"Ah," said the resistance officer when he saw Cyr'rnin. "Look, it's one of our dependable friends from the Republic." Three resistance fighters watching over holo turned toward Havoc Squad. "Meeting's over, people. I wouldn't dream of keeping a Republic officer waiting." The other resistance fighters disconnected.

"Are you Ardon?" Cyr'rnin asked.

"That's me," Ardon said, the chip on his shoulder growing by the minute. "General Garza sent me a message explaining everything. I've got Vik's current assignment details right here. Glad to hear that the Republic's finest aren't here to help, but to take away one of my best men instead. We're honored, really."

"Dial it back, Ardon," another resistance fighter said. "Pyther, Ardon's boss. How can we help the Republic's finest?"

"Havoc Squad needs a demolition expert," Cyr'rnin said.

"Of course," Ardon said. "And what Havoc needs, Havoc gets."

Pyther scowled at him.

Cyr'rnin said, "We wouldn't be taking Vik if the situation wasn't serious."

Ardon said, "Everything is more important than Balmorra to you people."

"That's it, Ardon," Pyther told him.

"Or what?" Ardon said. "It's not like this publicity-stunt squad is doing anything useful for us anyway."

"Tell them where he is," Pyther said.

"Vik is taking one of our teams on a patrol run," Ardon told Cyr'rnin. "Their next stop is our signal interception post. You can catch up with him there."

"No," Pyther said. "Contact the post. They can tell Vik to head back."

"No answer," Ardon said. Pyther stared at him. "I'm serious. See for yourself."

"He's right," Pyther said. "Cossutt," he said to another resistance fighter. "Who do we have near the Markaran listening post?"

"Zaph's team," Cossutt said. "I'll ask her to head over." He went to the holoemitter. "Zaph, Cossutt here. How close are you to the listening post?"

"Half a klick," the human female said.

"They're not answering their comms," Cossutt said.

"On it," she said and switched off. A few minutes later, she reappeared with two technicians next to her. "The relays are down. They need help with repairs."

"Is Tanno Vik there?" Cyr'rnin asked.

"That Weequay scumbag is long gone," one of the technicians said.

"Vik was here earlier," the other technician said. "But he slipped away when we weren't looking, along with our entire security team. All he left was this holorecording."

A Weequay appeared. "Gentlemen. Tanno Vik, Fifty-third Irregulars. I'm afraid your fine security team is being co-opted for a very important top secret mission. This is all on Republic orders, of course, part of the big push. Take a look at Regulation 235-R, you'll see that everything checks out. Have a good one."

Cyr'rnin said, "Dorne? Are you familiar with Regulation 235-R?"

"Yes, ma'am, but it makes no sense," Dorne replied. "Regulation 235-R dictates the size and positioning of improvised field latrines."

Cyr'rnin said, "Jorgan, who would know if Vik was under special Republic orders?"

"Colonel Velxax," Jorgan said. "Military Intelligence on Balmorra."

"Can we contact Vik?" Pyther asked.

"If the relays were up," the second technician said. "We could tap into Vik's communications."

"Zaph," Pyther said. "Can your team handle that? I want to know why this outstanding soldier co-opted one of my security teams."

"On it, sir," Zaph said.

Once they were gone, Pyther said, "Does this man have a history of going rogue?"

"He does, sir," Jorgan said. "He was court-martialed twice."

"Why the hell do you want him?" Pyther asked. "Why do we want him? He can't possibly be the only demolition expert in the Republic."

Damn good point, Cyr'rnin thought. Why did Garza want Vik? Havoc Squad alway picked the best, the brightest, the weirdest. The outsiders. General Garza had a thing for outsiders and a real knack for picking them. Except for Jorgan. And her. The Onoka had a long history of serving the Republic, not just as Jedi. Her father and three of her family served in the war. But, Garza was very specific about-

"We've got it," the technician said.

Vik reappeared. "-a dangerous mission, no doubt about it. To be honest, a lot of you probably won't make it back. Of course, if you asked the guys up top, they'd never even admit to ordering this mission. That's how it is in this business. But we're not here for glory or credits. We're here to save Balmorra. Am I right?"

"That piece of shit," Pyther said.

"I want coordinates, not chat," Cyr'rnin said.

"Step one is Sobrik," Vik continued. "Once we have what we need there, it will be a straight shot to our final objective."

"Sobrik," Pyther said. "He's got to go through Gorinth. Contact the outpost," he told Cossutt.

"Who, sir?" Cossutt said.

"Major Triam," the first technician said. "Republic Special Forces. If anyone would know, it'd be him."

Soon, a Kel Dor appeared. "Major Triam, Thirty-fifth Recon. Who am I talking to?"

Cyr'rnin stepped forward and saluted. "Captain Cyr'rnin Onoka, sir. Havoc Squad. I'm looking for a Weequay named Tanno Vik. Have you seen him?"

"He was about to destroy some Imperial jammers for me," Triam said. "His men are getting the explosives now."

"Stop him, sir," Cyr'rnin said. "We suspect he's gone rogue."

"Understood. Captain Phyn! Stop Vik and his men! Phyn's got him, Captain."

"Thank you, sir," Cyr'rnin said. "We will head there now."

"Who are you, exactly?" Tanno Vik said. He sat in the Gorinth Outpost brig, looking bored.

"I'm the commander of Havoc Squad," Cyr'rnin said. "And your new CO, Captain Cyr'rnin Onoka."

"Haha! I thought that message was a prank. This is too good." He stood up. "Get me out of here, Captain. I really want to hear what the Republic has to offer me, because last I checked, I wasn't winning any popularity contests with Command."

Cyr'rnin said, "We can discuss the particulars of the mission when we're aboard the Meteor."

Vic said, "Is that your ship? That's not a great name for a ship."

"What were you trying to do here?" Cyr'rnin asked.

"Help the Balmorrans," Vik said.

"Prototype weapons," Triam said. "The security team told us."

"Exactly," Vik said. "Weapons for the resistance."

"We'll deal with it," Triam said. He gave Vik a sour look and left.

Cyr'rnin looked at Jorgan, and he and Forex moved people away from the brig.

"Why would General Garza want you?" Cyr'rnin asked.

"I'm the best," Vik said.

"You almost got a lot of good people killed," she said. "Plenty of good soldiers want to be in Havoc Squad, but Garza picked you. Why?"

"I don't know, Captain," Vik said. "I fight Imperials, blow things up, and make some money on the side. Maybe Garza likes my style. Maybe she's captivated by my good looks. She tried recruiting me once before. Told me Havoc Squad was my way out. Or up. I forget. Garza picks the best of the worst. That's always been her style. Personally, I think she's got something under the table. She picks her team based on that."

"Why did you refuse her offer?"

"I was going to say yes," Vik said. "Until I met Tavus. It's not often I meet a guy with worse morals than my own. I did not want any part of whatever shit he was into. Instead, they got that wet-behind-the-ears musician."

"Fuse was a musician?" Cyr'rnin said.

"I told you," he said. "Garza picks the freaks. Except you. What makes you stand out? Other than the scars, that is."

"My family, maybe," Cyr'rnin said. "We've had a lot of Jedi."

"Not what I would have expected," he said. "By any chance, do you know a Ter'viro Onoka?"

"My brother," she said.

"Shit. I'd hate to be at that family dinner." He looked toward Sobrik. "Well, you fucked up my mission. What a waste. I can't believe I went to all of that trouble for nothing."

Cyr'rnin said, "In Havoc Squad, we put the Republic first, not ourselves. Is that clear?"

"Yeah," he said. "I'd say it's clear. How tough is this mission?"

"You get to save the whole Republic," she told him.

He laughed. "What's that saying? You get the hero you need." He stood up straight and saluted. "Captain, let's go blow up some Imperials."

"What are we looking at, ma'am?" Jorgan asked.

Cyr'rnin had been in her quarters for two hours before she called in Jorgan and Dorne. Military personnel covered every display, the dates going back two decades.

"Every member of Havoc Squad since General Garza took over," Cyr'rnin said. "Every one of them was an outsider in some way. She passed over soldiers with better scores to hand pick the best of the worst, as Vik put it." She looked at Jorgan. "Everyone but you and me."

"I shouldn't be here," Elara said. "As soon as I revealed my... condition, I should have been removed from Havoc Squad at the very least. Probably, from Republic military altogether, but the General fought for me."

"That Sith Lord," Cyr'rnin said. "He didn't want you as a sleeper agent, did he?"

"No, ma'am," Elara said. "He wanted me as a pet, an off-duty pet, specifically. It won't trigger otherwise. The Sith have a very practical view of perversion."

"You were safe for the job you needed to do," Cyr'rnin said.

"Safe from who?" Jorgan said.

"Not Imperials," Elara replied. "Or she'd never have recruited me in the first place."

Cyr'rnin said, "Every time I suggested recruiting, Garza pushed back. What's she looking for?"

"General Tannu was the same way," Jorgan said.

"Tannu?" Cyr'rnin asked. "Nautolan?"

"Yes, ma'am. She recruited me for the Deadeyes."

"Most species in the Republic have one or two families strong in the Force," Cyr'rnin said.

"Right," Jorgan said. "You mentioned that."

Cyr'rnin said, "In the last four hundred years, the Tannu family has produced seven Jedi, putting them in second place among Nautolans." She pulled up mission summaries. "Every iteration of Havoc Squad, all the way back to Jace Malcolm, has worked with a Jedi at some point, even Tavus."

"We're safe," Jorgan said. "Tannu picked me, so I'm safe. Your family makes you safe."

Safe from what? Cyr'rnin thought. From people in the Republic, in Republic military. Agenord, Kriranda, Ter'viro, Nina, and now her. Why did she ever think her life would be straight forward?