Hey, everyone! How are you all doing on this warm and sunny day of Monday, May 10, 2021? I'm doing well, if a bit exhausted from work today. Sorry I couldn't write the last few days, but I had my two finals to worry about over the weekend, and that had to come first. I just hope I do well on them. Oh, and I got a Kindle Fire for a steal at my local help center, so I can save space on a bunch of books I intend to buy in the future. I've also read a bit of Star Wars: Thrawn Ascendancy Book II: Greater Good over the last few days. It's pretty good, but no Outbound Flight. And I'm mainly reading it for research material on the Chiss and much of the Unknown Regions for the upcoming post-Jedi Odyssey saga, as I'm about to fully cut ties with Star Wars over Disney's mistreatment of the franchise. Let me tell you, when all of my ideas come together, they will be amazing! Oh, and Mass Effect Trilogy: Legendary Edition will be released in four days, and I plan to get it the night it comes out. Well, with all the small talk out of the way, I'd best get started on this chapter. It may take me a bit of time to write it, as I have to fully get my thoughts in order to resume writing. But I will get it done as quick and efficiently as I can. So, may the Lord be with us all in these dark times, and enjoy the chapter. Oh, and if I play my cards right, I can use a bit of a previous draft in this chapter.
(Wednesday, May 12, 2021 Addendum) Hey, everyone! How are you all doing on this warm night? I'm doing all right, if a bit tired from work today. And I have two more days of work this week, before I have seven more days to work over the next two weeks. But I've also been making good progress on this chapter, with having written over 4k words by now. And I have a friend looking at my Jedi Odyssey rewrite stories so far to give me constructive feedback for them, so I look forward to figuring out how to improve my stories. Oh, and I finished Star Wars: Thrawn Ascendancy Book II: Greater Good yesterday, and it was a pretty good book. I look forward to the final book in the trilogy, but it'll be bittersweet, considering that I won't buy anymore Star Wars books afterwards. I've also gotten started on Star Wars: Fate of the Jedi: Conviction. It's a great read, even as I'm sad as I know what happens at the end of the series. In addition, I'm excited for Mass Effect Trilogy: Legendary Edition to come out in two days. That'll be a great game to play. I also played a small bit of Assassin's Creed: Valhalla and got 60 Gamerscore points from the game today. I hope to play some more tomorrow before I switch gears for the Mass Effect remastered trilogy. Well, I'd better get some more writing done, as I have work again tomorrow morning. And I hope that the gas shortage across the East Coast ends very soon, as I have seen the panic from the cyber attack's fallout, and its utter madness. Hope you all have a blessed night.
(Thursday, May 13, 2021 Addendum.) Hey, everyone! How are you all holding up on this warm day? I'm doing well, as I worked an extra shift today to help out my bookstore, relaxed a lot afterwards, and wrote about fifteen hundred words in this chapter today. So at least I kept it productive. And I found out that the East Coast gas shortage is ending very soon, so that's a relief. I just hope we can prevent another from happening. But with the rate things are spiraling out of control, I have grave doubts about such a possibility. In other news, I just received some helpful and very wise advice from an old friend of mine on my Jedi Odyssey Rewrite, and it is very inspiring. I'll be sure to take his advice into very deep consideration going forward, as my friend has not steered me wrong once. Well, I'd better go for now, as I want to get some relaxation in before I go to bed for a seven-hour shift tomorrow. Oh, and I'm very excited about getting the Mass Effect Trilogy: Legendary Edition for my Xbox One tomorrow. God bless us all in these tough times for many.
Ten Minutes Later
In Hyperspace
95 Hours and Forty-Five Minutes From the Falleen System
As Kitai bolted up from her bed in the Ursa's captain quarters, the faltering Sith could not help but quietly sob at the first three sets of memories that defined Edaan's childhood years, and the trauma the Palpatine heir suffered because of her and Abeloth.
At the young age of eight, during a period in the Sith Lady's life when she was struggling between the Light and Dark and her blossoming love for Ben, Edaan had suffered from bigotry and blind prejudice because of his lineage. And that was before he lost his entire family in one tragic moment because of her people and their demented puppet master. And unlike Vestara when she lost her parents, Edaan felt each of their deaths through his empathetic bond with them, and it drove him into a coma.
The naked pain she felt Edaan experience, coupled with the hate and raw pain her Ben felt from her betrayal, tore at her weary heart. But throughout it all, Edaan still held onto his child's heart, and refused to give up on a friend. He even managed to convince Grand Master Katarn and Jaden Korr to help him train for this very moment. She was sure that he recruited other Jedi to help him with his efforts. Two extra Jedi could not have allowed Edaan to orchestrate his master plan all by himself. And his honest conviction and compassion made her wish, now more than ever, that she never betrayed or left Ben.
She did not know why this was impacting her so much. Maybe it was her vulnerable state, or Edaan's simple and blazing light was reawakening emotions and hopes she long since threw away.
Even if she decided to turn her life around, how could she possibly own up to all of her atrocities after she destroyed or ruined countless lives? Who could possibly understand what she was going through right now?
Ben might, but fifteen years of hunting her down would leave its terrible scars on anyone, and she was afraid of what might come from their reuniting.
Unfortunately for her, her moment of melancholy was interrupted by a knock on the door and she sensed a frantic Mirta enter the room right as the door slit open.
Force, what could she want now? According to her holoclock, she had only been in meditation for a few hours. What could she have to say to justify seeing her in this frazzled state?
Before Kitai could utter a single syllable, Mirta beat her to it, "Phasma's demanding you at the comm center now. Someone told her about our arrangement, and the Sith know everything."
This was absolutely the last news she needed to hear. She was on the verge of having a nervous breakdown from her emotional conflict, and she did not know how much else she could take.
"How could this have gone so wrong so fast?" Kitai whispered.
"Afraid there's more." Mirta hesitated, as if she was gathering the strength to say something that Kitai somehow knew might tear their friendship apart.
The room was deathly silent at no one speaking, until Kitai turned to Mirta and instinctively knew what she was up to. She sadly deduced, "You're leaving."
Knowing there was no way to lie to her only Sith friend in this mad army, Mirta sadly admitted, "You caught me, old friend. And I'm taking my kids with me, back to their father, where they belong."
Where they belong. Kitai reflected. Come to think of it, where did she belong? She had no family or home left to go back to, and she cut herself off from everyone that could help her. Everyone aside from… Edaan, Ben, and Mirta and her kids. They had put their lives and very souls on the line to get here and reach Kitai, and they were suffering right now because of it.
How could she leave them to suffer for her actions? She remembered, back when Edaan was a captive of the Lost Tribe on Kesh, his story of Jace Malcom and how his darkness nearly caused him to sacrifice Duro to try and stop a Sith superweapon. He was only pulled back by the revelation of his secret son, Republic SIS agent Theron Shan, risking everything to stop the massacre. He knew that he now had two people to fight for besides his former lover, Jedi Grand Master Satele Shan, and that proved to be enough for him.
Maybe, just maybe, the same principle was enough for her- No! Something broke inside Kitai, something dark and fractured that had driven her forward for far too long. At the same time, however, another part of her soul began to mend as a new, brighter, and fiery determination took hold of her. Such simple but pure love would be enough for her.
She failed Ben, Edaan, everyone who placed their trust in her, and herself when it mattered most over a decade ago, and it cost everyone so much. She would not fail them again. Not when she finally saw that so much more was at stake than just herself and had so many people willing to risk it all for her.
Darth Kitai closed her yellow eyes for the last time to find and strengthen her resolve, and when they opened, the strong, kinder, and beautiful brown eyes of Vestara Khai returned for the first time in over fourteen years.
Focusing her fraying mind and preparing herself to own up to her past ghosts, not matter how much pain it brought her, Vestara wiped the tears pouring down her face, and nodded to Mirta, "Then we'd better get moving. We'll have to warn the Jedi and our allies of our change in plans."
"You mean you're-" Mirta gaped. "What did Edaan make you see in there that brought this on?"
"The start of a boy's pure hope, determination, and his borderline obsessive journey to save me." Vestara ruefully chuckled. "But I'm still going to make him pay for all of the torment he caused me, just in a better way."
"Looking forward to seeing it, Ves." Mirta smirked.
Twenty Minutes Later
On Falleen
Within the Falleen Throne Capital City
Aboard the Bounty's Plunder
Within Phasma's Meditation Chambers
"Then it's all true." Phasma tightly said, barely able to control her righteous anger after hearing Kitai-no, Vestara Khai, she reminded herself, confessed her plans to the Sith Apprentice. "After all you've done to advance Lord Krayt's Grand Design, you're going to throw it all away for an order and a lover that would sooner want you dead."
"No, not for the Jedi, and not just because of Ben Skywalker." Vestara resolutely shook her head. The Sith Apprentice could feel the defector's heartache ripple through the Force, confusing the loyalist with Vestara's contradicting words and state of mind. "It's in the name of every world, every family, and every person I've ever wronged, and I have to set what I can right before I can even think of reconciling with Ben."
"And you think you can simply walk away from the Dark Side? Everything you've ever known and been? Do you truly think you can leave it all behind? Are you willing to betray every friend you made in the One Sith?"
"I don't want to betray anyone, but I have to set things right." Vestara resignedly admitted. "The darkness will always be a part of me, and I can't escape that truth, or my actions. But thanks to Edaan's ceaseless meddling, I finally see that I can use all of that pain and sorrow to remake myself into a better person. I don't have to be enslaved to my bitterness and selfishness anymore."
"And I hold no illusions of my post-war fate. If I survive, I'll be tried by the Jedi and their allies, and likely be executed or imprisoned for all the war crimes and atrocities I committed as a Sith. But I owe it to the people who once, and still do, believed in me to, for once in my life, try and do however much time I have left right."
Phasma, despite her still-seething rage, could not help but admire the sense of responsibility Vestara held. She was still willing to fight for her people and for her personal drive. But at the same time, she was willing to own up to all the sins she had committed and rise above her weaknesses to become something greater than ever before. She wished her brother could hold that sense of integrity and drive.
Even so, the Sith Apprentice knew where her loyalties still lay, with her remaining people and her brother, even as crazy as he was. She also knew that she had to accelerate her efforts to find Edaan and finish crushing the planet's local resistance before the blockade over Falleen could be broken.
Fortunately, thanks to Lady Dician's foresight and brilliant insight into the Sith's enemies, the Sith were prepared for the betrayal.
"Then you will have to do it on your own, Vestara Khai, for I will destroy your allies before you arrive, and the One Sith will triumph over the Jedi."
Phasma then allowed herself a victorious smirk, and mockingly asked Kitai, "But you will not be there to see it. For did you truly think our masters would allow you, in your conflicted state of mind, to remain free with a known Jedi sympathizer?"
Eyes glistening in recognition, Vestara muttered a Keshiri curse an instant before the Ursa's transmission was abruptly cut off. Breathing out a sigh of sympathy for the traitor, "I wish you luck in your fight for survival, Vestara Khai. Gods willing, we will not have to meet on my next battlefield."
With that bit of unsavory business out of the way, Phasma knew she had a duty to carry out for the One Sith, and she prepared to contact King Redhan and their combined force to report on Vestara's betrayal. Even if the defecting fleet survived the incoming ambush, she wanted to be prepared for the inevitable retaliation that would soon follow.
And if Lady Dician's plan came to fruition, then the Resistance would soon be crushed by Phasma's own hand.
So then, why was she so conflicted over this strategy?
Aboard the Ursa
Within the Randon system
"What in the blazes happened?! I want a full status report immediately!" Sabine shouted to her command crew as alarms blared throughout the Keldabe-class Battleship. Having her command ship quickly pulled out of hyperspace taxed many of its systems, and if she was hearing the comm chatter correctly, at least two of the Ursa's decks were ablaze with fires.
"We're not sure, Buir, but the hyperdrive suddenly shut down, and most of our propulsion and offensive systems aren't responding!" Hera warned Sabine. "And it looks like we're not the only ones stranded here! Half the fleet's stranded all across the Randon System."
"Are they suffering the same failures we are?" Mirta pressed, quickly putting a small bacta patch over a bleeding gash on her left cheek.
"All but the Ordo." Ezra answered, reading a computer monitor as he reported back. "Scans indicate that several explosives detonated and critically damaged the ship. We're all but dead in the water, and I'm betting most of the ships are in the same boat!"
"Those krething… they planned this. They must have known we'd all betray us and prepared for this day. And I walked right into it!" Vestara punched her fist on the durasteel floor. Already on her way to redemption, and she was making mistakes that would earn an experienced Sith Saber a swift decapitation.
"Don't go beating yourself out now, Vestara, it's not your style." Mirta scolded. "We're still alive, but it's only a matter of time before the Sith come to try and finish us off. Which means we need to contact the Jedi and GA right away if we're to survive this."
"That's a start, but we'll need more than the Jedi. I know a privateer and his fleet that're based nearby. They can get here in a couple hours, max." Sabine hopefully added.
Like they'll get here in time to save us. Vestara bitterly lamented before self-reprimanding herself. The Mandalorians were right. She had finally got her head back on straight and was willing to do what it took to redeem herself, and she was not about to let it all be for nothing.
Pulling out her comlink, she keyed in the comm frequency she used to contact Ben and Kyle but was soon rewarded by a cautious Saba Sabatyne and Luke Skywalker instead.
Ignoring her surprise at seeing the renowned Barabel fighter in a hoverchair, Vestara bitterly retorted, "Figures that Ben and Katarn would take now to leave their comlinks in someone else's hands."
"Jedi Skywalker is busy, and this one has no time for your games. What do you want, Kitai?" Saba hissed in disapproval, while Luke stared at Vestara with disbelief and wonder.
"He did it. Edaan actually did it." Luke mumbled, so softly, that Vestara was barely able to pick it up.
"Be sure to give your star Knight plenty of accolades later. Right now, any chance you've got some Jedi or hidden assets stationed near the Randon System?" Vestara started, quickly going through the basic gist of the dire straits the defecting fleet had found themselves in.
To her credit, neither Jedi Master interrupted Vestara once, and listened intently to every spoken word. Quickly relieving her, the disabled council member calmly answered, "This one believes you. It seems Edaan's plan succeeded."
"It did, and I'll gladly face up to what I've done when this war's over. But can you get anyone to save us in time?" Vestara pressed.
"This one will reach out to Honoghr. They will make it in time with a howlrunner's swiftness and ferocity." Saba answered.
"Since my son cannot make it to help you, I will lead a force as well." Luke nodded. "I won't let all of Edaan's work go to waste now."
"The gesture is appreciated, but unless you can pull a miracle out of your robes, neither of you will ever make it in time." Vestara despondently knew.
"We'll find a way." Luke enigmatically answered. But before he disconnected, he asked Vestara, "When the battle's over, I'd like to speak with you and Commander Gev, if possible. The three of us will have much to talk about, and I owe you both more than I can possibly give."
"What are you-?" Vestara tried before Luke explained,
"Let's just say you're not the only one who got a stern wake-up call by Edaan." Luke chuckled before he shut down the holochannel.
Five Minutes Later
On Honoghr
Within the Village of Nystao
"I cannot thank each of you and your people enough, Chief of State Yimmon, Master Jedi, and Mandalore Fett." Rakh bowed her head in front of Garazeb, Kajin, Kyle, and Boba, with Han, Leia, C-3P0, Wynn, and Desha all in physical attendance to oversee their final negotiations. "Because of all of you and the risk you took on our behalf, the Noghri will continue to live, and we will help undo all of the Sith's death and lies across the galaxy."
"Don't give credit where it's not due, Maitrakh. I did nothing to stop Neo Death Watch this time. One of their commanders made the call to put a stop to this all on their own." Boba corrected her.
"Yeah, and she's probably in a typical mess of trouble for a Mandalorian, so I'd better get ready to divide my fleet and go save her hide." Garazeb chuckled.
"That may be, but Commadner Rhal and his people will join your clans now, yes?" Rakh reminded the Manda'lor. "That makes all of them your people, and each of them are heroes on this world."
"And we will do more than simply honor our promise to the Galactic Alliance and Jedi. We will help them root out the senators and leaders that have betrayed their oaths, as promised. But we will also send people to help the Mandalore Sector fight the Sith's armies."
Even Han, having seen a Sabacc face countless times from trained assassins and enemies, could notice the small ripples of shock from Boba's micro expressions in his armored body's stillness. The kind of offer the Noghri were making was not one anyone would turn away. And everyone knew how lethal warriors and assassins the Noghri could be.
In a rare effort of diplomacy from the guarded bounty hunter, he gratefully acknowledged, "My people and I would be very grateful. I certainly won't turn away anyone willing to help us against the Neo Death Watch and their Sith masters."
"Very well. I shall reach out to the other clans, and we shall assemble our best warriors and hunters to ready us for the war. The sacred temples across the planet shall be our gathering points."
"You mean the ancient Rakatan temples from the Infinite Empire, yes?" Kyle curiously queried. Upon receiving a nod, he added, "Pardon my curiosity, but how did those temples survive the Yuuzhan Vong's invasion and terraforming of your world? I would have thought they would have been destroyed for their organic structures."
"Is this really the best time for archaeological questions, Grand Master?" Wynn pointedly asked.
"No, it is all right. He does raise a fair point, given how the Jedi's Yavin IV praxeum and the moon's ruins were demolished by them. But the simple truth is that our shamans made the temples sink underground. Oh, we also hid a small portion of our clans' populations with them to protect them from the Yuuzhan Vong if they did more than what they did to revitalize our world." Rakh calmly explained, earning everyone's stunned silence from such an outlandish tale, even as they all had seen far more bizarre things.
Kajin took a moment to recompose himself before he politely spoke to Rakh, "Well, perhaps these temples deserve further exploration. With your people's permission and oversight, of course."
"Not a bad idea, Sir." Kyle concurred. "Perhaps they'll give us a clue on how to stop Abeloth whenever she returns, or even warn us of some other ancient threat."
"Let's not bring that old hag into this, please." Han groaned.
"Agreed. We can deal with the theoretical behind the scenes. Right now, we need to keep our main focus on stopping the Sith." Desha concurred.
"Well, on that front, I'd say we're making good progress." Wynn added. "We're gaining more allies every day, and we're working hard to purge the galaxy of their proxies. And if the reports we've heard from High General Orellios and Commander Wren are accurate, we may have a certain most-wanted Sith Lady about to defect to our side alongside Commander Gev."
Vestara Khai. Leia seethed. After what that treacherous Sith did to her family, and all the lives she devastated and worlds she and her allies plundered for her ever-growing thirst for power, Leia wanted nothing more than to put that woman behind bars before her swift and unceremonious execution.
Edaan and his personal quest be damned, she wanted nothing more to do with that scheming schutta. And Mirta was no better, for she threw away the friendship she had with Jaina and became a terrorist when she threw in her lot with the Qrephs and Vestara. Alliance with Fett or not, she wanted to destroy Mirta and make sure that she could not hurt anyone else, ever again.
Well, she and her family would soon have her shot at making sure those two women faced justice soon. Thanks to Grand Master Katarn's word, she and her family would soon be travelling with Generals Farlander and Orellios's fleets when they worked with Sabine's Mandalorians to break the Sith's blockade over Falleen.
She only wished that the Millennium Falcon would be ready for combat then. Her husband's prized ship had proven itself to her countless times over the last fifty-nine years, and she wished she could fly in it again. But Threepio's prior assessment was correct, and it would take at least six months for the ship to be repaired, and the galaxy may not have that much time left.
Kyle's hologram was suddenly interrupted by Luke replacing it, and he got right down to business. "I apologize for the impromptu interruption, everyone, but there is an urgent situation that needs all of our immediate attention."
"What now, Skywalker? Your son thinks fighting alongside dirtside rebels is beneath him?" Boba mocked the former Grand Master.
Ignoring the jibe, Luke sternly answered, "Your granddaughter, Vestara, Sabine, and all of their forces have just defected from the One Sith." Taking the opportunity to continue despite everyone's utter shock, Luke worriedly added, "But their ships have been sabotaged, and they're all about to be attacked by the rest of their confederates in the Randon System. If we want to reach them in order to save them in time, your people will need to trust Master Barratk'l to get you there."
Reining in his anger at Mirta's plight, Boba instead nodded to Luke, "I'll order Thornton and his people to work alongside your Jedi. I assume you'll use one of your Jedi tricks if you're hoping to make it in time to save the others?"
"A banned Jedi skill." Luke corrected. "But Barratk'l will have to fill you in on the specifics. I have my own StealthX squadrons to prepare, and we have to leave within two hours."
Speaking to the rest of the leaders, Luke apologized, "I wish I didn't have to ask this of you all, but we'll need to divide our forces for the time being."
"What about Vestara?" Han understood keeping Mirta alive for this Jedi-Mandalore alliance, even if he would love to rid the galaxy of her. And he could understand her desire to keep her homeworld and people strong and independent against a galaxy of idiots, even if he deplored the means. But Vestara was not a wayward woman, but a full-fledged Sith who deserved death a hundred times over for her betrayals and countless atrocities against the Jedi and the galaxy's innocents.
"We need her alive. She knows too much about the One Sith to leave anything to chance. And if what I saw about her is any indication, Edaan got through to her."
"You spoke with her? And you actually believed her ruse?" Leia ghastly asked.
"She's the one who warned us of the Sith's attack on them. Even if she was playing us, we can't let Sabine and Mirta's fleets be destroyed." Luke put a bit of steel in his voice as he reminded them, "You have to put your vendetta on hold for now."
"Will you take your entire force to save these defectors, Master Skywalker?" Rakh worriedly asked.
He assured the Maitrakh, "Do not worry, Maitrakh. We won't leave your world undefended against the Sith. I'll still leave four or five Jedi behind, and we'll spare a sufficient force to defend your world from any further Sith-led incursions."
"That sets my mind at great ease." Rakh sympathetically nodded. "And as I told the rest of your compatriots, will uphold our end of the bargain with the Galactic Alliance at once. We will prepare and send our elite hunters and warriors to help uproot the Sith's agents from your senate before they begin constructing their base on our world."
"And my wife and I will stay behind to ensure the Alliance upholds its end of the bargain." Wynn informed Luke.
"Your integrity does the Alliance proud, ambassadors." Bowing his head in gratitude, Luke shifted his attention to Keyan, "General Farlander, will you be able to spare a few ships to help our task force and Master Barratk'l?"
"I should be able to spare four ships and my fleet's carrier with no problem. My XO is more than ready to lead a task force of her own. And I can redirect part of the Gyndine fleet to the Randon System." Keyan then pulled out his comlink to call up Kara for her new mission.
"Actually, I meant if you can lead the task force yourself." Luke clarified. "We'll need every Force User we can get if we're going to get this combined force to Randon in time. If you believe your captain can lead a task force, then she and some of your senior officers will lead the defense of Honoghr."
Hardly able to deny his former master with the sound logic and knowing that Kara was ready to step out of Keyan's shadow, he nodded. "I'll give Commander Farkus her new orders right away."
"Good." Turning to Han and Leia, he looked crestfallen, and answered, "I need to speak with you and Allana onboard the Falcon right away. It's a rather pressing personal matter."
"More pressing than withholding from vaping that Sith smooka when we see her?" Han sadly shook his head, "Sorry, Luke, but the Falcon's gonna be out of commission for at least the next six months. It was the cost of protecting Honoghr."
"Sounds like a story to tell. But I'm afraid it can't wait."
Luke, struggling with the right way to phrase this next sentence, carefully warned them. "Jaina will need your advice and wisdom now more than ever, I'm afraid."
"What's wrong?" Leia instantly pressed. "Did Daala or the Sith leave any sleepers behind?"
"She's not in any physical danger, but she's torn between two possible paths in her life." Sighing, Luke added, "I can't say anything else on this holocall, or in the Honoghr System. This matter is too sensitive to discuss on an open channel or in a stationed ship."
"Then the Solos are more than willing to use the Intrepid for the time being." Wynn offered. "It has enough encryption hardware to keep any prying eyes from listening in to you all. Besides, I doubt my wife and I will need it very much with our current assignment and with the force in orbit protecting the world."
"Not that I hate to interrupt this idle chit chat, but we have friends in need of help." Garazeb impatiently reminded the group. "If you Jedi have any secret tricks to teleport an armada to the Randon System, then we'd better get moving ASAP, before the Sith obliterate them all."
"Finally, a voice of reason among you Jedi sympathizers." Boba joked.
Fifty Minutes Later
In the Honoghr System
100 Kilometers From Honoghr
"Of all the karking, rash, irresponsible things Jaina could ever consider, this has got to take the grand prize! And you've got to be a runner up behind her and Edaan in terms of utter stupidity!" Han cursed after Luke finished telling them of Jaina's plans to rule the Empire alongside her husband and their children as a royal family.
Of course, Leia and Allana, having royal roots from either adoptive or blood relatives, were equally shocked and appalled by the audacity and desperation of this plan. But none of them could not believe Jaina would willingly condone such a foolhardy move that could easily be perceived as a blatant and naked power grab.
After the Solos took what they needed from the ruined wreck of the Millennium Falcon and the Intrepid quickly journeyed to the Mon Adapyne, Luke explained to them the dire straits the Empire was in, and the desperation the Fels and their top advisors were under. But what nearly set them off was how they were ordered to silence for the time being.
"Why would she feel the need to do this? Why wouldn't she tell us this? We could have helped her figure this out together." Allana quietly asked, her voice traced with sadness and fear of losing her daughter fully to the Empire, even as Leia knew the answer.
Deep down, she knew Jaina had gained a greater sense of responsibility and fulfillment working to reform and rebuild the Empire throughout the last fourteen years, especially through building bridges between the Jedi and Vitor Reige's democratic government. And with the visions she had suffered from and few to confide in, it must have torn her up ever further for many months before she made her choice, fearing that she might unintentionally take the same dark path as her twin brother.
Leia somehow knew that one day, her last surviving child would have to choose between family and a new future, or her roots and the Jedi Order she first swore to serve. But she did not expect the loss to hurt just as fiercely as the deaths as her two sons.
Allana, to her credit, was not panicking or going into a tirade like her grandfather or projecting an outward facade of calm like Leia. Instead, she allowed a controlled and understandable amount of anger to leak from her eyes and voice while she asked, "And you and the Council are just going to let her go without so much as trying to talk her out of this? Being a part of a royal family's much harder than being a Jedi, and she'll be leading a whole Empire instead of a few dozen worlds."
"And trusting Edaan with such a crushing burden of Sword of the Jedi? Do you and Master Katarn know how much of a danger you're taking, putting such a large target on his back? You saw what it nearly did to Jaina when she went up against my father and the Lost Tribe. Do you really want to have him follow in her footsteps and push away just about anyone who could help him? Besides, he's already got enough on his plate with his coma and the war, and the last thing he needs is another mountain of pressure on his mind."
Luke bowed his head, but whether in shame or contemplation, Allana could not fully tell at this point. But her point was still a valid one, as she knew better than most how Edaan, despite his sharp mind and courageous face he presented for the Jedi and galaxy, was a child with such a soft and giving heart.
And that gentleness left him vulnerable to a terrible anger and rage when he witnessed hypocrisy from those who he held to such a high ideal. He still never forgave Master Solusar for expelling seven bright if troublesome Initiates from the Jedi for minor discretions.
But Allana was getting ahead of herself. She knew that Jaina might very well drive away her family with this reckless move, and that would completely destroy Leia and Han. And the Chume'da could not let such a travesty happen without a fight and knowing all of the facts.
That was why she quickly told Luke, "Well, since we're about to go into battle to save Vestara and her accomplices, I guess we can't reach out to Cousin Jaina now. And since she and Jag have been working themselves to death in trying to keep the Empire from falling apart, I guess she deserves a little slack."
"But know that this isn't over, Uncle Luke. Once we rescue Vestara and Sabine, we're gonna have a very long chat with you, Jaina's family, and the Council about keeping us in the dark all of this time." Allana heatedly warned him.
"That's fair. I did keep Edaan's mission a secret from you for five years." Luke admitted, causing a stab of guilt within Allana.
She had absolutely no right to accuse Uncle Luke like she did, not when she kept the secret of Edaan's goals and abilities a secret from everyone for nine years. Sooner or later, she would have to come clean to her family, or all of these secrets could very well destroy the Solo-Skywalker clan.
The Mon Calamari warship's klaxons coming to life abruptly ended the heated argument, as it was time for the combined fleet to prepare their microjump before beginning the quick journey to the Randon System.
"You'd best get ready. We all have a lot of work ahead of you, and we'll see each other again after this next battle. May the Force be with you all." Luke ended the holocall.
Ten Minutes Later
Just Outside the Randon System
Aboard the Victory I-class Star Destroyer Pre Viszla
"Why are we waiting at all to eliminate the traitors?!" Sariss seethed to Oculus as she paced around the ancient Sith Meditation Sphere that had served three Sith bodies in its millennia of functionality. "We should strike now, before the Jedi can mount a force to save their meddlesome puppets!"
"First, we have to remove any troublesome thorns in our side before we attack. And that means ensuring we have disabled Wren's predictable explosives from our ships. It would do us no good to throw away our lives now, especially when our allies' numbers are starting to wane from Palpatine's coalition." The former Jedi who once called himself Ferren Barr reminded his passionate lover.
"And there is still the matter of Kitai and the even greater danger she represents to the One Sith." He added. "We must break her to assure the destruction of Wren and Gev's fleets and protect all of our people and operations."
Despite keeping such a tight rein on his emotions, a last enduring testament to his Jedi training, he too was struggling to control his own impatience at the constant delays. Still, he kept his mind and body active and productive, working to focus the Dark Side energies of Vestara's selected treasures of Sith artifacts and tomes stationed away on the for the mental assault on the traitorous wretch.
The small but impressive collection of artifacts Vestara had assembled, from ancient Sith swords and talismans to ancient books and scrolls detailing highly elaborate and advanced rituals amazed the Sith historian. He knew that most of the collection that remained on Korriban came from the fallen Sith's currently Jedi-occupied homeworld of Kesh. But he privately wondered where else she had traveled in her years as a One Sith agent.
Brushing aside such academic concerns for the upcoming mission, Oculus knew that the next few hours could very well change the course of this shadow war. Despite his confidence in his proficiency with the Dark Side of the Force and the Lightsaber, he knew he was no match for a woman who had been fighting and killing since she was the young age of fourteen.
Such concerns were why he was finishing his preparations to assist Lord Snoke in breaking Vestara's mind, just as the veteran Sith Lord had single handedly done to the great Edaan Palpatine not even a full day ago on Falleen.
Before Sariss could utter so much as a groan in protest to his previous reprimand, Ship telepathically warned both younger Sith to an incoming call, moments before Snoke's hologram appeared. And his black and gray armor, reminiscent in design of the Death Troopers and Inquisitors of Darth Sidious's Galactic Empire, along with the contrasting the blue color of the human male's balding head and black Sith tattoos covering his head, was just as menacing as ever to the Iktotchi.
Getting right down to business, he sternly alerted Oculus and Sariss, "Everything is ready on my end. I trust you two have taken such similar initiative."
The old man never was one to wait for a deadline. Oculus ruefully noted before nodding. "We are ready with the ritual and finishing our final sweep of Wren's delaying tactic. She's quite a clever one, that Mando."
"Indeed, she is a fine testament to her old insurgency days and decades of constantly honing her skills." Snoke mirthlessly chuckled. Before he could be lost in countless old memories of his weaker self, the former Rebel Jedi Padawan ordered Oculus and Sariss, "Link with Ship's energies at once so we can begin. Time is of the essence because the Jedi will soon be upon the defectors to rescue them."
"Then we'd better be done with this task quickly. There's a fleet to destroy." Sariss predatorially grinned, earning her a terribly frightening stare that nearly made her wilt under Snoke's gaze.
"Remember, Sarris, that Lord Krayt desires Vestara alive, if we can help it. In order to break Edaan as quickly and effectively as we can, we will need her intact to fuel his anger and fear." Snoke scolded her.
"He is right. And be careful not to let your overconfidence betray you, Lady Sariss. Vestara Khai is a resilient and powerful woman, even though she has betrayed the Sith. She will not be an easy enemy to defeat." Ship telepathically warned the overeager Sith woman.
"We'll be on our guard." Oculus assured the ancient sentient vessel.
"Good. Now, let us begin." Snoke eagerly said, entering a meditative position as he focused the energies of the Dark Side, with Oculus and Sariss following suit.
Five Minutes Later
Within the Randon System
"You're serious." Ben numbly uttered, his face betraying his utter astonishment at Vestara's simple admission of her defection. Aboard the Ursa, the crew was hard at work, struggling to restore the ship's essential systems and prepare for the One Sith's imminent attack on their wounded fleet. But somehow, Sabine allowed Vestara a few minutes to make a call to her heart's desire before she had to get back to work. "Edaan brought you back."
"While you did help a bit with that call, Edaan did carry most of the load. He is quite a tenacious Jedi. But..."
Struggling the best way to phrase this, Vestara carefully continued, "There's gonna be a lot we'll need to talk about when I make it to Falleen."
Carefully nodding, Ben sadly acknowledged, "I know. We'll need to work through a lot of issues and figure out where we stand."
"Exactly. I'll look forward to our talks. And if Edaan wakes up before we make it to Falleen, tell him the good news. He'll… he'll need- AGH!" Vestara gritted out before she fell to her knees and clutching her head as her headache quickly devolved into what felt like an aneurysm, but without the actual bursting of a blood vessel.
"Ves?! What's wrong?!" Ben frantically exclaimed as Mirta and Ezra dropped what they were doing and rushed to Vestara.
Ship! Inside… my mind! Vestara screamed to Ben through the Force, who caught her panic and fear, and amplified it through his own dread.
Did you truly think deserting the Sith would carry no consequences, Vestara Khai? Ship slowly reminded his one time friend. I will not let you destroy all of our hard work in ensuring the Sith rule the galaxy once again. All that you seek to do will be destroyed, and those that you care for in your weakness will fall before our might, or be turned to our cause, just as Edaan Palpatine will soon be.
But take heart, for I will remember you fondly, Vestara Khai. Ship sympathetically consoled his former friend and owner before he intensified his attack on her, The force of their attack drove her into a fetal position as Ben's fearful shrieks tried to overcome the flurry of communications raging throughout the bridge.
Quickly examining the fallen woman, Ezra stated, "Nothing's wrong with her, at least physically. Best guess, the Sith aren't taking her desertion lightly."
"This is not the time for jokes, Wren!" Mirta scolded the younger Mandalorian, seeing Ben's growing fear and panic in his eyes and face as she sternly urged him, "And you need to keep calm, Skywalker. You're no good to anyone if you lose control or lead the Sith right to you an Edaan."
Knowing the defecting Neo Death Watch commander was completely correct, Ben rapidly worked to rein in his distressed mind. As he forcibly calmed himself, he felt two familiar dark presences in the Force, and instinctively knew two of the Sith responsible for Vestara's decaying state.
Speaking quickly, Ben warned Mirta, "You need to get Vestara to the Jedi now! I know two of the Sith attacking Vestara's mind, and they and Ship aren't gonna pull any punches with her."
"And how the kriff do we pull that off, Skywalker?! The hyperdrive's at least another fifteen minutes from coming online!" Mirta warned him, just as proximity alarms began blaring throughout the assault ship.
"Commander, we have multiple inbounds emerging from hyperspace at sector J-2!" A sensor officer warned Sabine from across the bridge.
"Are they ours, or the Sith?" The elder Mandalorian grimly asked, even as she already knew the answer. Not even a minute later, the One Sith fleet emerged from hyperspace, with twenty capital ships and forty support ships of various designs emerging in perfect formation, and a certain Victory I-class Star Destroyer leading the charge.
Well, that's about to complicate things. Mirta blithely feared. Turning to Ben, she warned him, "If your order has any last-minute miracles to use, now's the time to try them. Have your father and the others get here now, or we're all about to be destroyed!"
Cutting off the comm channel, Mirta crouched down to Vestara and slowly picked her up, all the while informing Ezra, "I need to get Ves to the infirmary right away and check on my kids! Soon as they're all squared away, I'll rejoin you on the bridge."
"Got it. Don't dawdle for even a moment. We'll need all the manpower we can get." Ezra warned her before he quickly bolted towards his mother and sister.
"I heard it all, Ezra." Sabine beat her son to it. "Our allies are still another forty minutes away, and we need a plan now!"
"Well, what do we have to work with, Buir?"
"Most of the weapons systems are down, but the engines and shields are functional, and that just might save us." Hera called out. "If we reroute all power to those two systems, we might be able to hold out long enough for our privateer friend's fleet to arrive."
"And what about our fighter squadrons?" Ezra continued that train of thought. "Most of our ships are fully fueled and armed. They can give the Sith a good diversion."
"Then get right on it!" Sabine ordered them.
Five Minutes Later
On Falleen
Within the Xoma Plains
Inside Resistance Safe House 145
Aboard the Rude Awakening's medical wing, a surge of Force energy was felt by K'Kruhk, and a single word was uttered by the still-comatose Edaan, startling both the Whiphid Jedi Master and Kix.
"Ves…ta…ra."
Quickly running a scan of Edaan, Kix smiled in utter relief, "It's working! His brain waves are starting to climb again. If this keeps up, it won't be more than twelve hours before he wakes up."
"Good. But if I felt that surge of energy, then there's a chance the Sith know as well. We need to warn everyone and prepare to move if they try to attack."
"That… may be sooner than you think, my friends." Adari's muffled voice came from her medical bed.
Seeing the woman sit up on her bed, and K'Kruhk sensing her keen mind at full strength, he motioned Kix to release her.
As she was quickly disconnected from the medical equipment, K'Kruhk slowly asked her, "How are you up? How's Edaan's mental condition?"
"He's still out of it, but he'll be fine soon. He sent me back for a little bit in order to warn you of impending danger. But you don't have any time to worry about him. If the Sith haven't attacked us yet, they soon will, because Phasma knows where we are."
Kix did not know what surprised him more, whether whatever method the Sith found their hideaway, how Adari woke up before Edaan, or how Adari knew this information, "How do you know this?"
"We don't have time for a long-winded explanation right now. You have to warn the others and pull out of this base." Adari warned both medics.
"You have to give us something, Adari. We won't be able to persuade the others without it." Kix warned the Keshiri.
"Fine. I'll give you the barebones details." Adari agreed as she slowly stretched on the bed.
Five Minutes Later
"I see you've all been busy over these last few hours. And some of you are leaving at my world's most desperate hour." Haxim wearily remarked to the assembled crowd of his off-world allies in the safe house's strategic center. Every available member of the crews of the Rude Awakening, Justice's Cold Grip, and Quarren's Eye was in attendance for this meeting and the state of the Resistance's operations, aside from Kix and K'Kruhk, who were still tending to the unconscious Edaan and Adari.
As the former crown prince of the Falleen Royal family and the leader of the planet's anti-Sith resistance, Haxim was a man who carried a heavy burden for himself and his people. And it was made all the more difficult because of the Jedi and Alliance forces making plans and taking terrible risks with his world behind his back, reducing his planet's already-slim chances of liberation.
"Apologies, General. We didn't mean to add to your stress. But you'll soon be getting enough forces to liberate your world and take down your family." Voort began on everyone's behalf.
"Don't worry, I understand." Haxim sympathetically cut him off. "Your squadron has a more important role in this shadow war by taking down Xizor's cult. Besides, with the armies and fleets arriving in a few days, you'll be better suited for paving the way for our coalition's eventual assault on Batuu."
Facing Ben, he noted, "And I see your former flame is defecting to our side, along with a fleet of Mandalorians. If they can survive the One Sith retaliation."
"They will. I have faith in them, and in their relief force." Ben assured the exiled monarch, just before Kix burst into the chamber.
"Sorry to interrupt, but there's news you need to hear! Five minutes ago, Adari woke up." Kix quickly informed everyone, shocking them into stillness.
"What about Edaan?" Saba asked. If their two patients were recovered ahead of schedule, they might be able to create a retaliation strategy against Phasma and keep her off-balance until their reinforcements could arrive.
"Still in a coma, but he's well on his way to recovery now that he knows Vestara's on the road to redemption. Adari will return to her mission in a few minutes. But she told us she had urgent news to give us from him before it's too late. The Sith are attacking her mind, and Phasma knows where we are hiding. He said that Phasma sensed Ben's fear when he saw Vestara's breakdown."
"Are you sure about this? None of my spies have reported any movement within the royal family's forces." Haxim asked. If Edaan and the others were wrong about this and this intelligence was inaccurate, then prematurely evacuating the base might very well doom the Resistance and all of their allies.
"Can we really afford to take that chance, General? Phasma is probably relying on her fellow Sith instead of your family's people in this assault in order to avoid compromising the mission. There is the issue of rampant corruption in their forces, after all." Akku warned him before compromising.
"At least put the base and our defenses and ships on alert. We need to hold out until the Jedi and our allies can arrive, so we have to be prepared for anything." Atai piped up.
Seeing the wisdom in the Anzati Mandalorian and Zygerrian ambassador's words, Haxim nodded in agreement. "I'll prepare my forces for the evacuation and engage all perimeter defenses. If the Sith want a fight, then we'll give them one they won't soon forget."
Well, I think this is a good place to end the chapter. I hope you enjoy it, as I spent a bit of time working on it, and I didn't want to make it too long. Though I probably failed in that regard. So, how are you all doing on this warm day of Sunday, May 16, 2021? I'm doing well, as I'm relaxing a lot over the weekend, as I got all "A"s in my three Spring 2021 courses for college. Just three more to go, and I'll be done with college with a bachelor's degree. Oh, and I'm playing a lot of Mass Effect Trilogy: Legendary Edition, having already gotten about 140 Gamerscore Points in the last two days alone. The trilogy's still a great series of games, even after all this time. I hope you all have a blessed day, and I hope you continue to stick around, and hopefully constructively review my works in these hard times. May the Lord be with us all, and Long Live the Expanded Universe!
(Monday, May 17, 2021 Addendum.) Good afternoon, everyone. I hope you are all doing well on this warm Spring day. I'm fine, as I am about to publish this chapter after getting it examined. But I felt I ought to explain a few things first. First off, Vestara's redemption: I'm sure many of you think it'll be too soon for her to be redeemed, and you might have a point. But I have a plan to have her face many obstacles and trials in her quest of atonement. And she will deal with many in the next few stories, without being thrown into a big mission right after she turned to the Light like in Fate of the Jedi, because that was plain stupid. Second, I need to let you all know that I'll probably take a few weeks off from this story, only so I can focus for a while on my Galaxy at War mini-saga for Squasher and JSailer, as I haven't worked on that in a while, and I want to give those who have been patiently waiting for the story something to look forward to. Third, and this is a bit of a rant, so be prepared. I need to ask you to pray for me, as I'm in the middle of a deep internal struggle with personal issues I don't feel comfortable going too in-depth about on here. But suffice it to say that with all that's going on in the United States and world, and in certain corporations and companies right now, it's really got me down and angry, and that's not good for many. I hope you all are staying safe in these trying times, and I hope you leave a good and constructive review on the story so far. May the Force be with us all, fellow Star Wars EU fans.