Thirty-One

The Citadel, Dromund Kaas

17 ATC

A'tro was in a good mood.

The past few years had gone by without major incident. Her knowledge of the Sith Emperor's true nature, and her resolve to stand against him, continued remain secret. She had received few orders, instead being left to her own devices, and she had dedicated her efforts to the war—and a few, more personal matters.

The war. It could definitely be going better. The Republic was giving as good as it got, battling with a ruthlessness that was surely inspired by the fiery determination of their leader, Supreme Chancellor Saresh. Her final term was ending soon, but few believed that she would be content to truly relinquish power until the Empire had been eradicated. Something would need to be done about her.

But despite the state of the galaxy, A'tro remained in high spirits. The Emperor didn't know she intended to betray him. His representatives had even left her alone long enough for her to achieve something that could not be called a victory, not exactly, but she saw it as a triumph nonetheless.

She slipped into her apartment, high up on the Citadel, and prowled through the antechamber into the main room. There, sitting straight-backed on the sofa, was Malavai Quinn, the man A'tro loved as much as life itself. And next to him, curled up against his side, was a small girl with copper skin, black hair, and deep blue eyes.

She was already pushing herself off the sofa as A'tro entered the room. She paused a moment to steady herself as her feet hit the floor, then raced forward.

A'tro knelt down, her heart feeling as if it would split open from the force of the searing, radiant love pouring through her, and scooped her daughter into her arms.

Her victory. Her triumph.

To protect her child's future, A'tro was willing to tear the very stars from the sky. Weighed against the magnitude of the primal love blazing away within her, the Sith Emperor was nothing at all.

"Hello, Saryn," A'tro said, smiling and rising to her feet, carrying the little girl with her.

Saryn stared up at her for a moment, eyes wide. Her Sith blood ran strong in her veins, giving her a copper complexion a few shades lighter than her mother's. The beginnings of the distinctive Pureblood ridges that would develop into prominence with age were already visible on her cheeks and forehead. Only her blue eyes, which no truly pure Pureblood would have, gave away the human side of her parentage.

That would cause her grief later in life, Sith views on purity and lineage being what they were. But she would grow up to be strong. A'tro would make sure of that.

"Mama," Saryn said finally, her small face lighting up.

A'tro gave in to the temptation to hug her tightly against her armored chest. "I missed you, my little vine kitten," she murmured, stroking her silky black hair.

Quinn rose decorously from the sofa and approached, meeting A'tro's eyes over the top of Saryn's head. "I think she sensed your presence before you even made it through the door."

A'tro nodded. Even at the tender age of two and a half, Saryn's strength in the Force was discernible. Her intellect surpassed that of most children her age, as well—inheritance from her brilliant father, no doubt. Their little girl would grow up to be a mighty Sith Lord.

She had to survive to get there, however. Some Sith had enough scruples to abstain from murdering children, but there were plenty who did not. That made certain security measures necessary.

"Where's Jaesa gotten to?" A'tro asked.

With Quinn and herself needed on the front lines, the full-time task of raising and protecting Saryn had gone to the only other person A'tro trusted. It stung sometimes to know that her apprentice spent more time with her daughter than she did, but such sacrifices were necessary for the good of the Empire.

Knowing that didn't make it hurt any less.

"I told her to go home and rest," Quinn said dryly. "I don't think she gets much sleep."

A'tro looked down at Saryn. "Keeping Jaesa busy, are you?"

Saryn radiated innocence.

Quinn shook his head, one corner of his mouth twitching upwards. "How was the meeting?"

Some of A'tro's good humor vanished. "Not good. The Chiss Ascendancy is breaking ties with us."

"Ah," Quinn murmured. "'Not good' seems to be something of an understatement, then."

"Ravage says he's got it under control, but I'm skeptical." A'tro rolled her eyes. "Bloody man spent half the meeting staring at me like I was some sort of enticing window display."

Quinn's demeanor stiffened noticeably.

A'tro walked over to him, balancing Saryn on one hip, and stood on her toes to plant a kiss on his cheek. "Relax, Malavai. You're in no danger of losing my affections, and certainly not to someone like Ravage. He only focused on me because Nox wasn't there, anyway."

Quinn gave a small, sharp exhalation. "Far be it from me to understand the affairs of Sith Lords."

"Trust me, we don't understand it either." A'tro turned her attention to Saryn, who had begun steadily prodding the scar that ran across the right side of her face with one small finger. "That's a lightsaber scar, kitten. You'll learn more about those when you're older."

Saryn blinked, then smiled. "Lightsabers are pretty."

A'tro snickered. "Indeed they are. Not so much at that close range, but the point stands."

Saryn wriggled in her hold. "Mama, look."

She stretched out a hand towards the sofa. A large stuffed animal that A'tro hadn't noticed teetered into the air, then drifted towards them.

A'tro grabbed it before it could impact her face. "Very good!" she said, pride welling up within her. "You've been practicing."

Then she got a good look at the toy. "Is that a—"

"Her name is Teri!" Saryn declared. "Teri the terentatek." She pronounced the polysyllable with careful deliberateness.

A'tro raised a brow-ridge. "Did Jaesa get that for you?"

Saryn nodded. "She said grown-up terentateks are scary, but Teri is nice."

"Sweet stars," A'tro muttered.

Quinn made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a chuckle.

"You can laugh when you've fought one," A'tro said indignantly. "Without a lightsaber."

"Yes, dear," Quinn said patiently. "I hate to interrupt, but several dispatches arrived while you were gone. I believe they are of some import."

"It never ends," A'tro sighed. She squeezed Saryn tightly, then set her down on the floor. "Go play with Teri for a bit, all right?"

Saryn nodded and ran off, clutching the toy monster under one arm. It was almost as big as she was.

A'tro shook her head and followed Quinn into the comm room. "Such a bright little thing. She grows up more and more every time I see her."

"I was reading her Grand Moff Vaiken's biography before you arrived. She seemed quite interested."

A'tro stifled a giggle. "Good to teach her a proper appreciation for our military."

"Indeed." Quinn motioned to a table where a stack of datapads waited. "I set these here for you."

"Thank you." A'tro picked up the stack and shuffled through it. "Looks like standard briefings—wait, what's that?"

A small datachip had fallen out from the middle of the stack.

Quinn frowned. "I didn't notice that when they arrived."

A'tro picked up the chip and examined it. "This isn't standard Imperial technology. If I didn't know better…"

She inserted the chip into the holoterminal at the center of the room. Quinn moved to stand beside her, quietly putting an arm around her as the machine powered up, the projector flaring with blue light.

"I'd say it was a Republic chip," A'tro finished grimly as the light formed itself into the grainy holographic image of a woman dressed in Jedi robes.

"Hello, Darth A'tro," said K'saria Dhakar.

Every muscle in A'tro's body went rigid.

Quinn leaned forward. "A recorded message. This…is your sister?"

A'tro nodded.

"Don't bother trying to figure out how I got this to you," K'saria said. "Suffice it to say that the Republic has friends everywhere—even in the heart of the Empire." She smiled grimly.

"What does she want, I wonder?" Quinn mused.

A'tro's hands clenched into fists at her sides. "Nothing good, I suspect."

"It's been a while since we last spoke," K'saria continued. "Since Telos. I've had time to think. The Jedi don't know I'm sending this; they wouldn't approve. But I think we should talk. I've attached coordinates for a remote location on Alderaan. Neutral territory. We won't be disturbed.

"I'll be waiting on the date and time listed with the coordinates. I hope you'll take me up on this offer. May the Force be with you."

The image froze as the recording ended.

"A trap," Quinn said immediately.

"Undoubtedly." A'tro looked over at him. "Which is why I have no intention of going to that meeting."

"Good," Quinn said firmly, his hold on her tightening. "You risk yourself enough in combat without putting yourself in dubious situations like this."

A'tro smiled. "I used to put myself in dubious situations all the time, remember?"

"I never liked it then, either."

"As always, I'm touched by your concern. Let's go find Saryn and make sure she hasn't gotten into trouble."