CHAPTER ONE
Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker paced slowly down a hallway of the Jedi Temple on their way to eat dinner together in the cafeteria. "So, Anakin, how do you think our Padawans are doing on their mission?"
"If they return without killing each other I will be surprised," Anakin laughed. "If they actually manage to succeed in the objectives I will consider it a bonus."
"You have so little faith in my training of your son? I'm deeply hurt," Obi-Wan smirked.
"It is as much a comment on my tutelage of my Padawan too," Anakin rejoined. "She controls her anger so well, except when it concerns him." He pointed to his gray hair in mock indignation. "Do you see this? This is what she has done to me the last dozen years!"
"Well, to be fair," Obi-Wan grinned impishly, "he does have the Skywalker impatience. I've dealt with it for far too many years now; it can be quite irritating. He has too much of his father in him."
"I would think that would be endearing," Anakin winked. "It's such a relief she's almost ready for the Trials."
A few more steps down the hall, Anakin suddenly shivered ferociously and collapsed. Obi-Wan had to lunge with all his strength to catch Anakin before his head hit the floor.
Cradling Anakin's head in his lap, Obi-Wan thought it might be a medical problem until Anakin opened his eyes. The anguish in them was palpable. "Something in the Force," Obi-Wan whispered grimly. "What did you see?"
"It's Leia. She's been taken captive," Anakin rasped. "Argis' soldiers were there. And two others, dressed in black. With red lightsabers. Sith sabers."
"We'll get her back, Anakin. I'm sure we will," Obi-Wan consoled him. He squeezed his friend's shoulder firmly in sympathy as Anakin began to rise from the floor.
"She's still alive. I would feel it in the Force if she died," Anakin reassured himself, if only a little. "We need to get an update from the military forces in that sector right away."
"I agree." Obi-Wan waited for Anakin to stand, then used his former apprentice's outstretched hand to pull himself up.
---
The small, well-dressed woman waited patiently in the anteroom for Padmé to complete her meeting with Queen Vivonia. For the last ten years or so Jenny Antilles had served as Padmé's personal assistant, taking care of everything from scheduling appointments and running the office to reminding Anakin of his children's birthdays. Like Padmé, Jenny was excited about going back to Coruscant. While she loved Naboo dearly and always had a pleasant time here, the immense, amazing city-planet that was the galactic capital had enthralled her imagination since her first visit. Having spent the first thirteen of her thirty-six years in the humdrum life of a slave on Tatooine until Anakin and Padmé had purchased her freedom from Watto, the infinite possibilities of Coruscant never ceased to entrance her.
Her comlink beeped. She looked down and saw the top-level emergency code flashing: lockdown. Jenny leaned back in the chair and took a deep breath.
Such exercises were routine given Padmé's stature as Special Advisor to the Supreme Chancellor and frequent consultant to many other prominent Senators, not to mention former Queen of Naboo, former Galactic Senator, and distinguished scholar of galactic politics. Over twenty years had passed since she last had used the name-of-state Amidala or had held any formal post at any level of government. Nevertheless, Padmé Skywalker was to this day a dominant behind-the-scenes presence in the Republic's political affairs.
Then, most unexpectedly, Jenny heard the clomping of military boots in a brisk jog on the stone floors. Around the corner came seven soldiers. But these were not the usual Naboo palace guards – these were Republic Special Forces. They wore black body armor from shoulders to toes and black helmets with smooth rounded black face shields. Each man had a heavy blaster rifle slung over his shoulder, two large blaster pistols on his hips, and other weaponry and equipment fitted precisely into the armored suits. The group stopped short of Jenny and the towering leader removed his helmet.
"Lieutenant Skywalker, how nice to see you again," she said lightly. She had been seventeen when Bryon was born while she was living with Anakin and Padmé in the early years of her freedom. Although she nominally had performed other chores, in reality she had been little more than a highly paid and extremely well-treated babysitter with a significant amount of time to spend on her studies in school and to explore Coruscant or Theed. To see Bryon now was to face the fact that the precious little boy she had helped to raise was tall, handsome, and powerful. It was nothing short of incomprehensible.
He did not say a word. Surprised, she looked into his eyes. They expressed so painfully what she always had feared someday would come. "This is not a drill, is it?" she asked, the words shaking.
"No, I'm afraid not," Bryon told her sadly in his rich, deep voice. "I'll tell you with Mom, okay? I'm sorry." Bryon walked to the closed door of the Queen's office and opened it without knocking. His authority permitted it. "Excuse me," Jenny heard him say inside the room, "but I must insist on an immediate lockdown. Mom, I need you to come with me now."
---
Luke Skywalker was certain he was being punished. For what, he could not possibly imagine. I must have done something terribly wrong to deserve this. There are hundreds of Padawans in the Temple, dozens my age. Why her? Why? It's not like Master Obi-Wan not to tell me. He's usually very direct about his purposes in my assignments. He looked up from his plate of pasta to the Padawan seated across from him at the little round table in this dingy restaurant in a small isolated village on Gimna 3. Her red-gold hair was tied back in a single knot at the back of her head except for the thin Padawan braid draped behind her right ear. It sparkled in the dim lighting and her piercing green eyes bored into his gaze. He tried to focus his blue eyes in a stern stare at her, unconsciously tugging at his own sandy brown Padawan braid. "And what, may I ask," he demanded, "are you so smug about?"
"Oh really, Luke, just shut up and eat," Mara Jade laughed. She knew exactly why they had been sent three weeks ago on this mission together. For as long as either of them could remember they had feuded in the Temple. Initially she simply had enjoyed teasing and taunting the son of the Jedi hero because he took it so poorly. Soon, though, he began to fight back: pulling pranks, framing her for his own misdeeds, sabotaging her training programs and academic exercises. The situation improved for a short year-and-a-half after she became his father's Padawan. Once he became a Padawan as well, however, their Masters used them as pawns in jokes on each other, and that launched the two youngsters into their rivalry with renewed vigor. Just enough of it was mean-spirited that she knew they would be expected to resolve their differences before taking the Trials. And because she was over two years older than Luke, Mara faced a bit more urgency.
They were one of several pairs of Jedi investigating the death of Jarren Organa on this planet six months earlier. So far they had learned little that seemed to be of use, although they had transmitted everything back to the Temple anyway in case connections might appear with information acquired by the others.
On their slow stroll back to the local inn after dinner, their comlinks beeped simultaneously. An urgent transmission from the Jedi Temple had arrived, their respective Arfour units reported. They were to contact their Masters at once.
The two Padawans broke into a run. Their orders were to contact the Temple only at the designated intervals. This could not be good.
At the hangar they used the transmitter on Mara's starfighter. The holographic image of both Obi-Wan and Anakin popped to life quickly.
Anakin spoke first. "A frigate from the Vyhrragian navy ambushed Leia's ship near the Sullust system and took her prisoner. We believe it is headed back toward Vyhrrag-controlled space."
Luke and Mara looked at each other in shock.
"You are far closer than any other available Jedi," Obi-Wan told them, not mentioning the other Jedi on the same planet. "Your current mission is terminated forthwith. Fly to Sullust and rendezvous with the Republic forces there. They will be able to provide you with the most current information. Then do the best you can to track the frigate. Do not engage with them unless we approve it. If they reach Vyhrrag space, do not follow them in. It is too dangerous."
"Yes, Master," Luke replied quietly.
"Understood, Master Kenobi," Mara added.
"May the Force be with you," Anakin intoned calmly before the two Jedi Masters cut away.
Without saying a word Luke and Mara ran to the inn, gathered their belongings, and returned to the hangar. Only a few minutes after the transmission had ended the pair of starfighters lifted into the nighttime air. They flew the newest and best single-pilot craft the Republic armada had to offer. Displaying the maroon and white colors of the Jedi Order, the X-Wings soared rapidly toward space.
---
Danaé Skywalker meditated uneasily in the middle of the floor of her small bedroom in the Jedi Temple. It had been quite some time since she last had been able to clear her mind. She felt, even though she knew it was unreasonable, that the Force was out to get her. It would not permit her to be content and calm. It tormented her constantly with thoughts of what she should have done differently. If only she were a better Jedi, she believed, her Master would not be missing.
Eight years ago, Jedi Master Oga Trill had taken Danaé as his Padawan. About ten years older than her father, Oga was a master swordsman and highly skilled in interpreting the unifying Force. Danaé tolerated lightsaber training but did not enjoy it. She preferred attunement to the living Force, which was her gift. So theirs was a pairing against type, like the stoic Obi-Wan Kenobi training the impetuous Luke Skywalker, rather than her father's decision to use his own experience to pacify the headstrong Mara Jade.
About a year ago now, Oga and Danaé had been sent on a mission to the industrial planet of Xixus to evaluate the political situation. Everything had proceeded smoothly for about five months, until the day when Oga did not meet her as arranged after a week of independent investigations. Danaé had searched for her Master for several weeks before contacting the Temple in anguish. With the Council's permission she remained another three months, searching in vain for any trace of him, although neither she nor the Council had sensed his death in the Force. In the process she missed her brother-in-law's funeral. And shortly after she left, Xixus was occupied by the New Justice army.
Since her return to the Temple she had led a disrupted and unusual life. With Oga's fate uncertain, the Council did not feel it appropriate to assign her as a Padawan to another Jedi Master. So she trained some with Obi-Wan and, every once in a while, with her father. The very old Mace Windu, sympathetic to her plight, also came out of retirement for a few weeks to work with her. And because they knew it helped her feel better, several Jedi Masters allowed her to assist them in their youngling classes.
Her meditation was interrupted by a gentle push in her mind. Danaé? She smiled and pulled her mind back to consciousness. Come in, Daddy, she replied through the Force.
Anakin waved open the door and stepped slowly into his daughter's room. The unmade bed and the piles of clothes, both dirty and clean, amused him. This is what my room used to look like before I married Padmé, he chuckled to himself.
Danaé picked up instantly on her father's troubled emotional state. "What is it?"
"It's Leia. Something's happened." After he described the situation, and told her the responses being planned or already in motion, he looked her in the eyes. "I would like you to come with me to Sullust. We can use you."
Danaé was torn. This was an assignment. A mission. It didn't feel right to take it without her Master. Yet her sister was in trouble and her father was requesting her help. He did not need to tell her he never would have asked without the necessary approval from the rest of the Council.
She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Oga might not be coming back. Accept it. He would never begrudge me taking this mission with him gone. I will have to move on eventually. She kept her tears away as she opened her eyes again and looked up. "Okay."
---
The three old friends worked the switches and levers in the cockpit of the old and worn YT-1300 Corellian freighter. They shared a collective sigh of relief as the ship rocked back to realspace at the calculated distance from their intended stopover point of Eriadu. After the innumerable jury-rigged repairs they had made together over the years, it was a wonder the disk-shaped transport functioned at all.
Immediately, the emergency communications frequency sounded its alarm.
The pilot leaned over and tapped the button. "Attention all personnel," the recorded message began, "incident near Sullust. Military vessel from Vyhrrag intercepted diplomatic mission of Senator from Naboo. Prisoners believed taken. All available personnel on leave requested to provide assistance."
He looked over to the co-pilot, who nodded. Over his shoulder, the dark-skinned man exhaled deeply. "We have to, even if it ends our vacation," he said simply.
The pilot dialed in the access code. When the tone sounded, he announced their presence. "This is Captain Han Solo, on leave from the destroyer Orn Free Taa. Commander Chewbacca of the same ship is with me, as is Lieutenant Commander Lando Calrissian of the Special Operations Division. We are flying in the Millennium Falcon, a private vessel we own together. We await any appropriate instructions."
"Well, it was fun while it lasted," Lando grinned. At his suggestion, the trio had used the first part of their leave to visit the small Outer Rim colony of Bespin, far up the hyperspace Corellian Trade Spine. Lando had learned of several potentially very lucrative investments there. Traveling the Hydian Way back to the Core, the friends had planned to spend the rest of their vacation on Nubia or Corellia, relaxing and considering whether to take the financial risk. Now it appeared that would have to wait.
The Wookiee growled his agreement.
"Well, at least it's that much longer of a leave we can take next time," Han laughed. "And rescuing a Senator would be quite a help to our careers."
It took only a few minutes for the response to arrive. The frequency buzzed again. "Millennium Falcon, this is Admiral Mirkalla of the destroyer Invictus. We are grateful for your cooperation. Coordinates for rendezvous to follow."
"Here we go again, boys," Han chuckled as he logged the short trip to Sullust into the navicomputer.
---
The frantic young woman ran through the ornate halls of the Royal Palace in Theed as fast as she could. The handmaiden to Naboo's Senator knew something was terribly wrong. She feared the worst. Minutes earlier, she quickly had changed clothes into a close-fitting red and white soldier's jumpsuit, strapped on her blaster pistol, and slung over her shoulder the sturdy travel bag containing military attire and weapons that always sat packed and ready on the floor of the closet in her office. As she hurried along, Sarré Bellion struggled to tie back her shoulder-length blonde hair in traditional Naboo combat braids.
She had received an emergency page from Bryon Skywalker: Lockdown room. Now. Her mother Sabé was one of Padmé's closest friends. The Skywalkers were like family to Sarré, and Leia always treated her more as a younger sister than a handmaiden. But Bryon was her age – they had been born within a week of each other nineteen years ago. For their entire childhoods on Naboo and Coruscant, they had been inseparable. Even after their young adult responsibilities had sent them in different directions, they still were best friends. And recently, finally, something more.
The six Special Forces soldiers standing guard outside the secured bunker adjacent to the main Palace hangar waved her inside, where she found exactly who she had expected. Padmé was pacing desperately in front of the blank viewscreen on the far wall, waiting for it to activate. Jenny stood quietly to the side, deep in thought, trying to concoct a way to calm her friend down. Jenny was shorter than Padmé and petite; she wore an expensive pale blue tailored suit and her long brown hair tied back with a ribbon. Bryon was next to her, his black armor glittering in the lights and his helmet tucked in his left elbow.
Despite the severity of the situation, Sarré almost chuckled at the contrast. Jenny was barely as tall as where he held his helmet, and in the dark suit he looked almost twice her size. Quite a difference from when she was babysitting us! Sarré herself was about as tall as Padmé and at least stood to Bryon's shoulder.
"Good. You're here," Bryon greeted her. Despite the obvious dismay carried in his tone, he had a sparkle in his eyes that he deftly concealed from the others. Jenny waved three fingers subtly and nodded her head. Padmé glanced over and flashed a forced smile.
"What's going on?" Sarré was unable to keep the tension from her words. Bryon quickly explained the Vyhrragian interdiction of Leia's schooner, and Sarré scarcely was able to hold back tears.
"We're waiting to hear from Anakin," Padmé added when he finished.
Just as Sarré nodded, the viewscreen snapped into an array of colors that formed an image of Anakin. "Is everyone there?"
"Yes, Ani, we are," Padmé answered with fear in her voice.
"Here's what we know, angel," he began, talking directly to her, ignoring the others completely. He reported the information the Republic's military units near Sullust had been able to gather about the Vyhrragian frigate. Intense surveillance and reconnaissance of the sector were underway. "We've ordered Luke and Mara to assist."
"And what are we going to do?" Padmé's question did not leave open the possibility of she and her husband doing nothing.
"Fly with Bryon's unit to Sullust. Wait for me there." Anakin held Padmé's gaze intensely. "I'm bringing Danaé with me."
Padmé nodded. "May the Force be with you," she whispered. The viewscreen shut down.
Bryon looked to his mother. "Our corvette is ready when you are. I called Artoo and Threepio to the hangar already." His units had experienced combat dozens of times. He and his men had executed countless covert operations under tremendously difficult and stressful conditions. Never once had he doubted the success of a mission or feared for his life. In many ways, they seemed invincible. Not anymore. Even though he was not strong in the Force like his father or Luke or Danaé, he could feel something ominous today. This time, he knew, everything had changed. All bets were off.
"Let's go now," Padmé declared, slinging her small bag over her shoulder and motioning Jenny to join her. The droids would know to bring along the luggage the women had packed for the now-cancelled trip to Coruscant.
As the three moved toward the door, Sarré stepped over and blocked it. "I'm coming with you."
"I don't want to put you in danger," Padmé said quietly.
"This is not a good idea," Bryon insisted, hoping against hope she would listen to him.
Sarré glared hard into Padmé's eyes. "My mother would have given her life for you. I would give mine for Leia."
The profound truth in her words tore into Padmé's heart. "Very well." Don't you dare make me regret it, she thought as the four headed out into the main hangar.
Striding toward the Republic Navy warship, Padmé experienced a rush of somber memory, an icy chill of déjà vu, a haunting reminiscence of taking this same walk with Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi over thirty years ago. I have a bad feeling about this.