Chapter III
The enormous arrowhead shape of the Devastator slowly was blotted out as the small shuttlecraft neared the hanger bay. Captain Niriz swallowed hard as the ship descended. As the ramp opened, Niriz wiped sweat from his brow. Ominous breathing was soon heard as the sound of leather boots came closer. When the other appeared, he nodded to the intimidating figure of the dark Lord before him. "It is a pleasure to have you aboard the Admonitor, Lord Vader," he said. The Sith merely stood unresponsive. Niriz couldn't stand the silence much longer. "If you wish to have a rundown of..." he began. "I wish to speak to the commander of this vessel. You will take me to his quarters," Vader said, cutting him off. "Admiral Thrawn has just returned from the surface. I'm sure he'd like to recuperate before any..." "Has the Admiral instructed to you as to his intentions?" the Dark Lord asked with a touch of menace in his voice. "I am merely assuming what the Admiral would want. I'm sure a simple overview of our orders would not be stepping above my position," Niriz said. However he felt he would regret it.
"If you assume then you cannot be sure of the Admiral's true desires. Isn't that correct, captain?" Vader asked, this time even more threateningly. "Forgive me, my lord. However, I only reasoned it would be more convenient for you to learn of our status from me than to disturb the Admiral," Niriz said nervously. "You may recall, captain, my request was to speak to the Admiral. No matter how inconvenient it is. Is that clear?" the Sith intoned. "Of course, milord," Niriz said, hastily heading to the elevator.
"Excellent. I have been expecting you, Lord Vader," the calm voice said as the chair turned to reveal the blue-skinned Admiral who stood and bowed. "You may leave us now, captain," he said. Niriz did so rather quickly, leaving the two to talk. "I understand you were assigned this mission by Palpatine himself," Thrawn said, returning to his seat. "My master informed me you have information on possible rebel ties to this world," he answered. "Won't you sit down?" the Admiral asked, gesturing to a chair. "I prefer to stand," the Dark Lord answered. "Our sources cannot find specific ties. However, my forces have captured a Wookiee who may hold the answers we require," Thrawn said, returning to the more pressing subjects. "Are you a collector of art, Lord Vader?" the alien asked, pressing a button on the wall to light the room; which was then filled with artifacts from all over the galaxy. "It never interested me. However, I am quite impressed with your finds," the latter responded as he walked to a display. "Some are nearly a hundred years old. My latest addition I found upon our escapee's ship," Thrawn responded, gesturing to the piece.
"Of what..." Vader began. "...significance is it?" the alien said, cutting him off. The Sith now seemed slightly angered. "It is dated back to the time of the Jedi. This particular piece is straight from the Jedi Temple," Thrawn said, pointing to the markings on it. "You imply he is either a thief or a Jedi himself," Vader responded. "This was his weapon of choice," Thrawn said, handing the Dark Lord a small cylindrical tool. "A lightsaber is the weapon of both Jedi and Sith," Vader answered, handing it back. "True; that is why I took the time to have it disassembled. We found this red crystal inside," he answered, giving it to his guest. "It is unlikely a Sith would be in existence without the Emperor's knowledge," Vader said, examining the crystal. "Nevertheless, the possibility of such is not one to brush aside," Vader said, returning the piece to the Admiral. "I shall arrange for you to oversee the interrogation then," Thrawn replied. "Inform me as soon as it is possible for it to occur," the dark lord answered, and prepared to leave. "I shall depart and allow you to return to recuperating," the ominous figure said to the perplexed-looking Admiral.
The soft beep of the life support system filled Cracken's ears as he entered the sickbay. "How's he doing?" he asked, though he really didn't have to. Who could this be? he thought, staring at the many scars on the body of this mysterious man. "He's slowly coming out of his unconsciousness, maybe another ten minutes," a droid nurse answered back. Davis entered the room next accompanied by Lieutenant Felth, whom Cracken was not especially fond of. "Status?" Davis asked the droid, which reiterated what Cracken had just heard. "Fine, we wait then," he declared, standing to the side of Airen. "On the ship, Major, your conduct was inexcusable," Davis said, eyeing him. "I truly don't know what you're talking about, sir," Cracken said with all modesty. "Your remark upon that vessel," Davis explained, "About the Republic." "All I said was..." he began. "The Republic shall never be forgotten, nor has it died out," Davis stated. "Excuse me, sirs," the droid said, "But I believe he is coming around." "Good," Felth said, clasping his hands as they turned to where the patient lay. As the injured man opened his eyes, they focused on the group assembled around him.
"Where am I?" he asked, "What is this place? Who are you? How did this happen to me?" "Slow down, one thing at a time!" Felth said, "We're not your enemies or out to hurt you." The patient smiled faintly and said, "I highly doubt you could even if you tried." "I wouldn't be so certain of that," Davis said, "We found you in a rather bad shape. Chances are that if we hadn't come along you wouldn't have survived much longer." "Then I am I your debt," he said, "Who am I speaking to?" "I'm Colonel Davis of the Rebel Alliance," their leader told him. "A rebellion?" the patient said, "It appears I have been gone for longer than I imagined. Please enlighten me on current events." "You haven't introduced yourself yet," Airen interjected, "How can we trust you?" "Ah, yes, how rude of me," the man said, "My name is Gavis Ideji." "That name doesn't mean anything to us," Davis said, "Our historical records should be adequate enough to bring you up to date." "I would be most appreciative," Ideji told him, "What brings you out this far?" "We'll provide answers to your questions in time, be patient," Davis advised him. "Very well," Gavis said, "May I be shown to some more appropriate quarters or am I to be confined to sickbay?" "Right this way," Davis replied, leading him from the room.