"Oh, come on. I've escaped from them before."

"And it's only a matter of time before they keep you behind bars," I told him, but the stubborn old man continued up the ladder into the Z-95's cockpit. "Listen to reason."

With his suitcase thrown in the storage compartment, he climbed back down and looked at me with that same smarmy grin. "I'll be back soon. Can I get some good luck before I go?"

"Please don't."

"Carnada, you know Ostel needs me in Davn. Things are finally happening," he said, gesturing more and more wildly as his excitement grew. "The Blood Battalion has finally pushed people into seeing them for who they really are. This is our chance to drive them off Centrallis for good and set the people free."

I shook my head in disapproval, but there was always something about his idealism that swayed me. There was something about that childlike glee with which he described freedom that melted my heart. "Be careful, Sean."

"Oh, I always am."

I kissed him gently on the cheek. "Take your blasted luck and get out of here."

He climbed up into the cockpit and gave me a wave. That was the last time I ever saw him.


Carnada's war room was still humming with excitement, as more and more reports came flooding in.

The full troupe of Jedi walked into the room, buried in the halls behind the Council Chambers, just in time to see her in talks with one of the Demagogues from earlier. It was the old man with the handlebar moustache, once again wearing his pristine military uniform.

"Blaster fire is still going on inside the building, and now the Blood Battalion's troopers have begun firing on the Czerka Security forces we sent to investigate."

"Has anyone been hurt?" Carnada asked.

"No, the shots were wild. It's impossible to say if the troopers were ordered to open fire or just got spooked, but tensions are running high."

The High Counselor turned when she heard the four people approaching behind her. "Well, help has arrived. Thayla, Teller and Jon, I would like you to meet General Ostel Vix. He is coordinating our efforts in Davn."

"Step forward. This communicator I'm using is old and I'm not picking you up."

All of them stepped up beside Carnada, but Thayla was the first to speak. "It is an honor to meet you, General."

"And you as well, Master Jedi." He looked down at the little girl standing next to her. "You must be Jamie. I hope my people treated you well on the ride to Shilrakaen."

"It was fine," she said, plainly.

"Thank you for getting our daughter back to us, safely," Thayla told him.

Jamie seemed to quickly pick up on her influence and added, "Yeah, thanks."

"I was just doing my part. Working together is the only way we're going to beat the Bloods." He turned toward Carnada. "You should get them up to speed."

"Yes, I suppose it's about time."

Carnada gestured forward and all of them sat down, forming a much smaller ring than when the Demagogues had first met.

"We're ready whenever you need us." Teller had a surprising amount of fire in his words. "The Blood Battalion doesn't stand a chance."

The High Counselor chuckled. "Thank you, but we would like to avoid a fight if at all possible. More time to consolidate our forces would be advantageous."

Jon shook his head. "There isn't a whole lot of time left, in case you couldn't tell from the space station floating above us. If you people want to win this thing, you need to strike hard and soon."

"I very much agree," Ostel said, to everyone's surprise. "However, things get much more complicated when taking into account that most of those who will be fighting are not soldiers. A day will come when I will have to ask these citizens to lay down their lives for the good of Centrallis, but whether they are street thugs, private security or just common mining folk, I want that day to be when they have the best possible chance of accomplishing something."

"That seems reasonable."

"Very much so," added Thayla.

"With that in mind, several of us have been discussing what role you three will have on the battlefield."

"What about me?"

Jon and Thayla both looked at Jamie like she had completely lost her mind.

"I think you're a little young to fight. You've got spirit though, so perhaps in a few years we can talk."

She crossed her arms, but didn't push the issue.

"We will lead the charge wherever you need us," Thayla stated, nobly, but Carnada shook her head.

"Actually, we were hoping you would lead the inevitable space battle above us."

All of the Jedi were surprised and Thayla's voice suddenly became shaky. "I don't even know how to pilot a ship, not to mention dogfight."

"We know it's a lot to ask, but that space station is the biggest unknown in all of this. We've sent a few headhunters to investigate and Ahor has graciously sent more than a few of his ARC-99's. All of the pilots report a complete lack of traditional armaments, but strange mystic energies that attack their minds. Some of them haven't come back at all."

Thayla and Teller exchanged a glance.

"You handled a problem like this in Nordic, right?"

"Something like that." Teller pulled out his lightsaber, whose hilt was still cracked and twisted. "This will be a lot bigger though."

"You two should go." Thayla's voice was still shaking. "I would be useless."

"You're also the best with a lightsaber and should be here on the ground," Jon agreed.

Teller was still unconvinced. "But I barely survived the first time. I can't go through that again."

As much as Thayla was scared of going into space, she quickly realized it was nothing compared to her young Padawan's fear of facing the dark energies of the space station. "It will be ok. You've trained for this."

However, despite her intervention, his heavy breathing only got worse. "Yeah, ok. Last time it was… It was just a lot."

"If he's not ready, maybe him staying behind would be best. The decision is yours," said Ostel.

Thayla took a deep breath and sighed before giving her answer. "Teller can stay here. I'll go up there."

Jon started to interject, but Carnada cut him off. "We'll see if Ahor has any larger ships to spare. If someone else can pilot, then you can focus on dispeling whatever strange powers the station is using."

"That would be for the best."

"Yeah, until Jamie loses both of her parents in one battle." All eyes suddenly turned to Jon. "I get that you want to help, but we can't both be fighting on the same front. It makes it more likely that neither of us will come back."

The room suddenly went very quiet. Even Thayla lacked any inspirational words.

However, Carnada was not so shaken. "The Huntress killed my husband, Ostel's brother. She executed him, publicly, and she will do that same to tens of thousands more husbands, wives, sons and daughters unless we stop her."

"Sean Vix?" Teller asked.

"Yes." Carnada did not shed a single tear or allow her voice to waver. "I know that you're scared to lose those you love, Jon Vyrone. I know that it keeps you up at night and forces you to bury your feelings deep in the recesses of your mind, but we have all lost people. If having you two up there gives us the best chance of beating this monstrosity, then that's where I want you to be."

Jon didn't waver either. "Just to be clear, you're really asking me to risk making my daughter an orphan?"

"For the sake of the planet, yes I am."