NOTHING STAYS THE SAME

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

"Mr. Alino!  Mr. Alino, there have been rumors that your client has been killed. Is this true?  Is the NRI responsible for her—"

"That's all they are, Miss.  Rumors.  My client is perfectly healthy."

"Then why has the trial been postponed for so long?"

"To insure Ms. Jade's safety.  As you know, there have been two attempts on her life already."

"Do you really believe that the detonator found in the Senate Chamber was meant for her?"

"Yes, I do.  The assassin sent after my client is very skilled, and obviously does not care about collateral damage.  That's all I have time for."

"Mr. Alino!"

Iella Wessiri Antilles flipped off the HoloNet.  "So how long do you think he'll play along?"

"He doesn't seem to have any ill will towards us or Mara.  I don't think he'll tell anyone."

"He's a lawyer, Leia.  They play along for however long it benefits them."

"Well, lying to everyone doesn't really benefit him, Iella.  If anyone puts two and two together and come up with a bomb scare, he's in trouble, too."

"Not as much as me."

"It was a necessary operation, Director.  I suggested it, and I will take the blame.  However, Mara needed to disappear.  We need to stop this smuggling outfit.  Mara, Corran, Talon, Chewie, and my husband are equal for this task."

"And your brother.  You mentioned he was alive."

"Yeah, I felt him.  He kind of let his presence flicker enough so that I knew he was okay.  Other than that, and Shak'rra's report, I don't know much."  She didn't add that it felt that Luke was shielding his presence, and dampening Han's and everyone else's.  Although Han wasn't Force-sensitive, Leia had always been able to feel his presence.

Much like on Wayland, Leia had sent another team of Noghri after the Asteroid Belt took off from Coruscant.  The only problem was that Shak'rra, the team leader, arrived in the O-Pahz system to find an Imperial Star Destroyer.  She noted that the IMPSTAR APPEARED TO BE FULLY FUNCTIONAL

Furthermore, the Asteroid Belt was nowhere to be seen.  Shak'rra had stayed in the system for several days until the Star Destroyer noticed the small ship and came after them.  Shak'rra had taken a microjump out towards the outer planets of the system.  They jumped back in system an hour later to find their communications systems all jammed and the Star Destroyer much more aggressive.

Shak'rra had commed Leia for further instruction after they managed to limp out of the system, their hyperdrive faulty, shields nearly slagged at twenty-five percent for the rear, fifty percent overall.  Lady Vader told them to have their ship fixed, and although she knew the Noghri soldiers wouldn't believe her, she added that it was not their fault.  Something like that could happen to anyone, and she was not about to order faithful soldiers to kill themselves by trying to pass a hostile Star Destroyer.

"You said Shak'rra had to jump out of the system a few times.  The Asteroid Belt could have jumped in during any of those times, and the Noghri wouldn't have known."

"True.  But that Star Destroyer…they wouldn't have known about it.  Damn, Iella, the NRI didn't know about it!  How can an ImpStar show up in a system, and your people not know?"

"Luke was all right.  I'm sure if Solo and the others didn't make it, he'd make sure you knew.  Plus, they weren't under ysalimiri, and Corran and Mara are Force-users.  You and any other Jedi would know."

"It's just strange.  I don't like thinking that I would 'just know.'  I want proof, Iella."  Leia was reminded of what Mara had said.  If Luke had been killed, she would know.  Surely if Han or Luke were seriously hurt, Leia would know, right?

"And unfortunately I can't give any proof to you.  My one contact on Caratos was murdered in a fly-by shooting last week."

"And did the Empire control Caratos then?  A Star Destroyer is kind of hard to miss."

"Marks knew that some areas on Caratos were being evacuated, but he was in the process of learning why."

"I want to go find them—"

"But if you left now, our charade would be for nothing, Madame Chief of State."

"I know, I know."

Mara walked slowly into the room.  The ceiling was at least ten meters above her head, and there was a balcony of sorts outlining the room.  The room was covered with crimson and gold, and would have been much more impressive had it not been for the stale atmosphere.

The carpeting had once, early in its life, been a brilliant red.  Now it was covered with a snowy grey dust.  The windows were blacked out and the only light in the room radiated from glowpanels inserted in the ceiling and along the floorpanels.  Odd shadows were scattered across every object, the random boxes and broken chairs and tables. 

Luke was right behind her, and as he entered the room, his memories came back in full force.  He'd been in this room the majority of his time here.  As soon as he walked through the doorway, a large blast door slammed behind him.  He jumped, not expecting it at all.  Mara flinched almost unnoticeably, but her attention was behind the dark velvet curtains strung up on the opposite side of the room.  An old woman stepped out from behind the curtains, less than eight meters in front of Mara and Luke.

Mara froze.  The old woman—it had to be Tawnie—walked slowly and purposefully towards a nutrient cage Mara hadn't noticed before.  She didn't appear armed.  She had shoulder length red hair, with what seemed natural white streaks, which made Mara mentally add another five years to the woman's age.  She was slender, and practically the same height as Mara.  She wore a simple dark green tunic shirt and black pants.  The shirt was cinched at the waist with a deceptively simple braided belt.  Tawnie's face was shadowed as she reached her hand into the cage and pet the ysalimiri, her demeanor one of a person who knew that they had all the time in the world.

Then the old woman stepped away from the lizard cage, and her arm shot out with a speed Mara hadn't expected her to show, and grabbed the ysalimiri behind the head.  The muscles in her arm convulsed, and the sloth-like ysalimiri struggled for a second before going limp.  Mara felt the Force presence of the woman, strong, but not as dark as she'd expected.  Nowhere near the Emperor's signature.

Then Mara felt a pressure, a buzzing on her mind.

She looked up at the woman; confused, and scared that she knew the truth.  She'd felt this before, but it hadn't been her, but Luke, many years ago.

On Wayland.