IT'S ALL IN THE EXECUTIONS
And now the moment many of you have been waiting for, the execution! In addition to the delightful topic of regicide, this chapter contains a suicide attempt. Please be aware that DuchessKenobi and I do not mean any disrespect toward those who struggle with this or who have unfortunately lost the battle, and if you feel this will upset you then we completely understand. -LS
...
Sanjay Rash straightens the black and gold doublet. It's perfect: it accentuates his usual red shirt but still doesn't take away from the crown on his head. He can think of few other things he'd like to wear to meet his bride.
He smiles at his reflection in the mirror and Kason scoffs from the other side of the room. "You're trying too hard."
"What am I trying too hard for?" Sanjay's learned the easiest way to deal with Kason is not to give him the confrontation he wants. Not much can dampen his mood anyway, not today.
"To look buff. Nice padding," Kason snarks. "My dad has tons more muscle than you."
"Really? We'll have to compare at the family reunion." He hides a smirk when the boy seals his lips. "How do your clothes fit?"
Kason scowls at the service droids who dressed him in the black tunic with light blue piping. Sanjay would have liked to match the boy's wardrobe to his own, but he isn't taking any chances of people saying there's no Blackwell family witness at his wedding. "It's too big. Don't you know the bride is supposed to wear the dress?"
"There was no way to get one for Dalla without her measurements. Once she's here I'll have her measured and get her everything she needs. Until then -," he reaches into his pocket and pulls out the ruby necklace. "There's this. My bridal gift. And I've something else upstairs, something that'll really make her look like a queen."
"Well good luck getting Dalla to wear that. She never wears jewelry because it gets in the way."
"She'll have nothing for it to get in the way of," Sanjay replies. "She's going to be my queen; I plan to treat her as such. She won't have to lift a finger."
"You're going to make her a queen with a royal wedding? Some wedding you're going to have," Kason snorts. "You don't even have a wedding dress, and you're recycling your bride gift. What about a cloak? Are you going to leave that bit out too? Like 'sorry Dalla, I'm not going to bring you under my protection because I'm going to hurt you instead.'"
"Calm yourself!"
Kason exhales.
Rash turns back to his closet. Besides the tirade, the boy has a point. Before she died his mother urged him not to take any chances with his second marriage and Sanjay plans on following her advice. Even if it's blazing hot outside, he needs to follow tradition. And there's always the chance it might help. An olive branch to Dalla, a promise that You are my wife. I would never hurt you, and I'm going to give you a child to hold and raise and love.
"Fetch my red cloak," he orders one of the service droids. It's a rich, heavy fabric that's going to make him sweat, but the weight will be comforting when he drapes it over Dalla's shoulders.
From the back of the room, Kason scowls while dancing internally.
I did it! I gave them a clue!
See it, Dalla. See the wedding cloak. When he walks out, see what I did. And then run for the hills.
...
"I don't know what you were thinking, telling him you were married to that girl." King Dendup sighs.
"But I am. What was I supposed to do? Deny it?" Saw doesn't like lying to the king, but knowing Sanjay Rash he probably has the whole place bugged. "What about you, Sire?"
"I've known this was coming for a long time," Dendup says. "I don't like the thought of that usurper having control of Onderon any more than you, but we've exhausted all our options. I can only hope that my sacrifice will give your friends the people's support and they can work out some way to free Onderon."
"How are we to do it with no king to back?"
"Find a different king. Crown Bremon Kira, or Lux Bonteri, or even your wife. You need not have an existing king, only a king who will protect the people."
"If we go to a different king we'll look desperate!" Saw doesn't need Lux and Dalla to tell him that desperation isn't good when you're playing the great game.
"Mr. Gerrera, you will be desperate." Dendup sighs. "It's not my own death that bothers me; it's yours. I would try to convince Rash to give you clemency, but after what you said he never will. You were just trying to protect the Blackwell girl, weren't you?"
"I still am." Not only Dalla, but Steela and Lux and every other person in that base. "What do you think he's done with Kason?"
"He won't hurt the boy. Rash hasn't hurt him the entire time he's been here and I see no reason to do so now." Saw wishes he could be as confident as Dendup sounds when he says that. "He's more than likely preparing him for the execution."
"To watch us get our heads cut off."
"I suppose you could put it like that."
And not just us. It's killing him, knowing that Steela's coming to the execution and walking straight into a trap. He doesn't know the specifics of it, but he's willing to bet Rash is going to hide droids wherever he can and have them jump out at his poor friends. If he knew where they were he'd shout it from the steps, but since he doesn't it would be a meaningless suicide. What would he scream before they shot him, "It's a trap!"? Steela already knows it's a trap, but she's looking for covered pits while oblivious to the nets falling from above.
Dendup gives him an encouraging pat on the arm. "If it's any relief to you, it's a mostly painless death."
"I don't care about pain. I care about my friends."
"I dearly hope they'll get away, Saw."
"And what if they don't?"
"Their odds are good if they know when to fold their hand. But if they don't...well, there is one option."
Saw jumps on it. "And that is?"
"The queen's mercy. If she pardons them in front of everyone, then they could go free."
That would involve Dalla marrying Rash, realizing her position, and making a conscious use of her power instead of trying to pound Rash into the pavement. Yeah, that's not likely. "That still involves someone else marrying my wife. And then we lose the north."
"It does."
Saw wants to scream. He wants to pound the cell walls and scream at the droid guards and Kalani and General Tandin and especially Sanjay Rash. He wants to tear the palace brick from brick. He wants to badly to do something rather than just sitting here.
But that's not going to happen, and he's not going to throw a tantrum in front of the king.
Please, he prays. Please, please Steela. Stay home. Don't deliver yourself into this.
…
At Blackhold, the northern clans prepare for war.
The Blackwell navy has been on standby for a week, since Thias left. Their holds are full of weapons and the harbors with fighting men.
The Harkons mobilize theirs with the speed of light. Glover and his twins race over with every vessel the family has and every weapon down to kitchen knives. Talia insists on staying behind with Adria. "It would be a crime to leave your mother alone at a time like this," she says while bidding farewell to her husband. "We'll be fine. Just come home safe."
"Of course I will." Ephraim starts up the gangplank. "I'll miss you, Talia. If it wasn't for Momma I'd be begging you to come along with us."
"I don't think so."
"Whyever not?"
Talia smiles at him. "Let's just say your Momma is going to be a grandmomma in a few months."
It takes a second for that to sink in, but when it does Ephraim bolts down the gangplank and sweeps his wife off her feet in an embrace, nearly weeping with joy.
When the Harkons finally leave, their vassals the Kretashes join them, ready to avenge the murder of one of their own while completely unaware they're on the way to destroy another.
The Bralykburns get to the Hold in record time. Hugo is also uncharacteristically cooperative. Jamos, as well as everyone else who saw the holorecording, can't imagine why.
Marlon Blackwell places half a hundred comms and writes half a hundred letters: calls to arms, orders, manifests, requests, thanks yous. As he writes, he prays to the salt gods for his children's safety. And occasionally thinks about which parts of Sanjay Rash's anatomy he's going to remove if they're harmed.
Fishermen sharpen their knives and refresh their skills with a blaster. Fishwives stitch sails and banners and embroider good luck symbols on the inside of their husbands' shirts.
The recordkeepers pick up their datapads and take down notes and testimonies to preserve for future generations.
The north hasn't meddled in southern affairs since the Mandalorian Wars. For the first time in four thousand years, they're all going to war on the same side.
…
In Iziz, Dalla drips wax from a candle onto the letter and presses one of Thias' buttons into it before it cools. It's not her family's seal, not exactly, but it's the best she can manage right now. She can't say she was happy when she first learned her brother had worn the leathers with the ship-embossed buttons (was he trying to be obvious?). Still, the buttons work as makeshift stamps. Dalla can eat crow if she has to.
"Are you done?" Lux asks from his project on the other side of the room.
"Yes. And you?"
"I am." Lux bundles it up in his arms and meets her while she blows out the candle. "Never would have known that seal was a button."
"I hope anyone who sees it doesn't. Actually, I hope no one has to see it." She swipes the sealed letter from the table and examines Lux's handiwork. "It looks great."
"Thank you. I hope she likes it."
"Lux, please. Of course she's going to love it; she has eyes."
"Well then I can only hope it'll make her feel better after yesterday. Thanks for getting started on that end, by the way."
"I needed the drink too. How was your evening out with Ahsoka?"
Lux's eyes light up. "Amazing! After we ran our errand we went to a dumpling stall, and she loved them. We ate by the canal and there weren't any patrols. It was - it was like it was before the Separatists took over Onderon. Peaceful, mostly. There was no fear in the streets."
She smiles to herself. "I'm glad you had that."
"And I'm ready to make sure there are many more like it in the future." Lux reaches for the door control. "Let's give this to Steela."
Due to Ahsoka's intervention and the fact Steela and Dalla were drinking wine instead of whiskey, Steela is not badly hung over. She's merely stressed, a fact made apparent by her bleeding nail beds and razor focus on their rescue plans. She takes no notice of Lux and Dalla when they enter the briefing room.
"Ahsoka, are you sure you're going to sit this one out?"
Ahsoka nods. "I'm sorry, I wish I could help. But the Council knows how strong you are. We all have the utmost confidence in your success."
"Ahsoka's right," Lux says and gives Steela a reassuring look. "We can do this. We've gone over every angle, every possibility. Your plan is going to work. We're going to rescue the king!"
"And to help make that even more ironclad, we have this." Dalla holds out the letter.
Steela takes it and examines the seal. "That's your sigil."
"Aye, it's a contingency plan. You're going to make it, but if I get caught -" If I have to do what I told you last night - "Then that's your ticket north. It's a signed letter ordering all northern houses to give you shelter and anything you need to get to Blackhold. The boat I took is still in the marina, and if any northern captain stops you on the seas, show them that letter. The Hold is an impregnable fortress and my father will keep you if he sees my handwriting. You can work out a plan from there and finish what you started."
"Thank you," Steela says and puts the letter into one of her pockets. "I hope I'll never have to use it."
"Just in case," Lux says. "We want you to be safe. And that's also why we made you this." And with that he unfurls his half of the gift: a pale green banner with a dark brown drexl stitched in the middle.
Steela raises an eyebrow. "Whose arms are those?"
"Yours," Lux grins. "The Lady of House Gerrera needs a banner for her men to rally behind."
"And for her bannermen to swear to," Dalla interrupts.
"And to fly if she has to get north." He waves the banner. "Do you like it?"
Steela takes the bottom end of the banner and rubs the cloth between her thumb and forefinger. "It's beautiful! How did you make this?"
"Dono helped a little," Lux admits. "Actually, Dono helped a lot."
"I love it." She beams, a real smile in spite of all the stress. "I never thought I was going to be looking at my own sigil."
"And your words. We came up with something, but it's just an idea. You can change it if you want." Dalla clears her throat. "We will remind them."
Steela takes her eyes from the banner. "We will remind them?" she repeats.
"It was the most memorable thing we've heard you say. Well, second most memorable. We didn't think 'sweet drexls, shut up!' would make a very good House motto."
"It would get people's attention," she muses. "But I like the first one. Thank you, both of you. This is above and beyond the call of duty."
"It's not just that. You're a Lady now; you need a banner and a motto." Dalla shrugs. "But you're very welcome."
Lux hands the banner to Steela. "You really are."
She folds it up and stuffs it under her arm to make it easier to carry. "Well if there's one thing you've both taught me, it's that there's more to being a Lady than banners. Organize the others. It's time for the final briefing."
...
"Once we have everyone, we retreat back into the crowd and make for base. No detours. Does everyone understand me?" Steela orders.
Everyone shouts their assent and Steela nods.
"I know we all joined this cause for different reasons," she says. "Some of us were moved to action the second Rash took the throne. Some of us lost our homes when the Separatists came. Some of us were fugitives running from Dooku or Rash. Some of us, myself included, lost our loved ones to the Separatists.
"But we all have the same reason to fight now. We're going to save our rightful king!"
She points to the banner mounted on the wall.
"That's our banner!" she shouts. "And this is our moment. We're going to out there, and show King Rash and Count Dooku the people of Onderon do not accept them! We want them gone! And if they don't get the hint, then we'll chase them off our planet! Who's going to chase them off?"
"We are!"
"Then let's go show them!"
Everyone cheers, grabs their weapons, and spills out the door. Dalla pulls Steela aside for a second.
"Steela, that was really good. How did you come up with that?"
"What, the speech?" Steela asks and finishes up a final check over her blaster. "I just made it up. Gotta go, Dalla. I'll meet you at the checkpoint!"
Dalla smiles as she watches her go.
"You're going to be a great Lady," she whispers.
…
With no shade, Yolahn Square is blazing hot in the midday heat. With the entire populace crammed in it's stifling. Sweat runs down Lux's back, and if they were anywhere else Dalla would hold out her scarf to let in a breeze. She doesn't dare do it here. Not with Sanjay Rash himself leading the execution procession out the palace door and down the steps, flanked by a dozen battle droids. Saw's behind him - thank the salt gods - along with King Dendup and, blessedly, Kason.
Steela leads their group through the crowd, jockeying for what they previously deemed the most strategic position at the front of the crowd. She keeps Lux and Dalla close at hand the whole time.
"Saw looks alright," Lux whispers to her when Rash's prisoners come into view. "A little tired, but he's still standing."
"So does King Dendup. Dalla, is the blonde kid with the Magnaguards your cousin?"
Dalla nods. "Rash has him tucked behind him pretty good; it's hard to get a good look since he's wearing that cloak. But that's Kason for sure."
"Good. They're clumped together, so we should be able to grab them all in one fell swoop and get out quick."
"Nobody should try anything stupid after the briefing. I think we can depend on -."
The words have hardly left her lips when someone jockeys to her side and whispers. "What did I miss?"
Dalla is going to be eating crow the rest of her life. Without even looking, she collars the new arrival and yanks him close. "Thias, you're supposed to be at base with Ahsoka!"
"Ahsoka left," Thias says. "So, I left too."
"Go back to base," she orders.
"He can't," Steela butts in, shooting Thias a killer glare. "The droids won't let anyone leave. Kid, I'm going to say this only once. When we go, you stay right where you are."
"Or you're never going to see the light of day again." Dalla threatens.
"And I won't stop her."
Thias, sufficiently cowed, slinks back. The girls redirect their attention to the steps, specifically to the guillotine Rash preens in front of with his cloak making him look more like a holovillain than a leader.
"Quite a fiancé you've got there. I can see why you don't want to marry him," Dono whispers into Dalla's ear.
Rash can't hear her even if he cared to. "As your king, I present to you Ramsis Dendup," he announces. "Not as a former king, but as a criminal! Sponsoring terrorist acts against the people of Onderon. But fear not, good citizens -."
"I'm fearing," Dono snarks. "I'm fearing for the entire planet when the guy in charge thinks he can pull off a cloak like that." Steela gives her a look and she sobers up. "What? It's hideous," she grumbles and walks to her position.
"-As your leader and protector, I will see that you are safe from such villainy. He has betrayed you. And today he will pay for those treasonous deeds with his life!" With that Rash drops a piece of fruit into the electroguillotine and the MagnaGuards activate the device. The fruit splits into two pieces, charred down the middle.
Everyone flinches. In the north they use a sword for beheadings. It's quicker, more humane than being scorched in two. But Rash doesn't seem to want to spare Dendup any pain. One of the MagnaGuards pushes Dendup's head into the guillotine.
"Wait for my signal," Steela whispers.
"Ready weapons!" Rash raises his hand to give his signal.
"Not yet…"
Rash signals.
"Now!" Steela shouts.
Hutch and Dalla drop to their knees, grab their friend's legs and hoist her into the air, a human sniper's nest. Lux takes Steela's rifle from under his cloak and hands it off to her. It's all over for the MagnaGuards she sets in her crosshairs.
Steela jumps down while Lux doffs the cloak for good and lobs two smoke grenades at the steps.
"Come on!" He shouts and races for the guillotine. "Go! Go! Go!"
The rest of them follow on, the plan coming together in seconds. Dalla blasts straight past King Dendup (he's Steela's job) and Rash (thank you, Lux, for pistol-whipping him) and makes a beeline for Kason and his droid escort. She blasts the droids (easy enough if you aim for the chest plate and/or you are Steela Gerrera) and tugs down her scarf a little so Kason can get a quick look at her face.
"Kason, it's me." She says. "We're leaving now."
Kason looks horrified. "What are you doing here? You have to leave!"
"We're rescuing you!" The smoke is almost completely dissipated; they have to go now. Dalla grabs Kason's arm and hauls him down the palace steps with the others, gathering into one group with Saw and King Dendup in tow. Steela and Lux take point, victorious.
"Follow me," Dono urges and leads the way down the steps. "This way! Come on, let's -!"
But Dono never gets to finish her sentence. Just then a Super Battle Droid emerges seemingly from nowhere and shoots her, straight through the heart.
When Dono falls Steela holds her arm protectively out in front of the others and Dalla pulls Kason close. With the straightest path blocked, Steela goes for the right. Droids. Then the left. Droids.
Sanjay Rash straightens up and a tactical droid says "Surrender now, or die."
Saw scowls at him and Steela looks Dalla in the eye and mouths Run!
But where's she supposed to go? The droids have them surrounded. There's no way out except - and Dalla's stomach churns at the realization of the only way out.
"It's over. Do as they say," Dendup orders.
The rebels set down their blasters and Dalla slowly lets go of Kason's arm. She pushes him further into the middle of the group, toward Steela and Lux, while edging her way to the end. Logistically, it won't be hard. Hopefully the others will block Thias from seeing anything, and Steela will keep her promise and grab Kason. With Dono it was quick. She was dead before she hit the ground. Dalla just hopes the droids keep up their good aim. And if they don't - she pulls her knife from its sheath - then this will do it. This will take me back to the salt gods.
She tries to swallow, but her throat feels like it's closing.
The droids force them back at blasterpoint. The crowd below boos, their combined movements looking almost like waves. They aren't the waves she wants to sink under, but they'll do.
Salt gods, forgive me, Dalla prays and bolts away.
Suddenly Thias screams "Sis, no!" from the crowd and breaks through the rows of people in front of him like a hot knife through butter. At the sight of him Dalla slows the smallest bit. That tiny hesitation is enough.
Lux lunges forward and grabs Thias before the droids can shoot him just as a stun bolt hits Dalla square in the back and every nerve screams before she blacks out.
When she comes to she can't move. Like a marionette with its strings cut, her limbs are useless and feel like they weigh a ton. It's a monumental effort to even keep her eyes open, focus through her blurry vision, and process what she's seeing and hearing. Heck, it's a feat to keep from passing out again.
They didn't kill me...I have to...my knife...
Her knife's clattered to the ground only about three feet away. It might as well be on Dxun.
Someone comes behind her and lifts her to her feet. When her knees collapse he supports her weight, leaning her against his shoulder to keep her upright.
The man lowers Dalla's scarf and smiles at her.
"My lady wife," he says. "You even wore a veil."
…
And that seems like a great place to end this chapter. We'll be back next Friday, same bat-time, same bat-channel. Maybe not the same bat-marital status for Dalla.