Sorry to anyone who thought the last chapter wasn't up to par, I thought it was rather good, but that's my opinion. We have a little bit more time before things start coming together, so hold on. And remember, don't count Jacen out. There is a reason for everything he does. He has plots within plots, and a trick behind those. Had a bit of a problem with writer's block here, but finally got it out, look for the next update in a week or so. By the way, just got the Joiner King, the newest book, and all I can say is Jacen kicks all butts. Thank you and enjoy.
One standard week later
Holoreporters couldn't get enough out about the miracle; Jacen Solo was alive. One of the Jedi heroes who infiltrated the Yuuzhan Vong on a secret mission. Captured while completing the mission and thought to have been killed shortly afterwards. Now, he was alive!
The media continued scrambling for interviews with him, the Solo or Skywalker family, other Jedi and government officials. Most simply expressed their gratitude for his survival, but Councilor Pwoe continued to reference his long incarceration by the Yuuzhan Vong, expressing fear that Jacen Solo was no longer on the side of the Galactic Alliances. For the most part, he was ignored. For the most part.
Dif Scaur turned off the holovid disgustedly. Yet another holostory about the "remarkable" survival of Jacen Solo. Some miracle. So why hadn't he been volunteering information about the Yuuzhan Vong? One would think he'd hate them for everything they did to him.
Scaur turned back to the conference table. Some of his most elite agents and analysts had been gathered together, but none of his department heads. This was as secret a meeting as he could arrange.
"Talk to me people," he ordered, "Si-Anda?"
Si-Anda Medre was a Cerean, with her high head and double-brain, Cereans were among the most intelligent races in the galaxy. She had been one of the best analysts for NRI, and now did the same job, just solely on projects assigned by Scaur.
"Jacen Solo and Vergere have provided very little real information regarding Yuuzhan Vong society, plans, or military capabilities," she admitted, "However, what information he has given us has proven to be completely accurate. Some of it has been of immediate usefulness, some of it has merely been stored away for future reference. I do not believe he has any intention of deceiving us, but he is determined to dole out small quantities of information on such as a basis that he chooses to."
"Director," said one of his other agents, this one wasn't working on Jacen Solo but Scaur appreciated his honest opinions, "couldn't we just incarcerate this idiot and make him talk? Make him spill his guts to us?"
"That won't work," replied Si-Anda, "first off we have no reason to justify his incarceration. Cal Omas and the rest of the Advisory Council would have us on the streets begging for work. Second, the only thing we could put over Jacen Solo's is the threat of torture, and that won't work either. When he was in here yesterday for his debriefing, one of the guards made the mistake of hitting Solo's open hand with the butt of his blaster. Solo didn't even blink. Whatever the Vong did to him, he doesn't seem to even notice pain anymore. He's more of a Vong warrior than anything, now."
"Director, we need to find out what Solo is doing with his time," said Tash Breny'yla, a tawny-furred Bothan who was one of Scaur's best agents, "the listening devices we've managed to install are mostly useless, since Solo always has at least one of his bodyguards in his rooms at all times. Even then all we get is some mutterings in Vong about the gods and Solo's mission to bring light to the infidels. But Solo vanishes every morning from his apartments; no one is able to follow him. And then it's like he's fallen off the planet until late in the afternoon when he shows up again at his rooms.
"I can't prove it yet, but I know in my gut that he's meeting with Peace Brigaders or Vong insurgents on the planet," insisted Breny'yla, "let's arrest him for high treason and just make him disappear."
Si-Anda shook her head. Tash had always been a hot-headed agent, and now with the Bothan declaration of ar'krai, their total war, he'd become even more fanatical than he'd been at the beginning of the war.
"We can't do that," answered Scaur grimacing, "not yet anyway. The problem is Cal Omas still remembers the guy from when he was a child and Cal bounced him on his knee during meetings with Leia Organa Solo. Omas is more than willing to make an exception on behalf of the Solo's and give Jacen the benefit of the doubt. Plus, with the way the media is spinning this thing, if Omas gave his okay for anything like that it could ruin him, and he's not about to let that happen."
"So we're stuck letting this Vong agent just walk around the planet with no supervision!" spat Tash.
Scaur turned grim. "Not quite. I'm not happy knowing that young Solo vanishes for several hours every day. I will get authorization from Omas to have the Jedi help us find out what Jacen does with his spare time. Maybe that can lead to some more open doors for us."
Danni Quee was very curious about this latest summons from Master Skywalker. She'd spent the morning with Saba Sebatyne, working on developing her Force skills. Danni apparently had very little talent for anything but feeling things through the Force, and seemed unable to use a lightsaber at all. A shortcoming that always had Saba hissing with the Barabel equivalent of laughter.
Then she'd gone back to her lab. The Vong had begun to fire Alliance ships through hyperspace back towards planets with a dozen or more grutchins attached to them, wrecking havoc on the planet's defenses before they realized the grutchins were there. She was working with a few grutchin corpses that had been recovered, trying to determine if there was a way to dislodge them immediately after reverting to realspace. She was sure she was close, she had to be.
Danni arrived at Master Skywalker's apartments, and was shocked to see many of those who were still on-planet already here. Jaina had taken Twin Suns on a short mission to Dellalt to head off a small expeditionary force from the Yuuzhan Vong. That had taken Lowie and Alema away as well, and Jag was busy working with representatives from the Imperial Remnant.
"Thanks for coming," greeted Luke a few minutes later. He looked uneasy, and distracted, something not often found in the Jedi Master. "I have some rather disconcerting news. Director Scaur has informed me that Jacen disappears for several hours every day. Cal Omas and he want us to figure out what he does with that time. Scaur told me we don't find him, then he'd go and set up leaks that Jacen willingly joined the Yuuzhan Vong."
"Master Skywalker," protested Danni, "isn't this a gross betrayal of Jacen? He hasn't done anything to us. He hasn't hurt anyone or tried to convert them."
"I know Danni. That's why we're not going to tell Scaur where Jacen is, if we find him. Scaur wanted us to find him, but he never said anything about relaying where he was."
"Aren't you cutting that a little close?" asked Kenth.
Luke shrugged and grinned. "Maybe. But then again I never liked Dif Scaur. Find Jacen. Let's keep Scaur away from him."
Three and a half hours later, Danni was exhausted from looking for Jacen. She was also getting hungry as it was approaching lunchtime. She'd first checked some of the beautiful grottos she'd told him about one of the first days after he'd arrived. Then she'd checked conservatories where he might have gone to watch animals and plants. But no luck there either.
Her next stop was at the landing pad where Jacen's ship was stored, but although one of his warriors stood guard outside, ignoring the few holoreporters who were keeping a steady vigil, there was still no sign of Jacen.
Stopping at a waterfront café, Danni sipped at a glass of icy Jawa juice, or at least a generic imitation. Seems like everything was tight these days. As Danni watched the crowds relaxing at this beach area, she thought about Jacen.
She remembered the first time she'd seen Jacen, back on Helska IV on the fringes of the galaxy. Danni could remember being squeezed into the borer, half-naked clutching Jacen for all she was worth, then crying into his shoulder. When she closed her eyes, Danni could still see Miko Reglia screaming as the Praetorite Vong threatened time and again to feed him to the yammosk.
She had seen Jacen on and off throughout the war until the mission to Myrkr. Then nothing until the strike team had come to Hapes, where they burned Anakin's body, and then the Force scream tore through all of them. Danni knew it had been Jacen. She knew it in her heart as soon as that scream pierced her soul. None of the others except Saba knew that she'd returned to her apartments and cried through the night.
She knew there had been nothing from Jacen in over five years, during that time she had trained more as a Jedi with Saba. And now Jacen was back, like some hero of legends that no enemy could kill.
But where in all nine Corellian hells was he?
Danni ran through what she knew about Jacen. Animal-lover? She'd checked the zoos and aquariums? Nature fanatic? She'd checked as many natural springs, beaches, and woodlands that she could remember. What was she missing? Jacen was thoughtful, considerate, compassionate…
Compassionate.
I wonder…
Danni hurried over to the nearest information booth and did a few minutes of research. A few minutes later she hurried off to the docks, rented a hoverboat and took off for the large island a few kilometers off the coastline.
Once there Danni was immediately stopped by a Quarren security guard.
"Good afternoon, ma'am," he greeted, "welcome to our humble refugee camp, Camp Hope. How can I help you?"
Danni tried looking around the guard and into the camp. She could see members of almost a dozen different species within sight, and knew there must be more within.
"I'm looking for a Jedi, I think he might be here," she said desperately.
The guard shook his head. "I'm sorry, ma'am, but I'll need some identification."
Danni grimaced. It was time to try a trick Saba had been demonstrating, and that Master Skywalker liked to tell stories about.
"You don't need to see my identification," she said confidently, implanting the Force suggestion into the guard's mind.
"I don't need to see your identification," said the guard dully, "go ahead in, ma'am, hope you find your friend."
Danni went into the camp, her eyes wide with amazement. Her quick research had revealed that in addition to Camp Hope there were three others across the planet. Somehow though, Danni knew this was the one she needed. Refugees from every corner of the galaxy that had managed their way here could be found in this camp and others.
She looked at them all, her eyes full of pity. It was sometimes hard to remember how badly some people had been affected by the war. She and the rest of the Jedi were relatively well-off. But these people still were mostly in tattered old clothes, living in prefab buildings and eating nutritious gruel. Every day was a struggle to survive, to make this day better than the last. To find joy in hopelessness.
It was then that she heard him.
He was laughing.
Danni looked around spotted Jacen on the roof of a half-finished building, he was bare-chested with a half-dozen other construction engineers. Her mouth went dry as she realized just how much Jacen had grown.
The last time she'd seen him, Jacen had a few centimeters on her, but now, judging his height against the other workers, he had at least a full head over her. Her eyes were drawn to his powerful muscles, sculpted hard and lean. He was a sand panther on two legs.
It was then her eyes took in the rest of him. His body sported several scars. She hadn't noticed the long one across his forehead before, but now she did, along with the long jagged scar down the center of his chest. There were more on his back. Sunlight glistened off him and she could see every muscle working in harmony.
Five years had wrought incredible changes in the boy she'd known.
"Come down from there Jacen!" yelled a girl's voice. Danni looked down at the ground, and saw a least a dozen females, mostly human but there was a Twi'lek and a Chev there as well. All of them were staring at Jacen.
"You can't work up there all day, you know," continued the girl, who was probably Tahiri's age with the same pale blond hair, "You should come down and have a drink with me!"
"Jacen, there's the party you helped organize in a few days, you have to go with me!" called another one of the girls.
Jacen glanced down at them, a wide grin on his face. "Ah, ladies, you're killing me. How could I possibly refuse any of you? There's too many of you to please!"
"One day at a time, Jacen!" called the Twi'lek.
He laughed heartily, then turned to two of the other workers and said something to them, which sent both of them on a laughing streak.
"You know Jacen's not going to do anything with you," the blond girl said to the Twi'lek, "he'll stick with a human. You know he and I had a picnic lunch the other day on the beach."
"So what?" countered the Twi'lek, "He danced with me in my rooms yesterday."
Danni wanted to laugh. Sithspawn these girls were pathetic. They were ogling Jacen and trying to convince each other to stay away. Danni figured it was time to put them all in their place.
"He may have done all that," she said loudly, "but I'm willing to bet he's never come to rescue you on a frozen world and then spend a hyperspace trip half-naked with you in the ice borer!"
She looked up to the roof, and could see Jacen stop working, then turned and looked down at her. The girls around her glared at her with hatred and jealousy, but she hardly noticed. Instead, Danni smiled as Jacen's face split into a grin.
"Danni!" he cried happily, then turned to the other workers, "I'll be back, I'm taking lunch. Hang on a minute, Danni, I'll be right down."
Jacen grabbed the robeskin he'd worn on his arrival, slipped it over his head and then stepped off the roof, almost ten meters up. The other girls screamed but Danni only watched as Jacen landed lightly on his feet and walked confidently towards her.
"Come on, Danni, you look starved. Let's get some lunch," he offered. He began to lead her away from the building then glanced over his shoulder. "You realize it'll be dangerous to come here again. Those girls will have your hide as a trophy."
"Yeah, but they need something else to talk about rather than just themselves," she countered smiling, "What are you building anyway?"
"A new mess hall," answered Jacen easily, "Right now food is just eaten out in the open, or under some tents when it rains. The new mess hall will be properly heated and cooled and will seat nearly a third of the refugee population at once."
Jacen led the two of them past the medical tents and several habitation buildings, to an open-air area. People sat around talking and eating. She was amazed, people seemed to actually be in good spirits here. She quickly lost count of how many people called out greetings to Jacen. Or how many thanked Jacen for something or wanted him to see something. Like the Ithorian couple who wanted him to see their daughter take some of her first steps. Then there was the Rodian who thanked him for patching him up after the knife fight he'd had with another refugee. There were the two Epicanthix brothers who thanked him for resolving their quarrel, and now they could be comfortable talking to each other again.
Jacen waved to the group of Ryn off to one side who were playing a lively tune, pulling watchers up into the middle of the dance, showing them the steps. People were laughing and joking here.
Danni saw more genuine smiles here in five minutes than she'd seen in hours of searching for Jacen in the cities. She and Jacen made it to the food line and were given the standard midday meal. Jacen explained to her that for the first several days they'd tried to give him better food for all the work he did, but he had continually refused, insisting to eat no better than anyone else.
After another few minutes, the two of them found a few seats off to one side where they could talk.
"Wow, Jacen, you certain have quite a following here," she commented.
He nodded. "If only more people would learn that there is so much that can be done to heal the mental and emotional wounds the war has inflicted, I'm certain the whole Alliance could be like these people. Anyway, I can't tell you how happy I am to see you. I've been meaning to get around to see everyone in the evenings when I get back, but you're never at your apartments."
Danni smiled and blushed. "Yeah, I've been spending a lot of time with Saba."
"I'd heard she was teaching you the Force," nodded Jacen, "not a friendship I would have expected, but a good one. I guess since you spent so much time with the Wild Knights, I should have expected it. In any event, what made you come? Not that I'm not glad to see you, I really am. But I am curious."
Danni took a deep breath, and then poured her heart out about Dif Scaur's co-opting the Jedi to look for Jacen. How he had threatened them, and how Master Skywalker had agreed but for different reasons.
"He doesn't trust you," she finished.
But Jacen's only response was a knowing a grin. "Well, well, well. I guess Scaur's not as dumb as he looks. Excellent."
"Excellent?" echoed Danni, "Jacen the head of Alliance Intelligence has everyone he can spare looking for you and what you do with your days! He, and a lot of others, including a few Jedi, still think that you're plotting to destroy the Alliance."
"What do you think?" he asked.
That brought Danni up short. Did Jacen suspect that she was one of them? Time to set him straight.
"If you were going to overthrow the Alliance then I suspect that you've had plenty of time to do that already," she said hotly, "I can see that you've been manipulating things for a long time. You've been planning this. And I'm willing to bet that you're still manipulating us."
Jacen gave her a wide, friendly smile. "I always said you were brilliant. I just hate it when it comes back to haunt me."
"Haunt you?"
"I come here to get away from my plans, my plots," he said sadly, "I come here, because I can indulge in helping people. I don't have to worry if this is going to happen or not, whether it'll be on time, or how it affects the rest of my plans. Here, for a few precious hours every day, I can escape the knowledge that I'm trying to save the galaxy. I can just be Jacen Solo."
The two of them were quiet for a long time after that, eating their meals. They looked at each other every once in a while, but said nothing until both had finished eating.
"You know," said Danni, "when we felt that Force scream of yours years ago, it killed a lot of us. Jaina had already been hurting from your brother's death, and that pushed her over the edge towards the Dark Side. Tenel Ka, I know what she felt for you, and she was in a real daze for a long time. Until she finally got her act together and became the Hapan queen."
"And you?" he asked.
Danni took a deep breath. She knew he'd ask, and she didn't want to answer, but she realized she shouldn't have brought it up in the first place.
"I went back to my quarters and cried for hours," she answered truthfully, "You where there for me in my darkest hour, and all I could think of was that I had never had the chance to say goodbye. That I'd never really thanked you for everything you'd done for me."
Jacen leaned forward and cupped her cheek with his hand. She was amazed at the differences within him; the hand was roughly callused from war and hard work, what she could see of his arm sported at least three scars, and yet the touch was gentle and comforting. It was as though Jacen took all her negative emotions and replaced them with contentment and happiness.
"I want you to know Danni," he said, "that no matter what, even if I do die without you saying goodbye or thanking me, I will always think of you with feelings of love and respect. You are an amazing woman, Danni Quee."
Danni brought her green eyes to match his clear brown. "You're no boy anymore, Jacen, you're truly a great man."
Jacen leaned forward and gently kissed her, then Danni felt herself responding. It was a wonderful kiss, she wanted… no.
She gently but firmly pushed Jacen away. She was immediately ashamed but Jacen only looked curious, not offended.
"No," she said breathlessly, "this, this doesn't feel right. Or, or maybe it's not the right time. Am I making any sense or am I just crazy?"
Jacen smiled widely, then pulled her forward and kissed her on her forehead. "You're not crazy, Danni. To tell the truth I feel the same way. I will always love you, Danni, as a truly wonderful friend. Whenever you need me, I'll be there for you."
He flashed her another wide smile and then stood, ready to go back to work. Jacen decided to walk her back to the docks where she could return to the city. As she walked down the pier, Jacen stopped her.
"Danni! Do me a favor. Don't tell anyone that this is where I am. This refugee camp is my refuge. It's my solace. Here is where I can make reparations for the crimes I have needed to commit, the pain I have been required to inflict. This is where I can escape from all the lies and the betrayal. This is where I remind myself why I do these things. Don't let Uncle Luke or Scaur take these from me."
She nodded. "I swear to you, Jacen, no one is going to find out from me. Everyone needs somewhere to escape to."
Danni powered up the boat, and sped away from the docks. Turning back, she could see Jacen standing at the pier, that same peaceful smile on his face.
All of the Jedi had regathered in Master Skywalker's apartments, and this time Dif Scaur and one of his senior agents, a Bothan named Tash Breny'yla were there too. Breny'yla stared at the assembled Jedi with barely concealed loathing as no one could respond to having found Jacen.
"This is ridiculous, Skywalker!" cried Scaur, "One of your Jedi has been gone for five years, spent that time as a Yuuzhan Vong, and you're telling me that none of your vaunted Jedi can even find him!"
"Apparently Jacen has become very skilled at hiding himself," answered Luke calmly, "Remember, we're his family, and we've thought him to be dead all this time. Jaina stood only a few meters in front of him while on Coruscant and still didn't know it was him. If he can hide by using the Force, then we're not trained in investigation. Try the planetary security forces if you want to find him."
"Skywalker, if you don't find him, then Chief Omas is going to learn that you've been concealing him from an official Alliance investigation," the intelligence chief threatened.
"He'll never believe that," replied Luke.
"He will if we give him evidence of Jacen's treasonous activities," answered Breny'yla.
"Jacen's not a traitor!" yelled Danni.
"And how do you know that, Miss Quee?" sneered Scaur.
Danni took a deep breath. "I found Jacen earlier today. He is doing nothing illegal or treasonous. He is not trying subvert the Alliance. He only wants some peace every day."
"Where is he?" demanded Scaur.
"I can't tell you," she answered, "I promised Jacen that I wouldn't tell anyone. That means not Master Skywalker, not Jaina, and not his parents. No one will know."
"Miss Quee, need I remind you I could throw in prison for treason just as easily as I can Jacen?"
"You won't be doing that, Director," said Luke firmly, "I won't have you threatening my people with anything. The Jedi don't answer to you. We're equals on the Advisory Council. You go through Cal if you want to threaten us. Trust me, he's not about to risk alienating the Jedi, not when we'll stand fully behind Jacen."
Dif Scaur looked over the group of Jedi, and saw more than one ready to grab their lightsabers. With a brusque nod he stormed out of the room, closely followed by his agent.
"Director, are you just about to let the Jedi walk over you?" he demanded.
"Skywalker's as skilled a politician as any I've met," growled Scaur, "We should just do something about this traitor before it's too late."
Midnight found Tash Breny'yla making his way through one of Mon Calamari's nightclubs. Here, the youth of the planet did what they could to erase the knowledge of the war with alcohol, loud music and dancing. Many of them were wealthy Coruscanti who decided that Mon Calamari was now the safest place in the galaxy, while others were refugees from the Vong's invasion corridor who still had the money to stay out of refugee camps.
He finally made it to one of the back rooms. A large Whiphid stood guard at the door.
"I'm here to see Greist," he said solidly, "it's about taking out an invader."
After the Whiphid roughly searched him, no doubt leaving a few bruises across his back, Tash entered the room. The lighting was dim and multicolored, but the walls blocked out a good deal of the music.
Greist sat on the couch, with several young girls. He could see one Twi'lek and a Falleen among them. Most of the others were human, or at least close to it. He'd been a retired smuggler whose wife and two children had died when the Vong invaded his planet. He'd gone back to his old business contacts, and gathered together a large number of people who were virulently anti-Vong. Now he had one of the best Vong-killing gangs on the planet.
"So," said Greist, "what does a representative of Alliance Intelligence want with a thug like me?"
A thug he was, Breny'yla knew, but attractive for middle-aged human men. And cultured. Tash glanced at the girls scattered around him.
"You can say whatever you need to around all of us," Greist explained, "we're all in this together. Sometimes an attractive young girl can go places even a good spy can't."
"You've seen news reports on Jacen Solo?"
Greist nodded. "Yeah. Gotta give the boy credit. He survived for five years among those monsters. He's gotta have nerves of duranium."
"He survived because he's a traitor," spat Tash, "Here. Take a look at this. That information explains how the Vong worship him as one of their gods. He's ordered sacrifices of hundreds of people, directed military strategies dozens of times. He arrived here with several Vong warriors as his bodyguards. Now, we have this traitor wandering around at will on the capital. What do you think of him now?"
Greist's eyes grew harder and more disgusted as he glanced through the data. "We'll kill him. Where can we find him."
"Well that's the problem," answered Tash, "his quarters and ship are always guarded by those warriors of his, and he disappears during the day. And I mean just gets up and vanishes, no one knows where, and the Jedi won't tell us. However, I know when and where he'll be vulnerable."
Greist just looked at the Bothan agent expectantly.
"There's a gala next week to celebrate the victory of Ebaq 9," he explained, "Jacen Solo is guaranteed to be there. Since the security forces are not about to let a gang of Yuuzhan Vong in without good cause, he won't be protected."
"The gala is going to have thousands of troops and guards protecting the Coral Palace," Greist pointed out calmly, "There's no way we can slip in there."
"Not unless you know exactly where the guards will be and when," replied Tash, "I'll provide you with all the security information, make sure that there is a clear path for you and your men, with windows of at least several minutes, to prevent any mishaps. You just get there and kill him. While you're at it, if we have to have a new Chief of State who's more concerned with killing the Vong than appeasing politicians, I don't think too many will mind."
Tash walked out of the room without another word. It sickened him to be working with such fanatics and low-lifes. Unfortunately, if no one else was going to take the responsibility of Jacen Solo's traitorous activities then he'd have to take matters into his own hands. Greist's men would also never finger him if they were caught. They'd be happy to have someone in Alliance Intelligence who hated the Vong as much as they did. They wouldn't want their allied groups to lose him as a source.
Everything worked out for him in the end. Which was just the way it was supposed to.
As he left the club, Breny'yla was unaware of a pair of avian eyes following his every move. A feathered crest flared a satisfied orange in the pale moonlight. Then the figure disappeared into the shadows.