Chapter 6
"Blimey," Newkirk exclaimed as he sorted through the stack of papers in front of him. "Wha'd you do? Grab the 'hole ruddy office?"
In truth he was right. Right after roll call, Hogan's men and Solstice had retreated to Barracks 2 where they attempted to sort through the papers Carter and Solstice brought back from their mission. The British Corporeal was stunned at the massive stack of documents written in German, and a few were written in an unidentifiable language. Many of the papers were other important things such as dates, plans and even a list of spies placed behind Allied lines.
Solstice shrugged from her place in the corner. She seemed to be doing some stretches or something. "I ran out of time. Besides, you never really taught me how to read German, so I didn't really know what I was looking for. So, I grabbed whatever looked important."
"Well, good job on that anyway." Hogan complemented as he attempted to sort through his stack. "Looks like there's a whole slew of information that I don't think that the Underground even knows about."
There was a knock at the door before Kinch opened it. "Excuse me Colonel. Ms. Winters, the engineers down in Tunnel 6 say your ship is beeping. They're worried that something might go off."
The brunette woman straightened as she sighed thoughtfully. "Are there three beeps every two minutes?"
"Yes ma'am."
"Hm. Must be an incoming transmission." She muttered. "Even if I answer it, it won't come through clearly unless I had my comm. Speaking of which, Colonel Hogan, you didn't happen to find a small circular device by chance?"
The RAF corporeal glanced over at his commanding officer. The dark-haired American nodded slowly before fishing into his pocket. He dug around for a minute or so before he handed what looked like a metallic device to Solstice, whose eyes lit up like a Christmas Tree.
"Oh, thank the Force!" She breathed. "If anyone needs me, I'll be in the tunnel."
With that, the brunette was gone along with the dark-skinned sergeant. Newkirk, fed up with searching through all those papers, stood up and followed the pair closely. He couldn't take Lebaeu's incessant chattering about food or Carter's rambling stories about how he used to do something like this back home. Besides, he wanted to see what kind of communications system the seemingly-advanced woman had. He managed to catch up to them as they entered Tunnel 6.
Out of all the planes they had stored underneath here, Solstice's plane stood out the most. It had a design that made it look like it could fly at speeds unheard of and be extremely stealthily. When it first was brought into the tunnel, Newkirk had helped one of the pilots study the thing. The turrets on the plane were so small it was hard to believe this thing was used in combat.
Solstice muttered something as she sat in the cockpit. Newkirk shrugged as Kinch glanced over the woman's shoulder as she started to fiddle with a couple of wires. She was engrossed in trying to connect the small piece of metal Colonel had handed her to the plane. He and Kinch watched the woman expertly connect a cord to the piece of metal. A space on the plane opened to reveal an antenna. Newkirk's eyebrows went up to his hairline in shock. Both soldiers continued to watch fascinated.
"Looks like it's from Fulcrum. Hm, the signal is still too weak. Maybe if I redirect all power to the communications." she muttered. "Here we go."
Newkirk and Kinch's eyes almost fell out of their skull when a strange looking emblem appeared. It looked like two large lines that formed a diamond with two smaller diamonds on either side. It fizzled in and out before it solidified, a garbled voice speaking. Newkirk had to focus hard to hear the words the voice was speaking.
"This is Fulcrum." The voice garbled. "We have entered an important phase of the Rebellion. Senator Mon Mothma has joined the ranks of defected senators."
"Well, good for her," Solstice muttered
"Sh!" Kinch ordered as the voice continued.
"White Eagle, if you are listening, I am offering a new assignment." The image of the diamonds disappeared before an image of a man appeared. "This is Doctor Kandar Serth, leading Imperial scientist in experimental technology. According to several reports, Dr. Serth has gone missing but is working on something big. Your job: find Dr. Serth. If he is working something that could turn the tide of this rebellion, acquire any plans you can. You shall be paid fifteen thousand credits for delivering Dr. Serth and his plans. However, if you are unable to do so, you have the authority to eliminate him and his work. May the Force be with you. Fulcrum out."
There was silence that penetrated the three of them. Peter Newkirk blinked owlishly, still running everything the garble voice said through his mind. Solstice sat there, looking deep in thought as though she was silently debating taking up the offer. The RAF corporeal remembered when she joined the crew temporarily. She had been adamant about not doing any assassinations, but now this person named Fulcrum was telling her to kill this person. And what kind of name is Fulcrum? From the way the brunette woman was thinking, it looked like she was seriously considering taking this job.
"Bloody 'ell." He breathed. "Wha' do you suppose tha' was about?"
"Serth…Serth…. That name sounds familiar…" Solstice muttered. The brunette woman climbed out of her ship and made her way over to the table where her three personal items were. She grabbed the golden and blue cube. With her eyes closed and Newkirk and Kinch watching silently, as the cube floated in the air. The corners detached, revealing a hexagon. The center gave a soft blue glow as another blue image of a person appeared. This man looked younger with brownish hair with a scar running down his face. He wore strange clothes, even stranger than Solstice's.
"No' who's tha'?" Newkirk couldn't stop his question.
"Wow. That's amazing." Kinch breathed. He made to touch but was his hand was gently slapped away.
"Sorry Kinch," Solstice explained as she opened her eyes. "But I can't have you break my concentration. Corporeal Newkirk, to answer your question, this is one of the greatest Jedi of our generation." Her face turned sour. "And the greatest snake to roam the galaxy."
"This is General Anakin Skywalker, updating the reports for the Jedi High Council." The man spoke. "Today was a tough day for the Galactic Republic. After the arrest of Doctor Nuvo Vindi, we discovered that he had an apprentice, a Kandar Serth from Chandrila, however we believe that he has already vanished. Although several Jedi Masters tested, we discovered that Doctor Vindi never shared his formula for creating the Blue Shadow Virus. Even though the good doctor almost released the deadliest virus known to any species, from what he said, Kandar Serth is on a complete different range of insane."
The image stopped. Solstice made a closing motion and the cube closed. Newkirk and Kinch had to catch her and keep her from fainting.
"You alright there, Sol?" Kinch asked as the two sat her down on the wing of her plane. The woman had beads of sweat on her head.
"Yeah." She breathed. She placed her head between her legs as she took deep breaths. "I've never opened myself up to the Force that long. It was…. whew." She stood. "I need to go and talk to Colonel Hogan. You guys may be dealing with someone on a different plane of insanity than this Hitler guy."
Up in Hogan's personal quarters in Barracks 2, the American Colonel, along with Newkirk, Lebeau, Kinch and Carter sat in contemplation. Solstice had just given them a rundown from what she just learned from her higher up. Colonel Hogan had been disturbed to hear this man, Kandar Serth, was, as she put it, 'on a different playing field of insanity than Hitler'.
"Are you sure?" Colonel Hogan asked for the umpteenth gazillion time.
"Yes. I am sure Colonel." Solstice answered slightly irritable. Everyone saw the fatigue clear on her face.
"And are you sure this…. Fulcrum can be trusted?"
The brunette sighed tiredly. "Look Colonel, though the true nature and name of Fulcrum has never been revealed to anyone except for the high brass, I trust Fulcrum with my life. And I also trust the information given to me. Besides, if the Rebellion is willing to pay me fifteen thousand credits, Dr. Serth is someone they really want their hands on."
"Do you know him?" Kinch asked curiously.
"Not personally." Solstice answered. "I believe he was an apprenticed scientist underneath the direction of Nuvo Vindi. Vindi was a scientist hired to recreate a deadly virus, known only as the Blue Shadow Virus."
"The Blue Shadow Virus?" Lebeau asked worriedly. Solstice waved the question away dismissively.
"Before my time. It was rumored to be the deadliest disease in the entire galaxy. It was eradicated but Dr. Vindi brought it back. Fortunately, the Order and the Republic stopped him from spreading it."
"Do you think that this Dr. Serth could re-engineer the virus?" Hogan interrogated.
"No." Solstice answered immediately. Colonel Hogan shot her a questioning look, one at which she elaborated, "Dr. Vindi didn't trust anyone with his work. As soon as the Jedi captured the 'good' doctor, they destroyed his work and made sure to track down all labs belonging to him. They were all destroyed along with his work, and made triple sure that no one had any copies of the Blue Shadow Virus. It was hard work but eventually the Jedi relaxed."
"What kind of 'ork does this bloody docto' do?" Newkirk asked.
"Mainly experimental ships and bombs." The brunette picked up a sheet of paper. "This one looks to be some sort of stealth ship with ion canons and this one…holy force!"
"What? What is it?" Carter worriedly questioned as gthe woman scanned the plans.
"This is…. no. Maybe it's my imagination? Oh, I hope it is."
"Ce qui est Mademoiselle?" Lebeau questioned.
"This is bad. This is very, very bad!" She groaned. Solstice slammed the paper down on the desk, allowing the five men to look over her shoulder. The drawing on the paper was of a circle within another circle. Thought simplistic in a nature, the numbers and scribbles in the margin suggested something entirely different.
"Wha' the 'ell is this?" Newkirk groaned as he scratched his head.
"Something that could put a damper on the Rebellion." She pulled out her sliver of metal and placed it on the table. Hogan and his men watched from a corner that the brunette woman shoved them in as she pressed a button. There was a tense moment as there was a pinging noise. A few moments later, there was a man wearing who wore a strange helmet.
"This is a restricted frequency. What do you want?"
"The White Eagle of Garrel wishes to speak to the Phoenixes of Lothal." Solstice said, using the code phrase given when she started to work for a spy and informant for the Rebellion.
"I will patch you through," the man said before disappearing.
"What was that?" Carter asked.
"Protocol." Solstice answered with sigh. "If I had my way, all I would have to do is say my alias. But I do understand that they are in place to keep everyone involved safe. Hold on."
Everyone watched Solstice place her helmet over her head as the blue glow appeared once more. This time, two men, one with short salt and pepper hair, and another with a goatee stood, along with a woman in a long white dress.
"Ah, White Eagle," the man with the goatee greeted. "We were beginning to believe that you've been captured by the Empire."
"You insult me Senator Organa." Solstice feigned hurt. "You have no faith in my skills."
"So, this is the infamous White Eagle." The redhead woman smiled, placing her hands behind her back. "I've heard many good things about you. Though I hope to one day meet you in person."
"Thank you, Senator."
"Why are you contacting us?" The clean-shaven man questioned harshly. Hogan narrowed his eyes. The man sounded very strict. Everyone noticed how Solstice's body language changed, from poised yet relaxed to on-guard.
"I have acquired a few of Dr. Serth's papers. From what I can see, most of the plans are for several types of experimental planes, bombs, grenades and such. However, the thing that caught my eye were the plans for what looked like a new type of space station. One that could mean the end of the Rebellion."
"Are you sure? Have you found anything else?" the goatee man asked.
"Only that they are going to build it over Geonosis, or some remote planet on the edges of the galaxy. That may explain why the entire population have disappeared. I'll have to look deeper into his notes, but I am absolutely sure."
"We will need to get an exploration team to the planet as soon as possible." The redhead woman proposed.
"Agreed." The clean-shaven man declared. They turned to Solstice. "Please continue to update us on any developments, per our agreement."
"Of course, Commander." Solstice gave a two-fingered salute before she ended the strange image. When she removed her helmet, she sighed tiredly. Carter noticed how she leaned over the table, her eyes closed as if deep in thought. The brunette looked weary, almost as if there was something weighing on her. Carter hesitantly placed a hand on the young woman, who jumped as if startled. The American sergeant smiled sheepishly as the blue-eyed woman gathered the papers.
"And just what do you think you're doing?" Colonel Hogan questioned, placing a hand on one of the documents that Solstice were picking up. It nearly ripped it in two. Kinch pulled Carter back as the two stared each other down. Newkirk and Lebeau started to quietly place bets on who would out-stare each other. With two egos as big as the ones in the room, there was bound to be a little volatile and maybe a little funny.
"Listen here," the young woman started tersely. "These papers officially belong to Galactic Rebellion now, not you primitives. I don't mean to be rude, but this changes everything. Whatever this Dr. Serth is working on, it involves me."
"I thought you weren't part of this rebellion." Hogan shot back.
"Maybe so, but this type of station puts everyone in jeopardy, and that includes me. So, who I am allied to doesn't matter if they build this." Solstice sighed. "If the Empire gets this built, then lives are at stake."
Before anything else could be said, Schultz barged into the office. Solstice and Hogan quickly handed the papers to Newkirk and Lebeau who stuffed it under a pillow. The large guard caught the movement but not the paper. His eyes went wide before they closed. He adjusted the position of his riffle, making it so he could cover his eyes with his big fingers.
"I see nothing!" He muttered.
"What'd you need Schultz?" Hogan questioned as Solstice slid stealthily behind the large barracks guard. If the Colonel could keep the German sergeant distracted, maybe she could slip back into her barracks. But Schultz caught her moving and effortlessly blocked her exit.
"Colonel Hogan! You know the rules: no women in the barracks." He reminded the brown-eyed colonel with a pointed look at an embarrassed Solstice. Newkirk noticed how she discreetly waved her helmet and her communicator behind her back.
"I apologize for this Sergeant." She said sweetly. Newkirk grabbed the devices and placed them with the papers. "I was just asking if Colonel Hogan or any of his men would be so gracious to let me borrow some soap."
Schultz's face, which was scrunched up in a scowl, softened as Solstice's explanation and tone. It was clear the large guard had a soft spot for the young woman. He was always finding ways to sneak her a treat now and then. The big softie also protected her from those that catcalled her and tried to take her for their own. Not that Hogan and his men did the same, but Schultz's orders had a little more weight than Hogan's among the German guards.
"Don't worry Fraulien Winters. I will sneak you some soap after dinner." Schultz assured. Then his face morphed into a slight scowl as he ordered with a slight hard tone, "But don't let me catch you in barracks other than your own. Da?"
"Yeah. Yeah." Solstice waved as she was shooed out of the barracks. She sent one last look at Hogan's heroes before vanishing.
"All right Schultzie, wha's so impor'ant tha' you shooed the lass out?" Newkirk questioned.
"There is a man coming to Stalag 13. A scientist. The Kommadant wants everyone to be on their best behavior or it will be the Cooler for everyone!" Schultz whispered. Hogan's men glanced at each other, wary glances plastering their faces. Hogan nodded, a plan forming in his mind.
"And who's this…. scientist?"
Schultz's eyes went wide. "No. I know nothing! And if I did know something, I would not tell you, or poof! Straight to the Russian Front."
Hogan nodded discreetly Lebeau while Schultz was going on his typical spiel. The barracks cook grabbed a pot of stew from behind one of the bunks. The French corporal waved a little bit of the aromatic fumes towards the fat guard. Schultz sighed heavenly as his eyes zeroed in on the bowl. Robert nodded to Louis who hovered the bowl underneath the blabber mouth guard's nose. Hans Schultz sighed as he leaned in closer but as he made to grab the bowl, the Frenchman yanked it away. The German sergeant sent a pleading look to the small 'cockroach'.
"Give us the name of the scientist and you can have all the soup you want." Hogan promised. There was a moment where the men saw Schultz have that inner battle that he usually had. Finally, the old guard sighed in defeat.
"All right! All right!" A lot more quietly, he said, "The man's name is Kandar Serth. He's a scientist on the Fuhrer's staff. He's supposed to be coming here so he could work in private on something very important, which I don't know."
Hogan sighed as he allowed the large guard to snatch the large bowl of soup away. His men sent him glances, knowing for sure that he was most likely already coming up with several plans. But as he did, he felt his panic bubble up. Too many things were happening, and too soon. There didn't seem to be enough time to pause in-between missions, even though this was war. These missions were a part of something much larger than the war that Hogan and his men were fighting. The fight Solstice seemed to be a part of seemed to be embroiled in something much older than she was. Almost like an ancient feud.
The brown-haired colonel shook his head, dismissing the thoughts as Schultz left, reminding everyone unnecessarily that roll call was going to be in an hour. Robert Hogan ordered his men to get some rest before roll call, saying that he had a feeling the next few days were going to be tough. As they all went about to do their own thing, Hogan plopped down at his desk, trying to ignore the heavy tension that was suddenly draped over them.
Among the thoughts racing through his mind, one thought didn't leave him: what exactly did I get my men into?
-Line break-
Solstice stared up at the plain ceiling, tapping her foot against the board lazily in boredom. There was a slight snowstorm raging outside, but for some reason the cold didn't touch the brunette. Her entire body was hot, almost feverish. Whenever she showed even the slightest signs of being sick, Solstice would take every single bit of over the counter medicine she could find. Because every hospital on every planet were required to take blood and run it through a database the Empire kept on all the Jedi. Sort of like VICAP.
But here in a prisoner of war camp, medicine was hard to come by and Solstice was pretty sure she was just a little flustered from looking through stacks of papers all day. Her head started to pound painfully, and the energy was suddenly drained from her body. Solstice inadvertently felt her muscles go limp, her eyes drooping. With some difficulty, the brunette Jedi turned on her side, the fever that was now racking her body making her feel like she was dying.
With a fleeting thought (I hope I can join the Cosmic Force) Solstice's eyes fluttered shut. She didn't even hear the guard knocking on her door for roll call as darkness latched onto her.
Outside in the snow, Carter looked on worriedly as the guard banged on Solstice's door with the butt of his gun impatiently. Usually, the woman was out of her barracks after three knocks. His heart beat faster as the soldier, obviously fed up with waiting, pulled back and knocked the door down. Splinters went everywhere, the guard raising his rifle just in case of a sudden attack. Carter felt his hear stop and his breath catching in his throat. Beside him, Hogan visibly tense, his body like a cat about to pounce.
"I feel like a bowl of warm soup," The Colonel muttered, just loud enough for his men to hear. There was a moment of tense silence, before the men started to shuffle their feet. To the Krauts, it looked like the men were just starting to fidget or move their feet to regain some feeling in it. But, they were getting ready to run. What the Colonel had muttered was a code phrase he created in case they were accused of espionage and about to be arrested. However, they suddenly relaxed when the guard dropped his rifle and called out to the other guards.
"Hilfe!" He shouted, causing the other guards to rush forward. "Ich brauche einen sanitäter!"
Carter then found himself running towards the barracks, along with Olsen and several others. The young American pushed his way to the front of the small crowd that found itself formed in front of Solstice's door. The guard that called the alarm was kneeling next to an unconscious Solstice. Her forehead was beaded with sweat, her hair plastered to her face, and her skin unnaturally pale. Carter was pulled back by Schultz, who with Olsen in tow, pushed their way forward. Schultz shouted orders at the other guards, probably to leave, which they did. Even though Schultz was known around the camp as something of a push-over, no one disobeyed him when he got mad.
"What's going on?" Hogan questioned.
"Something's wrong with Solstice." Carter answered, panic evident in his voice. He felt his breath pick up, but his lungs refused air. "She looks like she has a fever or something!"
"Calm down, Sergeant!" Hogan ordered, pulling rank because one of his best men was panicking. When Carter's breath slowed a little, Hogan ordered, "Go back to Barracks 2, and have a cup of coffee. I'll see if there's something I can do."
The blond Technical Sergeant nodded wordlessly, his eyes slightly wide. Hogan watched as Carter entered Barracks 2, making sure that the young man followed his orders. Once he disappeared through the door, the brown-haired Colonel turned to Olsen who was checking over Solstice. Schultz had gone, probably gone to get Klink and inform him of the situation, which left the two Americans to talk without the German high command hovering over them.
"Well?" Hogan asked.
Olsen sighed as he removed the stethoscope from his ears and draped it around his neck. "Well, I think she's got something like the flu. The best thing we can do is get her fever down as soon as possible."
"All right." Hogan sighed. "Let's go and put her in the medical bay."
Olsen nodded, picking up the feverish woman and made his way towards the medical bay.
Things were happening too fast indeed….
-Line break-
Ezra scanned the empty hanger for any signs of patrol. His heart thundered in his chest from the excitement. Though not one to go against orders, Ezra felt that this was something he had to do. White Eagle was a part of the Rebellion family even though she had sworn several times, up and down, that she wasn't a rebel. But the Ghost crew had rescued her several times, so they had some interactions with the masked bounty hunter. Though she never took her helmet off or turned the voice modulator off when she was around the crew, so Ezra had no idea what she looked like.
Of course, White Eagle had rescued them from time to time, repaying the debt she supposedly owed them.
Whenever she would board their ship (on that rare occasion), she and Kanan would have many conversations, which Ezra wasn't a part of.
Now, he, Kanan and the new mechanic, Bonga, were on their way to whatever backwater world White Eagle found herself on this time. But they had to sneak through the hanger and find a suitable ship. The Ghost wasn't an option; Hera might need it in case there was a mission while they were gone, and her ship was the most familiar. There was only one option left: the old ship that Bonga had brought in.
"How's it looking, Ezra?" Kanan whispered. The blue-haired boy gave the hanger one last sweep with his eyes before turning around.
"Looks clear." Ezra announced. They were about to dash out of the shadows and towards the Twilight, when Bonga spoke up.
"I think I'm having second thoughts about this."
Ezra and Kanan exchanged glances, apprehensiveness filling their gaze before turning to the worried Bonga. He was fiddling with his webbed hands nervously. Kanan sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose frustratingly.
"Look, we've come this far." He stated, trying to keep his voice low and calm. "Besides, I thought that White Eagle was your friend."
"She is but…." Bonga froze when he heard something behind him. A minute later, a light was on them, causing them to tense.
"Freeze!" A voice ordered.
"Rex?" Ezra asked. The light was moved to where it wasn't shining in their eyes. Bonga was thankful for that, his eyes were very sensitive to bright light. Once the Mon Calamari had blinked the spots out of his eye, the mechanic saw an old man, with a bald head and a white beard, wearing old white and blue armor. The two humans seemed to recognize him, seeing as they were suddenly hovering over them.
"What are you guys doing out here this late at night?" The man with the amber eyes wondered. "You're not doing anything you're not supposed to, right?"
Ezra gave a nervous laugh, scratching the back of his neck nervously. "Why…. why would you say that?"
Rex raised a white eyebrow, staring down the boy. Bonga suddenly was reminded of a grandfather chastising his young grandson after catching him with his hand in the cookie jar. But the only thing that was the saving grace in this situation, was that Ezra and Kanan knew this man. So, maybe with a little smooth talk, then the three of them would be able to sneak away, and him not tell anyone. However, the next words out of the older man's mouth halted all thoughts of the three of them getting away.
"I'm coming with you." He announced. There seemed to be a pause for a tense moment.
"What?" Ezra hissed.
"I'm. Coming. With. You." Rex repeated slowly.
Ezra rolled his electric blue eyes. "I heard you! But why would you want to come? I mean…it's gonna be dangerous!"
"Besides, we probably don't have any room." Bonga lied. Rex glanced between the three of them before holding up a hand.
"Firstly, I was bred for danger," He informed, counting down on his fingers. "Secondly, the only ship that is in working order that the Rebellion can't really use is the Twilight and, as it turns out, I am the only one who knows how to fly it."
"We could learn…" Ezra muttered. Kanan sighed as he rubbed his face for the second time in the past thirty minutes. They really didn't have time for this. Any minute now, the other patrol was going to come around, and then they would be in hot water. The three of them were really fortunate it was Rex who caught them. He was more willing to go against Ahsoka's orders if he was talked into it.
"Fine." He hissed. Bonga and Ezra turned towards him with an expression that read, really? Kanan ignored as he pushed on, "We don't have time before another patrol comes along and frankly, the more people there are, the likely chance we'll have an easier chance of finding White Eagle and getting back safely."
"Thanks, Kanan," Rex said before darting towards the old ship. Kanan, Ezra and Bonga were close behind him, their eyes scanning for the next patrol.
"Where to, Kanan?" The old man asked as he got comfortable at the controls. Bonga took his place in the co-pilot seat, doing all the pre-flight checks while Ezra and Kanan checked the rations on board.
"I think the planet's called E-earth." The brown-haired man said as he shuffled through all the ration packs. "Some planet in the far Outer Rim. Don't know much about it, though."
"Okay." Rex muttered. He turned to Bonga, his amber eyes glistening in the dark. "How are we looking on fuel, Bonga?"
"Uh." The Mon Calamari looked at the fuel gauge. "Looks good, but we'll have to make a stop or two."
"All righty." Rex rumbled. "Let's get going!"
A moment later, the four of them were exiting Atollon's atmosphere and entering hyperspace.