Chapter 19 - Shortcut

Namaah Agati watched the stars streak by in hyperspace without really seeing them. The foolish Jedi had thought he would never find their bastion. Of course, they had likely looked into their precious Force and seen him by now. He was fairly certain their loathsome Bothan allies had been watching him as well. They could watch all they wanted and call on the Force all they wanted. It would be to no avail.

Agati leaned back in his captain's chair and admired the marvel his intelligence had created. His command ship was the finest vessel in his fleet, bristling with state-of-the-art laser cannon, target-locking missiles and innovative weapons of his own design, all honed and tested to perfection. The rest of the fleet was almost as impressive. Artificial intelligence controlled each minute detail and he controlled the AI. It was a fleet that could not be beaten and could not betray him, unlike the star destroyers that he had brought along mainly for their psychological effect on his enemies.

It seemed to him that the Universe never granted the gifts of great intelligence and Force sensitivity to the same beings. Luke Skywalker, the great Jedi himself, was a simple-minded, foolish idealist. Ezra Bridger was seldom more than half aware of his surrounding, according to reports. And the supposedly wise matriarch Ahsoka Tano- if she had any sense, she would not be the mother of seven children, with another on the way. The so-called Dark-Siders had been no better. Darth Vader had been an unhinged lunatic; Palpatine a power-crazed dreamer; the Inquisitors, dull and short-sighted.

No, he had no need for the Force. He adjusted the pendant he wore under his clothes on an almost invisible chain around his neck. Just like the ysalamiri, he had learned the secret of cutting himself off from the Force and could do so anytime he chose. Let the Jedi keep their Force. Intelligence would win the day. It always did.

Allowing himself a momentary grin of triumph, Nek Bwua'tu watched as his ships dropped out of hyperspace into a desolate blackness, the nearest star hundreds of light years away. Under ordinary circumstances, he would have stayed in the hyperspace lane until it intersected the lane where Agati's fleet was currently traveling. But while he was fairly sure his shortcut had placed him well ahead of Agati's fleet, he could not be certain. He and his crew would have gladly risked their lives by plunging into the nearby lane. After all, crashing into Agati's fleet would effectively destroy it, thereby completing his mission. However, with Natasi and his little ones on board, he would not risk an encounter in hyperspace.

Touching a few buttons on his command console, Nek scanned the hyperspace lane immediately ahead of his fleet for any large objects that might possibly be space-faring vessels. Finding none, he called the order for the fleet to jump. As he stepped up behind his pilots to watch his ships enter hyperspace again, he felt a warm pressure on his arm and turned in alarm.

"Tasi! What are you doing here?"

Natasi leaned her head on his arm, her green eyes sparkling up at him. "I'm your wife and you brought me along, remember?"

"I am aware that you are my mate," he patted little Naala, snuggly strapped to her mother's bosom, "and I realize that you are on this ship because I brought you with me. None of that explains what you are doing on the bridge, dangerously close to the pilots' station."

He turned to his second in command, as he gently pulled his wife away. "Chui'lan, have all our vessels jumped safely?"

"The last one just jumped, sir. All safe. We should arrive at least a full hour before Agati."

Nek nodded to the tall, slim Bothan, then addressed his wife. "Well, Natasi?"

She sighed. "I just wanted to see how the plan was coming along. I didn't even touch the console."

"I don't need any more ships crashing and I especially don't need my wife having another extended stay in a medcenter."

He frowned at her with a sternness that was half feigned, half real. His Natasi was an excellent wife, a wonderful mother, a clever strategist, a brilliant computer tech and definitely easy on the eyes, but she had no piloting skills whatsoever. Despite his multiple determined efforts to teach her, she could not even safely fly a speeder.

Natasi's lower lip slip out in a pout. "I wasn't really hurt that badly. It was just a scratch."

"You had a punctured lung, Natasi."

She wrinkled her nose to accompany the pout. "A scratch on my lung."

"And a concussion."

Natasi averted her gaze. "A scratch on my lung and a bruise on my head," she amended.

Nek dropped into his command chair and drew his wife closer. Reaching around behind her, he loosened the wrap that held his little daughter to her mother's chest.

"Sit with Da for a moment, my Love." Settling Naala in his lap, he placed a steadying hand on Natasi's back, the other on her chest.

"Breathe deeply," he commanded, softly but firmly.

Her bosom rose and fell, far short of a healthy deep breath. All traces of sternness vanished from his face and his eyes softened as he pulled her into his arms and handed the baby back to her.

"You are not well, Heart's Dearest." He paused, holding her close. "Are the boys asleep?"

"Eramuth and Niasi are. I told Yantahar he could read one more chapter before bed. So, I thought Naala and I would come see how the shortcut was working out."

With Natasi's help, he had laid out the fleet's route in about half the time it would have taken him to do so alone.

"Our route worked perfectly and, thanks to you, we are at least a full hour ahead of the enemy."

"That's wonderful, Darling." Natasi snuggled deeper into his arms, pressing against the soft fur of his neck.

Sandwiched snugly between her parents, Naala cooed contentedly, "Da. Deah." She patted her father and mother in turn as addressed them.

Nek laughed. "Did you hear that? She tried to say 'Dearest', just like the boys." He kissed his little daughter's soft head. "You are becoming quite the big girl, my Naala."

Natasi stroked the baby's head. "My sweet girl. She is getting big." She turned to Nek. "In fact, in a few more months, she'll hardly even be a baby. I'm going to need a new one very soon, you know." Playfully, she tapped his soft nose.

"I'm afraid you'll just have to make do for a while. First, we have to save the Galaxy, then perhaps we can add a new member to our family. In the meantime, it is time for you to get some rest." He carefully helped her to her feet and stood facing her. "Don't forget to take your medicine."

Nestled in her mother's arms, baby Naala began to fuss loudly. She jammed one furry fist in her mouth and grabbed the front of her mother's tunic with the other hand, leaving little doubt as to what she wanted.

Nek chuckled. "I stand corrected. Apparently, it is time for you to feed our daughter."

She leaned into him again. "Will you kiss me first?"

He obliged her with a long, passionate kiss.

"You know, Natasi," he commented as she settled back down in his lap and began to feed the baby, "sometimes you are very needy. Has anyone ever told you that?"

She beamed up at him, her face alight with contentment, as she rested her head on his shoulder. "Oh, yes. Some Bothan I married is always telling me that."

"I wouldn't have you any other way." And he kissed her again.