Chapter 4

Coruscant Orbit

With a ripple of pseudo motion, the T-6 shuttle appeared in realspace above Coruscant. Caloc felt his knuckles tighten around the yoke. It wasn't just because of the planet's gravity either. They had arrived just within the planet's pull, but not enough that it was actively pulling them in. The planet's orbit was packed, he couldn't remember a time the space lanes had been so crowded. It didn't help that amongst the freighters and passenger liners were luxury liners, pleasure yachts and envoy ships, all stopped before the blockade surrounding Coruscant.

"Senator's ships?", Agatha asked, peering over his shoulder to peer into the midst. "I didn't think everyone would be here for our talk. Guess they want to hear what we have to say."

Caloc rolled his eyes as he steered towards the nearest military vessel. "They are here for the Senator Scrent's Military Creation Act. The Senate is meant to be voting on it this week."

The shuttle rounded the curve of the planet and found even more traffic congestion. The reason why was obvious. It wasn't just the usual patrol vessels slowing down and checking suspicious vessels. Sitting in the centre of the blockade was a massive Venator-class cruiser, surrounded be smaller Consular-class corvettes and Dixin-class heavy frigates. Most likely, the ships were here as a sign of the Republic's strength in this time of trial, protecting a world had hadn't been attacked in three hundred years. How many worlds had been left defenceless for this show of strength?

"Which ship is that?", Stass asked, pointing to the Venator. It didn't have the red markings the Resurrection had boasted. Instead, it's hull had an elegant design of green and gold lines on underbelly.

Telle leaned forward from behind them, studying the ship for a second. "It's the Shepherd, flagship of the Second Fleet. All Second Fleet ships have the green and gold markings."

Stass leaned forward in the co-pilot's seat, staring down at the planet. She and the others had awoken on the shuttle, laying in the small rear cabin. Luuna had been given the most comfortable bed, and was currently semi-conscious. Talos had refused to leave her side for the entire trip. Unable to stop herself, Stass glanced down at the electrical burns on her hand, where the Parwan had managed to entangle her arm and steal her lightsaber before he shocked her to unconsciousness. Behind them sat Telle and Mark, with Riyo and Agatha behind them.

Directly beneath them, an Alderaan diplomatic corvette appeared, angling for the planet. Caloc twitched the controls sightly and sent the shuttle skittering away from it. Reaching up, flicked the comms switch. "This is Jedi escort shuttle Tee-Nine-Ex-Fourteen, priority landing code Four-Four-Twenty. We have injured aboard and request a clear lane to the Jedi Temple."

The thickly brusque voice that answered sounded bored. "Ah, yeah. No can do, Jedi. Sorry, but we have a lot of Senatorial committees coming in today. Sky is crowded with ships. You will need to wait until we can clear a lane for you. Shouldn't be more than three hours."

Three hours? Stass felt her mouth drop open. Reporting an injured passenger should have put them in an emergency lane. How were the lanes so full that Luuna's condition, which needed to be checked over by a medic team, would be put on the back burner? Not to mention that she and Caloc were Jedi. Normally, control would put them through without thinking. Why were they delaying today? The answer came to her a second later. The Senate must have ordered priority lane use. How many others were currently trapped out here while the Senators of a thousand worlds landed?

Caloc went to press in the comm switch again and reply to the man, and Stass blanched. She could imagine what he might say. The young Menachi tended to get rude or sarcastic when he was annoyed. Reaching up, she slammed the comm switch off.

Her padawan predictably turned his ire to her instead. "Are they serious? They aren't letting us land even after a priority landing code?"

She rested her chin in her hand. "We missed something here. Security is tighter. Maybe something happened on Pantora while we were lost on Shili. Maybe there was another collision with Count Dooku's Confederacy. We could have lost another system or two at the rate he is gaining supporters. I don't know what it is, but we might need a little… discretion. Let me try and talk him down, okay?"

Telle's head poked up from the rear seats. "There may be another way to get Luuna the help she needs."

Stass turned to the navy officer and raised an eyebrow in question. She pointed out the cockpit at the Shepherd, and grinned. "My father and I are good friends with the second in command of the Second Fleet flagship. Technically, Governor-Admiral Loregus is in command, but Commodore Anglis will be more receptive to our needs. Besides, I doubt that Loregus will be in direct command. He'll be down on the surface greeting the Senators. We should be able to get a berth and get Luuna to a medical suite."

"Here.", Stass tossed her the comm system's microphone. "You have a better chance than I do at getting through to a fellow green-coat than we do."

Telle got busy, and Riyo leaned forward. "How do we explain this whole 'me now being the Senator for Pantora' thing? Won't they be confused by that?"

"We tell the truth.", Stass replied simply. She assumed that Riyo might not wish to return to her time on Shili. It might be a traumatic memory to dredge up. But their journey on Shili through the Valley of the Dead and the eventual death of Trav-iss Torn would need to be documented. Then a memorial service for the Senator would take place. Sometime during this, Riyo would be expected to make her planet's plea to the Republic Senate. Exactly what that plea would be… well, Stass had no idea what the situation on Pantora was like at the moment. Maybe the Shepherd's data records could tell her.

The comm crackled loudly, not the private channel that Telle was using, but the pilot's comm that incorporated the entire cabin. Caloc reached up to switch frequencies until the crackle disappeared and a clear voice came through. He grinned at his lieutenant friend, "This is Shuttle Tee-Nine-Ex-Fourteen, receiving."

"Hello, Jedi.", a soft female voice came across, pleasantly rhythmic and soothing, "Lieutenant Lawell tells me that you need to offload some injured while you wait for a clear path to the surface. Unfortunately, I am not on board the Shepherd. Loregus is personally overseeing the Senatorial escort fighters from the cruiser. My people are scattered around the smaller ships. If you could redirect to the Scythe, I have cleared the secondary hanger for your arrival."

"Anywhere with a bacta tank and a medical droid will do.", Caloc replied before Stass could. He was being snippy again, probably still annoyed at the control officer's dismission, but at least he wasn't completely rude. She glared at him, though she was also annoyed at the situation.

Coordinates appeared on the screen before them, before becoming a pinpoint diagram of the fleet before them. Commodore Anglis was directing them towards one of the Dixin -class heavy frigates. Stass looked at it, curious. Why was the Commodore even allowing the escort starfighters to take over her ship? But she supposed that anyone with 'Governor-Admiral' for a title must have seniority.

A medium sized warship, the Dixin-class frigate looked like a giant pickaxe, flying so that the curve of the blade formed the bow, while the fuselage, hangers and engines made up the handle. Several bulbous weapon's blisters bulged along the blade and the forward area of the handle, but the rear of the ship was surprisingly undefended. Only point-defence weaponry poked up from around the hanger.

The Quarren and the Wookiee's had worked together to create the design, and had sold it to the Republic to fill a specific role in their volunteer navy corp. They had forgotten to take into account that the only thing the ship was designed for was straight charges into enemy forces, or defence where the ship's rear could be protected by a planetary body. Still, the ship's compliment of starfighters usually made up any shortfalls in defence during it's patrol routes.

The aforementioned hanger was indicated on the screens, a blinking red dot on the wire-map schematic. Caloc slowly brought the shuttle in to land, the wing swinging from vertical to horizontal just before they entered the shield barrier. His fingers expertly flew across the controls as he cut power to the engines, transferred the energy to their repulsors, and settled the shuttle gently on the landing struts. One more flick of a switch locked the struts magnetically. Reaching up, he pulled a lever down and lowered the ramp.

Stass smiled. Only a year ago, her padawan had been in the simulators, still learning to properly fly his starfighter. Now he was landing a shuttle inside another ship's hanger as though he had been doing it his entire life. How the galaxy changed. And she couldn't be prouder of the kid. Though of course, she would never let him know that.

Standing up from the co-pilot's chair, Stass looked around. They wouldn't take everyone with them for the preliminary departure, when they were to meet with the Commodore and offload Luuna to the onboard medics. After a moment of indecision, she gestured for Riyo, Miriam and Agatha to join her. As they passed the cabin, they found Talos standing ready, wearing his blue and white commando armour for the first time since Reppli.

"How's Luuna?", Stass asked.

Talos nodded, face hidden behind his helmet. "She's ready to be moved, ma'am. I've prepped her as best I can, and Ceefour is watching over her."

He fell in behind them as they exited the ramp and walked down to the Scythe's deck. Standing there waiting was a tall woman with dark skin and the green-grey uniform of the Republic Navy. Her hair, the darkest shade of midnight that Stass had ever seen, hung loosely around her face, a single lock of it dyed a platinum white. The insignia attached to her breast indicated her rank – commodore. Over her uniform she wore a thicker, knee-length jacket usually used for planetary expeditions. Beside her, clustered around a gurney, were several white-uniformed medics.

The commodore gave a quick salute, then lowered her hand back to her side, though her expression remained polite and formal. "Jedi Master Stass Allie, I believe. We haven't met before, if my memory serves me correctly. I am Commodore Anivalite Anglis, at your service."

"Chan Lawell spoke highly of you and your crew.", Stass replied. "Claims that you can at least help us with our wounded, and give us time to recuperate from the journey."

Anglis nodded, gesturing one of the medics forward. "Worry not, Master Allie. Senior Medic Clonic is one of the best in his field. I keep getting calls from other ships asking for him to transfer, but I wouldn't dream of letting him leave the Shepherd."

Clonic glanced up at the shuttle, then nervously back in Stass' direction. His shaking hands mimed a few words, and then he began to speak. "I would very much like to meet and examine your injured parties, Jedi. Where are they?"

"Up the ramp.", Stass replied, gesturing vaguely before turning to the medic's, "My padawan is up there right now, checking on her. And just so you know, she had recent surgery while we were stranded. I would appreciate it if another person could check the workmanship."

The senior medic nodded, then began to order his men aboard the ship, along with one of the hovering gurney's. As soon as they had disappeared inside the ship, Anglis' expression fell to one of quiet relief. "Master Jedi, you are a sight for sore eyes. The entire Navy has been put on alert, and we are getting reports from Jedi who have been sent to find you. If there was any sighting of you, we were to send everything we could immediately to assist. Where are the rest of your crew?"

The rest of the crew? Stass closed her eyes to block out the memory of the mass grave of Shili. The Reborn Triumph had held a crew of nearly a hundred, mostly engineers. Almost all of those had been lost when the ship was attacked by both the Mining Guild and a group of pirates. She told the Commodore as much, finishing with a lame-sounding "I'm sorry."

Anglis' skin had gone pale during the story, but now it had returned to it's natural colour. Curious, Stass thought. Perhaps the Commdore was a human/Zeltron hybrid, known for expressing their emotions through their skin colour. It would certainly be an interesting mix.

As Anglis's colour returned to normal, she sighed deeply, "It isn't your fault, Jedi. There are forces out there that are opposing the Republic at every turn. They are growing, too. The Chancellor himself ordered the Shepherd here to guard Coruscant while the Senate is meeting to vote for the conscription of a Grand Army of the Republic."

So that was happening today. Stass had read the reports, most of them borrowed from her cousin, Adi Gallia, who worked closely with the Senate. She agreed that something needed to be done about the rising conflicts in the Outer and Mid Rims, but to go as far as conscription? If the Republic militarised, it might send the galaxy into years of hardship. Fear would again grip the galaxy, something which hadn't happened since well before her knighting. The Republic would go into years of debt. Corporations would flock to fill quotas for armour, starfighters and tanks. It would spread the line between rich and poor further.

But she was being rude, and forgetting the people behind her. Turning, she beckoned Riyo forward. "Commodore, may I introduce the interim Senator for Pantora, Riyo Chuchi."

Anglis smiled kindly as the youth stepped forward, offering a hand politely.

The young girl took the offered hand and shook firmly. "An honour, Commodore."

The medics reappeared at the top of the ramp, carrying the stretcher with Luuna's still form laying in it. They began to cross the hanger towards the far corridors that obviously led to the medical suite. Stass could sense Talos' discomfort the further away they got. He had obviously grown fond of the handmaiden, and wouldn't trust anyone but himself with her safety. She cleared her throat, turning to face his helmet's impassive visor. "Talos, I want you to ensure that Luuna is given the best treatment possible. Would you please go with her?"

He nodded stiffly, before his dutiful stance melted away. Turning, he began running to catch up to the gurney. Only when he got close, did the formal posture return, and he marched along behind it as it entered the far corridor.

"In the meantime, Master Jedi.", Anglis waved towards another set of doors leading forward. "Perhaps you would accompany me to the bridge. We clearly have much to discuss about recent matters."

"I understand, Commodore.", Stass nodded, gesturing for the woman to lead the way.

Anglis nodded, then looked again at Riyo. "If you want, Senator, you and your people can have free reign of my ship. My aide, Lozo, will meet you over by the corridor to guide you."

She pointed to the door the medic's had disappeared through. Riyo bowed, and led her three-person entourage away. Their graceful steps made nearly no noise on the metal deck. But as they walked, Stass noticed the slight bulge in both handmaiden's sleeves. After Trav-iss' demise, it seemed neither woman was going anywhere unarmed.

Caloc's head peeked out of the ship's entryway. "Oi, Master! I'm going to give the ship a once over. That cool?"

Stass frowned. Give the ship a once over? That was part of a complex code they had been developing of late, ever since Devaron. She racked her brain to recall the meaning. Then she had it: he had found something that did not belong and wanted to probe it. Interesting… and disturbing. She nodded, feeling a sliver of nerves trickle down her spine. Hopefully, her padawan could handle this. Still…

"Ask Mark to give you a hand.", she told him, "And get Telle to join me on the bridge. The Commodore and I are going to talk about our mission."

"You got it.", he replied, and disappeared back inside the shuttle.

But a tickle on the nape of Stass' neck made her shiver. Something was very wrong here. Something that was blurred, and that the Force wanted her to see.

Telle had quickly joined the Commodore and Jedi, not wanting to participate in the mechanical machinations Caloc and Mark were doing under the main console. The trio began walking towards the nearest access corridor, talking quietly amongst themselves as only women could. About thirty metres from the door, they stopped, turning as a shout of surprise came from inside the shuttle. Telle spun, staring as Mark and Caloc ran down the ramp, followed by Deesix, Ceefour and Arfive. The three astromechs had only just rolled onto the hanger floor when the shuttle let out a muffled boom, and then violently exploded, the hull cracking outwards like an overboiled egg.

Fire, smoke and molten metal filled the air. Flames were sent rolling around the hanger. Klaxons rang out, echoing around the hanger. The explosion's shockwave sent the three women stumbling few steps away. Those who were closer went flying away, or rolled across the hanger deck. The flames were beginning to slip towards the other ships in the hanger. Telle had the image of a cascade of smaller explosions as the fire ignited each of the ships and their fuel lines, forcing the Scythe's evacuation. They needed get this under control, now!

She looked around and took in the damage that had already taken place. Poor Ceefour was on fire, with Deesix and Arfive chasing him down, extinguisher foam blasting from vents in their bodies. Mark had been sent sliding across the hanger floor. The pilot had already gotten to his feet and grabbed an emergency extinguisher. He had also spotted the fire's path, and ran towards the nearest ship to try and form a defence.

But someone else had caught Telle's attention. As the explosion's shockwave had sent him flying, Caloc had twisted in mid-air to land on his feet. Now he stood, feet planted against the deck, hands outstretched towards the fleeing flames. As she watched, he closed his fingers into a loose ball. The flames stopped moving, and then, inexplicably, they began rolling back towards the wrecked shuttle. Telle watched, frozen in shock. This went against every law of science she had heard of.

Caloc's expression was unreadable, with his eyebrows knitted into concentration and his lips pressed tightly together. Sweat dribbled down his brow, running into his cheek's scar and down his chin. His hands were shaking as he tried to keep his impossible control over the flames. And then it got even more impossible. Caloc stepped forward. Just one, heavy step. But to Telle's utter amazement, the shuttle moved. When the ship had exploded, the landing gear had been magnetically locked onto the deck. It shouldn't have been able to be moved, not even by a tractor-tug. But the wrecked shuttle scraped back slightly.

It was just a little bit. Only enough for the tips of the wings to pierce the see-through barrier of the hanger's shield. And so Caloc took another shaky step, telepathically or telekinetically or magically pushing the flaming shuttle forward. Stass hurried over to her padawan, planting her own feet beside him and putting her own hands up to push the ship harder. The shuttle slid faster now, though still painstakingly slowly. The engines pierced the shield and the bulk of the wings followed. Both Jedi were sweating profusely now, their feet seeming to get heavier with each laboured step. Finally, the cockpit pierced the shield and fell through.

All that Telle could do was watch as the ship disappeared through the shield, slowly tilting backwards until it disappeared into the vacuum of space. The fire disappeared as soon as it had no more oxygen to eat. The flames that remained around the ship were soon gone, thanks to Mark and a trio of emergency B1 fire droids. Behind her, she heard Anglis on the comm, reporting to the bridge and telling them to prepare fire crews for the hanger. They needed to grab the shuttle in the tractor beam or with the emergency cables too, before it could fall to the surface.

It was everything that Telle should have been thinking of. Everything that her training had prepared her for. But she just ran, her legs slamming on the hanger floor until she found herself beside Caloc, catching him as he collapsed from sheer exhaustion. He was heavier than normal, leaning on her not just for support, but like she was a lifeline to reality. His skin had gone from it's normal heat-baked bronze to a pale grey.

She dragged him over to a crate, draping him against it. He immediately slid to the floor. Telle grabbed his hand, with was shaking with violent tremors. Slowly, she rubbed it with the tips of her fingers. "Are you alright, Blueboy?"

Caloc's eyes flittered back and forth, distracted and unfocussed. His skin was slick. His scar that ran from the top of his left cheek to his chin had cracked slightly. The tiniest trickle of blood ran from the scar and down his cheek. With his head flat against the floor, the blood had begun to ooze it's way towards the ear. to his chin. She wiped it away with her sleeve and placed her fingers on his neck. His pulse was erratic. Telle bent over to check over his body. Had he been hit by shrapnel from the explosion?

"I… hate that… name.", she heard him wheeze out between shaky breaths.

"I know you do.", she placed a hand on his shoulder as his head lolled to the side, and pulled him up so he rested on her knees. Blueboy had been their private joke ever since the Battle of Malastare Narrows, when he had fallen to the Liberty after saving her life. He had almost died, and his skin had been blued from the lack of oxygen and the ruptured veins. Thankfully, the medical team had quickly helped him get back in a healthy state before anything permanent could debilitate him.

Stass slid beside them just as he lost consciousness. She seemed fine, and Telle realised that the Tholothian must have been able to take more strain than her student. She was in her fighting prime after all. Stass' eyes scanned Caloc's body and she placed a hand on his head before taking a deep breath of clear relief. "It is only physical exhaustion. If he had any mental strain, it could have been devastating."

Personally, Telle understood none of what had happened, and was just glad that someone here did. But as the Jedi Master kept vigil over her student, her mind flickered back to her duties. She heard Anglis order the tugboats to catch the shuttle and pull it into the primary hanger before it could be grabbed by Coruscant's gravity. They needed the ship for evidence, she said.

She passed Caloc over to Stass and stood. Slowly, Telle made her way across to the Commodore, and nervously waited for her comm conversation with the bridge to finish. "I know you have already done a lot for me, Anglis. I was hoping for one more small favour."

"Another medical bed?", Alexi asked sardonically. "I have already ordered one for you."

Telle bit her lip, her finger intertwining nervously, "Well, yes. But I was actually thinking of something else. Could I use the comms station? I would like to tell Dad that I survived the Valley of the Dead."