Leia paced back and forth in her office. "I told Mara to wait. She wasn't supposed to break him out yet! I told her to—"
Han Solo finally reached out and placed his hands on his wife's shoulders, making her stop short. "What's done is done...I only wish I'd been able to help her get the kid out."
"Han! Don't say that." Leia stared her husband in the eyes. "If either of us were away when the break-out happened, it would be obvious to anyone that we were involved. As it is, we need to find out if they suspect Mara...and see if we can determine who else was with her."
She stopped to take a breath, looking pensive. "I thought she left alone...Do you think Karrde sent someone with her?" Before Han could answer, Leia continued her train of thought. "And who else was it that escaped? Security's keeping a tight lid on this. All they'll tell me is that two female humans aided Luke and another male prisoner in their escape...But I thought Mara wanted to go about it alone. Who would she have taken with—" Leia cut off as she spied something protruding from underneath the desk that had belonged to her aide, before the woman's strange disappearance. Frowning and moving aside the chair that stood in her way, she bent down and picked it up. She slowly sank onto the chair, clutching the holovid chip, as a sense of foreboding came upon her.
Leia inserted the holovid chip into the reader, and all the blood drained from her face as she stared at the screen for several moments. Han was also struck speechless.
The Imperial symbol was on the screen, spinning slowly, but purposefully. Then it went to the side for a moment, to make room for the Rebel Alliance symbol, only to let the latter symbol explode, its space taken over by the Imperial symbol once again.
After getting shakily to her feet, Leia rested her cold, clammy hand on her husband's arm. "Who would have left that here? Were we supposed to find it?" A thought occurred to Leia. "Two females assisted Luke in escaping...What if my aide had something to do with his break-out? If she was the one that left this," she removed the holovid chip from the reader and held it up, "Luke could be in big trouble."
"Now, Leia, we don't know that your aide left this, or even if she had anything to do with Luke's escape," Han attempted to calm his wife, though there was little doubt in his voice as to the likelihood that such had happened. "I think we'd better give Karrde a call."
"No, I didn't send any of my people out to help Mara. Even if she got help from some of my people, she told me nothing of her venture to Du'talfrr." When Leia registered surprise at Karrde's knowing the name of the top-secret prison planet, the smuggler smiled tightly. "I know a good many things that even you don't know. I have contacts in very many places, and, in fact," he sat back somewhat smugly, "I even know a little bit about the other escaped prisoner."
Han leaned forward, exchanging a glance with his wife. "And?"
"He is a Chiss—" seeing no recognition in the faces of the couple, Karrde volunteered the information as he made a sort of sweeping motion with his hand, "a member of Grand Admiral Thrawn's species. In fact, my contact claims that Voss Parck was one of Thrawn's bodyguards."
"But didn't Thrawn have the Noghri for that?" Leia inquired, brow furrowing.
"You know of Thrawn's genius as well as I. Perhaps he was not fully trusting of them."
"Lot of good that did him. His bodyguard failed him in the end," Han pointed out, sitting back.
"Yes," Karrde said, pursing his lips. "So it would seem."
"I don't suppose you've managed to "borrow" any of the prison tapes?" Han ventured.
"You've not been able to look at them, Leia?" asked Karrde, raising a polite eyebrow.
The woman shook her head. "I'm the last person Security would want to volunteer information to on this matter."
Talon Karrde nodded. "I suspected as much. That's why I made sure to have this—" he held up a holovid chip, "close at hand."
"You have a holo recording?" Leia breathed a sigh of relief. "Was Mara really involved?"
Karrde nodded, "It was difficult to tell—the four made sure not to be very conspicuous to the cameras, Parck even changing his skin color, most likely with some sort of temporary solution—but I believe it was her. Hopefully, it will not be as easy to notice her involvement for those looking to point fingers, but, somehow, I don't really believe that." Han thought he could detect a hint of emotion in Talon Karrde's voice, but it was soon gone, replaced by the cool tones that Karrde seemed to embody. "It seems Skywalker and his companions gave quite the struggle. In fact, my contact was knocked unconscious by Skywalker. He was very lucky to gain access to this recording at all." Karrde's face disappeared temporarily from the communications screen as he inserted the chip into the console.
Karrde played the chip (a short one, merely showing the escapees and their rescuers in the hall having the conflict with the Gotal and other guards) for the couple twice, and both times Leia studied the screen while biting her lip nervously. The second time, Han watched her reactions. When she finally tore her gaze from the screen, Han queried, "Well?"
"I think it was her."
"Mara?" Karrde asked, confused. "Yes, I know, I told you that—"
"No, not Mara, the other woman."
This time it was Karrde that lacked information. "And who might that be?"
Leia took a deep breath, then she proceeded to explain about the disappearance of her aide, showing Karrde the image of the Imperial symbol overtaking the Rebel symbol.
"It seems Skywalker is going to have to watch his back...However, I imagine that even Parck and your aide will find it hard to hold both Jade and Skywalker for long. As Force-users, they would certainly be formidable apart, but together, surely they would be nearly unstoppable."
Han heard the underlying doubt in Karrde's voice, and he also noted, in the back of his mind, that Karrde was distancing himself from Mara by the use of her last name. "Why do I not believe you?"
Talon Karrde looked uncomfortable. "I didn't want to tell you this, but I am afraid there's no avoiding it. The first thing to take into account is that Skywalker was jailed with a member of Thrawn's species, and, while I am not ignorant enough to believe that all Chiss have Thrawn's genius, I am sure that for Thrawn to choose a Chiss to be his bodyguard, the Chiss would not be completely lacking in knowledge of how to manipulate others. What I have heard from my contact on Du'talfrr is enough to support that: many of Parck's cellmates went insane after only a short while with him. While Skywalker might be strong enough to escape such a fate, Parck would likely see an incredible opportunity in front of him: to cause the betrayal of one of the Republic's heroes. If Skywalker willingly escaped with him..."
"Luke would never betray the Republic!" Leia exclaimed. "He probably joined with Parck just temporarily, or perhaps Parck had a change of heart."
"I hope you're right," Karrde said softly, repeating the sentence again in his mind: I hope you're right.
Meanwhile, Mara was still off in the back of the ship simmering when Luke slipped into the seat behind Kantasha Pellaeon, who was in the pilot's chair. He opened his mouth to ask a question, but Thrawn, in the copilot's position, stood. "We are to change into more proper attire. Follow me."
The Chiss led the pair into a storage room where he pulled down four uniforms. Thrawn's, Luke noted, only had a captain's insignia on it. Thrawn handed one uniform to Kantasha, then two to Luke. "The smaller is for Ms. Jade, if she is willing to wear it." After a brief, calculated pause, Thrawn spoke again, "I am to be known as Mitth Nuruodo—" at this his eyes glinted amusedly, though Luke did not know the reason, "for the time being. You would do well to pass that on to Ms. Jade, Skywalker. I plan to keep my true existence a secret for a while, save from those on the ship and Admiral Pellaeon, for I am not sure that startled cadets would be willing to keep eager mouths closed." He then picked up a box whose contents Luke was unsure of, and he left the room.
Luke placed Mara's uniform back on the shelf, figuring that it wasn't the right time to ask the angry redhead to don Imperial clothing. He was picking awkwardly at the arm of his prison guard uniform when he noticed that Kantasha was unabashedly undressing, seemingly not noticing him.
Blushing furiously as the farmboy within him came to the surface, Luke turned around and stared at the wall.
After a few moments, Kantasha spoke, "Aren't you going to change?" Taking one look at his averted eyes, she nodded in sudden understanding, her own eyes glinting. "Farmboy modesty, I'm guessing. Well, if you need me, I'll be in the cockpit."
She started to leave, but Luke called after her. "Wait..."
"Yes?" Kantasha tucked a few loose strands of hair behind her ear as she waited for Luke to speak.
"How did I get put into the same cell as Thrawn?"
"The Force has many uses," the female Pellaeon answered, "including the manipulation of minds. Before the ysalamiri were in place on the prison planet, I managed to twist a few minds to get you and Thrawn put in the same cell."
She thought for a moment before seeming to make a decision. "The Force, however, isn't always required to manipulate minds; there's a part of the story that Thrawn and I didn't get to. In the case of Thrawn's Noghri bodyguard, before you and Thrawn were jailed and the "Thrawn fiasco" was "over," we opted for a more simple method of manipulation. Knowing that even the loyal Noghri would eventually falter, Thrawn began to wear a cologne that was undetectable by human noses, though Rukh, his Noghri bodyguard, would be able to pick it up. On the day Thrawn left the Chimaera incognito, he switched colognes with Voss Parck, also giving him detailed instructions about the battle over Bilbringi, and after Rukh, playing the part of the traitorous Noghri we knew he was, killed Parck, Thrawn had his corpse destroyed, leaving no loose ends. But Thrawn was even wiser than that, and had his and Parck's records switched so that without insignia, Thrawn would automatically be Parck.
"Thrawn knew that he did not have enough resources at hand to truly destroy the Rebellion, tactician though he was, and he even planned to be picked up by the Rebels undercover as Voss Parck, Thrawn's bodyguard. In prison he would wait, while I carried out our plans and slowly built back up the Imperial fleet. I had already managed to hijack a cargo ship, one of the standard ships that brought supplies to and from the prison planet, and so it was decided that I would go to Du'talfrr, manipulate a few minds—that cursed Gotal was not on the planet at the time, so that was one problem I didn't have to deal with—and converse with Thrawn about current Imperial plans.
"I managed to find a position as your sister's aide, which provided me with a lot of information concerning the Republic's dealings. When I learned of your trial, and of how those that you have given so much would drop you in a prison so quickly, that was when I found quick manipulation of minds with the Force necessary, before the ysalamiri were put into place on Du'talfrr, and, incidentally, the Gotal. Finally, Imperial ships were once more a force to be reckoned with, though the ships were rather spread apart, and some Imperial ships began to come out of hiding and attack the Republic forces in strategic hit-and-runs. When the time was right, I slipped away in my hijacked cargo ship and headed for Du'talfrr."
Kantasha paused. "I don't know how Jade managed to get on planet, but she arrived before I did and got to your room without a hassle. I suspect it was she that started the food fight among the lower security prisoners, providing the distraction she needed to get to your room." She was practically scowling at the thought of the other woman. "Don't forget to offer her the uniform," she said, before disappearing out the door (and throwing a venomous glare towards the general direction in which Mara was).
"Yes," Luke murmured to himself, looking over at where Mara's uniform lay on the shelf. "The uniform..."
Thrawn really had thought of everything, hadn't he?
When Threepio finally entered Leia's office it was to the sight of a very grim couple. "I'm just glad we sent the kids to Kashyyyk with Chewie," Leia was saying. "They just kept bombarding me with questions about their uncle, and I just didn't know what to—"
"Pardon me, Mistress Leia," See-Threepio ventured. "My assistance in translation is no longer required by the Filarn delegation, and I am afraid that I am quite concerned for Artoo. Ever since Master Luke—" but even Threepio did not wish to go there, and he gave a very humanlike impression of fumbling over the name, "well, Artoo has locked himself into Master Luke's apartment and refuses to answer any calls on Master Luke's comm unit. If you would give me permission..."
"Sure, Threepio, you can go over there and talk to him," Han said. Inside, he told himself he was not feeling sorry for Goldenrod; he merely wanted to get rid of him. Leia knew the truth, however, and she squeezed her husband's shoulder in understanding. She'd been so caught up in other matters that even she had forgotten about Artoo. But it would be difficult for Threepio to ever forget his astromech friend.
Threepio hurried over to Luke's apartment (for even after Luke was imprisoned Leia could not simply give it up), and, though Artoo would not open the door, the protocol droid went inside anyway after punching in the code. Artoo had not bothered to change it yet.
"Artoo, I know you are—" Threepio stopped when he saw Artoo coming towards him with an extended arc-welder, giving a frightening mechanical impression of a growl. "Goodness gracious me! Artoo, put that thing away before you hurt someone! I have news for you."
Artoo slowed but kept the arc-welder in position. He beeped once.
"Well, there is no need to be short with me! If you had not been holed up in here pouting, you might have learned that Master Luke has escaped!"
The arc-welder disappeared. A flurry of whistles came from the domed R2-unit.
Threepio shook his head, "No, I do not know where he escaped to, or who he escaped with—" The golden droid paused after hearing Artoo beep excitedly. "What? You think you know? How would you know? You're just an overgrown, greasy pile of bolts and—"
Artoo made a rather rude raspberry, then tootled.
"Mistress Mara? Dear me, I do hope you are wrong! She wanted to kill him at one time, I'll have you know, and—" a gurgle from the astromech unit caused the protocol droid to stop short. "Something between them? What do you mean? I do hope you haven't been watching holovision again, it does put some strange ideas in your head."
Artoo buzzed an inquiry.
"Yes, I imagine Mistress Leia and Master Han know a lot more than I have been told. I just don't understand humans sometimes, what with their obsession with secrets and all. Perhaps if we go ask, they might be so kind as to—" but Artoo was already out the door. "Wait for me, you mottled collection of screws and tin!" Threepio cried, rushing out into the hallway. The door whizzed shut.
Author's Notes: Thanks for betaing, Moy!