Kerrf had tipped them about an inn which offered decent rooms for reasonable prices unlike most of the cheap improvised refugee "hotels". They call them hotels but they looked, sounded and smelled more like stables. The inn offered a simple but mostly clean room. There was one bed and a chair. Jes told Marin she could have the bed while he made an improvised sleeping spot on the floor.
"It's all right," Jes said. "This floor is like a feathered bed compared to the places I've slept in the past. " Marin was too tired to object any further and almost instantly fell asleep when she laid down on the bed. Jes also had little trouble falling asleep. It had been a tiring day.
The next day they went over to the terminal for the shuttles to Bastion station. Kerrf had explained that it used to be easy to get up there but since the military showed up there were checkpoints at the terminal. Clone troopers were stationed outside these checkpoints and everyone that wanted to get up there would have to have his identichips scanned. Jes hoped that the identichips delivered by Dex' contact would work as well as he'd said. It was their only way.
The terminal building was relatively small compared to the far bigger transport terminals. There were two public entrances at the front of the building. Both entrances had a small line of various humans and aliens in front of them, all waiting to get inside. two clone troopers were stationed at both entrances, standing motionless as one after the other people from the line stepped up to the checkpoint and presented his or her identichip to the scanner next to the security door. When the chip was scanned trooper would look at the data presented on a small screen and a few moments later the light above the door would turn green and the door would open. The process didn't go very quickly but there were no more than fifteen people in each line so it only took about ten minutes for them to reach the security door. Jes took his identichip and held it to the scanner. The guard looked at the screen but the light did not turn green, it blinked red a few times. The guard turned to them and started to walk over. He checked a console to next to the security gate and approached Jes. "You two, come with me." The clone said.
Marin started to feel nervous. She heard Jes say to the clone: "What seems to be the problem sir?"
"Something with your identichips or your visual confirmation. Please follow me."
Jes continued the conversation. He wanted to stall for time so he could think of some way out of this. "They were working fine yesterday." he said, "What could possibly be wrong?"
"Sir, I won't ask again. Follow me and we'll sort this out. "
Marin saw that Jes was in trouble. She knew it was risky, but she could help. She closed her eyes for a second and concentrated on the clone. She really hoped this would work. She opened her eyes again and looked straight into his helmet visor and said: "All is in order. It must have been some glitch in the scanning system. You'll open the door and let us through now. And we'll move along. "She saw a quick flash of surprise on Jes' face but he quickly composed himself when he heard the clone repeat in a somewhat meekly voice: "All is in order. It must have been some glitch in the scanning system. I'll open the door and let you through. Please move along. " and the clone entered some commands in the console. The light turned green and the door opened. Jes and Marin quickly walked inside before the somewhat confused looking clone had time to get second thoughts. There were still a lot of people round them waiting for the gate to the shuttle so they didn't say a word until they were safely aboard the shuttle heading for Bastion station.
When the shuttle approached Bastion they saw the Venator class star destroyer was still stationed stationed there. Up close they could also see that there was a lot of construction work going on. Engineers and construction droids were working all over the outside of the station. "What do you think they're doing there?" Marin asked.
"I have no clue. Looks like a lot of military equipment though. Look there," Jes pointed to the only one of the stations docking wings to which two ships where currently docked. "If I'm not mistaken one of those freighters is our ticket to the Noson sector. We're going to have to find someone who can help us get a ride. "
The inside of Bastion station wasn't any different. There was construction going on everywhere they looked. Most areas where locked off because of it. Others were only accessible to military personnel Apparently the only docking wing which was operational for civilian vessels was docking wing 1c. All the passengers from the shuttle were directed to wing 1c. Unlike the rest of the station, which was all sterile bare-metal and crawling with military personnel, 1c was bustling with life. There were offices of shipping companies, shops and even a small market filled with stalls selling all kinds of exotic goods. There was only one cantina which was open, probably due to military regulations. It was called the Hollow Star.
"Look, " Jes said pointing to the entrance to the Hollow Star. "I'll bet we'll find our officer there. If he's not there, maybe there's someone who knows where we can find one. We'll get something to eat too. First, I'll go check at that shipping terminal office over there. See if the ship we're looking for is here, and when it will leave."
Apparently there was a republic transport vessel docked which scheduled to leave for the Noson sector tomorrow. The ship was called "The Altin Dias". But they couldn't just go there. They had to find someone who could get them on board. Ten minutes later they walked into the Hollow Star. Jes ordered some food and he and Marin sat down at a booth in a corner of the room. It was a quiet hour and most of the other booths were empty.
"So, " Jes said. "Back at the checkpoint..."
"Are you mad at me?" Marin interrupted him.
"Mad at you? No, I'm not. " Jes answered.
"Well, I used the Force in public. I thought you'd be angry. I know I could have blown our cover, but I was scared and I didn't want to be captured by the military! " Marin explained.
"I know Marin, I guess desperate times call for desperate measures. I sure didn't have a clue how we would get out of this one. We should remain extra careful though. I had no idea you were that strong in the Force"
"The cognitive powers have always been my strong point. They're the most important for consular you know. It was a risk though. It doesn't always work."
"Well, I'm glad it did this time. And I'm glad we're on the same side." Jes said with a small smile. The bartender brought their food and they started eating.
Shortly after they had finished eating Jes heard a voice coming from behind him say: "Cold nights on the Cloudland Peaks this time of year."
Jes froze. Not just because he had been sure the booth behind them had been empty just a moment ago, but also because that sentence triggered a memory from a long time ago. It was a code they used in order to identify undercover operatives. He remembered the particular mission this code was from very well... Was this? It couldn't be... Jes immediately knew how to respond.
The code refers to the towering mountain ranges on Selonia. The response was derived from a hellish mountaineering expedition in the Cloudland Peaks which was part of NSOC training. The expedition was extremely tough and conditions were often unworldly bad. Every year there were casualties, trainees falling down one of the cliffs, getting buried in an avalanche or dying from hypothermia in the extreme conditions.
Jes heard himself say: "Made it all the way to Drifter's peak last year." He heard someone get up from the booth right behind him and turned around.
He couldn't believe his eyes... "Well I'll be damned." was all he could say.
"Jes Darrin! My man, I thought I saw a ghost when I walked in here. I thought you were dead!"
"Nope, still around. Please, sit down." Jes answered as the man walked over and sat down. "How've you been Caen? Wait, where are my manners. Marin, this is Caen. Caen, this is Marin."
"Nice to meet you miss." The man said, nodding to Marin.
"Nice to meet you too." Marin answered.
"I know mister Caen here from back in my NSOC days. He was a field agent for Corellian Intelligence back then."
"That's right." Caen replied.
"You still on the inside?" Jes asked.
Caen looked at Jes for a moment and nodded towards Marin.
"It's ok." Jes said. "She's with me. Whatever you can tell me, you can tell her."
"Ok. Well, I'm back inside actually. I quit five years ago. I'm sure you've heard that Corellia withdrew from the military creation act. Well, here I was, enjoying some peace and quiet when the clone wars broke out. The brass got nervous and needed experience in the field, so they asked me back. I guess I missed the action. "
"Ok, well, did the job bring you to this fine place?"
"Kinda. See, " Caen looked around, trying to see if anyone else might me within earshot, then continued: "The republic is shifting all kinds of military weight around. Corellian leadership doesn't trust the senate for one bit. According to our intel it seems that they're trying to attain control of some major hyperspace lanes leading to the outer rim. We have no idea why, but we think that Bastion is part of that operation. I'm here to see if I can find out something about all of this. Well, enough classified info about me," he said with s smile, "how about you two? Are you two related?"
"Nah, I met her where I work." Jes replied.
"Really, you've been working with youth huh? Tell me where you've been man!"
Jes wasn't in the mood to get into details about the darker period in his life so he decided to leave that part out. "After the mission on Selonia, I was done. So I ran. After a lot of traveling all around I ended up Coruscant working at the Jedi temple. Mostly as a mechanic and a pilot. That was, until a few days ago. but I'm sure you heard all about that."
Caen was silent for a moment. After a while he let out "Oh, shit..." And when realization dawned he briefly looked at Marin. His expression told Marin enough. To her surprise all he said was: "Oh, I see..." In a more serious tone. "Where are you headed?"
"We hope to get to Andean. I know some people there where we could stay for a while. There's supposed to be a Republic transport here heading for the Noson system but we haven't been able to find anyone from the crew."
"The Altin Dias right? " Caen said. "I happen to know the captain. Let me talk to her. I'll get you your ride."
"Really? I don't know what to say!"
"Yeah, Don't mention it. I still owe you one remember? Make sure you report to bay 15 tonight after 19:00. I'll make sure they'll be expecting you. "
"Mister Caen," Marin said, "Do you have any info on what happened to the Jedi? Did any survive?"
Caen looked at her with a sorrowful look. "I'm sorry kid, We haven't heard anything about the Jedi. Our sources seemed to have gone dark. We've also had no luck contacting the temple. We know nothing more then what is being broadcasted on the holonet, which I must say, is very disturbing. I'm very sorry I couldn't be of any more help."
"That's ok, " Marin said, "Thank you anyway."
"Now, I'm sorry we didn't get to catch up more but I really need to go. Listen, Jes, if you're going to Noson, you're probably going to Mirakeii station right?" Caen asked.
"That's right." Jes replied.
"Try to make your way over there again in let's say, two standards months from now? I'll be there too. We have some catching up to do. And I'll promise to try to find out more about what happened."
"I'd appreciate that. Good luck friend."
"You too Jes. Marin, it was nice meeting you. And try to keep him out of trouble will you?"
Marin showed a small smile, "I'll try."
And with that, Caen got up and walked out. After a while Marin said to Jes: "He seemed nice."
"He is. He's also one of the best intelligence operatives I've ever known." Jes said.
"He seemed a little chatty for an intelligence agent." Marin observed.
"Exactly. This man spent a large part of his career deep behind enemy lines. terrorist cells, pirate groups, you name it. If he's survived this long running his mouth like he always does, he must be bloody good. "
Marin smiled and asked: "What did he mean that he owed you one?" Marin asked.
"Me and my team extracted him once when his cover was blown. It was a nasty operation and a close call. We've been close friends ever since."
"Ok. It's a good thing he found us here. I hope he can tell us more about what happened later."
"I hope so too. " Jes answered and hoped Caen would make good on his promise like he always had. They might make it after all.
Later that night, they headed to docking bay 15. They were greeted by a kind crewmember who had been informed to let them onboard and show them their simple quarters. The trip was quite uneventful. Which was a welcome change. They stayed in their simple cabin and took the opportunity to get some rest. The crew mostly kept to themselves but the captain did show up a couple of times. She said she didn't meet many women in her line of work so she took a special interest in Marin. The two of them talked about everything and nothing while Jes just laid back and relaxed. He didn't mind. He could finally catch up on his reading. He thought about the last couple of days and how crazy they had been. They'd made it. They were finally en-route to the Noson system. He could only hope that they would be as welcome as he expected. That they had a place to lay low for a while on Andean...