Sal-Solo walked into the medbay which currently sheltered Jacen. Said Jedi was floating in one of the 'bay's six bacta tanks at the back of the room, stripped to all but his underwear, the oxygen mask over his face, and his eyes open.

Jacen's second cousin walked right up to him and stated, "The GA and the Chiss are gathering their forces for this system; they'll be here later this week. Know anything about that?"

"You know I haven't been in contact with anyone outside this station since I got here," Jacen explained truthfully. "I'm just learning about this."

"Oh, really?" Sal-Solo asked bitterly. "What about any Jedi you could have contacted through the Force?"

Jacen shook his head. "I don't have that kind of connection to anyone. At least..."

"What? At least what?" Sal-Solo pressed.

Jacen glared at him. "At least not with anyone except... my sister."

Sal-Solo tilted his head at him; his expression was otherwise unreadable. "Jaina. Who, last I heard, went rogue from the Jedi Order. Care to elaborate on that, cousin?"

"If I don't?" Jacen countered.

Sal-Solo gave a mocking grin. "Fine. I don't need to know what your relationship status with your sister is. But still, I only have your word that you didn't communicate anything to any of the other Jedi through the Force. Why should I believe you?"

"Honestly, Thrackan?"

Sal-Solo nodded humorlessly.

"Because between me and Darth Acheron, I'm the one who doesn't want to see you dead."

Sal-Solo chuckled mirthlessly. "But at least in a prison, I assume?"

"Ideally, yes," Jacen replied dryly.

"Well, now," Sal-Solo said as he crossed his arms across his chest, "that doesn't exactly fill me with any comfort about your truthfulness."

"Still, whether you believe me or not, you know I'm right. Whatever safeguards you placed on Acheron after our fight, they'll only go so far without me to double-check and make sure she doesn't try to kill you. Or at least so that another Sith won't."

Sal-Solo breathed out through his nostrils noticeably; even without the Force, Jacen could tell that his second cousin was frustrated.

"So you mean to tell me," the older man started, "that for whatever reason the GA and the Chiss are gathering their forces to my star system, it has nothing to do with you?"

"That's basically what I'm saying, Thrackan, yes."

Sal-Solo's gaze lingered on Jacen for far longer than was comfortable for the submerged Jedi. Eventually, however, he said, "Okay. Then I hope you won't mind if I ask you one more question, Jacen."

"I'm not doing anything more pressing at the moment," Jacen remarked.

"What were you doing with that Sith near that library just before you passed out?"

"I was trying to learn what he knew," Jacen lied evenly. "It's actually a non-Jedi technique I picked up between the Yuuzhan Vong War and this war. It's called mnemotherapy, from the Theran Listeners of Nam Chorios. Not exactly the most hospitable planet in the galaxy, but, eh, the people there get along well enough. Anyway, if there was anything he found out that would have concerned you, I would have let you know on your first visit here. You have my word as a Jedi Knight."

As Jacen spoke, Sal-Solo looked off to the row of monitors that were directly hooked up to the internal systems of the Jedi's tank; they were even the whole way through. When his second cousin was done talking, Sal-Solo looked back at him and sighed audibly.

"So you really aren't lying, huh?" the older man asked with a deflated tone.

Jacen shook his head. "Not at all."

Sal-Solo sighed again. "Okay. Okay. So how long did the doc say it'd be before you come outta there?"

"'Bout the next day or so."

Before Sal-Solo could respond, his personal commlink beeped. He picked it up and angrily asked into it, "What is it now?"

"Sir," the voice at the other end said, "Wedge Antilles has arrived on the station."

"Antilles?" Sal-Solo asked. "I wasn't made aware of this."

"His appearance on the station was a major surprise for us, too, sir," the voice replied. "Also with him are several members of Rogue Squadron, as well as the wife—sorry, widow—of Corran Horn."

"Mirax Terrik is here, too?" Sal-Solo asked with a slightly higher pitch in his tone.

"Yes, sir. They've all gathered quite a following in one of the food courts on Level Ten. Admiral Antilles is actually requesting to speak to you personally, sir."

"Is that so?" Sal-Solo asked with a thoughtful tone.

"Uh... yes, sir, it is."

"Very well then," Sal-Solo said. "Level Ten, you say? I'll be there in less than half an hour to greet the admiral and his friends." He shut off the commlink and replaced it upon his belt before stepping toward the exit.

When he reached it, however, he turned back to his submerged second cousin. "It seems like we're getting a buncha surprises today, huh, Jacen?" Sal-Solo said with a suspicious tone.

"I take it you don't much trust that the admiral and his friends being here is a good thing?" Jacen asked.

"We'll see about that," Sal-Solo stated in a tone that indicated that he very much doubted his own statement. Then he turned back and left without another word.

That left Jacen to exhale in relief; he was nervous that he wouldn't have been able to pull off a more subtle Force-illusion in Sal-Solo's mind compared to a Fallanassi one. But given how his White Current usage was still faulty, and doubly so given that he was still healing from that stab wound, he didn't want to risk his second cousin seeing that life monitor give its actual spike in response to Jacen's lie. It was tricky, too, to Force-muffle the beeping sound that accompanied the spike.

Still, as he continued to float in the tank, he reached out through the Force to feel for any other presences that he should be concerned for. So far, he hadn't detected any.

At least none that he could actively detect; because every time he felt one on his senses, it felt as if that presence was cloaking itself from him.

And he could swear, by the fear that now resided in his gut, that that presence was his sister, Jaina.

. . .

If it hadn't been for the circumstances that had brought this reunion together—among those circumstances being Corran's death—Mirax would have felt uplifted to see so much of Rogue Squadron back together again. Along with Wedge, there was also Tycho Celchu, Derek "Hobbie" Klivian, Aril Nunb, Ooryl Qyrgg, Myn Donos, Kirney Slane—previously known as Inyri Forge—Bror Jace, Asyr Sei'lar, and Rhysati Ynr. Had Nawara Ven, Gavin Darklighter, Nrin Vakil, or Pash Cracken been here, too, instead of carrying on with their own duties back in Galactic Alliance territory, it might have even been considered a full reunion, even if one were to, for whatever reason, discount the Rogues who had died in years past.

But even if Mirax could put Corran's death to the back of her mind, the reunion with the Rogues, as Wedge had planned it, still would have irked her. At first, she thought Wedge was out of his mind in making such an open public display of their combined arrival on Centerpoint Station; but as Wedge explained it, if Mirax wanted to get her hands on Tahiri Veila, they would need to get close to Thrackan Sal-Solo first.

And what better way than to get the Corellian Head of State's attention than by asking as a celebrity hero?

Thankfully for her, while Wedge and the other Rogues were signing autographs in between eating at one of this food court's larger tables, Mirax was more or less left alone by her own table. Few people went up to speak to her, and it was just to offer trifling condolences over the well-known loss of her husband. Then those people would head right over to the Rogues to try to get even a moment of their attention.

Long after Mirax finished her meal alone, she sipped idly on the remainder of her soft drink as she looked around. Hopefully, it wouldn't be long before Sal-Solo showed up to greet Wedge and the Rogues; the part of Mirax that wasn't solely intent on killing Veila wondered how the xenophobic Head of State would react to Asyr, Ooryl, and Aril given their obvious alien natures.

A few minutes past the initial half-hour of Mirax and the Rogues arriving in this food court, Sal-Solo and a retinue of six armed bodyguards surrounding him finally showed up. The crowd that had gathered around the Rogues parted by a few placating gestures from Wedge, who stood up with the rest of his squadmates, so that they could meet the Head of State.

Sal-Solo treated his own guards in a similar fashion, and in no time at all, he and Wedge were shaking hands, with the both of them giving their best crowd-pleasing grins to the people around them. The rest of the Rogues seemed to keep a respectful distance from their former leader and the Head of State, which probably made Sal-Solo's time easier in not having to confront the aliens of the squad.

Mirax took the hand-shaking between Wedge and Sal-Solo as her cue to finally finish off the last of her drink, stand up, throw the container into a nearby trash bin, and walk over to the two of them. Along the way, she slung her carry-on bag over her shoulder.

"Ah, Mirax Terrik Horn!" the Head of State said pleasantly as he once again waved his guards off from protecting him from her. "I'm so pleased you could also join us!" As soon as he shook her hand, his tone and expression became appropriately somber enough for him to say, "I'm so sorry for your loss, my dear."

"Thank you, Mr. Head of State," Mirax replied politely before she seamlessly ended the handshake. "I appreciate your words."

"So, Thrackan," Wedge cut in as if he and Sal-Solo were longtime buddies, "is your schedule so busy that you don't have time to give a war hero of Corellia a private heart-to-heart?"

"Why, of course I can give you such a meeting, Admiral Antilles," Sal-Solo responded loudly enough for the crowd's benefit. "Centerpoint Station welcomes you and your squadmates with open arms!" That elicited an enthusiastic cheer from the gathering around them.

"Thank you, sir," Wedge said before Sal-Solo turned and led the procession away from the crowd; the armed guards made sure there was just the right amount of room for the Head of State, the Rogues, and Mirax to walk away.

Less than an hour later, Mirax and the Rogues who weren't Wedge were each given their own guest rooms aboard the station; apparently, Centerpoint had more than enough room to spare for visitors, whether they be politicians or celebrities. And as Mirax got settled in her own room, she emptied her bag of its contents; instead of containing typical human feminine products, she brought out several parts of a small portable computer and expertly assembled the pieces within less than ten minutes.

Once that computer was fully assembled, Mirax turned it on, and in an instant, the monitor was filled with multiple vidcam points of view. Each view came from a microcam that was sewn into each Rogue's tunic, and so far, the only view that didn't display the same model of hotel room came from Wedge.

From Wedge's cam, Mirax saw that he was guided by Sal-Solo and his retinue to the Head of State's office; she made a mental note to go through the preceding footage later on to backtrack where Sal-Solo's office was in relation to the hotel where she and the rest of the Rogues were holed up. Then she focused her attention on the view from Wedge's cam, looking for any hidden details—such as a seam that might lead to a trapdoor along one of the office's walls—that might come into play later even as she listened in on Wedge and Sal-Solo's conversation.

. . .

"So to what do I owe the pleasure of your visit, Admiral?" Sal-Solo asked once he was seated behind his office desk.

From his seat on the guest side of the desk, Wedge looked back at the four guards who escorted him and the Head of State into the office before looking back at the owner.

"A little satiation of curiosity, if you don't mind," Wedge said.

"Oh?" Sal-Solo asked.

Wedge nodded. "I can see right now that these fine gentlemen here..." He indicated the guards with a wave of his hand. "...are not either Leary Trest or that other fella who was with you when you announced her amnesty for killing Corran Horn." He allowed a little bitterness to creep into his tone when he mentioned his late squadmate.

"Ah," Sal-Solo said with an understanding nod. "So that's what this is all about, huh? You wanna know why she's been pardoned? Well, that would explain why Mrs. Horn is here, too."

"An explanation would be appreciated," Wedge said diplomatically.

"Well, if you must know, Admiral," Sal-Solo said as he folded his hands over his desktop, "Miss Trest has some abilities that I find quite useful. Thus, if I were to leave her in a prison cell to rot, or leave you, your Rogues, or Mrs. Horn to take your revenge on her, I would be missing an asset for which I am quite in need."

"Is that so? Then why isn't she here right now?"

"Quite frankly, Admiral, that's none of your concern." Sal-Solo's tone was now quite defensive.

"In case you forgot, Sal-Solo," Wedge said with a raised voice, "this woman killed one of my best friends of several years. I think I'm entitled to an explanation as to why she's not here with you after you publicly gave her amnesty."

Sal-Solo looked mildly flummoxed by Wedge's attitude. "Fine, Antilles. I'm willing to level with you; provided, of course, that you tell the truth about why you're really here yourself."

"The truth about why I'm here?"

"You want Trest dead, that it?"

Wedge scoffed. "Do you think I'd be that stupid as to make my presence on this station, along with the Rogues and Mrs. Horn, publicly known if we were planning on killing Trest? No, no; we're willing to abide by your amnesty. All we want is peace of mind."

"Peace of mind?" Sal-Solo asked skeptically.

Wedge nodded. "We just want to know why you let Trest off the hook. And saying that she has special abilities just won't cut it, I'm afraid."

Sal-Solo sat back in his seat patiently. "Very well. Are you at all familiar with the Sith, Admiral? I think you would be, given your Jedi connections." He said the word "Jedi" like a curse.

"Just keep him talking, Wedge," Mirax's voice spoke through the small transceiver in his ear. "I think I may be onto something."

"Why don't you enlighten me?" Wedge asked Sal-Solo. "My Jedi buddies weren't exactly forthcoming about that stuff."

For the next ten minutes, Sal-Solo had laid out the fact that Trest—it was apparent that the Head of State had no idea that her real name was Tahiri Veila—was part of a faction of Sith who now wanted him dead. Wedge had to stifle his laughter that Sal-Solo was stupid enough to try to bargain with Sith after he had captured one of their own.

But just as Sal-Solo was getting to the end of his elaboration, Mirax's voice finally said to him, "I got something. You can go now, Wedge."

"I think all this info will put the rest of the Rogues and Mrs. Horn's minds at ease, Mr. Head of State," Wedge said. "Thank you for the time, and I apologize for any trouble I may have given you."

"I accept your apology," Sal-Solo replied stiffly. "My guards will see you out, Admiral."