Chapter 12

Jaina's main concern was that they would get to her before Jag did. The barriers she had set in place were flimsy at best, and when they discovered where she was, the whole ship would be baring down on her. Therefore she determined that the best thing to do would be to get out, and quick.

She looked to the brain itself for a place to hide the detonator. After deciding that she might as well injure it if she was going to kill it, she cut a hole in the sac holding the brain. She didn't think the goop inside would hurt it, so she dropped the detonator inside. That meant she had five minutes to get as far away as possible.

The easiest place for Jag to reach her at would be the hangar, so that's the direction she made for. She increased her hearing with the Force so she could sense someone's approach, and that way had many less encounters. She could hide long before they reached her.

Her leg hurt, but not that badly. What bothered her the most was her ribs. It seemed to stab at her lungs with each breath, and jogging didn't help matters. She winced with every step, but knew she had to hurry.

Despite her extensive and personal training, Jaina was not an experienced Jedi. In fact, she hadn't been officially elevated to Knight status yet. She wasn't used to war and blood and killing, or pain for that matter. What kept her going past any reasonable human limits was a drive, a stubbornness that she couldn't explain. It was something she had been born with, a willingness to suffer for others and a resolve to never complain about it.

There were a lot of things in Jaina's life that she didn't like, but she never complained.

Jaina had expected the hangar to be empty when she got there. Instead, she was met with the stares of at least sixty Yuuzhan Vong. Fortunately, less than half were worriors. Jaina smirked to herself at the irony of thirty being a fortunate number. She took a deep breathe and drew her lightsaber, knowing the effort was futile. She could run, but they would follow. She could fight, but they would win.

The first four she knocked back with a force shove, then continued by constricting the air around their throats until they suffocated. She knew it was a cheap trick, one that her uncle probably would frown upon, but her life meant more than just herself. She carried information that her family needed, that the Republic needed, the Chiss needed. They may not have another shot at a reconn mission like this again.

She dodged a spat of venom and sliced off the head of the serpent who had attacked her, then shoved her lightsaber through its master's eyesocket. The next two she shot with her charric, all the while defending against thud bugs and razor bugs with her left hand.

She managed to pick off four more before her battery cartridge died. Cursing, she slung the useless weapon at a warrior's face, collapsing his nose into his brain. She didn't have time to dig her extra out of her pack, and her strength was fading fast. She wouldn't last long in hand to hand combat.

It was at this moment that the thermal detonator chose to explode. As she was tossed into the air by the concussion ripples of the blast, she could only thank the Force. Her attitude changed when she was slammed with fantastic force against the bulkhead. She felt keenly her injured rib puncture her right lung, and her deltoid muscle rip in half. She might have screamed, she wasn't sure, because there was a droning noise all around her, blacking out everything else. It took a few minutes for her to recognize the sound.

Engines, she thought.

There were no engines in Vong ships, everything was organic. That could mean only one thing.

Jag.

She rolled onto her back and looked up. A capacious hole had been ripped in the ceiling by something other than the thermal detonator, which was too far removed. And attempting to lower itself down through the hole was a ship, glorious in its artificial casing. She stretched out with the Force and found Jag there, anxious with concern.

The Vong who had survived the blast were now being sucked into the vacuum of space. Jaina could feel her own lungs burning with the loss of oxygen, but she was afraid to put herself into a hibernation trance because she would appear dead when Jag reached her. She slowed her heartbeat as much as possible until it was beating only perhaps ten times a minute.

And suddenly an oxygen mask was pressed firmly against her mouth. She breathed it in greedily, but winced as her injured lung attempted to expand and contract. She screamed as someone lifted her into their arms, her injuries igniting her in a flame as pure as her lightsaber. When it reached a point where she thought she would die from it the world blacked out.

When Jaina awoke she knew immediately that she was in bacta. The fluid surrounded her, filled her lungs and throat. She sighed, relieved that she was alive and depressed that she was so confined. The shapes outside were distorted and fuzzy, making it impossible to know who it was. How long have I been in here? And how much longer do I have to stay?

She shifted until she felt the bottom of the tank under her feet. She kicked off lazily, hoping the tank wasn't entirely full. It was. That failed, she stretched out with the Force, searching for anyone she recognized.

Somewhat to her surprise, Jag wasn't anywhere around. She felt a pang of hurt that he would leave her in such condition, but tried quickly to quiet it. Why should he stick around when she couldn't even talk to him? Right?

She shook her head, forcing herself to think of something else. She tried to organize everything she had learned so that she could give a thorough and accurate debriefing. Inwardly she named off all the alien weapons and uses, and any other technology. Next she calculated what she had learned of them socially.

Last and most important, she tried to decide what she would tell her Uncle Luke. Some things just couldn't be properly described and instructed through a hologram. She would need to teach him and the other Jedi how to fight a Vong effectively, and what to watch for.

She needed to go back to Coruscant.

In the months she had been in Chiss Territory she had never asked to go back once. She hadn't even mentioned it. It had already been decided that she was to stay for a full year before visiting home. But this was an extenuating circumstance. It could mean success or failure for the Jedi as well as the New Republic. One way or another, she was going back. If it meant hurting the Republic-Chiss alliance or even Jag, it was just something she was going to have to do.

Right choices never are the easy ones.

Jag was there when they removed her from the bacta. The med droid suggested that she stay in the Medwing for a few more days, but Jaina insisted that she be taken back to their quarters. Once there she told Jag everything she had gone through. He shook his head in amazement.

"That was way too dangerous. I never should have let you go," he said.

"Probably," she grinned. "But it turned out for the best. I have so much to report to the Captain."

Jag shook his head. "You're going to be reporting straight to General Covathen."

Jaina paled. "Why? I don't want to meet him."

Jag scowled. "Why not? He just wants to hear what you have learned first hand. It's important."

Jaina fidgeted nervously. "He feels funny. Like I can't quite get a grasp on him. Slippery."

Jag laughed. "You don' t want to talk to him because he doesn't feel right?"

Jaina scowled at his amusement. "He's not to be trusted, Jag. You should listen to me."

He just smiled and stood. "Whatever you say."

Jaina opened her mouth to protest, but a new thought occurred to her. "The Vong!" she said, jumping to her feet. "Did I do it? Is the ship dead?"

This time Jag's smile was more of pride than of condescension. "You did. After the thermal detonator exploded, all the shields fell. That's how I got inside to rescue you. We launched a full assault, and it was in pieces within minutes."

Jaina laughed with glee, launching herself into his arms. They stayed that way long after the mirth of the moment had passed. Jaina looked up into his green eyes and smiled. "You know, even though I'm a stranger here, I've never felt more at home than when I'm with you."

He kissed her then, long and hard. Jaina's pulse began to race, and she felt a pang of disappointment when he withdrew. But when he looked at her, his gaze was mischievous. "I was just thinking. I don't have to report back in for oh, several hours."

"Hmm," Jaina said. "What will we do with the time?"

He smiled, drawing her a little closer. "I think we can come up with something."

"What?" Jaina asked.

"Nothing," he responded, rolling onto his back to avoid her gaze.

"Tell me," she prodded playfully, poking him in the ribs.

He flinched from the touch. Jaina's smile grew broader then, her eyes twinkling from mischief. "Are you...ticklish?"

"No," he said firmly, but it was too late then. She ran her hand teasingly across his side, drawing a fit of laughter from him. "Hey! Stop it! Jaina!"

She giggled fitfully. "What were you looking at me like that for?"

"Okay!" he conceded, pushing her hand away. He rolled onto his side and drew her close, looking down into her eyes. "I was thinking that I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't come back."

Jaina buried her face in his chest, feeling suddenly sentimental.

"Yeah," he continued, "it would be awful hard to find another good excuse to take off from work."

Jaina punched his chest, hard. He just laughed, and kissed her again. "What? I can't make a joke every once and a while?"

They fell into a comfortable silence. Jaina relished in the moment, knowing that times like this wouldn't last forever. She would need to tell him she had to leave, and soon. To her surprise, it wasn't as joyous a thought as it had been a few weeks before. She was loath to leave Jag's side, but it was her duty as a Jedi. And Jag was a big boy. He had been taking care of himself a long time before she showed up. He would be okay.

He must have picked up on the darkening of her mood, because he shifted in their embrace to look at her. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she said trying to sound cheerful.

"It's not nothing. I can tell. What's bothering you?"

"I don't want to talk about it right now," she skirted.

"Well, if it's bothering you right now then we need to talk about it right now," he pressed.

"I just..." she looked away. This wasn't the best of times to tell him this, but he had her in a corner. What could she do? "It's Jedi stuff."

"Jedi stuff that's bothering you right now?" he asked.

"Well," she said, "I learned a lot of things about the Vong on that mission. Things that my Uncle Luke needs to know."

"Call and tell him then," Jag said, not comprehending.

"It's more complicated than that. I know you all think you've got this war under control, but this is a lot bigger than you know. The Vong...I can't feel them in the Force. It's like they exist outside it. This is big for the Jedi, Jag. So big I can't even fathom the implications right now. I can't drop a bombshell like this over the Holonet. I need to be there."

Jag just stared at her for a minute. "Are you saying you want to leave?"

"Not want to, have to. It's my duty. If anyone can understand that, it should be you."

He was quiet for a long time, just staring at the ceiling. Jaina resisted the urge to probe his feelings with the Force, knowing he would answer her in due time. Finally he heaved a great sigh. "I guess it wouldn't do any good to tell you I didn't want you to go?"

"No," she said softly. "It wouldn't. I'm so sorry, Jag. I'll come back as soon as I can. You know I will. I love you."

He opened his mouth to reply when the comm started going off wildly. Jag grabbed it from the bedside table, irritated. "What?"

"Colonel Fel, General Covathen has arrived insystem and has inquired as whether or not Jedi Solo-Fel is well enough to be debriefed," an emotionless Chiss voice came back.

"I don't think—" Jag began, but Jaina snatched it quickly from his hand.

"Tell the General I am ready at his convenience," Jaina said, then switched it off.

"Are you sure you're well enough?" Jag asked.

Jaina was already standing. She threw him a teasing smirk over her shoulder. "After this? I think I can manage sitting in an office for a half hour."

The foyer around the General's office was plush and churrigueresque, decorated in velvets and silks. Jaina sat on the small couch, waiting for the straight-backed Chiss secretary to tell her she could go in.

She fiddled with the tassels on a pillow, trying to shake off the jitters. She didn't know why she got the creeps around this guy, but she wanted to be cautious. The Force was rarely wrong. And so she brought her lightsaber along, just in case.

The intercom beeped, and a few seconds later the secretary told Jaina that the General was ready to see her. Jaina let out a nervous breath and stood. The door to the inner office swooshed open for her, and she stepped inside.

Seated behind a large wooden desk sat the shady General, his red eyes calculating as Jaina came to stand before him. "Jedi Solo, I presume?"

"Solo-Fel," Jaina corrected a bit smugly.

"Forgive me," he said in a way that suggested her didn't care one way or the other. "Have a seat."

Jaina sat.

"I hear you displayed quite a plethora of bravery a few days ago," he began, leaning back in his chair and steepling his fingers in front of his chin.

"I guess some could say so," Jaina replied evenly.

"I have also been told that you managed to gather quite a bit of Intelligence, despite being instrumental in the victory at Gortheba."

"I have," she stated simply.

He gave her a taut grin. "I would like to hear a full account, if you don't mind."

And so Jaina began, starting from her capture of the dying enemy skip to her rescue at Jag's hands. After that she gave a full account of all the weapons she had discovered, as well as their functions. Then she told the little that she had learned of their social structure. "I think deformity is a symbol of rank or status. The more mutilated you are, the higher your status."

"Hmm," Covathen said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

Jaina scowled. She had just handed over what was probable the biggest Intel goldmine in history, and all he could say was 'hmm'. Suspicious, she reached out in the Force at him once more. Like before, she felt nothing, as if he slipped through her fingers every time. Suddenly a terrible thought hit her. She didn't know how it was possible, but she knew. She jumped from her chair, igniting her lightsaber and pulling it to a high guard.

"What are you doing?" he demanded.

Jaina wasn't listening. She swung her saber experimentally, letting the tip end cut a gash across his forehead as deep four millimeters. To her horror, the blue skin peeled away, a seam opening down through the side of his nose all the way down under the collar of his uniform. He stood as the skin fell away, revealing a sickeningly disfigured face, tattooed and housing one fake eye.

An amphistaff slithered down his arm and into his hand. "I was right to fear you," he said, his alien voice gruff but in clear Basic. "You are a worthy foe indeed."

"Who are you?" she demanded.

He made a pretense of bowing shallowly. "I am called Nom Anor. And very soon you will be called dead." Before Jaina could react to her sudden spike of danger the amphistaff lashed out, not wish venom or teeth, but wrapping itself in a terrifying grip around her throat.

Jaina dropped to her knees as the snake constricted her airway, crushing her windpipe in on itself. Nom Anor turned to leave, but Jaina Force shoved him into a wall. He recovered quickly, but instead of attacking ripped off his littler finger. An inky miasma filled the room, hiding everything behind its curtain of blackness. Jaina couldn't see, or breathe for that matter. She grappled with the amphistaff, tugging at it with all her might. It didn't help.

She was losing consciousness quickly. If she could see, she supposed spots would be dancing before her eyes. And then she heard the sound of the outer office door opening, and the sound of the secretary screaming. The cloud of darkness spilled into the outer office, giving Jaina some measure of visibility.

Nom Anor was gone.

The secretary rushed to Jaina's side and began to tug on the amphistaff with her. Jaina struggled to remain conscious, knowing that if she slipped away she would never wake up. Desperate, she grabbed her lightsaber and pressed it into the young Chiss woman's hand.

"What do I do with it?" she exclaimed.

Jaina tried to voice the words, but it ended it a strangled gargle. Without any other hope, she formed the image of a lightsaber stabbing into the serpent's head, killing it, and shoved it into the woman's mind. She depressed the button unhesitatingly, then shoved it into amphistaff's snake-like head. It immediately stopped constricting and went limp around Jaina's throat.

She yanked it off and threw it across the room, panting heavily. The secretary turned off the lightsaber and handed it back to Jaina. "Thank you," Jaina managed.

"Where is the General?" she asked without preamble.

"The General is a Yuuzhan Vong spy," Jaina croaked. "I discovered him, and he fled."

"Where?" The Chiss asked. "That door is the only way out and no one has come through."

Jaina managed to stand, though she had to stand still to recover from her light-headedness at first. The Chiss told her to sit, but Jaina waved her off. "I should call the MedCenter," she said.

"You do that," Jaina replied. As the secretary hurried out into the foyer Jaina examined the desk. Sure enough, there was a panel that could be lifted up from the carpeted floor. Underneath was a chute and ladder leading to a secret tunnel. Jaina thought about pursuit, but knew he had too great of a head start. But maybe she could prevent him from escaping completely.

Quickly she drew her comlink. "Jag, are you there?"

No response.

"Jag, come on this is important," she said.

Finally his voice came back in answer. "Jaina? What's wrong? Are you alright? You sound terrible."

"Thanks, I love you too," she ground out. "I'll live. But there's a Yuuzhan Vong onboard. You need to stop all traffic flow until he's found."

There was silence.

"What?" she asked, a feeling of dread forming in her stomach.

He sighed deeply. "There was an unauthorized takeoff only a few seconds ago. We tried to shoot it down but it escaped into hyperspace."

Jaina cursed violently and shut off the comlink. What secrets must Nom Anor have uncovered? And even more disturbing, what trouble could he have caused in the Ascendancy?