Chapter Thirty-four
Jacen sat in the chair in front of the comm unit in his sister's apartment. The light from the blue screen cast an eerie glow on his solemn features. He had just spoken to Tenel Ka. Both had felt the death of their friend Zekk. She had tracked Jacen down before he'd been able to contact her.
"Uncle Jasa?" Ani's voice called. Jacen turned to face his niece. She was standing in front of her bedroom door, clothes rumpled from sleep. He'd offered to stay with the children that night for Syal.
"What are you doing up, Ani?" he asked quietly.
She walked towards him and said, "Something bad happened. Is that why you are sad?"
"A friend of mine died," he told her gently. Ani knew Zekk. Jacen didn't know how much Jaina and Jag had told Ani about death. He hated that he had to be the one to tell her, but she needed to know, to understand. He guessed that she had sensed Jaina's shock, not Zekk disappearing from the Force. She hadn't been close to him, nor was she strong enough yet.
"Is that why Mama felt sad?" she asked, confirming his suspicious.
"Yes," Jacen glanced up towards the door. He wasn't surprised to see Davin enter the room. Even if he hadn't felt something from Jaina, any time Ani was in distress he was close by. "Come here, Davin. I have something I need to tell you two."
Jacen took a deep breath and let it out. He hoped Jaina wouldn't be upset with him for having this conversation. The truth of the matter was that they would probably find out soon. Jacen would have to let Corran and the other Jedi on the base who hadn't felt it know. Keeping such a matter from two observant Force-sensitive children was next to impossible.
"Zekk died today," he said slowly. "He was one of your teachers."
Davin's face was unreadable, an expression he had undoubtedly inherited from his father. His green eyes flicked over to his sister, and then back at Jacen. Ani's eyes filled with tears as her lower lip trembled. She bit it to try to stop it. Davin reached out and grabbed her hand. He said, "Ani, Mommy's fine. You can feel her still."
Jacen squeezed his eyes shut. He could kick himself for not making the connection. The children knew Zekk and Lowbacca had joined Jaina's squadron. It was only natural for them to fear something had happened to her as well. Jacen pulled Ani on his lap and said, "It's okay, Ani. Your mom and dad are fine."
The words seemed to calm her down. Jacen remembered when he was a child. Reassurance from his parents usually relaxed him. He hoped it would be a long time before Ani lost that.
"Did Zekk hurt?" Ani asked quietly as tears rolled down her cheeks.
Jacen didn't know the answer to her question, but he wasn't going to make her feel worse. He said, "No."
Ani was satisfied with the answer. Jacen was relieved. He hoped he was right. He hated to think his friend had suffered before he died. He stood up, continuing to hold Ani. He told both children, "You two need to get back to bed."
Ani shook her head, "Can't sleep."
Jacen pursed his lips. The past several days had been hard for the children before what had just happened. Their presence also comforted him. He just wouldn't tell Jaina that he let them stay up. "Okay, go change and we'll go see if we can't find something good to eat in the mess."
Ani and Davin looked at him excitedly. Ani squirmed down from his arms and darted into their bedroom. Davin waited until she was in the room before he said, "Mom and Dad are still in danger."
Jacen nodded gravely. Davin's perceptiveness reminded him so much of Anakin. No empty reassurances would sway Davin. He rested his hands on his nephew's shoulders as he said, "I know. Go and get dressed."
About twenty minutes later, Jacen, Ani and Davin were seated at a table in the mess hall eating some frozen cream with chocolate sauce. Jacen had found it in the back of the freezer.
"What are you three doing up?" Wedge called as he entered the hall. He sat down at their table, holding a steaming mug.
Jacen leaned over and whispered to Wedge what had happened to Zekk. Wedge gave him a solemn look. He turned to Ani and asked, "Where did you find that?"
"Uncle Jacen found it in the back," Davin answered as he scraped his bowl.
Wedge started to laugh, "I'm betting that was Janson's. I keep telling him anything in the kitchen is fair game."
Ani giggled, "Mama and Daddy never let us stay up."
"And your Mama will be very upset with me if she finds out," Jacen responded with a wince. "Finish up, you two."
Ani and Davin exchanged amused looks as they finished eating. Wedge glanced at his wrist chrono and said, "Jacen, let me know if you hear anything. Goodnight, you two."
"Goodnight, Uncle Wedge," the children said as he left their table. Jacen cleaned up the area. He wanted to reach out to Jaina, but didn't dare do it while the children were awake. He didn't want to distract her, either.
"Alright, you two, time to go back to bed," he said as they hopped off the benches and followed him. He grinned to himself as he listened to them chatter. Regardless of what happened, he would take care of them.
Jag stared at the wall displays in front of him. He was seated at a table in his father's ready room with Jaina. She held his hand on the table. Jag had applied a bacta bandage to his side and his other injuries had been attended to. His father was standing to the right of the main computer screen, arms crossed and eyes unfocused in thought.
A list of fifteen planets filled the screen. Chandrilla, Droxu and Harleon were marked in green, signaling that the missions on those planets were a success. Kalee was red, as were Elom and Noonar, signaling failure. In total, nine planets were successes; eight were failures. In Jag's opinion, it was eight too many.
Jag glanced over to Jaina. Her cheeks were tear-stained. After she had landed inside the Star Destroyer, she had thrown her arms around him in relief. She told him that Zekk had been killed, but hadn't gone into detail. Jag had later found out from Kyp what happened to the Jedi. He squeezed her hand tightly. She turned and smiled sadly at him. She felt guilty about Zekk's death. Not only had she requested he join her squadron, but she had ordered him to help the Ryll Runner.
Only one ship had survived Kalee. Seven people escaped: the smuggler pilot, two team members and four slaves. Britna was dead. One of the former slaves, a Rodian child named Voren, said he saw her fighting. Voren would need to be placed with a family. He was just one of many that needed a home.
Jag rubbed his eyes. The words on the screen were starting to blur together. He was exhausted.
"Jag," Jaina said quietly. "Go get some sleep. There's nothing you can do."
"You need to, too," he responded. She hadn't slept in over a day, either. He was more worried about her than himself. Her eyes looked haunted with grief and guilt.
"She's right, Jagged. We'll call you if something else happens," Soontir added, turning to face him.
Jag knew better than to argue with the two of them. He stood up from the table and followed Jaina from the room. He wrapped an arm around her waist as they walked. He wasn't sure who was leaning on the other more. The other pilots had either gone to their rooms or were recovering in the medward. Any slaves in critical condition were given priority. The two smuggler ships continued to evacuate the colony. Once all the slaves were gone, they would be taken to Bespin to receive more medical attention.
Jaina and Jag stumbled into their quarters. They changed out of their dirty clothes and cleaned up in silence. They collapsed on the bunk. Jag tilted her face towards his. He leaned down and pressed his lips against hers in a soft kiss. He wound his fingers through her long hair. He had known she survived the encounter, but couldn't completely believe it until she was in his arms again. He pulled away from her slowly and she settled against him. They were asleep within minutes.
Jaina knelt down on the deck of one of the observation galleries aboard the Steadfast. She was welding pieces of sheet metal together to make a pyramid. With a laser cutter she had cut a small opening in one side.
It was a marker for Zekk. After the war ended and the new Jedi headquarters were established, she would place the marker there. She knew that others had created similar items for fallen. Jaina and Han had built one for Anakin years ago. Leia, Jacen, Luke, Mara and Tahiri had helped them fill it. It was sitting in a lockbox in the Millennium Falcon.
Jaina had etched a cultural symbol from Ennth on one side. It meant "Rebirth." She thought it was appropriate for Zekk. He had changed so much. He had gone from a child with a home to a stowaway. He had reinvented himself after he fell to the Dark Side, first becoming a bounty hunter and then a Jedi. She was planning to add a small Corscanti symbol on another side and a Jedi marking on a third. She had written his name on the final side. Lowie had been helping her, until he was called away.
The former slaves had been evacuated and those who were strong enough were undergoing questioning. The Chiss had set up a camp on the planet, clearing out and capturing the remaining Vong. Jag was contacting the surviving operations, arranging a mass rendezvous at Bespin. In an hour and a half, the Steadfast would jump to hyperspace.
Jaina pulled off her welding mask and set it on the floor next to her. She ran her fingers over the etchings on the marker. She didn't know if it would sit in the ground, or be attached to a wall. She had sent her uncle a short message alerting him of Zekk's death. She had forwarded it to Tenel Ka, Jacen and the other members of the Mrkyr strike team. She knew some would have sensed it, but they all needed to hear it. It made the loss more real when she said it.
She and Zekk hadn't spent much time together since the Academy, but she still considered him one of her friends. The two of them had spent hours working together. He had been her first crush. He had taught Ani and Davin for several months. She had felt surprise from her children, but they were okay now. She hadn't been able to contact them, but at least she and Jag would be back in a day and a half.
Jaina wiped away the tears that had formed in her eyes. Zekk was one more Jedi, one more friend lost. His sacrifice had torn at the fabric of the Force. Nothing could replace him.
Colonel Klar tapped his fingers on the conference room table in agitation. Wedge watched him from across the room with amusement. Klar had gotten out of actually going out on any engagements. He had instead spent the past several days watching the monitors and listening to communications. Anywhere the Empire succeeded, he took partial credit. All the reports had been rerouted to him before reaching Bastion. Wedge suspected he was adding in his name.
Iella slipped into the chair next to Wedge. She pressed a datacard into his hand as she whispered, "Here's an updated report from Jag."
Wedge pulled his datapad out of his pocket and slipped in the card. He scanned the text. It was a detailed list of each planet and current mission statuses. Wedge added the information to his own listing. Part of him wondered how Jag had managed to finish it so quickly. He would forward the completed report, along with his own analysis, to the military council and Chief of State.
One of Klar's aides appeared, and he followed her out of the room. Wedge took advantage of his absence to turn and talk to his wife. "What's next?"
"All the captives are on their way back here," Iella told him.
"You know I don't mind helping, but the Empire and Chiss could take some of them. We don't have enough supplies," he said dejectedly.
Iella didn't have an answer for him. She picked up his hand, rubbing his palm with her thumb. Wedge closed his eyes. He had to admit that he didn't know if Jag's idea would work. He knew his nephew would never suggest a plan that wasn't well thought out or plausible. He didn't know what would happen next. The heads of the government didn't tell him much. His job was to keep the Bespin base running smoothly. Of course, being married to the head of the Intelligence division did give him a slight advantage the others at his level of authority. Iella didn't tell him everything; just what she felt he should know.
"Syal and Myri volunteered to help Mirax with everyone coming in on the Pulsar Skate," Iella said after awhile. "I think it will be good for them to do something proactive."
"Are you sure they are ready?" Wedge asked. He wished he could shelter his daughters from the pain and destruction. They still had nightmares about their escape from Coruscant. Those weeks when he didn't know if they had survived were the worst of his life.
Iella nodded, "Yes. They know what's going on. It's time for them to help. Mirax will keep an eye on them."
Wedge squeezed her hand as he asked, "When will Mirax be here?"
"Sometime in the next day or so. The Errant Venture will be close behind," she said. "The rest of the transports are coming in over the next three days."
"I'll tell Dr. Alvin," Wedge stated. Alvin was the head of the medcenter on the base. Wedge closed his datapad and put it in his pocket. He stood up from the table. Klar wasn't coming back and Wedge was tired of waiting on the insufferable man.
"Going now?" Iella asked.
"Might as well," Wedge told her. "Walk with me?"
Iella smiled at him, "I have a few minutes before my conference call.
She took his arm. Once again, Wedge thanked the Force that he was able to convince Omas to allow the Intelligence division to stay on Bespin.