Post 2
"I hope you're joking."
He shook his head. There was a soft rattle behind him.
"And they're overdue? No word, nothing?"
He nodded, and gestured towards a blinking light on the Falcon's pilot station.
"You know Han, your kids are going to be the death of me." Mara paused, "You want me and the Sabre to go out for them?"
Han's tense expression loosened up for a moment. "Nope—" His voice cut off as a huge crash reverberated through the bulkhead "Glancing away from his sister in-law he muttered "Just one minute," simultaneously tugging on his trademark vest he walked towards the back of the Falcon. Mara settled herself down into Chewie's co-pilot seat, biting her lip as bits and pieces of the conversation drifted back towards her. "No No No—how many times have I told you not to let Threepio make repairs…and it was the right...not the left repulsor..." The resulting roar was followed by a momentary stillness. Seconds later Han came back to the cockpit. "I'll be good to go in an hour. I just wanted to let you and Luke know, what's going on. Whatever this beacon is leading me to...I hope they're unhurt"
"Give me a second and I can try for something more definitive" Mara closed her eyes and enveloped herself in the Force. A cave, --no an asteroid—remains of Alderaan, the viewport of the Rock Dragon, shaking as another ship took off in its vicinity—Mara frowned as she recognized the silhouette and jolted for a second as the image shifted, the exhaust of the rising ship cleared to become the smoke, steam?, from a pit as burning droid parts exploded before her—the smoke blocked her vision again Mara tried to grasp the disappearing thread and shook her head.
She looked at Han "They're fine, but it seems that the Slave 1 is part of their problem." She contemplated telling him about the rest of the vision but decided that it was unrelated. She looked solemnly as Han grimaced at the news.
"Fett—it seems my kids have inherited my enemies."
Mara stood gave Han's shoulder an affectionate pat. "Not all of them, just the one's that we think are dead" She disembarked, and shaded her eyes as the ship blinked out to hyperspace.
Knowing that Luke would have returned from his jungle sojourn with some of the older students, Mara jogged over to their quarters and was surprised to find him asleep on the couch…no not asleep, just resting.
"Mara," His voice sounded slightly concerned.
"Hmm." Mara sat down in on the arm of the couch.
"Where are you going?" he gestured to some bags that Mara had placed near the door to their suite earlier in the day.
Mara returned his glance, with a small frown. "I'm not sure as to whether I'm going anywhere …yet. You need to hear this." She stood up and switched on the holorecorder and settled herself on the floor next to Luke's head.
A small figure of General Arien Cracken emerged. "Greetings, Master Jade Skywalker. In two weeks time NRI will be holding a symposium with some of its elite intelligence members stationed on Coruscant. A conference of sort, I would like to take the opportunity of inviting you and Master Skywalker to be two of our central speakers. The topic of the Symposium is Past vs. the Present—Learning to Provide a Safer Future, and I and many others in the NRI community feel that you with your knowledge of Imperial tactics, and Jedi training can help us prepare for some future…obstacles to peace. I am transmitting with this holo recording some concise information on what I'm looking for, please let me know if you can make it. May the Force be With You. "
Luke sat up slowly and scanned the datapad that Mara handed him. "You know what he really wants. "
She winced. "He wants to finish that conversation that we had when we brought the Caamas document back from the Niruaun." pausing Mara reached over and took Luke's hand in hers. "You know that he also wants to safeguard the New Republic from Rogue Jedi. And with my experience with Vader, and the Emperor….and your experience with Exar Kun, Vader and the Nightsisters…" she trailed off….
Luke nodded, "You go—I can't leave just yet, especially with the implementation of the master/apprentice program. We can meet in Coruscant, right before Malinza is due to arrive. "
Mara nodded and keyed the receiver to send General Cracken her response.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Valdet I: Seat of the Romani-Morodin monarchy
The statue was impressionable…An image of two birds in flight, one a flashing silver, the other a deep bright penetrable gold. Beneath them lay prone figures of a young girl and a young man in a peaceful revere, holding hands.
Hours after the dedication the crowd had thinned so that only the Royal rulers of Valdet and Danshitie remained. Elbereth glanced at her new husband and smiled briefly. "I miss them."
Tristan reached over and grasped her hand tightly, and with his whispers echoing in the empty square, replied, "as do I, but on Yavin, they are at peace, which is the best I can hope for." They stood in silence for a moment and together they turned away and entered the waiting speeder.
The humming of the speeder softened with distance, and gradually the cobblestone paths leading to the mourning doves darkened. As the silence grew, the early evening rustling gave way to the stillness of deep night. Out of the darkness, just under 100 yards from where the statue stood the shadows moved. Slowly shifting from an indistinguishable corner the figure grimaced inwardly at the metals that gleamed and shivered. He stood before the statue and contemplated the events of the last month. His insertion had gone unnoticed, and he had been able to walk among inhabitants with less notice than expected. In one month there had been one incident of note, and it was understood that their prejudice must be masked, initially, to be successful. Taking a deep breath, he looked at the sky above him and inhaled. This galaxy was waiting…waiting…and he would be the instrument of its destruction.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Mara stood slightly away from the group taking in the slowly setting sun. The Falcon, Rock Dragon and Lightening Rod had arrived earlier that day, and the day had shifted from one of worry to one of relaxation and happiness. Boba Fett had almost been successful, but had made his one mistake in assuming the children's connection to Bornan Thul would help him find his quarry.
The "private" birthday celebration for Leia had begun with a more public feast, including the entire Academy staff, and many dignitaries who were now slowly dispersing and wandering around the Academy grounds. Hundreds of torches flickered in the warm night air, decorating the Great Temple. Burning at each corner and step of the pyramid each flame had its place in brilliant zigzagged columns that ran on both sides of the stairways.
Mara quietly positioned herself behind Jaina and smiled at Wedge and his wife Iella who stood quietly with Corran, Mirax and Winter; one of Leia's most closest advisors. Surrounded by her husband and children Leia seemed unusually relaxed and contented.
"Happy Birthday, Mom," Jaina said.
"I couldn't have asked for any more wonderful gift than to have my whole family with me, " Leia answered. "It's such an unusual occurrence these days. And your father was very mysterious about this trip you all took."
Sensing Jaina's sudden disquiet about the present she and Jacen had brought back, Mara reached over and gave her arm a slight squeeze.
Han put his arm around Leia. "The kids have a presentation to make. They got you something special."
Anakin, understanding the look that Jaina gave him went first. His gift was a tiny stone replica of the Great Temple, a small ziggurat complete with the most meticulous details. He had built it from the small stone shards of the original temple, those that were too small to use in the rebuilding process. Then as Leia opened the brightly colored cloth that held the shard of Alderaan, the twins and their friends looked on in hopeful silence.
Mara felt the emotion coming from her sister-in-law. As Leia studied the rock, she whispered, "It's from Alderaan, isn't it?"
Jaina replied, barely breathing. "We wanted you to have a special piece of your home. We know how much Alderaan meant to you, and the Empire destroyed it—but in a sense it's, not really gone. We're children of Alderaan, too, because you passed on what you learned there to us. In a way the spirit from Alderaan is very much alive."
"It's from the core of the planet," Jacen added. "From its heart."
Tears filled Leia's eyes. "Yes I know it's from the heart," she said. "From Alderaan's and from yours as well. The heart is one thing the Empire could never destroy. Those of us who survived—who weren't on the planet when it was blown up—carry the heart of Alderaan inside us. And we pass it on to our children."
"And speaking of children of Alderaan," Han said, looking at the twins, " your mom and Luke and I talked to Raynar this afternoon, and let him know what's been going on with Boba Fett and Nolaa Tarkona and the bounty on his father's head."
"Han tells me that your friend Zekk offered to help us search for Bornan Thul," Leia said. "That's a brave thing for him to do. He must know there'll be danger."
Mara's heart swelled in pride as she listened to Jaina answer. "Oh I'm sure he knows, " Jaina said. "But he's changed. Everything changes, I guess. We just have to work hard to make the best of all those changes."
Mara was surprised to hear Luke's voice behind her. "Raynar could use some good friends right now, " with gentle rebuke, Luke handed Mara a glass of Juri juice. Lowie and Tenel Ka responded in agreement.
Leia raised her cup. "To Family," she said.
Han lifted his cup to touch hers. "And to appreciating what we've got—while we've got it."
"To Family."
~~~~~~~~~~~~
After the children had gone to bed the adults gathered in the Skywalker kitchen sipping hot chocolate. After glancing at Luke, Mara walked over to Leia with a smile and handed her a small package wrapped in white tissue.
Leia looked up with surprise. "What's this?"
Mara shrugged, "Something, Luke and I stumbled across while we were on Coruscant a few months back."
Curious, Leia laid the object flat, and carefully tore open the tissue. "Oh—Mara, where did you get this?"
"I was researching some old archives about the possibility of building a Jedi temple on Coruscant. Rebuilding rather—and one of the files had this photograph slipped in between some of the hardcopy papers. "
Leia breathed,"He looks so young."
Luke nodded, "We think the photograph may have been cropped and this seems to be taken from the angle of a Holonetnews reporter on the ground, back before the Military Creation Act shut them down. "
Winter moved from Tycho's side to look over Leia's shoulder. "It's just as I remember him. The viceroy had a commanding presence." The image was a close up of Viceroy Bail Organa of Alderaan atop a balcony gazing out at ….what he was looking at was impossible to tell from the close up of the image, but his eyes reflected compassion, worry, and a sense of determination. In deep blue robes, he created an ambiance of authority and diligence.
Han looked at his brother-in-law. "Was there a caption?"
Luke shook his head, "No, it seemed to have been misplaced."
Mara looked at Leia, whose expression was bright with fresh tears. "I hope it didn't upset you."
Leia laughed, "No, Not at all, I feel so fortunate." Abruptly she stood up and gave Mara a hug. "The force has indeed been with us, in times when I have felt that my job, and my duty to the Republic was useless, all of you here have supported me, and that helps me to believe that the New Republic is strong…that I am strong. So its my turn..thank you. Thank you for being a part of my life."
Turning to Mara—"And thank you, for watching our backs. You've been nothing but our friend since the moment we met you. Even when you claimed to want Luke's life. I'll never forget the help you gave us when Thrawn tried to take my children…" Leia smiled and gestured to the picture, "and now you've given me a part of my past that I never would have had without you."
Not knowing what to say, Mara shrugged and smiled.
~~~~~~~~~
He came into our lives virtually unnoticed. He was merely a simpleton with grand ideas and a thirst for knowledge. But under his mask was ambition, eager to control, eager to manipulate, and eager to threaten. The Jedi had to have sensed the danger, sensed the malice, but the Force is beyond my knowledge understanding its voice must be harder in forethought then in retrospect.
~~~~~~~~
Valdet
Back in his rented apartment, the shadow figure retrieved the most recent news holo's from the core.
"Chief of State Leia Organa Solo celebrates her birthday at Yavin 4. Her brother Jedi Master Luke Skywalker and his wife Mara Jade attended along with many other dignitaries. "
"In other news, Nolaa Tarkona's Diversity Alliance is slowly gaining more support. A ZXI news reporter reports from the Diversity Alliance headquarters on Ryloth."
"In local news, Elbereth I and Tristan I co-signatories of the Valdet-Danshitie alliance, unveiled a monument to their recent overthrow of Dictator Bran Morodin."
Looking closely at the vid screen the figure known as Iker Rafagr nodded, that was where he would start.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Mara shivered. The meeting had gone relatively well, with adjustments to Luke's plan coming from Tionne and Streen. There would be more talks, but so far the outlook for the curriculum change was positive.
She shivered again. Blast it. She looked around to see if anyone else had noticed. It had been years since Mara had felt cold in hyperspace, an obvious sign of someone unaccustomed to space travel-- which was a ridiculous thought especially since she was now on her way to Coruscant, a trip she had made hundreds of times before. Reaching out to touch the Force, Mara bathed herself in its warmth. There.
She shivered.
"Mara?"
Mara felt two hands on her shoulders and turned to face Leia. "Yes?"
Leia's face turned curious at the coldness of her response. Abashed, Mara 's face softened and she shrugged. "Sorry, there's something going on, and I'm not sure I can stop it."
"Oh?" Leia's sense changed. "Can you describe it?"
"That's the problem; I'm not exactly sure what it is. I had a vision the other day, droids burning in a pit of smoke, and just now the knot in my stomach grew tighter as if something was plotting against us. "Whoever us is…"Anyway, it's not something we can deal with now, " she sighed and changed the subject. "Leia, how would you feel if I took your daughter on as my apprentice?"
Leia blinked startled. "I wouldn't mind, you two already have a close relationship..." She trailed off, and shook her head as if to clear it. "I came up to let you know that we'd be pulling out of hyperspace in the next hour. And I think Chewie wanted to know if you'd play him at holochess."
Mara let out a small laugh. "Is he up against Threepio again?"
"Not anymore, Threepio started to argue with him and ended up being shut down."
"Tell him I'll be right there."
Leia left the room, and Mara stared at the streams of stars rushing past the Falcon. Whatever was going on, it wouldn't be fixed at this moment.
Just in case, she would stop by her bags and pick up something warmer to wear.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Having decided to accompany Raynar and Uncle Luke to the Bornaryn fleet, (Raynar's mother had decided she wanted her son nearby) the Solo twins, and their friends quickly worked together to prepare for the journey. On the morning of their departure the completed Great Temple loomed large and ancient in its grandeur.
After realizing that she had been daydreaming about Jacen and her growing affection for him, Tenel Ka busied herself with the external checklists as Jaina walked away with a slight grin on her face. On her way to the Shadow Chaser she passed Jacen who was walking towards the Hapan princess with a slight frown. Jaina suppressed the need to giggle.
Jacen flushed slightly as he felt his sister's emotions, but quickly controlled himself as he walked around the side of the sip to see if Tenel Ka needed any help. After they'd finished, Jacen said, "I, um…I put a little extra sealant on that blast scar Boba Fett gave us in the Alderaan system." He ran a hand through his damp hair. "It looked a little weak, and I didn't want you to take any chances." He shrugged, slightly embarrassed. "Hey, you can never tell when you're going to bump into another bounty hunter, you know?"
Tenel Ka locked her gray eyes with his, The Shadow Chaser's quantum armor would keep its passenger safe if they came under attack. Jacen knew he would be well protected, but he had no similar guarantee for his friends in the Rock Dragon. She did her best to reassure him. "Jacen, my friend, I am used to dealing with traitors, kidnappers, and assassins. The Hapan court is filled with them." One corner of her mouth quirked upward. "In fact, some of the most skilled ones are my relatives. I will not allow the Rock Dragon or anyone in her to come to harm."
He nodded , then shrugged again. "I just like to know everyone's safe. I even made Tionne promise to take care of my gnort egg while we're gone." Then as if chagrined at having been caught worrying, Jacen said. "Hey wanna hear a joke?"
On the pretext of examining a stabilizer fin Tenel Ka ducked her head to hide her pleasure. If Jacen ever suspected that she actually enjoyed his jokes, he would really worry. When she had composed herself again, she looked up and raised an eyebrow at him. "Only if you do not require me to laugh."
"Buzz buzz," he said than waited expectantly.
After a moment, she realized the response he wanted. "Ah—who is there?"
"Dismay"
"Dismay who?"
"Dismay not seem funny to you, but I'm hoping you'll at least smile."
Tenel Ka nodded judiciously. "Perhaps I will laugh later, my friend Jacen." The absurdity of his humor amazed her. Even more amazing was the fact that the joke had put her at ease again. She closed her eyes, let out a slow breath and savored the refreshing mist falling from above.
Jaina had walked towards the landing ramp of the Rock Dragon, and heard the tail end of Jacen's joke. She bit her lip trying to decide what to do…she shrugged, grinned and yelled "Hey you two, coordinates are in. Uncle Luke is locking Artoo down in the astromech station. What are we waiting for?" Minutes later Tenel Ka joined Jaina in the cockpit, and watched Jacen sprint towards the other ship.
Jaina gave her friend a light punch, "So did you laugh?"
Tenel Ka turned sharply—and smiled. "That is a fact."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
NRI Headquarters, Coruscant
Mara knocked cautiously on the door to General Cracken's office.
"Come in." As she entered, the man sitting at the desk looked up and smiled. "Master Jade Skywalker, welcome." He gestured to the chair and marked something in a folder on his desk, then turned towards his guest. "Thank you for coming, I'm sorry your husband could not make it."
Mara acknowledged the statement with a short nod. " He sends his regrets, but understands the need." She tilted her head questioningly, "May I ask why you needed to speak with me again before tomorrow?" You know very well what he wants to speak to you about.
"During the signing of the peace accords, you and Master Skywalker came back with a copy of the Caamas document. You never explained where it came from, while we determined that it was authentic, the source information would be useful for our intelligence archi--"
Mara cut him off, "I'm sorry General, but as Luke and I told you then, the source is one that would not have any information to help you. They were neutralized and no longer are any threat to the New Republic." If only you could be sure that that were true.
The General locked his clear eyes with Mara's emerald ones. "Yes, you said that before," he paused, "Look, I'm going to be straight with you. Master Jade Skywalker--"
"Mara"
"Mara, you used to be highly placed in the Empire, you know it, I know it, half of the New Republic chain of command knows it. Up until now we haven't asked you for information, because you were not formally a citizen of the New Republic. Even now you have never claimed full allegiance to us--and now with peace with the Empire, much of what you know is no longer of immediate use. " He shifted in his seat, " But, there is still something that would help us make the galaxy more secure."
Mara's eyes had been narrowing throughout Cracken's "straight talk"
"You know things from when you were working for the Emperor, secrets that could help us prepare for anything that rogue Imperial elements throw at us. You know as much as I do that there are more Imperials out there refusing to give up the fight despite our peace accord with Bastion, the Second Imperium was just one of them. Nearly 12 years ago you saved us from Grand Admiral Thrawn with your knowledge of the Mount Tantiss cloning facility. It's information like that, hidden surprises of the Emperor's that we need to know about. There were rumors of his work with disease that we saw a sample of during our fight with Zinj and Isard. We've heard of things in the deep core, secret smuggling depots. " He took a breath preparing to go on when Mara raised a hand to stop him.
Her mind racing Mara shrugged away all the memories that she had suppressed from her years under the Emperor. "General, my loyalties to the New Republic remain strong, and it is only if they no longer represent and stand for what is right in the galaxy that they will lose that loyalty. I married Luke Skywalker knowing that my ideals would often be judged as being a Jedi, and his wife, and that my past would always be a subject of contention. That being said, the ONLY reason that I am not leaving right now is because I know that if I don't give you what you want it'll only bother you till the end of time, and beyond. Which, in turn, means that I'll be bothered every time I see you. " She stood up out of her seat and turned towards the door---and then she turned back towards the General with a thoughtful expression on her face, her eyes smoldering with a combination of repressed memories and anger. She reached into her Jedi robe and pulled out a series of data cards. "Here, I did this a long time ago in case something happened to me before I could explain it properly. This is almost everything I know about the missions I was given by the Emperor. There are certain things in there I am not proud of, it was over 20 years of my life and there is nothing I can do to change it. I do not ask immunity from anything, just due consideration to how things have changed since these events."
"In terms of disease depot's and secret smuggling posts, I know very little about that, the Emperor was very compartmentalized when it came to his secrets. I heard rumors of --experimentation, but nothing directly. If such thing exists, I pray that we find it and destroy it. Is there anything else?"
The General stood up and extended his hand; the woman hesitated and accepted it, leaving quickly without another word.
~~~~
Leia slipped into the conference room that had been adapted for Mara's presentations. At the moment the bleachers were filled with pilots that Leia had known for years: Hobbie, Janson and Corran Horn, and some that Leia recognized, but could not put a name to. She quietly sat in seat in the corner, and smiled softly as she saw Han's head near the front of the room.
This was the final day of the conference, and had up to this point involved mostly New Republic emissaries, Generals and a Rogue or two to speak about their dealings with the Empire before and after the signing of the peace treaty. As Mara was the primary, rather, the only speaker in dealing with the Jedi, she had been asked to speak on the last day as to provide a proper transition between the imperials and future threats.
Leia turned her attention to her sister-in-law who was tying up the pre-lunch discussion on specific Imperial tactics.
Mara sensed Leia enter the room, and smiled inwardly. She had known that Leia had meetings here at NRI, and was not surprised in the least that she had taken it upon herself to sneak into a lecture that was primarily for pilots and NRI field agents. The morning session had gone well. Mara had known that much of what she knew about the Empire involved long deserted codes and drills that wouldn't do anyone any good in the current political climate. Instead she had taught them various infiltration skills, such as the Paprick Cross Cut--which Hobbie and Janson immediately demanded on seeing it in action, along with a variety of disguising techniques that a pilot from Wraith Squadron had taken a particular interest in.
"Before we move on to the next portion of today's lecture, I'd like to mention that I have provided General Wedge Antilles, and General Cracken with some additional information that may come in handy if necessary. My intense training was, thorough, to say the least, and like many training, it was compartmentalized so that depending on the situation, I know what to use when the time comes." She added almost as an afterthought. "I wouldn't be surprised if the next request I get from General Cracken is to join some of you all in the field."
Wes, rose his pencil up in a self-effacing manner. "Please, tell me its true, please--pretty please?"
Mara made a face at him while some of the members tittered quietly. "I'm afraid it's not true Lieutenant Janson." She leaned into the podium, and let out a small sigh.
"The next portion of my lecture, as you all know, is one that my husband and I hoped would never be necessary. But the Force, like all things, can be misused, and we have the responsibility to teach what exactly could happen if that happens." Mara paused, " The Dark Side of the Force, is elusive, black, and angry. The Emperor, on his good days, drew on it like a viper bat who sends a constant flow of poison into his victim, even after they have died. A Jedi, on the dark side is addicted, and is poisonous, manipulative. The slightest move can set them off. Hundreds can be killed in an instant." Mara sensed the jovial mood from before dissipate as her words chilled the room. "In the last decade, since Luke began teaching, there have been failures. And you know it is possible to be redeemed, but sometimes there is no other option." Her face tensed, "Therefore for the next few hours I'll show you a few things that I hope will not be taken lightly." Her eyes searched the audience and fell upon a pair of glaring green eyes. Corran is not going to be happy about the next thing I'm about to do.
"Leia, could you and Corran please come down here for a second?"
The entire room turned to where the Chief of State was sitting, as some of the younger pilots let out a gasp. Those who knew her merely nodded as she stood up shaking her head ruefully. She fell into step with Corran Horn, and whispered. "Do you know what's going on?"
"No, although I suspect…"
The reached the front of the room quickly, and were pulled aside in a brief conference with Mara.
"I'm not sure if you guys are going to like what 's about to happen. So I wanted to give you the option of leaving for about half an hour. Luke and I discussed this, and he had Talon bring over a pair of Ysalmiri from Myrkr. It's important that I explain what they do to a Jedi, and a dark Jedi--while also showing that we are not defenseless even when our Force skills are gone."
She turned to Corran--"This is especially important for you, because you still have your cover--and I don't want you to be forced to break it."
Leia glanced at Mara and shrugged, "I don't like how it feels, but it is important. So I will stay."
Corran nodded, "I agree; I'm assuming you want to do a bit of sparring, as well? My cover was only important as long as Mirax was missing, and most of the people in this room already know."
Mara turned back to the waiting crowd, and smiled lightly. "Sorry, I'd like to introduce you all to two of my helpers for this afternoon. Everyone in this room already knows one of them--your Chief of State, and my sister in law, Leia Organa Solo. The other gentleman is Corran Horn, a member of Rogue Squadron, and, when it pleases him, a Jedi Knight." There was a slight murmuring from a few in the audience. "In a few moments, two gentleman, one of whom you will recognize as Master Trader Talon Karrde, will come in with creatures known as Ysalmiri. They have the unique ability to block the Force from a room, creating an empty bubble for anyone attuned to it. It is the one thing that can guarantee no Dark Jedi can touch you with his or her powers. " Mara reached her comlink, and told Talon and Dankin to come on in.
Mara felt the two Yslamiri as they approached the door to the room, Talon and Dankin came in with two cages on hovercarts. The creatures, as always, were attached to branches. Immediately Mara battled against her automatic defenses and schooled her features to seem less tense. "In non-Jedi terms, what the three of us are feeling right now is akin to having your limbs cut off, and having trouble breathing. If we were to move outside this room, we would be out of the range of the bubble." She turned to Corran and Leia and smiled ferally.
"If you will all follow us to the demonstration room next door, its easier to show rather then try to tell how Ysalmiri can affect a Force user."
~~~~~~~~~
Along the Corellian Run, a few parsecs out from Ryloth is the planet Tynna. Some say that the elusive once territorial manager of the Corporate Sector Odumin came from this planet, but not much else is known. Aside from its surface which is generally assumed to be dry and uninhabited, the all non-human population of Tynna burrowed deep underground to hide from the harsh light that penetrated its atmosphere. This feature made it idyll for a secret base of the Diversity Alliance.
Bod'e Onjou blinked his eyes at the noise emitting from the room above him, and adjusted his earpiece accordingly. A Gotal, he had the remarkable sensitivity to sound, and with the appropriate aid, was able to hear conversations taking place within 12 feet of him.
"Your eminence, Tarkona. The final delivery to you will occur in a few weeks, until then we are stockpiling the weapons here at the Tynna base and at our secondary bases." Bod'e recognized the gravelly voice as that of Nolaa Tarkona's right hand man, the Shistavan. " For transportation I have a few feelers out for pirates that may be willing to transport our contraband, and harass some ships for more." There was a slight hesitation in the Wolfman's next words. "There has been no word on the human, no word from Fett. I will make sure he understands the consequences of failure."
Bod'e had heard enough. Quickly, he set up an array, and sent a copy of the recording to the message capture near Corellia. From there the message would sit until the NRI checker picked it up in a few hours. His ears twitched as he heard voices outside his door.
"Are you sure it came from here?" It was the Wolfman; Bod'e had heard that the Shistavan liked ripping his meals apart. Realizing he had been caught, Onjou put the tiny receiver back in the pressurized can of malla malla fruit and put it in the food crisper, knowing that the intense cold would allow the acidity to eat away at the receivers metal, leaving nothing behind. He then readied his blaster, knowing that only the Force could save him now.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
All that came before is irrelevant. The Empire is nothing, human hands leading the galaxy to an endless Civil War. We have had to unlearn what we have learned …to understand, to accept, that survival is not our only option…submission may come first.
Credit where Credit is due: The initial Mara scene is referring to things and events from YJK, although it was written by me. Leia's birthday marks the end of Book 1, the summary for Book 2 will be the next "section" I put up after this one. Leia's birthday party is a POV change, focusing on Mara's point of view. So while all the thoughts though of Mara and her reactions to things said are all me, the dialogue between Leia, Luke and the children are from the YJK Book 1 as is the description of the setting. The other part pulled from the YJK is from book 2. The YJK Jacen, Jaina, TK portion is from Book 2, all I did was change the perspective to follow Jaina, and then I added more dialogue with Tenel Ka at the end...