Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars
Note: On time, as promised! Thanks to all my new subscribers/reviewers/watchers/readers. I'm quite surprised at how many visitors I've been getting for this fic, so thanks for taking the time to stop by! Also, just a heads up, I may not be able to get an update next weekend as I've got a bit of a busy couple of days planned. Thanks also goes to Liisiko for her awesome beta skills! Finally we get to see a bit more plot stuff going on. I realise it's been quite a slow start, but there is more action ahead, that I promise you.
CHAPTER 5 - Infiltration
Location: Brentaal IV
From this distance, the Rogue Shadow was barely more than a dark speck against the sky. The Apprentice followed it's trajectory with his eyes, watching until the ship accelerated into the folds of hyperspace and disappeared.
Behind him, Boba descended the loading ramp of the Slave I, pausing to cast a glance around them. The scenery was starting to get boring. And so was the cloned apprentice, for that matter. Everything about this job was starting to aggravate him. If it wasn't one thing going wrong, it was another.
The Apprentice shook his head and turned; expression grim.
"Speak." Boba Fett ordered.
If the Apprentice was irritated by the order, he masked it well. "The reject is not with them."
It didn't take a lot of thinking to work out what he meant. The reject was the escaped clone, and if he was not onboard then he was still inside the Rebel base.
"Then we go in. If he's as badly made as you say he is–" a fact that Boba Fett did not think was completely true, "–then you should have no problem killing him."
"It is not yet time to reveal myself." The Apprentice replied evenly. "We both have our orders."
"You have orders." The bounty hunter replied through gritted teeth. "I have a job." Which I can walk away from if I want, he thought silently, unlike you.
The Apprentice did not reply.
"You can sense his presence from this far away?" The bounty hunter asked, though he did not care much for the answer. Sith or Jedi; they were all one and the same. Useful, to an extent perhaps, but untrustworthy, too.
"Yes." The Apprentice moved past him and back up into the ship.
Losing patience, Boba Fett followed, seating himself in the pilot's chair and patching through to a secure line.
A moment later and the connection was made; the face of a grizzled human male looming at them from the holographic panel. The man was one who had not aged well; his brow deeply furrowed and his eyes sagging. He held himself with a great deal of self-importance, but Boba knew better. This officer had been given a job to do, but he understood little – if any – of the 'why'.
"I thought you were not to contact us until the job was done." The man spat.
"My job would be done by now if you hadn't failed to deliver." Boba responded coldly.
"What? Failed? Explain!"
"The need was not dire or irresistible enough to lure away all of the targets. It seems that you'll have to make them a more tempting offer."
"I didn't think those Rebels had the option of being particular about what opportunities they took." The officer snapped.
"Two of the targets are on their way now. Make sure they find something there that will call for a second look." He cut off the transmission, leaned back in his chair and waited.
"There it is. Brentaal IV." She drew in a deep breath. "Have you ever been there before, Kota?"
"No." He replied. "Getting in and out may take some time, but I don't think it'll be too much of a threat."
Directing her gaze back to the surface, she concluded that he was right. The volumes of traffic going back and forth were immense; streaming with ships of all shapes and sizes. The Rogue Shadow was an unusual ship but, sat amongst the rest of the rabble she could see, it would blend in nicely.
"It might be a good idea if I set her down and wait for you to return, in that case."
"We'll have to pay the docking fee." Kota reminded.
"We'll draw less attention, though, if we dock and stay than if I leave and return again within a couple of days."
The man bit indecisively at his bottom lip. "Galen wouldn't approve. He'd want you up and out of danger."
She made a face. "Galen worries too much. Besides, if you get into trouble and I can't get down to you…" She trailed off, shaking her head. "I can't risk that happening."
Kota didn't seem particularly happy about the situation but said nothing to deter her.
Smiling victoriously she directed them down to join the throng of ships moving in to land. The planet loomed closer, tilting sickeningly as she corrected their path and followed a Lambda-class shuttle at some distance.
"Okay, here we go." Increasing speed, Juno made some minute adjustments to the ship's alignment, checked the wings and began a descent. In front of her the Lambda-class shuttle dropped away: having been given its landing coordinates. Bringing up the data from her datapad onto the main console, she double-checked the information she had been given.
Static buzzed over the comm. and she leapt to respond.
Names and ship details handed over; co-ordinates to their destination were quickly relayed and set into the navi-computer. No hitches at all. Setting the Rogue Shadow onto autopilot, Juno flicked through the last of the data.
"We'll be reaching the Votrad starport in about…one hour." She checked the time. "Once we set down I'll need to organise paying the fee and registering. After that you're free to go. I suggest that PROXY takes my shape as you leave so they believe the ship is empty. After that, he can change and adapt to any situation that arises." She double-checked the frequency for Kota's com-link, ensuring it worked to receive and relay.
"Stop worrying, Juno. It'll be fine. Remember, you've done this sort of thing before. This will be no different."
"I know. I'd just feel better if he were here."
"Honestly, Juno, I think he's better off where he is. He's been through a lot and I don't think he's ready to join with us again just yet."
"I think you're right, but I'm still worried about him." Absently, she rubbed at her still healing shoulder. "He's really not in a good place at the moment."
"He'll be fine. Once we return, I'll arrange a meeting with the Senators and let them know about him. We can't keep him a secret forever and he'll be needed in the future – no doubt about it."
"And what if they don't want his help?" Juno asked softly.
Kota scowled. "I'll convince them."
They halted their conversation to go through mission detail until they were greeted by the starport staff and guided down to land. Warning PROXY to stay out of sight, Juno moved to finalise the docking fee.
The whole process took longer than expected and, by the time they were finally ready, Juno's nerves had twisted into a tight bundle in her stomach. Wondering whether she'd finally lost her nerve, she watched as PROXY and Kota prepared to depart the ship.
The holodroid had transformed into an exact replica of herself; from the crinkles in her clothes to the weary expression on her face. It startled her to see just how tired she looked and it took her a moment before she could drag her eyes away. "Be safe, both of you."
"There's nothing to worry about."
She rolled her eyes, gave them a small smile and turned back to the cockpit to take her seat. She heard the sounds of their feet on the loading ramp and then the hiss of the hydraulics as it drew in on itself; sealing and locking behind them.
Tapping into the correct frequency, she checked that the signal was clear and couldn't hide the smile from her voice. "Blackout to Blackguard. Do you read?"
"Loud and clear. I'll make contact again once we're inside."
She leaned back in her chair and waited. After all, there wasn't much else she could do. It was up to them, now.
Kota stepped into the welcome lounge of the huge starport, PROXY, still in his Juno disguise, following a couple of steps behind. The room – despite its huge expanse and high ceilings – was stuffy and crammed with an assortment of visitors and workers alike. Most were human, though he spotted a small group of Rodians chattering enthusiastically in their native tongue. They were mostly ignored by the passers by.
"Pay attention to the uniforms, PROXY." Kota muttered under his breath. "You may need to replicate them later." He'd have to rely on PROXY's observation skills for the time being, it was difficult to focus his 'Force-vision' properly in such a chaotic place.
"Already doing so, General."
"And keep talking to a minimum." He noticed that whilst Juno-PROXY did indeed look like her, there was a slightly robotic edge to the voice which became more obvious the louder he spoke. The droid was clearly still in need of repairs.
They moved across to a large reception desk being managed by a lone female human and a small army of protocol droids. Leaning against the desk, Kota tried to catch the attention of one of them, shoving PROXY behind him with an elbow.
"Can I help you, Sir?" A droid turned helpfully towards them a moment later and Kota pointed a finger down on the desktop where the layout of the huge complex stretched out before them.
"I need directions. Can you show me where I am at the moment?"
The droid made a small, chattering noise and – with precise tapping on the console in front of it – enhanced a portion of the map, setting an indicator where they were stood. It blinked a vibrant yellow.
He turned to PROXY and asked. "Is this where we are supposed to be?"
The droid leaned forwards and nodded. "Yes. Seems so."
Kota nodded thoughtfully.
"Where are you trying to get to, Sir?" The droid asked helpfully.
"Oh, I just wanted to check I was in the right place. Do you know whether a Captain Evets has arrived yet? I was due to meet him here at two."
"Sorry, Sir, I don't believe he has. Would you mind waiting whilst I find out for you?" The droid bustled across to the other side of the desk, catching the attention of the rather harassed looking woman. After a moment of conversation the woman looked across at them, scowled a little and then shook her head. The droid returned a moment later.
"My apologies, Sir. We have no record of a Captain Evets. Did he assign you a pass to get through into Imperial class?"
"Sadly not. No matter. We'll wait here." He turned back and, with a hand on PROXY's shoulder, steered him away. "Find us a table near the far side, will you? Might as well have a drink whilst we wait."
"If you don't mind me asking, General. Who exactly are we waiting for?"
"Captain Evets, of course."
A couple of drinks later and Juno tried to make contact with them again. "Any progress, Blackguard?" She already sounded infinitely bored. However, at that exact moment, the person Kota had been waiting for appeared.
"Not now." He muttered under his breath, cutting off transmission. Leaning forwards, he caught PROXY's attention and pointed at a young woman with auburn hair cut into an absurdly neat little bob. She had an arm full of papers and was carefully maneuvering around the gatherings of people. He'd spent the past forty-five minutes focusing on the comings and goings of everyone in the room. She, in particular, seemed to come and go frequently.
"I see her." The holodroid confirmed.
"She's our ticket inside." Kota leapt to his feet with surprising swiftness and weaved through the crowds towards her. PROXY was hastening to catch up until the old Jedi drew to a halt and gave the droid a hurried order. "I'm going to knock over that woman. Whilst she's scrabbling about after the papers she's dropped, see about stealing her pass while you help. As soon as you're done, come find me and we'll get you a new identity."
"Yes, General."
Determined, the Jedi moved towards the woman at quite a pace, not seeming to notice her as he altered his course in direct overlap with hers. He veered at the last moment but not enough to avoid a collision. The poor, short-haired woman was knocked to the ground and Kota wasted no time in making himself scarce; quickly lost amongst the crowds. The disguised PROXY was there a second later to help the woman up.
"Why can't people watch where they're going…?" She was complaining as she pulled herself up off of the floor. With a groan of dismay, she dropped back to her knees a moment later and began to pick up the documents that were now being trodden beneath the boots of unhelpful passers by.
"Here, let me help with that." The droid knelt to pick up a handful of the documents, seeking the pass that Kota had mentioned. He saw it hanging from a clip on her belt and edged around to her side.
"I'm going to be in so much trouble." The woman paled as she hefted a bunch of very crumpled papers up in her hands. "I'm going to be sorting through this all night."
"Some people are so inconsiderate." The droid lamented, keeping his voice quiet to help hide the metallic ring.
"Tell me about it." She leaned further forwards to reach some escaping papers and, with agile movement, PROXY plucked the pass from her belt.
"Here you go." He handed her the papers he had collected and stood, making a show of stretching the ache from his knees.
"Oh, thanks." The woman seemed a little confused as to why the blonde would stop to help and then not see it out to the end. With a shake of her head and a shrug, she moved back to collect the last of the escapees, leaving PROXY to make a swift exit.
So intent on getting away, the droid almost bumped straight into Kota, who had been watching from afar.
"Well done, PROXY." He took the pass from the droid. "Now, do you think you can mimic that woman to get us through the restricted areas?"
"That is what I am here for." Edging out of sight, the droid dropped his Juno disguise and donned his new identity. The face of the auburn-haired woman smiled back and Kota returned the pass to its 'owner'.
"My name is Su Fen." The droid replied in his new voice.
Kota patched through to Juno. "Blackguard to Blackout. Do you copy?"
"Loud and clear, Blackguard. What do you need?"
"Can you see about getting us some information on a 'Su Fen'?"
"I'll give it a shot." She was silent for a good few minutes and then: "Okay, on screen now. Not a lot of information. She's a trainee accountant by the looks of it. Her supervisor is Marl Eurlo. She's recently had a couple of warnings about being behind in her work…" Another pause. "She does, however, have access to the restricted zones."
"All of them?"
"Most."
"Can she get us to Imperial class?"
"Without a doubt."
"Excellent. Blackguard out."
All of them were desperately aware of how much time was passing and how little had yet been achieved. Kota was not one for these sorts of missions. He was a Jedi, yes, but he much preferred direct action rather than all of this sneaking around. He could only hope that all of this hard work would pay off and see the Rebels gain yet another upper hand on the Empire.
They had used the pass to gain access into the restricted corridors and were moving as casually as possible around the slow curve, passing a great number of rooms as they did so.
"Blackout?"
"Here."
"Can we get a schematic of this place?"
"Already on it. However, there is a bit of a problem. There are so many different variations I'm not sure what is the most up-to-date layout. I'll keep them all up on screen just in case."
"No dates?"
"They all seem to be drafts."
Kota gave a grunt of annoyance. "It'll have to do. We just passed room number 254b."
"Okay, up ahead there should be a branch off. You want to go right. I'll be able to confirm if one of—"
"—Hold that thought." Kota interrupted.
A man in his late forties was trudging up the corridor towards them. Before that moment he'd been looking down at a datapad. Now he was looking straight at them.
"Su?"
Su-PROXY froze at Kota's side and blinked, trying to regain some composure. "Yes?"
"I thought you were taking that paperwork to your place to finish? You're not paid overtime to slack off, you know." He was a tall man with a short crop of dark hair and uneven stubble on his chin. If Juno's information had been correct, he was Su's supervisor.
PROXY's disguise looked flustered. "I haven't forgotten. I left without some of the data I needed."
"Think about the brain-transplant, yeah?"
PROXY bristled.
"And who is this? You don't work here." Marl's eyes locked in on Kota.
"No. He doesn't. He's come for a meeting with Captain Evets. The woman at the desk asked me to show him through."
"Never heard of him."
"Me neither. The receptionist says he's one of those ones who were recently promoted."
"Go on then. Get out of here. I don't want to see you again until morning."
"Yes, Sir!"
They waited for him to disappear before hurrying their gait, aware now that they only had until morning to find the information they needed. The moment the real Su walked into their office and her supervisor brought up their after-work conversation, the alert would be raised. If they found no proof of their existence, the supervisor might put it down to sheer forgetfulness on Su's part. Otherwise…
Reaching the fork in the corridors, they swerved right and backed up into the hollow of a doorway to stay out of sight.
"Blackout. We've reached the fork. Tell me what I'm looking for."
"At the end of the corridor there should be a door leading to a huge generator. Through there is a side entrance which will take you through to engineering. However, if this plan is wrong, it could mean another right turn and then following the arc around. If it's the latter, I'll need to guide you through some interconnecting corridors."
With a nod, Kota stepped back out into the corridor and straight into the path of a security droid.
The droid brandished its weapon straight at Kota and his fingers flexed towards the saber hidden in his belt.
"This is a restricted area. State security codes."
Su-PROXY fumbled.
"State security codes."
The disguised droid checked his pass for anything that might be a security code, but even if it was there, he wasn't given time to give a thorough look. The security droid raised its weapon with intent to shoot. His plan, however, was cut short by Kota's lightsaber. The blade came to life, cutting a burning line across the droid's middle, severing it completely in two.
"Blackout. We've hit trouble. Can you see if you can access security codes for this sector?"
"I'll try."
PROXY shook his head. "What are we going to do with the droid, General?"
He pursed his lips in thought and made contact with Juno again. "And another thing. We need to dispose of some droid parts. Is there a waste disposal unit nearby?"
"I'll see what I can find."
In the end, they had quite a bit of navigating to do, working their way through dimly-lit corridors and pausing to let droids pass them by. With no waste disposal in the plans – at least none that Juno could find which wouldn't mean making a huge detour – Kota decided to use the Force to send the pieces of the security droid out into the ravine that ran along the east side of the port.
"Be careful." Juno warned. "The next corridor is under surveillance. I can track its path to guide you by without being seen. Once we're through that then we're almost there."
"Have you managed to find any information on the Imperial class starport?"
"I haven't been able to track it down yet. I'll let you know when I have something."
Kota grinned to himself. Juno had probably thought this mission would be relatively easy going on her, but she had been working non-stop since they had broken through into the restricted zones. He just hoped she didn't burn out before it was done. He imagined it would take them a few hours, yet, to get where they needed to be.
A few hours was right.
Once they were through into the huge Imperial class starport there really was no letting their guard down. The place – though open day and night – was certainly quieter and hard to blend in now that darkness had fallen.
Workers on their night shifts were accompanied by droids who swept floors and wiped tables and bustled busily from one section to the other. A group of soldiers in Imperial uniform sat around some of the larger tables, drinking and laughing.
"There's a cloak room on your left as you head towards the main desk. If you want to go any further today, I suggest you take a detour and see what you can find." Juno's voice whirred over the link.
"If we can get this done tonight we can be away before anyone catches onto anything." Kota turned sharply, almost knocking into Su-PROXY. Looking at the droid he clicked his tongue thoughtfully. "We need to get you a new disguise."
"Let's see..."
His form rippled as the holographic image of Su Fen drained away. In its place was a young man in the Imperial uniform of an officer; two medals pinned to his suit jacket. The face was smooth, eyes bright, but the man was struggling with a swiftly reclining hairline.
A small droid was there to greet them into the cloakroom with a string of high-pitched bleeps. It passed them by without much interest, moving on down through the rails. At this time the cloakroom was mostly empty, save for a few coats which Kota had no qualms about stealing. He shrugged one of the heavy, dark colored coats over his own clothing and buckled it closed. His skin crawled even as he turned to seek PROXY's approval.
"So, what are you called now?" Kota asked.
"I am now Corporal Samson Fyne."
"How do I look?"
"Would you like me to be honest, General?"
"…No. Come on, let's go." Reaching for the com-link, he made contact with Juno. "Blackout. We're disguised and ready to go. Any luck with the schematics?"
"Sorry, I'm not making much progress back here. I normally wouldn't suggest going in dark but…we could be here for a while. The systems are well protected. Very well protected. They clearly have something here they don't want others to find and I'm not convinced it's this so called super-ship, either."
"Something else, then?"
"Oh, wait, I've got a partial download coming through. It's a couple of years old but it might be adequate."
"Let's get this show on the road, then."
In the early hours of the morning, Kota and PROXY came into sight of their destination. Juno – now running on nervous apprehension alone – continued to direct them to the hub of the Imperial starport.
Even so, things were going strangely well and her trepidation was mounting with each passing moment. Galen's words of warning were playing on a loop in her head. If he had been here would he have ordered the retreat? She nearly laughed at the thought. Galen did not ever retreat. He would have pressed on despite the dangers and come blasting out of there leaving chaos and discord in his wake.
But this mission was unlike any of those Galen had been sent on in the past.
Here, subtlety was key. A trail of dead bodies and destroyed droids would leave clues and raise suspicions before they were off of this blasted place. Still…her skin prickled with warning and she voiced her fears to Kota over the com-link.
"I'm not turning back now." Was all he said in return.
She didn't blame him.
They were close now, edging up one of the last, vast walkways; their footsteps masked by noisy machinery somewhere far below them. Floor lighting lit on approach, making it clear to anyone who might be watching that someone was on their way. Kota glanced over the edge of the platform to see a drop of about twenty feet. At the bottom was the source of the incredible noise; huge generators rumbling with life and crackling with energy. A fall down there would be a costly one indeed.
"There's no saying what we might come across once we go through that door, PROXY." Kota mumbled quietly. "Stay on guard."
The double doors slid back to reveal a circular chamber. On the outside of the room, small consoles blinked and chirped away to themselves. All the chairs were vacated – save one – which held a rather sleepy looking Intelligence Officer sagging heavily to one side. At the center of the room was the main console; humming softly, its screen dark.
Motioning to keep quiet, Kota lead PROXY around the transparent partitioning and over to the console, seating himself as if he belonged there. The console flickered into life and Kota reached inside his coat for the datacard he'd brought for this very moment.
Glancing over his shoulder at the dozing officer, he inserted the card and waited a full five seconds for the normal workings to be interrupted. A warning flashed briefly red and then, as fast as lightspeed, files both old and new, flew across the screen. The rows of green text reflected across Kota's white eyes as he sat and waited for the tell-tale chime that would indicate the right files had been found. It came a moment later and he leaned back a little.
"Watch the data transfer for me, will you?" He pulled himself up from the chair to make room for the disguised droid to sit. The sound of a door opening froze him in place.
"Woah! Who the hell are you? You shouldn't be here!"
They had company.
"Jheff! Wake up! Sound the alarm!"
The officer, who had been dozing quite happily a moment before, jerked to his feet, spinning so quickly that he lost his balance and knocked sharply back against the desk.
"Wha-? Intruder?" His eyes flared with shock to see Kota and PROXY there and then relaxed. "They're wearing uniform, Gus."
"Sound the alarm." Gus hissed. "They're spies, you idiot!"
Jheff went for the alarm like a striking snake – so quick that Kota only just managed to prevent him from doing so. With a blast of the Force that smashed and splintered monitors he knocked the man so hard into the wall that for a moment he thought he might have killed him.
A moment later a low, pained moan, proved otherwise.
Gus, gaping in the doorway, turned to run. "Sound the alarm! Sound the alarm!" He punched the door locking mechanism and backed out of the room, clearly making a run for it.
"Stay here!" Kota called to PROXY, thrusting a plasteel crate across the room, lodging it tightly between the door and the floor; leaving just enough of a gap to slip beneath. He dropped to the ground, his momentum carrying him through the opening, and hurtled down the corridor after the runaway. The heavy, olive-grey coloured coat weighed heavily but feeling his way with the Force gave him all the advantage he needed. Using his abilities, he tracked the man down – finding him hiding in a small room trying desperately to lock the door.
He yelped as Kota entered and backed away fearfully. "Stay away from me. I know what you are."
"Not much of a threat, is it, kid? I'd work on that if I were you." He motioned at the chair and the man sank into it, clearly fearing the worst.
Kota knelt, sharpening an invisible blade of Force that he worked into the man's mind. "You've been working, too hard."
"I've…I've been…"
The old General pressed harder, concerned for a moment that he was losing his touch. "Working too hard."
"I've been working too hard."
"You're having a bad dream. You'll wake up soon and none of this would have happened."
He felt Gus' defenses drop away. "Just a bad dream."
Kota straightened and, without missing a beat, struck the man across the head.
He stayed long enough to ensure he was out cold before slipping out and heading back for PROXY and the datacard.
To be continued...