Judicar stopped near the threshold of the opened section of wall in Sal-Solo's false office and stared at it for a few moments. Then she opened herself to another telepathic conversation with Acheron.
Are you still maintaining your Force-muddling with Jacen? Judicar asked.
Yes, came Acheron's reply. Though let's just say it's very apparent, right now, that he suspects me.
I'd be disappointed in him if he didn't, Judicar remarked.
Well, right now, I wish you would be disappointed, Acheron quipped; yet, simultaneously, there was a note of strain in her presence. Judicar guessed that it must be taking quite an effort on the other Sith's part to both muddle Jacen's abilities to sense her, communicate with Judicar, and appear outwardly normal in front of Jacen and anyone else who might be with them at the moment, such as Sal-Solo.
I just contacted you to let you know I'm about to follow the Rogues to where you, Jacen, and Sal-Solo might be, Judicar said quickly. I'll let you know if there are any other relevant details you'll need to be privy to. She didn't give Acheron time to respond; she just cut herself off from the telepathic communication before she stepped forward to pass through the threshold.
. . .
Jacen couldn't remember a time in his life that had an atmosphere which was somehow a perfect mixture of both awkward and tense as this one. At the moment, the circumstances that he was in were awkward because all he was doing was just standing at one side of the door that led to Sal-Solo's office—his true office, not the one that he held as a facade in the more public areas of Centerpoint above—as the Corellian Head of State sat behind his desk staring back at Jacen. The older man, who had two unquestionably loyal bodyguards behind and at either side of him, simply looked back at the Jedi and Acheron, who stood on the opposite side of the door, silently, not doing anything.
Sal-Solo wasn't going through any reports or any kind of work on his datapad, he wasn't on a comm call, nothing.
Of course, all of these elements also made the situation tense; here they all were—Jacen, Acheron, and Sal-Solo—with different intentions and goals, yet all united by a common desire to not die by the hands of the Sith organization of which Acheron was a part. And while Jacen knew that Sal-Solo had Acheron at a disadvantage with that ankle bracelet that could be used to knock her out, if not outright kill her, he still wouldn't be surprised if she was the metaphorical powder keg who would make this whole scenario blow up in all their faces before Sal-Solo did that.
Adding to that tension was a feeling that Jacen could only describe to himself as "murky" that was emanating from Acheron's aura; no doubt she was hiding something from him. And the fact that he was currently unable to sense the elusive Force-presence that he now knew to be on the station made him believe even more that she was blocking something from him. If only he could speak to her in private...
"Uh, Thrackan?" Jacen asked awkwardly.
"Yes, Jacen?" Sal-Solo asked stiffly.
"May I have a word in private with Ach-"
"No," Sal-Solo interrupted sharply. "Whatever you have to say to her, you can say in front of me. Especially if it has anything to do with the safety and security of this station."
"You mean the safety and security of you," Acheron spat.
Sal-Solo glared at her. "They might as well be one and the same."
Jacen hid the frustration of Sal-Solo's obstinance from his face and maintained his outward calm. Not long after he had emerged from the bacta tank this morning, his second cousin told him about the ankle bracelet and what it can do to Acheron if Sal-Solo's heart rate increased too much or slowed down to too little. Thus, Jacen knew that if he were to use the Force to knock out Sal-Solo and the guards behind him, then Acheron would be almost instantly knocked unconscious by the bracelet, which would render his intention to question her about her intentions moot. So he saw no other alternative than to ask his questions in front of Sal-Solo and his minions.
"Fine, then," he said reluctantly before he turned to look at Acheron. "Who are you trying to hide from this station, Tahiri?"
"Tahiri?" Sal-Solo asked.
"That name is irrelevant now, Jacen," Acheron replied, completely ignoring the Head of State.
"Irrelevant or not, you better answer my question," Jacen intoned.
Acheron chuckled mockingly. "You know, to think, even after all these years, even after your oh-so precious event in being one with the Force at the end of the Vong War, you still sound like that meek philosophical child you used to be."
"Vong War?" Jacen asked, not knowing that he was letting himself get sidetracked. "Don't you mean Yuuzhan Vong War?"
"Like the name Tahiri, that part of myself means nothing to me anymore," Acheron said darkly.
"Hold on, hold on, hold on," Sal-Solo cut in. "What's going on here? You two know each other?"
"Something like that," Acheron said with an acidic tone before she redirected her attention upon the Jedi. "And you know what, Jacen? What good was that oneness with the Force when you can't even save your own twin sister from the dark side?"
Jacen froze in place; what Acheron just said brought him back to that feeling of emptiness, of futility, when he had returned to Coruscant to look for Jaina, just before he fought her for killing the World Brain and all those scientists and Shapers.
"Jaina's gone to the dark side?" Sal-Solo piped in. "She's a Sith now?"
"Yes, she is, Thrackan, yes, she is," Acheron said without taking her eyes away from Jacen. "And she killed their aunt, Mara Jade Skywalker."
"Really?" Sal-Solo asked in astonishment. "Well, that's-"
"Wait, how do you know that?" Jacen asked.
Now it was Acheron's turn to freeze in place. "I... just..."
"So she's the one you're hiding from my senses," Jacen concluded with shock.
"Jaina's on this station, too?" Sal-Solo asked.
"Yes, now won't you shut up?" Jacen asked irritably.
"I'll take exception to that," Sal-Solo said before he opened up his comm. "Attention, all security forces. Be on the lookout for one Jaina Solo. Expect a holographic ID of her soon."
"Wait, no, you can't do that!" Jacen exclaimed hurriedly as he ran up to Sal-Solo's desk; he was stopped halfway by the guards' blaster rifles being pointed at him. Nevertheless, he continued with, "She's too powerful! She'll kill anyone who-"
"In case you forgot, Jacen," Sal-Solo interrupted again, "I've had this station lined with traps meant to stop people like you, your sister, and Acheron from rampaging around here. And after your last visit, I've made things a bit more secure against Jedi and Sith aboard this station. So unless I think you'll be necessary to stop Jaina, you get right back over there and shut up. Ya got it?"
Jacen grimaced, but with only a few seconds' worth of hesitation, he turned around and returned to his post by the door. And when he did, Sal-Solo had begun typing up something on his computer; from Jacen and Acheron's vantage point, they couldn't see what the older man was seeing, as his monitor was placed flatly upon his desktop.
That was when Acheron spoke up, and her inquisitive tone carried no regret for inadvertently revealing that Jaina was aboard Centerpoint. "Just out of curiosity, how are you going to get an updated ID on her? After all, Ju- I mean, Jaina hasn't been to the Corellian system for years."
"Did I say you had to worry about that?" Sal-Solo retorted.
"No, I guess you didn't," Acheron muttered as she crossed her arms over her chest.
"Wait, aren't you gonna tell her to stop blocking Jaina from me?" Jacen asked Sal-Solo.
The Head of State stopped what he was doing and directed his full attention upon Jacen. "Well, I can, I guess. But since I'm letting her keep her access to the Force, there's not much I can do about that."
"So you're not even gonna try to let me stop Jaina, then?" Jacen asked incredulously.
Sal-Solo looked at his second cousin as if he was a befuddled teacher that was asked a particularly stupid question by a student. "Should I?"
"Well, yes!" Jacen exclaimed. "If I can knock her out, I can help you find Jaina!"
"Oh, will you now?" Sal-Solo asked. "You would really be willing to turn your own sister in?"
Jacen's hesitation in answering that question made his second cousin say with an affirming tone, "Ah, that's it. Yeah, you see, that's why, Jacen. I don't quite know if I can trust you to put Jaina in a situation where she might not only get caught, but she might even get killed, even if she is a Sith. You know it, I know it, Acheron, my guards know it. So like I said, until I think you're necessary in catching her, if I find that you're my last resort in stopping her, then I might sic you on her. Maybe Acheron, too. Now, if you'll excuse me, I got work to do."
But while Sal-Solo went about his business on his computer, Jacen, in spite of his anger over Sal-Solo's decisions, couldn't help but raise an eyebrow over Acheron's self-correction in referring to Jaina. Was she still hiding something?
Well, if she was, it wouldn't be long before even that came out.
. . .
"Anything yet, Mirax?" Wedge asked in a whisper. He and the Rogues were still walking through the darkened light-less corridor that still sloped downward; they were using their personal emergency lights to guide their way through.
"For the fifth time, Wedge," Mirax's voice said irritably from his collar comm, "no, I'm not picking up any electronic signals that might trigger any traps. So stop asking, I'll let you know."
"Sorry, Mirax," Wedge said. "Just wanna make sure you're still on comm."
"Yeah, we might lose the signal as we go further down to wherever we're going," Tycho Celchu said.
Mirax's annoyed sigh was audible. "Understandable," she said. "Hey, Kirney, have you found anything with your inspections yet?"
"I still haven't found anything more low-tech," Kirney Slane replied. She was the vanguard of the group, always going ahead at least a few paces to see if there might be anything in the floor or walls that might get them caught or make the security on the station aware of them. "So far, it seems like Sal-Solo and his retroactive engineers and architects didn't think any intruders would make it this far."
"Yeah, well, there was that one foot-trap at the start," Kirney's husband, Myn Donos, said. "But aside from that, you're right, there's nothing, honey."
"Retroactive engineers and architects?" Tycho asked.
"Yeah, you know," Kirney said, not turning away from the path ahead, "the people who might still be alive who made additions to the station like this. I doubt whoever built Centerpoint thousands of years ago came up with modifications like this corridor; this looks and feels too modern Corellian, by my estimation."
"While I'd love to hear your expert opinion on all this, Kirney," Wedge piped in, "I think it prudent if we focused on our job at the moment."
"Yes, sir, will do, sir," Kirney said as she took a few ginger steps forward at crouching level, making sure there still wasn't anything worth on the lookout for.
"You know, Wedge, she can talk and do her job at the same time," Myn said defensively.
"I know she can," Wedge said stoically without turning away from the path ahead. "I just don't want the slightest distraction to endanger any of us." Then he looked over at the other man. "Is that understood, Myn?" he asked emphatically.
"Yes, sir, it is," Myn replied professionally.
Wedge said nothing more as he returned his full attention to where Kirney was.
A few seconds later, though, he stopped in his tracks and looked back over his shoulder, as a distant part of his mind seemed to think, after looking over Myn's shoulder, that there was someone following them.
"Something wrong, boss?" Rhysati Ynr asked. He and the other Rogues, including Kirney, also stopped and looked back to where their leader was looking.
"I thought I saw something," Wedge said. He shook his head. "Side-effect of getting old, I guess," he said more lightheartedly. Then, with a serious tone again, he ordered, "Let's keep moving."
Later, after a few more comm checks that were annoying for Mirax but necessary for Wedge and the rest of the Rogues, they finally came upon the bottom of the slope and a closed metal door. On the door's right side was a palm print reader; for that, Kirney took out a small brush and an equally small adhesive strip from her confiscated tool belt. She first lightly ran the brush over the reader before promptly sticking the adhesive over the device. Then, with a quick lift of the strip, the reader glowed green and the door slipped up and open to reveal a hovercart track.
Again, Kirney stepped through first and looked left and right.
"I don't see anything," she said to the Rogues. "No hovercart in sight, I mean."
"It'd probably be waiting for Sal-Solo if he got here," Tycho suggested.
"Which would mean that it would be waiting for him wherever he is now," Wedge deduced. "Which would also mean... Kirney!" He lunged for the door.
But it was too late; the door slammed shut, cutting Kirney off from the Rogues as it left Wedge pounding on the door with his fist.
"Kirney!" Myn cried out as he joined Wedge at the door. He, too, vainly pounded on the door with his fists. "Kirney, no!"
"We have to get outta here!" Tycho said.
"Guys, I'm losing you," Mirax's voice said as static began to overcome her. "I can't-" And just like that, they lost her signal.
"Wedge, now!" Tycho called out.
Wedge looked at his friend for a moment before he grimaced, looked at Myn, and said, "C'mon, we have to go."
"But Kirney!" Myn said.
"Damn it, Myn, don't make me punch you out, 'cause I'll carry you if I have to!" Wedge said as he grabbed his subordinate by the shoulders.
Myn mirrored Wedge's grimace, but nevertheless turned away and joined his leader and the others in running back up the slope to where they came from.
. . .
Judicar growled more in frustration than in fear as soon as she felt a general sense of danger through the Force accompanied by the panic now emanating from the Rogues ahead. Nevertheless, she turned away and began running back up the way that she and the retired X-wing squad had entered this corridor.
As expected, as at least one of the Rogues probably triggered some trap despite their cautiousness, the false section of wall from Sal-Solo's public office was closed. Wary of the foot-trap that Kirney Slane had discovered earlier, Judicar stepped around it, allowed her Sith lightsaber to slip down from her sleeve, and activated it, hoping that this wall wasn't made of anything that was resistant to her blade.
Thankfully, the wall was not; the lightsaber cut right through the material, with only minimal resistance for Judicar to work through for a few seconds; and in those seconds, she was aware of the squad of Centerpoint guards that were closing in on the building.
They wouldn't be a problem, she thought, just before she hurried through; and just before an emergency force-field activated to take the door's place.
. . .
When the Rogues got back to where they had entered the corridor, and they had all more or less been panting from the exertion of the uphill trek, the false section of wall was still open to them; Wedge wondered for a split second why it hadn't automatically closed along with the door that cut Kirney off from them.
Then, when Tycho was the first to reach the threshold, he bounced back from the invisible force-field and landed upon his back; his head hit the foot-trap and activated it.
Then a turret lowered from inside the ceiling above them and began downing each of the Rogues with a stun blast; none of them had any cover to take before they all ended up unconscious on the floor.
