The race away from Mustafar had left the crew of the Firestorm with very little to do. The first few days of hyperspace had seen the entire crew, Luke, Winter, and Ahsoka included, repairing battle damage. While the carrier hadn't seen much action during the engagement, a few torpedoes from the Dominion as it had joined the fray had left some wounds in the hull and engineering sections.

After that was done, though, Luke had retreated to his quarters. The ship and its formerly military nature had left the entire ship with a distinctly ascetic sense. The metal bulkheads that served as the walls for his quarters were devoid of any decoration, with the only furniture apart from the bunk being a small end table that held some of Luke's personal belongings that he had brought from the Riptide.

His door chime rang, and he walked to the cabin door. He opened it, to see Winter there. "Hey," Winter said, a little smile on her face. "I got something when I was searching the Holonet."

Luke furrowed his brow. "What's that?" He stepped back to let her into the small officer's quarters.

She held out a datacard, which she slipped into the terminal in his quarters. The screen flipped to an image of Queen Breha. Luke felt a tensing in his shoulders. "I found it on one of the private channels that I run in. I think she's got someone on staff to filter this to us."

Luke considered that a moment. "Play it, let's see what she was able to say."

She pressed a button,and Breha's face became animated as she started to speak. "Luke, Winter. It's been a few weeks in being able to just release this. The Empire has been restricting my access to the media, but a sympathetic Imperial officer was able to smuggle this for me to a slicer. The first thing I wish to assure you is that I am safe, and that word has reached us of what you have accomplished against the Empire even in our blockaded state.

"I'm proud of both of you, for doing what is right. You're doing what your father and I have taught you to do, and standing up for those who can't." Her face turned sorrowful. "We still don't have any news on Bail. I believe that the only reason the Empire keeps him alive is to see that I don't fight them harder." She took a breath. "Whatever you do, Luke, Winter, keep doing what you believe is right. I love you both, so much. Let Ahsoka protect you, and continue to be that wonderful children we raised you as." Tears were in the hologram's eyes. "May the Force be with you both."

The image cut, and Luke looked over to Winter. His usually stoic sister was looking down at the ground. "We shouldn't be here." She said. "We should be back there, liberating Alderaan."

"We barely survived rescuing a Jedi." He said, his voice soft. "We don't have the troops to fight an Imperial legion."

Winter sighed. "You're right." She looked over at him. "I did pick up some intelligence when working with Captain Serrin's team."

"What's that?"

"We discovered a Fresian group of engineers, doing starfighter engineering for the Empire. They want to defect."

"Defect?" Luke arched an eyebrow. "We can't be that popular already."

"Anti-Empire sentiment is high. Serrin and Mothma released holos of the Mustafar base's destruction. They're calling it, officially, the Alliance to Restore the Republic."

"Not very catchy." Luke remarked. "I liked it better when we were just rebels. So, these engineers, what do they want from us?"

"A rescue." Winter said. "I'm going to pitch to Serrin a rescue mission. I've looked over the intel that Ahsoka's spy network has. Fresia's not the production facility for the Incom corporation, just one of their research outposts. It won't be too heavily defended."

Luke caught on quick. "A team to infiltrate the station, preferably one with pilots to steal any ships."

"That's the idea," Winter nodded. "Think it's worth it?"

Luke leaned back against the bulkhead. After a moment's contemplation, he nodded. "Make sure to include a few recommendations for pilots."

Winter smiled. "Your name's second on the list after Antilles."

"Um, what?" Luke paused a moment.

"I actually want to place you in command, but I think that might be overstepping it. Listen, Ahsoka's of the opinion we need more leaders. We Organas are supposed to step up, right?"

"I hadn't considered it." He thought about it for a moment. "We'll bring it to Mon Mothma and Garm Bel Iblis. We'll decide from there." He said. "We need to have a unified front on this."

Winter let a little smile cross her face. "I'll set up the holocomm then. Tomorrow morning?"

"I'll be there, at your back."

Luke had learned early in his life to never take dreams at face value. The Force moved in mysterious ways. As Ahsoka had explained it to him once when he was younger, the Force showed glimpses of the future and of the past, even if the former was mutable, ever-changing.

Luke had assumed at first that this was something from his past. He was at the riverside palace of House Girard, at what would have been one of many balls of the seasonal circuits. He couldn't place this particular one in his memories, though it must have been before he started going on diplomatic envoys with Ahsoka six months before Alderaan fell.

He wore a high-collared gold jacket and tunic, with boots and trousers that might have suggested a military cut. While it wasn't a particularly Alderaanian fashion, even the Organas hadn't entirely dismissed the martial leanings of fashion that had risen in recent years.

There were faces that passed him by, but none he could remember. He couldn't even remember any of their features. He stood at ceremony, watching the reeling dancers on the wood dance floor that had been erected outside, dancing in the faintly-lit summer evening by the river.

Then a voice he had heard once before spoke. "Your Highness, may I have this next dance?"

Mara Jade wore an outfit that might have belonged in the Imperial Navy, were it not for the lack of rank insignia, and its obvious quality of make. Her red hair was artfully braided, bringing her intense, classical features to the front.

"I haven't had the honor," Luke said, extending his hand, even if he knew the answer.

The Imperial agent bowed and kissed his hand, her warm lips just grazing his skin. "Mara Jade, Your Highness. May I have an answer, or do all royals like to keep a public servant waiting?"

Luke offered her his hand, this time with the palm up. Mara placed her hand in his, and they walked to the dance floor. The next song was a slow waltz, that Luke recognized as a number that had been in fashion in the Clone Wars. It had come back into fashion of late, in military dance halls.

The two danced closely together, moving with an ease that Luke appreciated. Luke chuckled softly. "You dance very well, Miss Jade. And this is coming from someone who has to dance at balls every other week."

Mara gave a little smile. She didn't have to look up at him, and their eyes burned into each others'. "Oh, you learn a few things at the Academy."

"You don't dance like a soldier." He said, keeping his voice low. "Soldiers only know how to lead."

"Even the women, Prince Charming?" She asked, a hint of mirth in her tone.

Luke allowed himself a chuckle. "Especially the women." He said. "Alderaan is a popular leave destination. Some of the officers from richer families do enjoy indulging themselves in the intricacies of a ball. And all the soldiers lead."

Mara then shifted her hands, and took the lead. Luke let her, feeling a thrill run through his spine. He knew that in the world outside, she chased him. Luke wondered what it would be like if she caught him. "You have excellent form as well. Only the best for Breha and Bail's?"

Luke snorted. "My sister is much more adept with a vibroblade than a dance floor."

That drew a smile from the agent. "I like your sister. It sounds like she has her priorities straight in life." Mara's hand on his waist slid lower. "And what about you, Prince Charming? What captures your mind beyond endless balls, politics, and the life of a junior Imperial diplomat?"

His face lit with a smile. "Flight."

Mara woke with a start. She gasped, desperate for air as she found herself back in her cabin on the Jade Fang. It was dark, and she found herself shivering, and not just from the cold depths of space. Whatever she had just experienced was no mere dream.

Mara moved out of bed, her feet touching cold deck plates. She activated the lights, bringing a dim illumination to the cabin. She exited, heading to the fore compartments and the cockpit. The ship's corridors were cold and dry, leaving Mara with a slight chill as she made her way to the cockpit.

Whatever it was about Organa, she knew that dream was nothing that simple. That was something they had shared, though she couldn't explain it. Something connected them through the Force, something Mara didn't understand. Not yet. But there was something she knew, that dawned on her, and she didn't realize why, at least not yet.

She couldn't tell the Emperor. Not until she had discovered the source of this unusual link. She would not be compromised. She'd drag it out of him, whether he liked it or not.