The cafeteria of the bunker was loud today.

It had been a few months of nothing but victories for the rebel cell in which captain Shammus Fin belonged, and the latest was a big one. The rumors even suggested Darth Vader himself, the Emperor's enforcer and face of the Empire's military, had almost been killed, and the men's spirits were in an all time high. Fin would have been lying if he claimed the cheerful atmosphere wasn't getting to him, or that he wasn't pleased with how the latest mission had gone. But he was the only one among the men who knew the cost of that victory, and he knew who had had to shoulder it. And those thoughts made him bitter.

He sipped his caf. The liquid was not the best he had tasted, but he was accustomed to rations of poor quality, and it was enough to wake him up. Not that he had anywhere to be. After he had returned, he had had the medics examine his injured leg, and they had said he would be fine, but they had ordered him to rest for a few days. And since his commander had left the base hastily, only stopping by to inform him that he had had a lead on the superweapon he had been searching for, he would actually have no obligations for a while. And his tired bones welcomed the reprieve.

"Why the long facccce, old one?" He flinched as the bulky Trandoshan appeared seemingly out of thin air, pulled up a chair and sat next to him.

"Old one? That makes me sound much more seasoned and wise than I am, don't you think?"

"No, it makes you sound old. Which you are."

The captain could not argue with that. In the last few years since he had joined the mercenaries, his face was adorned with a number of new wrinkles and his beard had gone completely gray. If that was due to age or anxiety, he really could not tell.

"Anyway, what's troubling you? You sssstink of stress."

Fin sighed. "It's just…I'm worried."

"About what?"

"About Xeran."

Burrsk's expression became more serious. "The little hunter can handle himself, captain. You know that."

"I'm not sure about that. After what happened on this mission he seemed pretty shaken up, and then he left, and I'm not even sure where he's going."

"What do you mean after what happened? The Empire came for us, and he broke them. I thought I'd have to deal with his smugness, not your worries."

Fin's eyes widened. "He didn't tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

He finished his caf and put the cup aside. "Forget it. I'm sorry I spoke."

"Tell me what? Sssspeak up, captain!"

He sighed, wrestling with his indecision. "Look, I'll tell you, but understand I'm only doing this because I think he's gonna need our help. Don't get used to learning his secrets through me."

"Allright."

Fin leaned closer to the Trandoshan. "When we…when Xeran realized the asteroid was in fact a superweapon, he had the idea of commandeering it and using it against the Empire. We used the air vents to reach the control room and forced the engineers to show us how to use it. Then he destroyed the engaging fleet and, along with them, the escaping vessel with the cargo."

"So he did. What about it?"

"What he might not have told you is that, on the cargo ship that he destroyed, there was also a shipment of slaves."

"…Damn."

"Exactly."

Burrsk let out a series of growling sounds that might have been a curse in his native tongue and slammed his fist on the durasteel table so hard he dented the metal. "What wasss he thinking?"

"He was thinking that there was no other way, and that many more would die if that cargo reached its destination. And believe me when I say, he didn't do what he did light-heartedly."

"Did you speak with him?"

"I tried, but he was deeply distraught. He told me he needed time to think. I did not press the matter any further."

"He is not going to go do something drastic or stupid, if that's what you think. The little hunter is ssssmarter than he looks."

"Let's hope so."

The Trandoshan remained silent for a while. "What about you?"

"What about me?"

"You were with him. Those deaths are partially because of you. Or did you not think that is so?"

"No, I know what you mean." He paused for a while, scratching his beard. "When I was a soldier of the Republic, such deeds were not unheard of, but rare and deeply frowned upon. When I served in the Empire's military, I had to do violent, evil things many times, and I knew not one of the commanders who had ordered them would think about them twice or reconsider their actions, and certainly not follow another strategy the next time around. Now…it is the first time I have seen my superior do what was necessary, but truly realize the implications and pause to consider the price of his actions. I'm a soldier, not a commander, and I followed my orders, and I will do so again the next time he asks. Whether I continue to do it afterward will depend on the nature of those orders. And if the time comes that I have to stop my commander from doing the wrong thing once more, I will. Though definitely not gladly."

"Why do you follow his orders?"

"I beg your pardon?"

Burrsk chuckled. "Don't tell me you haven't thought about it. You are older, more experienced. You had older men than him at your command once. Why be the youngling's sssservant?"

"It's simple. I want to see the Empire fall as much as the next guy, and he is probably the only one who has a reliable way to bring the fight to our enemies."

"Do you think his plan to take them down will succeed?"

"I don't know. But you'd be amazed what he is capable of. When I was first assigned to him, I was told I'd be the personal captain of a special agent. I never expected him to be a child. It freaked me out, seeing that teenager do a soldier's work, when I had seen older men than him soil their pants when thrown in combat. Since then, I've seen him overcome things that would have made most people crumble, draw power from failure and defeat and make good plans when he had nothing to use. Stuff like that tends to win a man's loyalty. And as I said, there are not many people with a plan out there, just bands of insurgents, and let's be honest, they have as much chance of defeating the Empire as I of beating Vader in a wrestling match. Plus…I have almost watched him grow up, from a child doing a man's work to a warrior of his own right. I guess I can't abandon him, not when he needs help. And he does, although he will never say it."

"Wassss there another child whose place Xeran is taking, perhaps?"

"No! Force, no! I couldn't have children, not when one miscalculation would mean they grew up fatherless."

"But now you can rest, old one. If you want offspring, you can have them."

Fin closed his eyes. "I…I can't. I have done so much in the name of the Empire that, if I don't at least try to stop them, I will never be able to look myself in the mirror. Touch my children with blood stained hands? I don't think so."

"Soldiers kill and die. Not a secret."

"It's not the soldiers I see when I close my eyes." He sighed, lowering his head. "The Empire has a habit of punishing disobedience with violence. Serenno, Orinda, Iridonia…those were civilians we bombed. Men, women. Children. No difference to the higher ups. That's why I had to leave. That's why I have to fight."

Burrsk offered the tired looking man something that looked like his race's equivalent of a sympathetic smile. "You carry the weight of the world in your sssshoulders, captain. Keep doing so and you'll be crushed. This war is not your mistake to correct."

The pilot remained silent for a while, then raised his hand to order a drink. He needed something stronger than caf.

"And you, Burrsk? Why do you fight, if I may ask?"

The Trandoshan shrugged. "Tyrants must fall. If warriors don't drive them away, who will?"

Shammus kept his thoughts to himself. He agreed with the sentiment, but he also felt that no matter how many warriors they could find, they would never be enough. Thankfully, the service droid rushed to bring him his drink, and he chose to focus on that and silence the unpleasant feelings that threatened to creep up on him once more.