With the featureless white mask on her face, Jaina had gone through the final checks of her new X-wing before she piloted it out of the Dodonna's hangar bay. Behind her, her own squad of X-wings, which was given the name Merc Squadron, followed her to the battle that was raging above the world of Bormea.
Once everyone checked in, she assigned fighter pairs for targets of opportunity in quick succession.
"Merc Two," Jaina said over the squad's frequency once she came to the end, "you're with me. We'll be going after that Chiss corvette at mark two-one-five."
"Copy, Merc Leader," came the reply from Driss Oppolos, the green-skinned female Twi'lek who bore the marker of Merc Two. "I'll cover you."
With that, all of the pairs in Merc Squadron broke off for their respective assignments. And in no time at all, Jaina and Driss found themselves going head-to-head with a clawcraft pair that intended to make sure they never reached that corvette.
"Merc Two," Jaina said, "you take the one to starboard, I'll take port. Whoever finishes off their target first helps the other."
"Copy, Merc Leader."
Jaina and Driss' X-wings broke off from each other just before they and their clawcraft opponents began firing lasers and charric bolts at each other. With her Force-enhanced reflexes, Jaina ducked and weaved between all of the incoming projectiles before any of them could even scratch her fighter's paint job while she kept on pressing the firing stud. She counted over a dozen shots before one of them hit the clawcraft dead center in the cockpit and blew it apart.
Jaina then wheeled around to help Driss and found that the Twi'lek's fighter was being chased by her own clawcraft. The human poured speed into her X-wing before she opened fire on the Chiss fighter's rear; the enemy pilot was only able to dodge a few times before its port wing was sheared off by one of Jaina's lasers.
And though it rolled off into space helplessly, Jaina still blew it apart for good measure; no point in making sure that pilot could recover to fight another day in a different clawcraft.
"Thanks for the assist, Merc Leader," Driss said over the pair's private frequency.
"You're welcome," Jaina replied curtly. "Now to return to the corvette."
"Right. By your lead."
They both banked back toward their original target, where they didn't encounter another clawcraft pair. Once they were in range of the corvette, which was already busy exchanging turbolaser fire with a Nebulon-B frigate, Jaina and Driss let off a combined barrage of laserfire for the enemy's ridge shields. Within moments, those shields, which must have been weakened from previous laserfire and had yet to be replenished, were downed, allowing both GA pilots to drop a proton torpedo in the exposed area.
Driss' torp went first, cracking through the corvette's armor. And before anyone or anything inside could be blown out into space, Jaina's torp sailed through the gap and detonated inside, instantly incinerating whomever and whatever was inside that particular area.
And, apparently, it must have caused the beginning of a core meltdown, as other explosions started going off throughout the Chiss corvette. Combined with the Nebulon's continued firepower against it, both Jaina and Driss wordlessly sailed away, knowing that their target was doomed as it was.
"What next, Leader?" Driss asked.
"Gimme a moment, Two," Jaina replied. She patched into the squad's frequency and asked, "Mercs Three and Four, how are you doing?"
"Three's gone, Leader! And I'm in the middle of a- AAHH!" Merc Four's voice was cut off abruptly, no doubt from an explosion.
"Mercs Five and Six?" Jaina asked.
"Six went EV, Leader!" Merc Five reported. "And my right S-foil's gone! I'm falling right to Bormea!"
"Then jettison yourself, Five!"
"I can't! Ejector's jammed or something! I'm gonna see if-" Like Four before him, Merc Five let off a pained scream that was punctuated by the sound of static.
"Mercs Seven and Eight, gimme some good news!" Jaina barked.
"We're fine, Leader," Seven reported professionally. "We just took out our own corvette and we're coming around to assist Eleven and Twelve. Looks like they're in a jam right now."
Jaina looked ahead to where she had assigned Mercs Eleven and Twelve. Indeed, it appeared as if they had somehow managed to attract the attention of an entire clawcraft squad and were now being chased by them.
"Two and I will help you out in a minute," Jaina said. "Nine and Ten, how are you two faring?"
"Merc Leader, this is Dodonna Control," a voice said over the line. "Mercs Nine and Ten are already gone."
Jaina stifled a growl of anger. Not even ten minutes in, and Merc Squadron had already lost five of its twelve founding pilots in its initial battle, and a sixth was currently EV. Obviously, that wasn't a good sign.
But then, with half of the squad still alive and active, Jaina knew that there was a chance that she could still turn this around.
Especially when she had the Force.
"Merc Two, cover me," Jaina commanded. "We're helping Eleven and Twelve out."
"Copy, Leader."
As the two of them soared to beat Mercs Seven and Eight at helping Eleven and Twelve against the clawcraft squad on their tails, Jaina reached out through the Force for the neck of one of the Chiss pilots. Once she had a hold on it, she pictured it snapping at an unnatural angle.
And just like that, one of the clawcraft chasing Eleven and Twelve suddenly veered off to its port and collided with the Chiss fighter that was right next to it; they both erupted in a brief flash of flame that was just as quickly extinguished.
Jaina repeated the trick for the next Chiss pilot she reached out to. This time, it collided with the fighter off to its starboard. When she reached out for the third Chiss neck to snap, it only spun out of control but didn't collide with any of its comrades before some stray charric fire blew it apart.
By then, though, Mercs Seven and Eight arrived and managed to clear out four clawcraft in a single pass. That left the remaining quarter of the enemy squad to break clear away once they saw Jaina and Driss' fighters coming for them.
But Jaina wasn't going to let them get off that easily. Once again reaching out through the Force, she broke the neck of the leftmost clawcraft pilot, causing it to drift directly into the central one's path. And though the last one was able to avoid even the explosion's shockwave, Driss was the one to finish it off with her lasers; because of what happened to their port, that pilot had been too distracted to even attempt to dodge the lasers coming in for their tail.
And throughout it all, Jaina felt nothing but the morbid satisfaction of success in the engagements. However, a part of her mind did drift off to what Uncle Luke or Jacen might have said about this; that not only was what she did to those pilots dishonorable, but by using the Force to kill directly was wrong because it was of the dark side.
But since she had embraced the dark side completely now, she shunted those stray thoughts about what her family might have said out of her mind and returned her full concentration on the battle before her.
Driss' voice howled in triumph over the squad's frequency. "Oh, the Chiss are not on their A-game today, eh, Leader?!"
"Cut the chatter, Two," Jaina said humorlessly. "We still have a battle to win here."
"Copy, Leader," Driss' voice said in its professional monotone again. "What's our next target?"
"Let's see if we can take down that Chiss Star Destroyer up ahead," Jaina said.
"By your lead, Leader."
Without another word, they zoomed toward the next enemy capital ship.
. . .
When Jacen finished giving his report to Luke in his office, the Jedi Order's Grand Master regarded his nephew warily when he asked, "How can you be so sure that this droid would keep its word?"
"Because it believed itself to be Anakin, Master Skywalker," Jacen said. Right now, because of Corran standing right beside him, the Knight knew that he couldn't be on a first-name basis with his uncle. "And Anakin was... the kind of person who would... give himself up for this." Once again, he wrestled with keeping his emotions in check; even after the few days it took to return to Shedu Maad from the Corellian system, seeing that droid with Anakin's voice and personality still felt fresh and raw in Jacen's mind.
While Corran remained silent, Luke sighed. "Well, given what you've told me, Jacen, it sounded like there was nothing else you could have done anyway. Thrackan Sal-Solo had been very well-prepared with his anti-Jedi traps, as Master Horn here also testified. So I'll say that the fact that you were able to convince this droid to purge Anakin's biometrics from Centerpoint's databanks is probably the best that you could have done, painful though it may have been for you on an emotional level."
Luke then looked over at Corran. "Master Horn, I gather from your anxious Force-presence that you have something to say?"
The other Jedi Master had been standing beside Jacen patiently with his arms crossed over his chest. "Yes, Master Skywalker. I'm not entirely convinced that this droid wasn't a ploy to make sure that Jedi Solo here didn't go through with the mission."
Jacen looked at Corran in askance. "You think Thrackan somehow knew that I would be a part of this, Master Horn? Are you suggesting that we have a leak?"
"I can assure you that's not the case, Jacen," Luke said. "I always go through my office to make sure there are no listening devices planted here."
Corran shook his head patiently. "I wasn't suggesting a leak, Master Skywalker, Jedi Solo. No, I think Thrackan had been anticipating this. After all, after Anakin, who else but his brother would be part of a mission to destroy Centerpoint Station?"
"Respectfully, Master Horn," Jacen said, "I don't think that's the case."
"And why not, Jedi Solo?" Corran asked.
"Because even if Thrackan had anticipated that I would be part of a Jedi mission to destroy Centerpoint, he still wouldn't have had any guarantees that I would have made it to the control room to meet with that droid. Because, keep in mind, had you and I switched hovercarts before we entered that same hatch, we would have been in the exact opposite circumstances."
"And you think that there would have been no way for me to have been emotionally affected by this ploy, Jedi Solo? Because if he would have anticipated your arrival, he may have also anticipated me. After all, I was part of CorSec; combine that with my experience as a Jedi, I would have been a very logical choice to be sent on a mission against Centerpoint."
"If it was a ploy, Master Horn, I'm saying that you wouldn't have been as emotionally affected as I would have been." Jacen had been aware that Corran had spent some time with Anakin while they and Tahiri Veila were on a misadventure that culminated with the Battle of Yag'Duhl during the Yuuzhan Vong War; so he had no doubt that the Jedi Master would have felt something had he met the droid that had called itself Anakin Sal-Solo.
But they both knew that what Jacen felt would have trumped whatever Corran would have felt.
"Enough," Luke said.
The other two Jedi looked at him; apparently, even though they had kept their argument on a more or less civil level, the Grand Master had seen right through the screen of formality and decided to cut off whatever was brewing underneath.
Luke then said, "Our sources in Centerpoint haven't reported anything back yet. In fact, they've been awfully quiet lately, which I suspect means that they're laying low until the fallout of this mission dies down. So, until we hear anything more, we can assume that this droid kept its word and has made sure that, for the moment, nobody can use Centerpoint against the galaxy. Is that clear with the both of you?"
"Yes, Master Skywalker," both Corran and Jacen said in unison.
"Good. Master Horn, you're dismissed."
Without another word, Corran turned to leave, but not before levelling a judgmental gaze at Jacen.
When the subordinate Master was gone, Luke asked his nephew, "May I see the holocam, Jacen?"
Wordlessly, Jacen reached into his utility belt, pulled out said device, and handed it across the desk to his uncle.
Jacen only sighed as he heard his dead brother's voice coming from the brief footage that Luke watched. When it was over, the Grand Master set the holocam down on his desktop and looked back up at his nephew.
"Did you share this with your parents, Jacen?"
"No, Uncle Luke."
"Then don't. Get rid of it." He then held it up for Jacen to take back.
The Knight looked in askance at his uncle even as he took the device. "Why?"
"They don't need to see it. It would only cause them unnecessary pain."
Jacen opened his mouth to counter, only to realize then that Luke was correct. What good would come if he showed Han and Leia the footage of this droid with their late son's voice and personality? Not only would it open up old wounds from the real Anakin's death, but to learn that their son's biometrics were used to create this droid to operate one of the deadliest weapons in the galaxy would be a sickening revelation. It would be better if neither Han nor Leia ever learned about Anakin Sal-Solo.
With that, Jacen opened up the file on the holocam that contained the only piece of evidence left for the droid's life and deleted it.
"It's done, Uncle Luke."
The Grand Master nodded. "Now, Jacen, you will take a month's leave of absence."
The Knight's face fell again. "I beg your pardon, Uncle Luke?"
"I sense the pain within you from this experience. And I can tell that this has renewed your grief for Jaina. I can't let you be part of anymore missions or battles in this war without placing you in situations where you will not be up to your best; you could get yourself and the allies around you killed. Now I won't accept any arguments from you that you can't just sit back and let the rest of the galaxy fight while you go on what is effectively a vacation; you need not feel guilty about that, Jacen. We can manage well enough without you; so until things become incredibly desperate, you are on leave. Is that understood?"
With some hesitation, Jacen said, "Yes, Master Skywalker. It is."
"Then you're dismissed."
. . .
"Jacen!"
At the sound of his name being called out, the Knight turned in the corridor leading away from Luke's office and found his blind aunt Mara Jade Skywalker walking towards him.
Because of her ship's console exploding right in her face the year before, Mara had to wear a darkened visor over her eyes. This had, unfortunately, relegated her to being a non-active member in the Jedi Order who spent her time taking care of her son Ben, teaching him and his peers about the Force, meditating, and occasionally learning to hone her other senses in combat training. But even with her increased reliance on the Force to make up for her visual shortcoming, she had been barred by her husband from ever being in another battle of the Chiss War, which was a command that she had to begrudgingly obey.
Once she stopped about a meter away from Jacen, Mara said with a grim tone, "Jaina is alive."
Jacen's heart skipped a beat. "What?"
Mara nodded. "I felt it. I felt her presence distantly. She is in this war, Jacen. And her aura is... blackened."
"Where is she?" he asked urgently.
Mara shook her head. "I don't know where exactly. Only that she-"
"Then it must be a trick of some kind," Jacen asserted quickly. "We know that the Sith are involved in this somehow. They must be using you, Aunt Mara, to get to me."
"This is no trick, Jacen," Mara argued. "I can assure you of that."
"If Jaina really is alive, I would feel it."
"No, you wouldn't. Because her presence has changed. It's not the one you knew as children; it's incompatible with your twin bond. Jaina is a different person now, and she is... a Sith."
"I don't believe this."
"You don't have to believe me, Jacen. Just go and look for her. You will find her if you know where to look."
"Look, Aunt Mara, I can't do that. Uncle Luke has given me leave to-"
"Oh, forget what he has to say for five minutes here, Jacen! This is your sister! You have to confront her!" Mara then grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him close so that their faces were only inches apart.
"And you have to kill her," Mara whispered.
At that, Jacen broke out of the blind Jedi's grip and stepped back from her hurriedly.
"I don't know what's gotten into you, Aunt Mara, but don't you dare say I ever have to kill my sister. Especially after she's already dead."
"But, Jacen-"
"I'm not hearing anymore of this." He turned and walked hurriedly away.
That left Mara standing defeated in the corridor. Moments later, she felt the comforting presence of her husband approach her from behind.
"Are you sure that Jaina is alive?" Luke asked.
Mara turned to face him, even if she couldn't see him. "Absolutely."
"Then we need to investigate this. But we leave Han, Leia, and Jacen out of this. Agreed?"
She nodded. "Agreed."
Luke returned the nod. "Though I have to ask: why would you tell Jacen that he had to kill Jaina?"
"She has been too corrupted, Luke. I feel it as clearly as I feel her familiar presence. She can't be redeemed."
"I don't believe that anymore than Jacen does. And I don't believe you could believe that, either. You knew my father as Darth Vader, and you know I was able to redeem him. Are you saying that Jaina's presence is worse than what you felt from Vader?"
"I... I feel the same darkness from her. But I don't know if she has the conflict within her that you said Vader had."
"But you didn't sense that Vader had that conflict when you knew him?"
"I sensed nothing of the sort from him."
"Then there is a chance that Jaina can be redeemed," Luke said confidently.
"I hope you're right, Farmboy. I really do. Because the reason I asked Jacen to kill his own sister is because..."
"What? What is it?"
"I had a vision, Luke. One I didn't tell you about. Before I felt Jaina fully again, I saw her..."
"Yes?"
"I saw her strike you down."
Luke was silent for a moment before he said, "If you fear that Jaina can and will kill me, whether it really was a vision you saw, then you fear that Jacen is the best option to make sure that doesn't happen?"
She nodded. "Jaina has become more powerful than before. I doubt any of the other Masters could defeat her; she nearly killed Corran last year, and that was after she took Saba's life. And let's not forget about that vision, or dream, that Ben had of Jaina standing over all of those Jedi corpses; if she really is that powerful, well..."
"The future is always in motion, Mara. You know that."
"Yes, I do. But just in case we're heading for an inevitability, Jacen may be the only one to stop Jaina. He's different from most Jedi, as you know, even if his powers aren't as they used to be. I think he has a chance against her."
"Perhaps. But, again, we shouldn't view Jaina's fall as an irredeemable one, Mara. If she really is alive, we have to do everything we can to bring her back. We can't just give up on her. Now I know you two had your differences-"
"It's not about that, Luke." Her reply, hasty as it was, was in response to Luke's allusion of her slapping Jaina on Jwlio after the younger woman dared to make a comparison between him and Emperor Palpatine. "This is about what could happen if we don't do what needs to be done before it's too late."
"What needs to be done, you say?" Luke couldn't help but sound offended by that.
Mara sighed. "I know, I know, that sounded bad. It may just be the Imperial that's still in me even after all these years, but it's just that... I'm really scared, Luke. What Jaina can do now, though I may not know exactly what it is..." She trailed off as she felt that Luke was about to close this argument.
"Jaina is family, Mara. We can't turn our backs on her, not as long as there's a sliver of a chance that she can be pulled back. And I'm not going to let the possibility of my death, or even the downfall of the Jedi Order as Ben saw it, dissuade me from bringing our family back to completion."
