Face knocked on the hatchway to the stateroom that he had been directed to; when it slid open Little Brother was blocking the door. He beeped out a greeting and rolled out of the way so Face could enter. Tahiri started to get up from her seat near the window but Face waved her down. Most people can't stand the view of naked hyper-space, some have been known to go mad while watching it, but for some reason Tahiri said that she found it soothing. She still wore her combat armor, closed up to the neck with only her hands and face showing, and her Domain marks on her forehead. He had agreed to let her wear them until they were released for duty again. She didn't protest, as much, this time as she did the last. Maybe she has seen how much staying hidden was desirable in their line of work. Maybe she learned what was important and what wasn't important. Maybe, but Face never asked, why wasn't important to him right now.
"How you doing Little Brother," Face asked the droid as he pulled out the extra chair in the room. Little Brother beeps and whistled out a long complex sentence. Tahiri favored her partner with a smile and rolled her eyes.
"I keep telling you I'm sorry, it was a spur of the moment decision. Besides they cleaned all the mud out of you." Little Brother whistled some more and then went over to the computer interface and plugged in. "I promise next time I warn you." She then turned to Face with a smile, "as you can tell he is still miffed at my ejecting him. The maintenance people checked him over and were able to repair him. They wanted to do a memory wipe but I was able to stop them as well as the memory search. Nice thing about being a Wraith, I could invoke a security clearance so they didn't get to root around."
"Good, Squeaky is all fixed up and trying to get the quartermaster to sell him 'need supplies' at less then wholesale cost which include X-wings at speeder prices, Elassar is driving the medical crew insane placing good luck charms on Piggy's and Ratnena's medical units and then telling them how to do their job better, Runt keeps the young pilots on their toes and taking them to the cleaners in the simulators, one of his minds is a ace pilot. Kell is doing better, he is down on the flight deck with Doran and Tyria, whom also keep doing light saber practice bouts driving the commander down there in to fits. Ratnena, as you know, keeps trying to rewire her medical unit and Piggy is helping, and someone is reprogramming the ship's computer to play practical jokes." Little Brother immediately spoke up, he sounded defensive as a droid could.
"He didn't accuse you Little Brother, but stop it anyways." She said with a smile.
"Admiral Jerrold, our new Supreme Commander, has pulled me into his office and told me to get my 'merry band of cut throat pirates' under control. He looked very tired, I think he will be very happy when we get to Denon in a few days," Face said with a smile.
"So we went from the saviors of the galaxy to pirates in less then a week," Tahiri said looking serious then turned to look back out the view port and let a smile creep on her face, "good. The less people take us seriously the better off we are."
"Its worked for us so far," Face nodded. That has always been the case for the Wraiths. They operated in such an odd manner that few ever took them serious until they went up against them. What may look like a bunch of indiscipline, sloppy, fun-loving crack-pot group was nothing more then a smoke cover for a well coordinate team that was actually very intense, serious, and deadlier then any other group of any size. "Of course now the Imperial know we exist. They have always suspected we existed, every time we gone head to head with Imperial Intelligence they have come out second best."
"As well as the Yuuzhan Vong, Chiss, any two-bit pirate group out there,"
"Yep, they know we exist but not who we are. Somehow the computers keep coming up with different profiles on us, by the way good work on that Little Brother. Chief of State and Admiral Jerrold have done a excellent job at trying to maintain our amenity but you just have a hard time explaining away what we did."
"I don't like fear, it is of the dark side," Tahiri said looking over at him, "but in this isolated case it might be for the best. Maybe, just maybe, somehow the people out there who we will have to fight will be too scared of us to put up much of a fight." She gave a small shake of her head and had a thin smile on her lips. "I was there and I still can't believe we pulled it off."
"No one can," Face said with a snort, "in fact at the last course change they down load some of the news feeds. They are claiming that it had to be a shame and that there was no way they were being told the whole truth."
"That could work to our advantage too, wouldn't it?"
"Anything that keeps us hidden but lets the truth be seen helps us." Face said thinking of the contradiction of his life. His whole adult life was to seek the truth while hiding behind a lie. One of the most famous child-actors to have lived, who grew up and became a leader of a group whose mission were to keep the GA free had to live in obscurity. It wasn't like the holo-dramas he made as a child or that were made today. They didn't have groupies adoring them, they didn't get parades, and they didn't get elaborate awards, little children never dreamed of becoming like him when they got older. However, because of his work as well as the other Wraiths, those children could grow up to be anything they wanted, people could go on with their lives without living in fear and governments could function. It always seemed to be enough reward for Kell, Elassar, Piggy, Squeaky, and him. From the way that Ratnena, Little Brother, and Tahiri acted, it was enough for them too.
"Tahiri, I just want to say again that we all wished we had told you about Jaina …"
"Its ok sir, to tell you the truth I probably would have not believed you guys anyways," she said sadly as she looked out the window. "How long do you suppose it will be before they release us for duty again?"
"I don't know. I hope not too long, I need to find replacements, which as my new second you will have to help me," she gave him a smile but kept her eyes on the view. Ratnena was both thrilled and disappointed when he announced it last night, she was thrilled because she felt Tahiri had earned it but disappointed because now she could give her kitchen duty. "More importantly Ratnena, Squeaky, you and I will need some time off before we get back in the fray."
"Rat was saying this morning when I visited her, that she wanted to go home for awhile to see her family, to show them the new her."
"She deserves that chance, she has come a long way in a short amount of time."
"Yes sir, but I suppose it all depends on the hearing don't it?"
"Yep, the information is being looked over now. Some of the senator on both sides are already claiming that they been framed even without the evidence being released yet. Some of the military players are already resigning and turning over more evidence. I think we will see some senators doing the same thing before long."
"Will Admiral Kre'fey last heroic," by the way she said heroic, she could have only meant 'bone-head'. The Admiral, with his ship mortally damaged, had his crew evacuated and set a collision course with the largest Yuuzhan Vong cruiser there. His 'self sacrifice' by guiding the cripple ship to its fiery destruction was being praised by his fellow Bothans as heroic as his cousin's death at Coruscant. "Last stand affect anything?"
"Too early to tell," Face said with a sigh, "his actions did take out the Yammka and the Warmaster. With those two factors taken out the Yuuzhan Vong fleet was broken." A few stayed and fought to the bitter end while others fled back to Hutt space but none surrendered.
"Of course, had he not let things get that bad in the first place so he could make an attack against Sekot, his death wouldn't have happened or all the others who died." Tahiri said sadly, probably thinking of all those who gave up their lives at Ossus. Especially Tom, Fred, Stacy and the droids who had all died on the Sweet Sunset."Fas, what a waste. Why can't my people learn?"
"I'm not going to tell you that you are wrong Tahiri. True professionals at this game know the cost of playing the game. Sometimes it is worth it and when it is not." He gave her a sidelong look and asked, "When you say your people, is that the Yuuzhan Vong, humans, Sand people or Jedi?"
"Yes," she said sadly. "One day my people will learn to live with each other but that day is not here yet. One day I will go home and be respected, not feared, to be loved and not hated. That day is not here yet either but I trust that the day will come."
Author note: The Wraiths will fly again and soon, with more adventures on the way. To all those who written reviews, Steph (Roonie), NJOfan and the others, Thank you they were all appreciated and I am pleased that you enjoyed these stories.