find it hard to believe any one life-form could bring about such change," Caleb says. "As much as we may wish it so."
"Maybe they are still out there, just waiting for their chance to topple the Empire."
"For all of our sakes," Caleb says, "I sure hope so."
Silence falls between them again. Fjord takes their empty trays and plates back down to the kitchen, deciding the deserter didn't present an immediate threat.
By the time he returns, Caleb has fallen asleep atop the covers of his bed, hand loosely tucked under his pillow. Fjord unholsters his own blaster, keeping it in arms reach, as he falls asleep.

-

"I'm so glad you are enjoying you adventures," Marion says, as she runs a comb through Jester's hair. Jester sits before her mother on the bed. She stares out the large window of the room, into the colorfully-lit night of L'Opale-sur-Mer.
"Have you heard anything from the representative?" Jester asks.
Marion considers for a second. "Representative Sharpe is still concerning me. He never went to the Zhelezo over the communications of his you breeched. It makes me wonder what he might actually be hiding."
"You don't think he could be talking to the rebellion, do you?" Jester whispers.
Her mother laughs out loud and replies, "The representative is too much of a coward to take a chance on the rebellion. I would be more worried about less ethical connections."
"Maybe you could talk to the Senator," Jester suggests. "Let him look into Sharpe."
"Senator Yussa is extremely busy keeping Nicodranas out of the war," Marion says. "Besides, I think Sharpe is harmless in the end. He just tends to inflate his own importance." With a final brush, Marion sets aside the comb.
Jester spins around, a mischievous glint in her eye. "Have you heard from Dad recently?"
Marion rolls her eyes, with a smile. "It has still been twenty-two years since I last heard from him."
"I really think I'm close to finding him, Mama. I can feel it."
At this, Marion frowns slightly, a small worried crease appearing at the corner of her eyes. "I truly have no idea who he is anymore, my sapphire. I'm not sure if he wants to be found."
"But you said he was with the rebellion!"
"I said we wants to protect Nicodranas from the Empire."
"By joining the rebellion?"
Marion sighs. "I don't know. But Jester, this galaxy is very big. It's near impossible to find just one man. I don't want you limiting yourself with this quest of yours."
"You're probably right, Mama," Jester says. She leans over and kisses her mother on the cheek. "Good night."
"Good night, my little sapphire," says Marion, smiling after her daughter as she leaves.
Sprinkle is waiting diligently inside Jester's old room when she enters.
"Alright, Sprinkle," Jester says, "you know what to do."
Sprinkle chirps in acknowledgment, and a small metal cone for detecting radio waves rises from one of the droid's compartments. Jester sits down on the ground beside him, activating the display on her gauntlet.
Seven flat, blue projects illuminate, with hundreds of radio waves crossing between them. Jester pulls off the gauntlet and sets it on her lap so she can use both of her hands to navigate the displays. With quick movements, she starts sorting through the different signals. She pulls out one set, sends it through a decoder of her own design, and then the signal clears up and begins replaying a message.
"An incident in quadrant four. All available Zhelezo report to the scene," crackles a voice.
Jester dismisses that radio wave and calls over her shoulder, "Sprinkle! You can block out that scramble set. Seems the Zhelezo have recoded since we were last here."
Sprinkle beeps in reply, and a dozen or so of the signals disappear from Jester's display. She glances through the bouncing signals again, and pulls out another one.
"This is a pretty crazy encryption," Jester mutters. "It almost looks Imperial."
Sprinkle chirps defensively, and dismisses that signal from Jester's display.
"Hey! I was looking at that one!"
The droid begins chittering quickly.
"I know, I know. It's dangerous, but if the Empire are in contact with someone on Nicodranas, shouldn't we know?"
With a definitive low beep from Sprinkle, Jester groans. "Fine, I'll keep looking."
She picks through another thirty or so radio waves, sending them through the decoder before sighing in frustration. It replays back a whole variety of communications, from shipment orders to family videomail to news on the latest Imperial invasions.
"I thought for sure there would be something to pick up on!" She stares at the signals scattered across her displays, before her eye catches on a tiny fragment of coded encryption, tacked on to the end of one of the signals she already ran through the decoder.
"Wait, Sprinkle, can you scan the communications, looking for this pattern? I feel like I've seen it before."
Sprinkle chirps, and the signals reorganize on the displays, lining up the tail ends of the encryptions for Jester to see.
"There it is again!" Jester says. She picks out a few communications leaving the planet and pins them to the side. "Keep looking for that signal pattern!"
Sprinkle beeps lows and slowly.
"What? You can't be tired already! This could be our first lead on a rebel encryption!"
Another sad bweep-boop.
"Just a little longer," Jester says. "And then I will wake up Fjord to get your charging pad from the ship."
Her eyes scan through the encryptions as they scroll down her display, picking out ones with the familiar pattern.
"It's not a simple encryption," Jester comments. "But I think I can at least figure out where it's heading. It seems to be tagging along to any communications going to the Marrow system."
She sends another dozen signals through her decoding, slowly assembling the fragmented message, until it finally triangulates.
"Zadash!" Jester cheers, jumping to her feet. "This signal is being sent to Zadash!"
Sprinkle beeps in celebration, but still with the lethargy of a fading battery.
"Okay, okay, okay," Jester says to herself. "This is good. This is really good. Now we just have to get your charging panel and see if we can decode the message."
She dismisses the displays, and activates a new function on her device, easily connecting to Fjord's communicator.
"We're close, Sprinkle," Jester whispers. "I can feel it."