Chapter 9
Carter could only stare deftly at the woman in front of him, his mouth agape, his eyes wider than quarters. Solstice stood on the other side of the barracks, her face showing evidence of crying. Several times during the tale, she had to stop as she bawled so hard it hurt Carter's heart. The brunette woman was as silent and as somber as he had ever seen her. No wonder she didn't trust Captain Rex….
"After that, I managed to disappear." Solstice's words were shaky yet loud and clear. She swallowed before continuing, "I built a life for a myself on a planet that thankfully no one had settled on yet. Rumors of the new Emperor had reached me by way of traders and smugglers. They said that some of the Jedi had escaped, building a rebellion that would ultimately take back the Republic. But…."
Carter didn't have to be Albert Einstein to figure it out. "But it was only a rumor."
Solstice only nodded. There was a pause before she continued, "I managed to get off that rock and find myself some work on Garrell. After a couple jobs, I became known as the notorious bounty hunter known as White Eagle. And since my first few jobs were assassinations of top Imperial Officials, I became public enemy number one, right next to the Jedi. How ironic, huh?"
The young American shook his head. "But I thought you said that you wouldn't do assassinations."
"That's the thing." She said. "When you're a bounty hunter, you have to figure out what your shtick is. Is it going to be smuggling? And if so, what are you smuggling? Are you going to be a hit man? Or a private detective of sorts? More often than not, most bounty hunters deal in smuggling and assassinations. But I guess I didn't have the stomach for those, so I stuck with the smuggling and private detective sort of thing."
Solstice sighed as she moved from the window towards the heater, holding her hands out to warm them up. Carter did the same, managing to catch her hands and fold them into his. When they locked eyes, Carter saw the world inside those beautiful eyes. He saw the moon, the depthless oceans and an entire world that seemed so much more advanced than his own. He wished he could experience that with her, but she was closed off, like a tomb that had no way in. Solstice gently wriggled her hands out of his, instead hugging herself as if she had a chill.
"I need to go tell the Kommadant that I'll attend his dinner party." She suddenly said. The woman nodded to him somberly before opening the door and leaving him there.
-Line Break-
The Kommadant was strangely overjoyed to hear that Solstice would go to dinner with him, General Burkhalter and Doctor Serth. She was doing it for Hogan, but also so she could assassinate Doctor Serth. He was a high ranking Imperial scientist with probably all the wealth and power he could dream. Why would he give that up to help the fledgling rebellion that had little chance in succeeding?
No, it would be much better for everybody if Kandar Serth died here on Earth. Solstice would burn the plans for the large space station, seeing how without the "good" doctor the Empire wouldn't have any need for the plans. The bounty hunter examined the poison before stuffing it in the pocket of her dress, which was given to her by Hilda. Solstice also had talked to Colonel Hogan about having a sniper, and a plan, ready. It had taken the man an extremely short time to come up with a logical plan. There was a knock on her door as she finished making sure that she had everything for the dinner.
"Come in." She ordered as she pinned one of the curls in her hair. The door opened, revealing Schultz, ready to escort her to dinner.
"Oh Fraulien Winters, you look so beautiful!" the guard complemented. Solstice lowered her head in thanks as he held out his arm. The brunette took his arm before they started to walk out. Solstice winced as the bite of the cold hit her, the thin material of the dress not really doing anything to keep out the cold. Thankfully though, the two entered the warm personal barracks of the Kommadant. Solstice rubbed her arms, trying to get feeling back as the Kommadant greeted her warmly with his date sitting on the couch, looking bored. The other woman had brown hair like hers but it was cut shorter, and done up in tight bun. She held a liquor glass in her hand, looking extremely disinterested.
"Ah, Ms. Winters, what a pleasure it is for you to join us!" the man welcomed with energy.
"The only reason I'm here is because you threatened me." Solstice corrected dryly.
"But still, thank you for joining us." He stated again, with slightly less energy. Gesturing to the woman on the couch, he introduced, "This is Helga Hamstrunburg. Her husband is a lieutenant in the Third Reich, who was recently transferred to the Russian Front."
The woman didn't move from her position. Solstice found herself blinking in shock at the name. She remembered using that name when she and Carter had stolen the plans from the hotel in Hammelburg. At first, the bounty hunter thought that Hogan had just made it up on a fly. But apparently it wasn't. Solstice distinctly wondered what Hogan would say when he found out the name wasn't a fake one. After a minute of an uncomfortable silence, Klink moved, ordering Schultz to go and get the appetizers. Solstice was about to ask about when General Burkhalter and Doctor Serth were arriving, when the door opened.
She felt a shiver of fear run up her spine when General Body Fat entered, immediately zeroing in on her with disgust. But the woman didn't back down or show her fear as the general removed his coat and threw it at Klink. The Kommadant then shoved it to Schultz, who placed the tray down to go and hang the coat on the rack. Behind General Body Fat, a well-muscled man in German uniform stood. He was young-looking, maybe in his mid-thirties, but he looked like a man in his prime. His muscles poked out from underneath his uniform, a black hair slicked back in a way that made Solstice feel breathless. His dark grey eyes seemed to examine her in a way that a predator would, assessing if the prey was worth it. For all the reports of Doctor Kandar Serth, Solstice never thought he would look so handsome. And yet be so ruthless. The General Burkhalter had a bombshell blonde hanging onto his arms. And the fatso was all too pleased.
"General Burkhalter! So good to see you, again!" Klink greeted.
"Klink, why is this prisoner out of the barracks?"
"I was invited by the Kommadant." Solstice answered with a fire in her voice. She did not take too kindly to being spoken about like she wasn't there. Then an excuse came to her mind, "He wanted to flaunt Germany's prosperity, so that I may go tell the others about it. It may dampen their spirits."
General Burkhalter sneered but eventually relented. The dinner then started. Doctor Serth didn't say very much throughout the dinner, but his steely gaze didn't leave Solstice. The bounty hunter was quiet herself, while the two German officers shouted each other. They tried to get her opinion about different things, mostly about how superior the German race was. She only gave something similar to a halfhearted agreement, though mostly she was just trying to figure out how to get the poison into Serth's drink without him or the others noticing.
After dessert, the six of them had moved into the sitting room. There was soft music playing as they, except Solstice and Serth, were drinking schnapps. Solstice was perched on a couch, her eyes clear as she examined the four drunken natives. Kandar Serth seemed to get bored sitting on the couch, so he stood and made his way over to Solstice. She examined the way he held his hand out, a smile on his face.
"Would you like to dance, fraulien?" He offered, his voice thick with a fake German accent. Solstice didn't let on that she knew that his accent was fake, but smiled nonetheless and took it. As they swayed back and forth to the music, much to Solstice's dismay, Kandar started to make small talk.
"You seem tense fraulien." He commented.
"Well, you would be too if you were in a prisoner of war camp away from home." She shot back.
"Indeed." He crooned as he twirled her. When she was facing him again, he continued, "And how did a woman such as yourself end up in a German prisoner of war camp?"
"It was a…. series of unfortunate circumstances." The bounty hunter commented vaguely.
"How unfortunate, exactly?" The man asked, with a wolfish smile.
Solstice gave him a disbelieving look. "You just don't give up, do you?"
"How about we start over?" Kandar asked after a short chuckle. "Guten Tag, Fraulien. My name is Doctor Kandar Serth, and I am a loyal German officer of the Third Reich. My hobbies include reading, artwork, nature watching and science."
"Nature watching?" Solstice snorted. "How much boring and generic could you get?"
"Oh, on the contrary, my dear. Nature watching is quite fascinating. You see things out in the wilderness that you don't see in the cities. Why, just the other day I saw a rather amazing creature."
Solstice cocked an eyebrow. The man was teasing her, playing with her, like how a predator played with its prey before it attacked. That much was obvious. But the way he spoke had her heart thundering in fear. Did he know…...? No that couldn't be. The Empire didn't know about her true identity. She made sure of that.
"What did you see?" She asked. Almost instantly, she regretted taking the bait.
Kandar's smile sent her heart thundering in her chest again. "A white Eagle."
Suddenly the lights went out leaving them in darkness. Klink and Burkhalter, and their dates, all drunk out of their minds, stumbled out of the room, the large general griping about how Klink's 'perfect prisoner of war camp' was falling apart at the seams. They left, leaving Solstice and Dr. Serth alone. Before the lights came back on, the brunette snatched Burkhalter's gun from where it lay on the table, loaded it, cocked it and pointed it at the man. However, when the lights flickered on, Kandar Serth didn't seem to flinch.
"So, you're with the Rebellion, aren't you?"
"No." She answered. "I was just paid to get rid of you and your work."
"And, uh, how much work does the head of a high-ranking Imperial scientist go for these days?"
Solstice smirked. "Oh, enough to make me set for life."
Slowly, the man raised his hands in the surrendering position. Solstice was going to have some fun with this.
"You know, the Rebellion isn't the only one who wants you dead." She commented, moving forward slowly. "The Allies of this planet want you dead as well."
"They're worried." He commented, a smirk on his face. "Their primitive weapons and defenses are no match for the power of the Empire."
Solstice scowled, her anger starting to bubble up like fuel. All it would take is one spark to ignite the fuel. "You are so arrogant. Much like your own Emperor. It's his arrogance that's going to destroy him."
"I read about you, Solstice Winters." Kandar Serth stated. "You were once a Jedi, a Padawan, apprenticed to Jedi Master Jai'Kar. And now, you're a bounty hunter, as well as Senator Organa's pet."
There was that spark.
Anger fueled her as she landed a punch on the man's face. With the Force, she moved a chair in front of the door, blocking anyone from entering.
"You're a sick son of a bitch, you know that, right?" She spat. When he was getting back up, Solstice landed another punch to his jaw. "I don't know what the Emperor force-fed you about the massacre, but there were children who died in the Temple. Innocent children, who didn't deserve to go out the way they went out!" Tears were streaming her eyes as she went, the shot glasses trembling at the Force-energy that seemed to radiate from her. But she didn't care. "They deserved to live their life, to make their mark on the galaxy. But they had all of that taken from them, because Palpatine was too greedy and too thirsty for power."
"No, please, you don't understand-"
"No, you don't understand." Solstice snapped. She pulled him up and held him at his throat. The Jedi hissed in his face, "I had to kill my lieutenant, a man whom I considered a brother! I had to leave my master, a man whom I considered a father, behind to be slaughtered! And you and the Emperor's lackeys are nothing but robots, who are all ready to bend a knee to this man because you want money and power."
"I want to get out." Doctor Serth choked out. Solstice's bonfire of anger stuttered at this sudden confession. But she stood resolute, placing the anger in a stone brazier that was impregnable.
"Why should I trust you?"
"They have my family." He wheezed. Solstice stared into his eyes for another moment before letting him go, that anger finally blowing out.
"You have ten minutes to explain yourself before I pull the trigger." She ordered, starting the timer that was hidden in her dress. She held onto the pistol firm, aiming it at the man for extra measure. "Start talking. And I know when someone is lying to me."
"The Empire has my wife and oldest son, whose only twelve." He explained, the façade of a strong German officer falling to pieces. "I escaped with my daughter but the Gestapo have her. They've been forcing me to make these things for them, but I've put it off as long as I dared."
"Because their technology is too primitive." Solstice muttered. He nodded.
"But I keep running out of excuses." Serth said. "Both governments are keeping them alive for now. But I'm running out of time."
Solstice narrowed her eyes towards the man. She wanted, so desperately, to believe that he was lying. But prodding with the Force told the bounty hunter that the man wasn't lying. In fact, he was telling the truth. Solstice placed the safety back on the weapon before tossing it onto the couch with a sigh. She knelt down, still weary of any tricks he might pull, but the man just sat where he was, crying.
"Tell me the name of your wife and son." She ordered gently.
"Bellatrix and Borealis Serth." The man answered. "And my daughter, she's only nine."
"What's her name?"
There was a beat before he answered, "Tammara."
"Okay." Solstice sighed as she rubbed her head. "Do you know where their being held?"
"My wife and son are on Hosnian Prime." Serth answered. "But my daughter, she's being held hostage in Hammelburg."
"That's just a couple of miles away." Solstice murmured.
"They always make sure to keep her close by. Just so that I won't try anything."
These events were not exactly how she wanted it to go. Solstice walked over to the window, using the signal to call off Hogan and his sniper. She scratched her scalp absently, wondering exactly what she was going to do. Behind her, Kandar Serth was removing the chair from the door and returning it to position. And just in time too, as Klink, Burkhalter and their dates were coming back in after they had strolled the compound. The four of them walked in, even more drunk than they were before, which was strange.
Solstice whispered to standby for extraction before she walked out the door, going as fast as she can in a prison camp towards her barracks. Her heart was pounding a million miles an hour as she quickly changed into her flight suit and dashing into the underground tunnels. Hogan and his men were waiting for her, looking worried and at the same time angry at her. Kanan, Ezra and Rex weren't due to get out of the cooler until tomorrow afternoon, so Solstice could easily give the debriefing then. Of course, she had to also call the Rebel High Command for the go-ahead, but she figured she was on her own.
"What went wrong?" Hogan asked.
"Apparently, the good doctor wants to switch sides. From the Empire to the Rebellion."
"What a twist of fate." Kinchloe muttered.
"Yeah." Solstice sighed, agreed. "Only probably is, both the Empire and the Nazis have his family. The Empire has his son and wife, while the Nazis have his daughter."
"Well, we can't do much for his wife and son, that'll be up to your people." Hogan murmured. "What about his daughter? Where's she being held?"
"Believe it or not, Hammelburg." Solstice watched and felt the shock go through the group of men. She felt her mind go through several plans that could possibly work when Hogan started to do the same. She, Kanan and Ezra could go and get her the minute that the three of them get out. Rex could stay there for all she cared. Solstice still wasn't about to trust him.
"Alright." Hogan started, bringing her out of her thoughts. "We'll plan everything tomorrow night. Serth isn't supposed to leave here until Saturday. We have plenty of time to spring his daughter. It should also give us some time to do some recon as well. Do you think he'll give the location?"
"Oh definitely." Solstice rubbed her forehead. "While I'm down here, I need to go and contact the Fleet. I've got a mission for anyone that wants it in the Hosnian Prime system."
"Good luck with that." Hogan bid her. Solstice just chuckled.
"Thanks. Even though she isn't Force-sensitive, Hera's probably going to find someway to kill me on the other side of the galaxy." Solstice sighed. She turned around and made her way towards the tunnel where her ship was stored. It took a while to get in touch with the Rebellion, seeing how they were too far for her meager satellite signal but after diverting all power to communications, the image appeared of Hera Syndulla. And the Twi'lek pilot was angry looking.
"Don't give me that look," she ordered the pilot, despite the Twi'lek not even speaking. "It's not my fault that three of your people broke protocol."
"Actually, it's four." Hera corrected.
"I'm sorry?"
"After checking security cameras, the Rebel brass discovered that Kanan Jarrus, Ezra Bridger, Captain Rex and Bonga Liferift have taken one of the old freighters. It's last known protectory is planet Earth."
"As I stated before, not my fault." Solstice examined her nails. "I've been trying to get my mission finished."
"And how's that going for ya?"
"Pretty good." She answered. "I found Doctor Serth. And get this: he wants to switch sides."
The shock on Hera's face had turned her upside-down day right side up. In her line of work, you couldn't afford to be surprised and had to be ready for everything. Solstice would bet her life that she just dropped a bombshell. Hera recovered her facial expressions rather quickly.
"Really? Anything he wants in return?"
"Only that he wants his family returned to him." The brunette human female answered. "We'll get his daughter, who is near my current position, but his wife and son are being held in the Hosnian Prime. No real location, but you guys can get any recon."
"Okay, then. I'll inform Fulcrum as soon as possible."
"Appreciate it Hera. White Eagle, out." Once the transmission was severed, Solstice leaned back in her seat, rubbing the bridge of her nose. She was gonna have grey hair by the time she hits thirty-five. Speaking of which, Solstice quickly pulled up her calendar, trying to make sure that her dates were correct. And they were. In a few days, it would Solstice's twenty-sixth birthday. Even though she never really celebrated her birthday, Solstice was looking forward to this one.
The brunette sighed as she laid down in her barracks with a sigh. In another time, Solstice would've been elevated to the position of Jedi Master, the war a distant memory. Peace and prosperity had returned to the Galactic Republic and she would've just taken on an apprentice. But, instead, she was a bounty hunter, who was now trying to smuggle a German-Imperial scientist out of Germany and into the hands of the Rebellion, while also trying free his family.
All in all, she was about have the best birthday in her memory.
-Line Break-
Hera moved through the rebel command ship quickly. Her head was pounding as she went through what she remembered her conversation with White Eagle. And remembered the fact that four of her crew had gone, without permission to rescue White Eagle. The high brass wasn't very happy to hear that the four of them had gone. There was something, however, that had the high brass running around like chickens with their head cut off the moment that the news reached them. They had initiated protocol that they would when they discovered a mole.
"I'm here to speak with Commander Sato and Fulcrum." Hera said the guard posted outside the command center. The guard soundlessly jerked his head, ordering her to go ahead. When the Twi'lek pilot entered, she was shocked to see an argument going on. Ashoka was in the far corner, watching Sato, Mon Mothma and Organa going at each other.
"The stunt that the four of them pulled was unacceptable!" Sato cried. "They should be court-martialed."
"This isn't the Empire, Commander Sato." Mothma stated coolly. It was strange that the red-haired senator sent shivers down Hera's spine even when she wasn't shouting. "We do not punish men for bravery or comradery."
"With all due respect, Senator Mothma, this is still an army. The four men not only disobeyed protocol, they took with them a traitor."
The two senators stood straighter suddenly. Ahsoka also blinked in shock. Hera's mind was going a million miles a minute at the news.
"What are you talking about, Commander?" Organa asked.
"We did some background checks on Bonga Liferift." The commander of Phoenix squadron informed them. "All of our informants and spies on Garrel have vanished after sniffing around his workshop. It cannot be a coincidence."
"Perhaps we were too quick to allow him access into the Rebellion." Mothma muttered as she rubbed her forehead.
"What is it, Captain Syndulla?" Ahsoka asked, as the moment of silence stretched on. Hera snapped to attention as all eyes turned on her, moving forward.
"I have received word from White Eagle." The Twi'lek Pilot stated. "She has made contact with Doctor Serth. According to her, the Imperial scientist wants to switch sides. Only problem is, the Empire is holding his wife and son hostage."
"Where?" Bail asked.
"Hosnian Prime."
The senator to Alderaan sighed as he rubbed his head. "Okay. Send out a reconnaissance team. I expect results forthwith."
Silently, the man walked out. Everyone followed him with their eyes. The air was tense as he left, only to have Sabine enter. Her recently repainted armor and redone hair looked different and it strangely fit her. The Mandelorian explosive expert's amber eyes scanned the room and seemed to pick up on the growing tension in the room.
"You wanted to see me, Hera?" She asked respectfully.
"Yes." She stated. "Get Zeb and Chopper. Order them to prepare the Ghost. We have a mission."
"Anywhere specific?" The young woman asked.
"The Hosnian Prime system." Was all the Twi'lek pilot said before she walked out of the room.
-Line break-
Back on Earth, Bonga sighed as he rubbed his webbed hands together to preserve what little warmth he could. The last orders Kanan gave him was to keep the Twilight off to reserve the very limited fuel that the old clunker had. He sighed as turned towards the space heater that lay in the corner. If only the ship was running! But he refrained himself from turning on the ship. While it would be fun to see those no-good rebels' faces when they found that they were stranded on this primitive planet, he still had a job to do here.
He growled. If only the Empire would elevate him into a more studious position. But the Empire only valued humans more than they did other species. Of course, there was the case of that Chiss male, but it seemed that he was from a higher born status. Hopefully though, this ultimately put the Mon Calamari on the same level as the Chiss male.
Now all he had to do is prepare himself for the kill.