People can be broken from the weirdest reasons. And in the weirdest ways.

Tanya

:_:

"Master Solo."

Jaina slipped into the room, followed by her all-Jedi entourage.

Conference room on the Phantom Rival was an octagonal room – very unusual layout – with round corners. It was painted minty-green, with a huge round illuminating pod in the center of the ceiling, which filled the whole room with cold white light, lighting up the white stuffed furniture and glass-boarded table in the middle into such degree that they felt like they just entered a star's core.

In a massive egg-shaped chair resembling throne sat a refined human man with indistinctly brown hair dressed in expensive business suit. At his side stood a petite Rodian aide clad in white robes that resembled Leia Solo's old dress in which she first met her future husband, Han, Jaina's father.

"Senator Norso," Ben said as the door slid shut behind him. "Where's Diplomat Bawan?"

Wan Norso stood up, rounding the table with his aide clinging to his side. "He's in the side chamber," he said, revealing his heavy Onderoni accent. "Duke Onnye is highly alarmed because of the attack."

Ben frowned. "Does that mean that he's not going to join the Alliance?"

"Oh, no," Norso said, smiling. "He thinks that the Sith attack was arranged by the Omniempire. He wants to speed up our negotiations and join the Alliance as fast as he can, so we can provide him with defense against the Omniempire's flotilla."

"Omniempire?" Jaina echoed.

"It's a small government containing about six or seven planets in this sector," Norso explained. "Gwallishan duchy set up an insurrection and broke away. Now they are feared of the implications of their actions."

"Well, considering its size, it's a bit megalomaniac, this Omniempire," Allana said.

Norso's eyes flashed form Jaina to her and he immediately made a bow. "Chume'da Allana Djo, right?"

"Allana Djo Solo, but very right indeed, Senator."

Ben experience a little glimpse, distinctly seeing Leia Organa Solo in Allana's upright posture and gentle speaking, but then he came to realize that Allana was as much her mother as she was her grandma. He also saw glimpses of Jacen Solo in her, in her eyes becoming more and more eyes of an adventurer as she continued her journeys over the galaxy at Jaina's side, and in her steely resolve to do what was right.

Norso cracked a smile that gashed his face like a cutting wound. "It's a great pleasure to meet you, Chume'da. Why have you chosen to visit us?"

"She's there with me," Jaina said, sounding a bit dismissive. "As a Jedi support."

Senator took the hint and didn't poke into it. He turned around and returned into his "throne". "Take your seats," he said, waving his hand around. "I'm sure the meeting will start every minute." He looked at his chrono. "Head of my security will be here in no time, and I am certain that Diplomat Bawan is not willing to drag on his hearing at the Duke."

"Okay, then," Jaina said, motioning her comrades to follow her as she assumed the chair opposite Norso, not that much big but similarly shaped.

Allana took the seat at her right, Ben on her left and Wandaq sat next to him.

It was a way to show Norso that Jedi weren't explicitly on his side, though they were now pursuing the same goal.

Door behind Jaina opened, causing the Jedi Master to flinch as two armored figures marched in, rounded the table without noticing the swelling numbers of Jedi onboard and came to halt in Norso's plain view.

Norso waved his hand with a smile. "Very well. Take a seat, commander Gev. The meeting will start every minute."

Gev nodded and sat down on Norso's left. The other mandalorian sat next to her.

"May I introduce you Jedi Master Jaina Solo…" Norso began.

"We know each other, Senator," Jaina said, nodding at Gev.

Gev replied with a slight tilt of her head.

"Oh," Norso looked slightly confused. "That's great." He retained his discretion and pointed at Allana. "And this is her…"

"Apprentice," Jaina advised.

"Apprentice, Chume'da Allana Djo Solo."

Gev sounded disinterested. "Pleased to meet you, Chume'da Djo."

"The same to you, ma'am," Allana said.

"I'm Mirta Gev," She introduced herself and jerked her head toward her comrade. "And this is Aik Skirata, my second-in-command."

Aik raised a hand and offered the young Jedi a slightly ironic wave.

Jaina leant to Ben. "What's Gev doing here?" she asked, whispering.

"Norso hired her and her mandos to protect him and Diplomat Bawan on this mission," Ben answered.

"I noticed the Bes'uliiks in the hangar," Jaina nodded. "But why a whole army of mandos?"

Ben shrugged. "Maybe Onnye isn't the only one afraid of the Omniempire here," he suggested.

Before Jaina could say more, arced white door on the far side of the room opened, revealing a somber Togorian.

He was dressed in luxurious dark-blue and black attire which was in tune with his dark fur, crossed with dark-grey stripes.

Norso turned his chair to face the man. "Diplomat Bawan," he said with a broad smile. "Great."

Togorian diplomat didn't twitch a muscle. "Duke Onnye is restless," he said. "He wants to hurry up the "bureaucracy stuff", as he calls it."

Norso nodded, growing serious. "But we cannot make him a member of the GA overnight. We still didn't solve the issue about their navy."

"He knows it. But the Advisory Council will not give up on their only chance of self-defense. Duke is sure about this."

Ben leant forward and joined the conversation. "He still does not trust us?"

Bawan turned to him. "He does, but the Council doesn't think highly of the Alliance. They doubt they will rush to help a border planet."

"If we didn't want to help them stay independent on the Omniempire, why would we try so much to make them join us?"

Norso glanced at him. "Son, if the Council was as smart as you are…"

"The Council is sympathizing with the Omniempire," Wandaq said, frowning. "Duke insists that there is someone putting people up to rebel. If the Council is doing its best to subvert the Duke…"

"You can't just bring an accusation like this against someone, boy," Bawan said. "There is no proof that the Council is behind this."

"Gwallish is isolated right now. No one landed on the planet for months. It's someone inside. And the Council has the best conditions for a coup."

Norso raised his brow. "Oh, you are suggesting there is a coup attempt going on?"

Wandaq shrugged. "I don't see another reason for the attempt to disrupt Duke's power."

"What if the people are stirring because they don't want to be a duchy?" Ben suggested. "Maybe they strain after democracy."

"Gwallishan duchy is a constitutional monarchy," Norso said, shaking his head. "The Advisory Council is voted by the public. They already have the democracy."

"But Duke has the final word, right?" Ben insisted. "I think they want a direct democracy."

Norso considered the idea for a while, then noticed the way Jaina and Gev were looking around the room, apparently disinterested, as well as Allana's discreet interest in the discussion.

"That's certainly a theory that deserves further investigation, Jedi Skywalker," he said with a little nod of approval, "But we are here to discuss something else."

"Yes," Bawan nodded, taking a seat next to the Senator. "We are here to talk about the prisoners."

Jaina straightened up. "Yes."

Norso beckoned to Gev. "I've asked Commander Gev to assemble a quick report."

"I have already briefed the Council on the matter," Ben said.

Jaina nodded. "We know the basis, yes, but go on."

Gev obeyed and plucked her datapad into the table. Little holo unit in the middle of the table lit up with a spherical image of Gwallish with a small Mon Calamari cruiser in its orbit.

"More than week ago, GA cruiser Phantom Rival was attacked by an unknown flotilla."

There was some activity on the periphery of the image, and a handful of ships, mostly smaller cruisers, which were soon followed with a massive ship of the size of a star destroyer, with jut-studded egg-shaped hull.

"The Phantom Rival contacted the flagship, the Zaam…"

The egg-shaped ship blinked red.

"…and after the hostility of approaching ships was confirmed, we sent word to the Gwallishan Navy."

A cluster of odd-looking vessels, accompanied by some almost-ancient crafts like something fairly resembling Venator-class star destroyer, a ship which was used during the late years of the Old Republic, came out of the Gwallish's atmosphere.

"During the battle, the Phantom Rival was boarded by a unit of enemy soldiers. Jedi Wandaq led the group into a trap we set up on the bridge…"

The image changed to a recording of a fiery fight, where a mass of armored mandalorians, headed by Gev, kept the lightsaber-wielding enemies under constant fire, while Wandaq, a green-and-brown swirl of light and cloth, was striking at them with his lightsaber.

"… where we managed to eliminate most of the strike team. Three of them were unconscious. We captured them and brought them into the prison block for questioning. Jedi Skywalker in the meantime took the flotilla's commanding officer, Vestara Khai, prisoner."

A high-quality image of Vestara's slender figure with a mass of long hair billowing around her head as she looked about, apparently shouting, pivoting with a feline grace.

Jaina gazed at Ben for a moment. He faced her gaze without a flinch.

Gev continued to speak, ignoring Jaina's bewildered look. "On Diplomat Bawan's request, our prisoners were put into custody and questioned."

"Were they tortured?" Allana asked.

Jaina's look finally broke away from Ben's as she turned her head a bit to glance at her niece, quickly looking back at Gev.

Gev offered them a little shrug. "We used intimidation."

"I cannot imagine Mandalorian avoiding violence," Wandaq said, stabbing Gev with a stare of his dark eyes.

"We tried to reduce the violence to acceptable minimum," Norso said nervously.

Ben frowned. "I haven't approved on that."

"You approved using harder methods during the interrogation of the Sith prisoners," Gev retorted. Her face was controlled, but sharp.

"I haven't approved on torture. Just the menacing."

"You yourself…"

"It was just a threat. I wasn't serious about it."

"You asked us to avoid violence," the other Mandalorian, Skirata, said. He took off his blue helmet, revealing a young but gnarled face. "We tried to avoid violence. They gave us no other choice. Few of them even attacked my…" he paused and casted an apologetic look on Gev, who ignored him, "…our men."

"So you cracked their legs for it? Just as retribution?"

Jaina scowled not at Skirata, but at Ben. "Ben, they are Sith."

"And I'm a Jedi," Ben snapped.

"We all know we need the information they can provide us with," Bawan interposed. "According to the information we got from the young Keshiri, the Sith are preparing for invasion. If we knew more about them before it happens, we could be more efficient in…"

Ben's eyes widened in bewilderment. "You tortured a teenager?"

"She is a Sith apprentice," Skirata spat.

"She is a kid. When did we Jedi start to torture kids?" he casted a glance at Jaina. "I think Jacen was the first one in this trend."

"Jedi Skywalker, you're jittery," Norso said softly. "Calm down."

Ben sprang to his feet. "I'm not going to stand by while you all approve of torturing adolescents," he snapped and burst away.

"Ben!" Allana called at him and started to rise to run after him. Jaina laid a firm hand on her arm and pulled her back.

"Where are you going, Skywalker?" Bawan shouted after the young man. "Release those prisoners?"

Ben didn't answer.

"What's wrong with the boy?" Norso asked with fatherly concern.

"He's a bit hot-blooded," Jaina said shortly. "And he's right."

Norso and Bawan both frowned and looked at each other.

Allana used the while to lean to her master, whispering. "I think he's out of sorts, aunt Jaina."

Jaina frowned. "I know what you mean."

"Do you think it's really about the Sith kid?"

"I don't know. But something is wrong. I feel it."