Miriah stopped to light the fire with the torch she held. "What are we going to do if this guy wants to fight?" Corso asked her, and saw her flinch.
"I don't know," she finally said, and got back on the speeder behind him. "I can only do what we were told. For now, anyway." She secured the torch and wrapped her arms around his waist, resting her cheek on his back. I want to go home, she thought, not for the first time today. She closed her eyes against the wind and let herself relax against her husband's warmth, the sun adding to the heat of the day. Aric and Maura were on her right, and Torian on her left. If they want to fight, they'll get one, she reasoned.
Devin had worked through the documents that Lana had sent, and was sitting at his desk when he got the message that the Mandlorians had reached Onderon and the Republic fleet was refueled. The relief he felt at that was so immense he closed his eyes, feeling his whole body relax. Shae Vizla had been asked to continue on to Mek-Sha, which was the next refueling point. For some reason, his mother was not answering her holo, so he reached out with the force to her. Mom, they want us to go to Mek-Sha. Shae says General Daeruun asked, and that they'll have to negotiate fuel prices. Arcann is with her, should I tell them to go ahead?
Miriah startled at Devin's voice in her mind. If I sent Shae and Arcann, then we can go back to Odessen, she thought, and then felt guilty. I don't want to go, but I hate sending someone else. She thought back to Shae's asking to be a bigger part of the Alliance, and made her decision. Yes, if she's willing to take that on, I would be grateful.
I think she is enjoying being on the front line of this, Devin replied. I'll tell her to go ahead. Love you, Mom.
I love you, son. Everything is good there?
We're all fine, he told her, smiling to himself. See you soon, then?
Absolutely, she responded, and felt a weight lift from her narrow shoulders. Ahead, she could see the Untamed, a solid line of warriors, who would guide them to their leader. Putting on her game face, she dismounted and straightened her long coat.
Caly and Magdalane worked in silence. Caly knew something had upset her aunt, but hated to ask, knowing well the Jedi way with emotions. Mags finally sat down at the cushioned booth and Caly joined her with mugs of hot tea. "Thanks," Mags said, but her smile was sad.
"Aunt Mags, you can talk to me, you know," Caly said, lowering her gaze to her mug. She heard Mags sigh and take a sip.
"I'm having trouble moving on from Felix's death," Mags admitted, and Caly was shocked silent, so unexpected was the confession. After a moment, Caly met her aunt's gaze.
"I can't imagine how it feels to you, but I think of Uncle Felix almost every day. He was the only one who ever totally accepted my relationship with Torian." Caly saw her aunt's face transform into a beautiful smile, her eyes sparkling.
"He loved you, Calypso. From the time you were found on Oricon, he knew you were special. He always told me that. Our children were almost adults then, and he enjoyed having a baby around." Slowly, her face fell back into sadness, and Caly blinked back tears.
"He would want you to be happy, Aunt Mags. Whatever that took, he would want it for you." Mags discreetly wiped her eyes, and slowly nodded.
"If only I knew what would do that," she said, and Caly saw her lean back into the cushions and pull her sweater closer around her. I wish I could change this, she thought, and remembered that Theron Shan had hustled off the ship earlier like his life depended on getting away. Maybe that interaction in the hallway was more than just two people who had run into each other.
"We honor Akoru! We honor the fallen!" Miriah let a sigh escape her lips as she watched the Untamed gather around a raised platform. The large one turned and pointed at her. "Off-worlder! You observe our rites and customs. You show the respect due to the true masters of this world" She could feel Corso tense beside her. "You may speak your purpose here. Just be quick about it."
"I'm looking for Darth Savik." Miriah and Maura stood between Corso and Aric, and Miriah's voice was calm and soothing.
"One off-worlder seeking another. Why should we be involved?"
"Savik betrayed you. If you tell me where she is, she'll face justice. If you don't, you'll be helping her escape."
"Justice would be feeding her to Akoru's beasts, alongside Nebet, Petryph, and all others who spoil our world with the influence of outsiders like you." Aric took a step forward as the Untamed leader started toward Miriah, a low growl emanating from his throat. "For now, we must lick our wounds and regain our strength. Kill Savik, take her prisoner.. so long as there are less of your kind here, we will celebrate." Corso moved to place himself between his wife and this man who continued to close the distance between them. "The ancient proving grounds. Your city-dwellers will know where it is. Savik thought she could hide a ship there… from other ignorant off-worlders, perhaps. But not from us." His expression was one of pure disgust. "You will find her there. Petryph, too. Now go. We will never suffer your presence here again."
Aric bristled at this exchange. Who does this guy think he is, anyway, he thought, and where is this proving grounds? He followed Miriah out, as Corso and Torian led the way and he and Maura took up the rear, shielding the Commander from anyone who would try a quick attack. He blinked in the bright sunlight as they emerged from the underground bunker, and took Maura's hand. "You doing okay, honey?" he asked her, and saw that she looked normal. At her nod, he approached Miriah. "This proving grounds, we either find Savik or we're done, right?"
"Yeah, I think so," Miriah said. "Devin is sending Shae and Arcann to Mek-Sha, so those ships are all heading there. They dropped some of the survivors of the downed ship here, and yes, Ty is on Onderon." Aric broke out with a grin and laugh at that. He was glad the young man was safe. "He'll go back to Odessen with us, unless there's an objection."
"None here," Aric said, and Miriah nodded at him.
Corso had been communicating with the palace guard. "I have the coordinates for the ancient proving grounds. Let's go." Miriah got back on the speeder, looking forward to having things resolved so that they could go home. Home, she thought, and smiled, resting again on Corso's solid back.
Lana had been restless since the evening before. Today, she found herself arranging and rearranging the baby's room, and found she had missed a few items she meant to get. Humming to herself, she set off to the promenade, pulling her coat around her as she exited the elevator. There were a few snowflakes, big and fat, floating around. Tali will love this, she thought, and ducked into one of the shops. She found several things for the baby and for Tali, and when she looked at the chrono in the shop, she smiled. She had just enough time to pay for her purchases and get Tali from school. Leaving the shop, she turned toward the primary school and had to stop. This practice contraction is not fooling around, she thought, breathing through it, straightening as it released it's grip on her belly. Lana took a deep breath and started walking again, wondering how much longer she'd be pregnant.
Theron Shan paced in the small room, his voice clipped as he talked. "The shuttles were pretty well hidden," he said. "But we've got a full sensor lock now that we know where to look. They won't leave without us knowing."
"Volunteers from the city guard are ready," Tau added. "We can be there in minutes."
"Tau, Arn, you'll take the volunteers and attack from the far side. Make a lot of noise. Draw Savik's attention." Miriah's voice over the holocom still held the firm, authoritative note she had in person, and Theron realized that his own hurt feelings were minor compared to what was happening here. "We'll go on goot and catch Savik off guard."
"The proving grounds are ancient and dangerous, even without Imperial patrols. Be cautious." Miriah couldn't see Senator Nebet, but recognized her voice. "If you manage to find Petryph, please bring him back. The sooner he faces justice for betraying his people, the better." Nebet came into view then. "An exiled king can tell his own version of the story, rally supporters, and cause endless trouble. A man in prison is a memory that quickly fades."
"We'll do everything we can to bring Petryph back to you," Miriah said, and with a nod, ended the call.
Aric and Corso had been watching, and when Miriah put the holo back into her pocket, Aric sighed. He wanted to be finished with this, helping the Republic. Help, hell, he thought. We do all the work. Miriah does more than any leader should, and here we are in an unknown jungle, looking for an Imp. He sighed again as he mounted the speeder. When we're done with this, I'm going to insist we go back to Odessen, he told himself, and determined, he set off behind Corso.
Devin was standing in the war room when Lana and Tali came through, and felt the worry coming from the little girl. He quirked a questioning eyebrow at Lana, and saw her sigh. "She's worried about me and the baby. I'm having some practice pains," she explained, and saw his face relax.
"Those can be pretty intense," he replied, and saw her nod. "Tali, everyone here is going to help, okay? Don't worry, we'll be ready."
"Mama needs to rest," Tali said, and Devin heard the whisper of the force in her voice.
"She does. You take her home and get her settled, and if you need me, all you have to do is call," he told her, touching her forehead, "in here." Solemnly Tali nodded, and Devin straightened. "Lana," he started, but stopped at seeing her face.
"I'm going home now, and Nico will bring dinner, and we'll see where we are tomorrow," she said calmly, making Devin smile.
"Now, that's a plan," he said, and waved as they set off toward the tunnel through to the smuggler area. Lana's gait was slow and lumbering, and he desperately wished his parents were back, if for no other reason that he figured Lana was stubborn enough to push back labor until Miriah returned.
They reached the coordinates for the proving grounds, and sure enough, there were Imps there. Miriah found herself pushed into the middle, surrounded by family, unable to do much but provide kolto to minor cuts and burns, and once a kolto pack to Torian, who took a blaster bolt to the back, partially in armor, and partially not. When the noise died down, Miriah could only see bodies, and she shook her head grimly. "Let's move forward, but in no hurry," Aric called out, and they all nodded agreement. Miriah moved with the group, and found herself beside her sister.
"Maura, are you okay," she asked softly, and saw her sister smile.
"I am, so far. You?"
"Good." They made their way into the tunnel which seemed to go as far underground as their fall had taken them the day before. The air turned cool and held a scent of decay, and Miriah felt her nose itch just before she sneezed. Corso turned to her and she grinned at him. Reassured, he turned forward and pulled his portable light from his pack, illuminating the area around them.
Caly grew more worried about the group after hearing her aunt tell her about where they were headed. She had begun to pace when the door chime sounded, and Magdalane went to see who was there. She was surprised to see Ty standing in the door, his pack in his hands. "I was told to go back to Odessen with you," he explained.
"Excellent," Magdalane beamed. "I'm so glad you're here. We can arrange a call to Coleen if you want," she offered, and Ty eagerly accepted. Magdalane led him to the holo whose encryption had been fixed, and joined Caly in the galley.
"I'm glad he's here," Caly said, and saw Mags nod. It was good to have family around you, she knew.
Torian pointed. "Stairs over there, going down," he said, and started that way. The group followed, and when they'd gotten to the next level, stopped.
"There are two passages," Corso said, turning to Miriah. "One in each direction. Which do we explore first?"
"Left," Miriah said, and they started that way. They encountered some of the native Onderonians, mining, and they scuffled with them before the miners threw up their hands, too tired to fight. "Let them go," Miriah said softly, and everyone lowered their blasters. "I can see the end of this passage, and it doesn't lead anywhere."
"Okay, so we go back," Aric said, and took Maura's arm in his. They were back at where they exited the steps in just a few minutes, and Miriah called a break. After sitting for a few minutes, they started down the right passage, fighting small groups of Imperials along the way. They had managed this for some time, each step bringing them closer to where Miriah was certain they'd find Savik. Finally, they saw a force field, and beyond it, Savik. Miriah had taken a step toward the door when Corso caught her arm and spun her around, cupping her head in his large hands and crushing her mouth with a searing kiss. Maura saw her sister's knees go soft before Corso raised his head to look into his wife's eyes.
"Whatever happens in there, I love you, darlin'. Let's finish this and go home." Miriah could only nod agreement, and turned to the door.