It had been a few weeks since Alys had heard from Lana when she received some correspondence. It was encrypted, but it was a short message to rendezvous with her at the cantina on Vaiken Spaceport. They had been patrolling in imperial space at the time, waiting for the next battle or next meeting. Alys grinned ear to ear when she got the message from Lana. She jumped from her seat in her quarters and ran onto the bridge.
Alys almost felt bad for interrupting her captain as he was reading. He had taken her advice to relax during his downtime, even if he refused to leave his post. However, he heard her footsteps as she dashed into the bridge with her datapad in hand.
"Are you alright?" he asked as Alys sat next to him. He put down his datapad as she threw hers in his hands.
"Lana has found something," she answered as Quinn looked it over. "They found their main base, and we have to meet her in the next few days on Vaiken."
"Then I will plan a course," Quinn answered as he read through the note. He could see it was indeed from Beniko on an encrypted line, and that she had found where the traitors were heading. He glanced up from the pad as he accessed the navicomputer, changing their course. "I assume that we will be rendezvousing with the jedi?"
"I doubt they would arrive on the spaceport, but they might show up when we confront the cultists," Alys shrugged as he handed her datapad back. "Right now, it'll just be Lana that we'll be talking with."
"I would like to meet this woman," he informed as the ship was redirected.
"That's fine with me," the sith agreed as she sat next to Quinn. "I'm sure you and Lana would get along very well."
"Oh?"
"You both take formalities extremely seriously."
"Well, I should hope so," Quinn remarked with a sigh. "I just want to assess what kind of sith accepts Republic help."
"You're looking at her," Alys reminded as he shook his head.
"That was a situation you were forced into. Lana was the one that found the SIS agent and struck an accord without your permission," he explained. Alys shrugged as she nodded. Lana didn't need permission to do her job, but Alys didn't have much of a choice in the matter.
"Just remember that she is not the traitor. That's Arkous. He's the scheming snake that thought he could get away with this," Alys reminded. Quinn nodded as he placed his datapad on the console. "Anyway, we'll meet Lana in the cantina on Vaiken, and hopefully, she'll have a plan to take this conspiracy down. Then we can get back to our regular lives."
"I think you're enjoying this a little too much."
"Of course, I am. This has been challenging and interesting. Everything else is about appearances and public opinion. I'm bored out of my mind," she explained as she started to slump in her chair. "I didn't become sith to be a public figure."
"Yes, I know," Quinn reminded as Alys rolled her eyes.
"Then let's do something interesting when this is all said and done."
"What do you have in mind?"
"I dunno, something different and exciting. Maybe we can go back to the front lines and help. I hear that the Republic is causing trouble on Taris again. Maybe we could help bring the Voss into the fold," she suggested before she sighed. "I just can't just go from meetings to aimlessly wandering the galaxy. I want something to accomplish again."
"I'm not sure how to help with that," Quinn replied, giving his attention to her. "I'm sure we could talk to Lord Marr about lending a stronger hand in the war next time he calls upon you."
"That's an idea," Alys admitted with a nod. "He did bring us in for Ilum. Maybe he has another plan in the mix."
"He has a devious mind, I'll give you that," he agreed. "For now, let's just deal with Beniko and go from there."
"Alright, fine," Alys groaned before she sat up in the chair. "Don't you get bored?"
"Balmorra was pretty boring," Quinn reminded. Alys bit her lip as she agreed. She had forgotten that he wasn't used to the adventure as she was. He was stationed at a dead-end job for nearly ten years where the most exciting it got was when the resistance tried something against Sobrik. "I'm fine with the way things are right now. Just drifting from place to place without much worry of anything."
"That's a fair perspective," Alys remarked as she dropped the subject. After a moment of silence, she stood as Quinn got to his feet as well. "I'll let you get back to your reading."
"I wouldn't mind if you stayed a little longer," Quinn requested as he stood at attention. Alys held back a smile as she saw him. If she were anyone else, he would have been more direct. Alys wondered if she should tease him further, but she instead nodded and sat back down.
"I do enjoy your company," she added as she relaxed. Quinn returned to his seat as well and he seemed to relax a little. "You know, you can request my presence whenever you want."
"I wouldn't want to take up all of your time," he replied as she shrugged.
"I find myself with nothing but time as of late," Alys reminded. Quinn chuckled, shaking his head. "But I see your point. Plus, you have your books to read. I wouldn't get in the way of that."
"No, you have made that very clear," he teased gently before picking up the datapad off the console. "One would think you are more invested in my books than I am."
"I just want to make sure you don't lose yourself while you're working. I'm glad you are passionate about your job, captain, but there is more to life than just your career," she reminded with a sigh. Quinn tapped his finger on the device as he thought.
"You should listen to your own words more often. Maybe while we're doing something as you would classify as boring, you could pick up a hobby of your own," Quinn suggested. Alys gaped playfully at the captain.
"I have hobbies," she argued.
"Training with your sabers hardly counts. They are directly tied to your career."
"I suppose I can't argue with that. I have a few books on my personal datapad, though. I read when I have a moment."
"That's a start. Maybe you can take up painting," Quinn offered. Alys never thought about making art before. It was an intriguing idea. Just as she opened her mouth to say so, the ship abruptly came out of hyperspace as programmed. They had been closer to Vaiken than they had realized. He stood, helping her to her feet as well. "Should we go find the sith?"
"I suppose so," Alys sighed as she opened the door. "I doubt anyone else is awake."
"Then we can make this a short trip," Quinn suggested as he guided her off the bridge. Alys nodded before she glanced down at her more casual clothing. "I'll grab your armor."
"Thank you," Alys smiled before he returned with some of her smaller armor. It still worked as well as the others, it was just slightly lighter and didn't scream sith enforcer.
Once she was presentable, Alys and Quinn disembarked. She waved at the station crew to do whatever they needed to do to keep the ship working before Quinn called the elevator. They went to the main area of the station where it was busy as usual. Quinn followed Alys through the crowd, which had customarily parted for her, as they made their way down to the cantina. He double checked the datapad for the correct directions when an astromech approached. It beeped, explaining that Lana was in Arkous's office, planning their next move.
Quinn retrieved the directions from the astromech before it rolled back into the crowd. He turned to Alys, who wasn't terribly surprised by the diversion. They walked to the elevator that Quinn had pointed out and they went down the sublevels of the station. Alys vaguely remembered the office, as it was where she had heard the details of Tython and Korriban.
They approached the office and Quinn knocked politely on the door before introducing Alys. The door slid open to reveal one sith working at the holotable without anyone else in the room. She motioned for them to come in without looking as she finished what she was doing. Alys and Quinn stepped into the office as the door closed behind them. Lana pressed a button on something before she turned to greet them.
"Lord Wrath," Lana bowed before her eyes fell on Quinn. "I am Lana Beniko. You must be Captain Quinn."
"You are correct," he replied with a deep bow. "It's an honor to meet you."
"Thank you," Lana answered distractedly. "I'm afraid all other niceties are going to have to wait. We have a lead on the Revanites."
"Tell us what you know," Alys urged as she took a seat near the holotable. Quinn stood behind her seat as he watched the blonde sith activate the holos.
"If you recall, I have felt a strange mass in the Force that I believe is tied to Darth Arkous. I've been using that connection to find more Revanites in the Empire, and while I have found a few, it has been slow going," Lana began as a few culprits appeared on the holo. "And with our little excursion on Manaan, they have accelerated their schedule."
"We did put a wrench in their plans," Alys grinned. Lana was less amused.
"Darth Arkous is cunning, and they have become desperate. With our ally's help, we were able to track them down to a planet called Rakata Prime. That is where they are building their infinite army. That cyborg monster would be considered child's play to what they are planning," Lana warned before she started to pace. "They are using pieces of the star forge to create more super soldiers for their nefarious purposes."
"The star forge? Like the one Revan destroyed?" Alys guessed.
"The very same. There are fragments that are still self-replicating, and they are using that technology to enhance their soldiers."
"That's not great news. What do we need to do to stop them?"
"Theron is rendezvousing with Jakarro on Rakata Prime as we speak. I told them that we would be on our way shortly," Lana replied. Alys nodded as she motioned for Quinn to send a message to the crew. "We have to find out what the Order is planning, and we must stop it before they get any further."
"Understood. I assume you have a shuttle ready?"
"Of course, my lord. Right this way," Lana answered before they walked to the hangar. Quinn sent the message to the crew that they were on an emergency mission designated by Beniko. He didn't dare send anything else in case they were being monitored.
Once on the shuttle, Lana flew out of the spaceport and put in the coordinates for the distant planet. Alys buckled herself in in the back of the shuttle as Quinn sat across from her. Once they hit hyperspace, Quinn unbuckled himself and approached Lana carefully. He stood at attention behind her and waited for her to acknowledge him, as was per protocol.
"Captain," Lana sighed as she turned her chair around.
"My lord Wrath mentioned that there were workings with jedi during the last mission. In order to protect my lord from the highest danger, I need to know if those jedi will be there again," Quinn asked politely, keeping his gaze straight forward. Lana glanced at Alys, who shrugged. This was typical for him.
"I cannot say whether or not they are going to be there, but I would expect it would be a strong possibility. They worked with us on the Manaan mission, I would gladly receive their help for this mission as well," Lana informed before Quinn bowed.
"Thank you, my lord," he replied before he walked back to his seat. Alys shrugged as Lana sighed, turning back to the console. The Wrath watched as Quinn returned to his seat next to her and fastened his belt again. He didn't speak, but Alys could tell that he was mildly irritated about Lana's attitude toward the situation. She quietly reassured him that everything was going to be fine as she touched his shoulder. He nodded once before he relaxed against the seat's back.
