"Jules come in?" Lee called over his commlink. No answer. He shook it wondering if the old piece of junk's wiring had come loose. He pressed it tightly and repeated,"Do you copy? Jules?!"
"Lee! We're surrounded! What should we do?!" a New Republic soldier by the name of Gil Tane reported. His inexperience showed, as he clung to his blaster in his neatly pressed uniform without readying his weapon. Fear and panic were bad qualities to have in a soldier, but Lee held back from berating the young soldier as he scanned the area for other intruders
"The explosions are a distraction. Whoever's here wants us to panic while they spring the bucketheads. Keep your head and call a squad to meet us at the North Entrance," Lee calmly commanded. Even though he had been stripped of his title, he never lost the talent for leading under pressure.
"Yes sir," Gil instinctively replied, sending out the signal and readied his blaster. As they made their way to the North Entrance, they met the squad fully engaged in a shootout with Unit-56. "Great plan, Tersu."
From Sir to Tersu in less than a minute. That was fast, Lee thought as he rolled his eyes at his comrade's sarcasm. Clearly these New Republic recruits had no point of reference when it came to a shootout. To them it was nothing more than a game. As they continued to fire into the entryway a smoke bomb rolled out and exploded, hindering their vision and causing them to cough.
"Ceasefire!," Lee commanded, trying to catch his breath as his tear filled eyes burned. "Commander Monn wants them alive!"
The squad gripped their weapons as they squinted through the haze. As they waited for Lee's next command, all were startled by the sight of Unit-56 emerging from the smoke. Gil panicked and fired his blaster, hitting one of the troopers in the shoulder. He fell to the floor as the rest of the squad resumed firing.
"Ceasefire you nerfherders!" Lee repeated in anger. He didn't want to fail his mission. He knew if he couldn't deliver Unit 56 to Commander Monn there would be no chance of him getting a leave to return home to Rya and Prisa.
As the chaos ensued, the dark command trooper reached their wounded partner. Lee watched the trooper pick up the fallen and shout for help.
"GO!" the wounded trooper yelled. "Lenore go. Leave me."
"Take him!" the dark trooper yelled to the Unit and pulled out a thermal detonator.
"Lenore don't!" yelled the lead trooper.
Did they just say, Lenore? Lee froze paralyzed by what he had heard and the sight of a thermal detonator. Lee shook his head and refocused as all of Unit-56 slipped away, except their rescuer.
"Get to the ship. That's an order. I'll catch up," the dark trooper turned toward the NRF squad.
"Lee!" Gil cried out. "What are your orders?"
"We have you surrounded! Deactivate the thermal and show your face." Lee shouted at the trooper. She was breathing heavily and seemed paralyzed. Lee repeated, "Deactivate the thermal and remove your helmet. I won't ask again!"
The dark trooper deactivated the detonator and slowly laid down her blaster. As the NRF squad relaxed and grinned, she removed her helmet and looked up at Lee.
"Hello Lee," It was Lenore Tersu.
The soldiers exchanged looks. How did this stormtrooper know Lee? Lee nearly fell over at the sight of his sister. She was alive and in a stormtrooper uniform. Was she still working with the Empire? Was she a mercenary? Had she been home? Did she know about him and his family? Were they safe from her? Many questions raced through his mind, but before Lee could respond Lenore fell over from a stun blast from behind.
"Hello Buckethead," Jules said. "Put her in the holding cell."
Lee watched the NRF soldiers carry his sister off to the cell. He was scared. Scared of what Jules might do to her. Scared of what Lenore would do to escape. She was after all Prisa Matno's daughter. He quickly refocused and darted down the hallway toward the holding cells. He needed to speak to Lenore and find out what she was doing there. If he could, he would help her.
"I can't believe you," Jules stepped in front of him, stopping him in his tracks. Lee stood eye to eye with her and could see the pain in her eyes. "Your sister is a buckethead."
"It's not what you think," Lee began but knew this conversation was more than about his sister. It was about loyalty, their trust, and their friendship. He knew it was at an end, and the collateral damage would be Lenore.
"People make choices. And those choices have consequences." Jules glared at him. "She's the one you were looking for back on Coruscant wasn't she? Here I thought you were looking for your half crazed mother who abandoned you. But all this time you had family ties to the Empire."
"She's not with the Empire anymore. She's the reason why Denz, Riq, Rya and I escaped," Lee argued. "We're alive because of her. Now stand aside."
"I won't do that. The last family member of yours cost me everything, " Jules stated darkly. She then looked as though she was going to cry, "How could you keep this from me? I thought you and I were family. I loved you like a brother. You and I….we're the same. We both suffered unimaginable cruelty from the Empire. We both knew what it took to bring them down. We gave everything we had to bring about change and suffered the costs. The only thing got us through it was each other. I threw everything away to help you on Hosian!"
"I didn't ask you to!"
"You didn't have to!" Jules yelled. "I should have known you'd let me down. Just like everyone else. You're nothing but a loth-rat."
"I'd rather be a loth-rat than a vengeful tailhead who's lost sight of right and wrong in the name of justice," Lee insulted knowing how derogatory the name 'tailhead' was to Jules.
"You and me, we're done!" Jules pushed Lee into the side of the wall and struck him. As he tried to get away from her she hit him again in the stomach.
"Hey!" Gil Tane who was passing by stopped to intervene. Jules struggled to hit Lee once more as Gil pulled the two of them apart.
"You alright sir?" Gil asked as he stood between them.
"We're fine," Lee assured him. Jules glared at the two of them and left in a fury.
"Where's the prisoner?" Lee asked Gil.
"Cell 20, should we send in an interrogator droid?"
"No, not necessary. I'll take care of the interrogation myself."
"Very well sir," Gil saluted him. "Hey Lee….how did the trooper know your name?"
"You know," Lee said walking away, "For a soldier you ask a lot of questions."
Lee approached the holding cell. His heart was racing. He hadn't seen Lenore in years. He was glad she was alive, but he feared her fate was sealed in a labor camp. He could do his best to get her assigned to the New Republic Rehabilitation program, but with his current standing in the NRF and Rya's non-existent presence in the senate, it was a long shot. Given Lenore's history with the Empire it was definitely unlikely.
Now in front of cell 20, Lee saw his sister sleeping with her back turned away from the energy shield. She was grown but still slept in the same position they did when they were kids. After all this time, he thought he would know what to say if this day ever came. But he was still at a loss for words. He took a deep sigh and for the first time regretted not taking her with him the day she helped them escape the Imperial Coruscant base. He wondered what she had endured and if she hated him for the years of silence. There was only one way to find out.
"I'd hoped I'd never see you like this." Lee said gently. Lenore turned and opened her eyes. She smiled. Even though she was locked up, she was glad to see her brother. She rose up and placed her right hand against the shield. Lee looked to see that it was a robotic hand "How'd that happen?"
"Ask me no questions and I'll tell you no lies," she said smiling. Lee couldn't help but chuckled and disarmed the shield and embraced his sister tightly. Lenore was one of the few people, if not the only person, that could make him laugh. He hadn't laughed in years. He held her tight wanting to tell her everything he had been through. The friends he'd lost, the horrors he'd seen, the good he had done, about his wife, his child, their mother, all of it. Lenore pushed him back and took a good look into his face, "Well it took nearly a decade but we gave them the ol' switcheroo."
"Lenore," Lee began. He was nervous how the conversation would go. Lenore had plenty to be angry about. But from her tone he sensed she was just as happy to see him as he was her.
"Lee," Lenore sassed.
"I'm glad you're alive," he admitted, looking away. He felt the years of guilt rush over him and send a shiver down his spine and tie knots in his stomach.
"Likewise," she simply replied and playfully patted his shoulder and took a seat on the bench. Lee knew he should step out of the cell and put the shield back up. But he couldn't, he hadn't made up his mind what he was going to do. Would he let her escape or would he try his best with the New Republic?
"You look tired big brother," Lenore said tilting her head.
"I am," Lee gasped as they withstood the awkward silence. The sound of footsteps up the hallways caused him to quickly step out of the cell and reactivate the shield. "I'm sorry."
"Well, I did blow up the perimeter, which I'm sorry to say was too easy. I would've expected more from the rebels that took out two death stars," Lenore said jokingly.
"No," Lee clenched his first tightly. "For everything."
"Lee," Lenore calmly said.
"I should've never left you on Coruscant, I should've written you back when you were a cadet, I should've stopped you from enlisting–"
"Hey," she interrupted him. "I'm sorry too. We both made choices. It's all in the past now. Besides, you know me. Once I set my mind to something, there's no stopping me."
"I'm glad to see some things don't change," Lee shifted his stance. Lenore was mature and empathetic. She was no longer the impulsive and frustrated girl from Tarkintown. Now that they were reunited he didn't want to part ways. They after all were family. "I'm going to get you out of here."
"That would definitely be appreciated," Lenore said, looking the cell up and down hoping Lee would take the hint and cut her loose.
"No,"Lee said. "Legitimately. No more running Lenore. It's time to go home."
"Lee, I've got no home. Apart from an old clunker I barely take out, I don't really have a homestead. It may sound depressing but it is actually liberating," She replied. "I did it. I got it back," Lee said.
"The farm?" She was surprised.
"Yes," Lee said. "My wife and kid are there. And you should be too."
"Kid?,"She was shocked by the news. She then smiled warmly. "Don't stick your neck out for me. If you were able to create a new life in the New Republic, you don't need me messing it up."
"You won't," He assured her. "I know it. It's time to come home. We've got a lot of time to make up for."
"Lee, it's impossible," Lenore leaned back against the wall. "There's no way with my history–"
"I'll handle it," Lee winked. He hadn't been able to say that to her since they were kids. Lenore did not look convinced and shrugged. "I'll call in a favor. For now just rest."
"That simple huh?" Lenore skeptically asked. "What you leaving out, Tersu?"
"Ask me no questions and I'll tell you no lies," Lee smirked and walked away. He had to save Lenore. He failed saving his father, his mother, and now his sister needed him. He had to do everything he could. Even if it meant calling Denz Loncak.