Skye Royal Palace.
Nashira.
Skye,
Skye Alliance.
321ABY.
January 11th.
Harrison Tarn, First Prince of the Skye Alliance, looked up as a helmeted and visored guard swung opened the door and admitted Subhash Indrahar to his private planning chamber.
Harrison, the undisputed ruler of the Skye Alliance frowned as he saw the fierce and determined expression on the face of his spymaster. Despite the weakness of his body – a side effect of his long years of his life- that had left him confined to a motorized wheelchair, Indrahar’s mind was still as sharp as it ever was and his expression told Harrison that something had disturbed the old man immensely.
Moreover, the man’s anxiety and anger was palatable to Harrison through the force.
“What’s wrong?” Harrison asked, “Have I missed something momentous?”
“No” Indrahar shook his head weakly, yet his eyes burned fiercely, “Not yet perhaps”
“Than what is it?” Harrison frowned.
Indrahar held up a holodisk in his one good hand, “This arrived this morning in the company of more lawyers and security men from the Republic March than should ever be allowed on one transport. Miles Fel-Tarn seems to think I am incapable of running both the ISF and the Counter-Intelligence divisions as well as the Ministry of Intelligence”
“What is that scheming idiot up to now?” Harrison thought. He leafed through a pile of documents and pulled out a shipping schedule. He held up the flimsiplast for Indrahar to see, “How did they get here so fast? I wasn’t expecting anything from Ord Mantell for another week. Nothing due in cargo or passenger wise”
Indrahar scowled and pushed the holodisk into the viewer; “Seems your beloved brother-in-law sent them on one of his personal ships. Came straight here from Ord Mantell. This message was recorded about two days after the ambush on your daughters training battalion on Balmorra. Miles had some of his own investigators crawling all over the site and interfering with my own men’s investigations. This is part of that”
Harrison’s eyes narrowed to slits in anger, “Wait, before you play that tripe, let me get Arden in here” The Prince pushed a button on his desk, “Find Arden Sortek and ask him to come to my office, thank you” He looked at Indrahar, “You’ve taken care of Miles’ representatives?”
Indrahar nodded, “Decontamination for the next thirty-six hours. Seems their batch numbers on their Kentares flu shots shows they got a bad dose, so we’re running full blood work and tests on them” Indrahar smiled cruelly, “Plus the full range of shots”
“Always best to be cautious” Harrison laughed, then silently added, “Well done, spymaster, well done”
At that moment, the doors swung open and Arden Sortek strode into the room carrying an armful of folders under his arm. Seeing the expression on Harrison’s face, he scowled, “What has Miles done now?”
Harrison smiled, “As always, my friend, you see straight through to the heart of the problem” He waved Arden to a chair, “We’re not certain yet, but this is a holodisk from Miles. It should be explosive”
As if sparked by Harrison’s final word, Arden held the files out for Indrahar, “Some of your men said they’d found the originals for these files while decontaminating the luggage of Miles’ ‘representatives’. They also included the top file, which is a complete run down on each of the men Miles sent”
Indrahar took the files then laid them on his knee, and then he reached over, dimmed the lights and set the holo-projector playing.
After an initial burst of static, the image of a hand clasping an old style broadsword appeared in front of a deep blue background.
As Miles Fel-Tarn’s personal crest faded from the viewer, Arden remarked dryly, “Is it me, or is that sword looking more and more Republican each time I see it?”
Harrison exaggerated a frown, “You can’t believe that Miles would be talking to Fel’lya, could you?”
“Ha!” Arden laughed.
Miles Fel-Tarn’s face materializing on the screen cut off further discussion. Only seven years Harrison’s senior, Miles wore his black hair in a long braid that curled around and up over his shoulder like a snake. His restless grey eyes, just a little too close together, kept shifting away from the camera, failing utterly to convey sincerity. His voice, though well suited to speech making, carried no conviction.
“Greetings brother. Your sister Marie is well and sends her love. She is anxious about your welfare and hopes you are as fit as ever” Unknowingly referring to the period when Riesk Fel’lya’s double of Harrison ruled the throne, Miles continued, “Your bout of the Bendhai Virus twenty years ago still has her worried”
Harrison smiled, “Miles could never lie that well. He’ll never know how close Fel’lya came to winning the Skye Alliance” He sketched a silent salute to Indrahar for killing details of the plot.
Miles Fel-Tarn stepped back from the camera and the view zoomed out in a wide shot of his office. The white patterned walls and tiled floors were patterned after dwellings on Agamar, but the neo-cubist artwork and campaign maps tacked to the walls robbed the room of the peacefulness the architect original envisioned. Miles perched himself on the edge of his desk.
“It is not easy to speak with you of this, Prince Tarn. As it calls into question your motives towards the Republic March. Yes, we fully acknowledge you anger with us with our refusal to commit troops to your war games. But the Republic is on our doorstep. How well could I serve you as March lord if I commit troops to your desire to play General and lost worlds in the process?
Miles’ face darkened with thinly disguised disgust, “And why is it you continue to saddle me with one of the most incompetent officers imaginable. How can you justify not dismissing Col Levin from his post?” Miles scowled in anger, “You knew of, but chose to overlook his dismissal of Ravik Nar. You yourself pinned the Medal Excalibur onto Nar’s chest for his heroic actions on Spica. How Levin’s dismissal of such a hero can escape your notice is beyond me….unless those reports never reached you”
Harrison nodded another salute to Indrahar at his efforts in keeping the truth behind Ravik Nar’s dismissal secret.
Meanwhile, Miles continued his rant, “Levin is merely one aspect of the potential nightmare you’ve saddled me with. These….training units….are a terrible and dangerous experiment. Half trained troops will never be a match for true academy training and I don’t want these child soldiers on my worlds. I want them off”
The camera slowly drifted in for a close up, “We realize that this may seem like a trivial matter to you, but it is of utmost importance here in the Republic March. Our people already believe your attention is too focused on the Circinus front and the threads of an alliance with the Free Worlds League. They feel you do not care about them and that you are willing to strip us of troops, ships and resources to keep the Circinus Federation from your neck”
Miles stared out from the screen, “Unless you bolster our defenses and stop saddling us with half trained troops, what are we to think? You know well how difficult it is to maintain an effective empire when civil unrest saps your strength from within. I would hate to think that the same problems that have plagued both the Outer Rim Federation and the Alliance itself in the past might rise and trouble you. My people and I are at your command in pursuing the resolution of this matter”
The screen went black, leaving the three men sat in the darkness. Then as the screen dissolved into static, Indrahar reached over stiffly and dialed the lights back up.
“How dare you threaten me with civil war!” Harrison thought angrily, “I know history. I know the various civil wars in the last few hundred years have always been financed by outside parties. Have you tipped your hand to me, brother mine, or are you just too stupid to see that Reisk Fel’lya will use you as shabbily as he would a boot scraper?”
He looked at the others, “Gentleman, let’s review our options. Miles threatens civil war if we don’t pull our training units out of the Republic March. Are things really that bad out there?”
Indrahar shook his head slowly, “His allusions to civil war are an idle threat. Miles knows that many people in the Republic March see him as little more than your sister’s consort. I sincerely doubt he could get the popular support to pull off a revolt”
Arden nodded, “I agree with Subhash, but Miles ‘could’ influence his people to resist sending troops to other fronts. We’re not as thinly spread along the Republic border as the Republic forces are, but Fel’lya can still cause trouble. Their raid against Spica two years back proves that. Though the recent disaster at Sarna may change that for them. A deep strike like Spica again could hurt our morale and definitely slow down production of key goods. And that spells unrest”
Harrison looked at the wheelchair bound spymaster, “Subhash, do we have any evidence of Miles collusion with Fel’lya?”
The old man shook his head, “Just suspicions. No unreported absences. Official meetings with ambassadors and the like. No meetings have been recorded, so our cryptologists can’t check for code words”
“No possibilities of him sneaking away during tours of the March to secret meetings?” Harrison frowned.
“Unless Miles has a double that covers him and it’s unlikely, then I’d say no” The spymaster thought for a moment, “Check that. Miles could have jumped into Republic space for a four or five hour meeting during a tour a few months back, but we can’t prove it”
“I don’t need to prove it” Arden said bluntly, “I can feel it in my gut”
“As can I” Harrison nodded, “Right. We’ll continue our close watch on Miles, when he slips I’ll have him” He sighed, “Moving on. How are your people during on the investigation into the ambush on Balmorra?”
“We’re still backtracking them” Indrahar replied, “But between the prisoners caught at the site, the ones we picked up trying to flee the planet and analysis of the wreckage, we’ve determined they definitely came from the Republic” He frowned, “Though I cannot tell you their overall origin”
“How did they get on planet?” Arden asked.
“They appear to have smuggled themselves, their tanks and other equipment in as parts for the weapons factories. They were cleared by a customs agent –who has since disappeared- in orbit and their ship allowed to the surface. They broke off their approach to their prescribed landing site and grounded near to where Levin’s unit had their patrol route and lay in wait. The fighter was launched from a jury-rigged catapult on the freighter”
“What were they after?” Harrison said, “My daughter or did they have some other plan?”
“They may have just been attempting to gauge how good these training battalions of yours are” Arden pointed out.
“It’s possible” Indrahar nodded, “Though a direct strike against Alexandria Tarn cannot be discounted. Her assignment wasn’t publicized, but neither was it kept a secret”
“Good points” Harrison nodded, “Send a commendation for the unit and see if we can get the report of that battle distributed to some of the programs detractors. I want them to see that these training units aren’t the incompetent and green troops they say they are” He looked at Indrahar, “Now I need to know. Did we have anything to do with what happened on Sarna?”
“I can give you a firm no” Indrahar answered with only a slight hesitation, “I had agents on planet trying to figure out what they were doing at the labs there. The report I received from a surviving agent states that an unidentified human male and a female Omwati stormed the lab, killed the chief scientist, destroyed the project and set off an EMP device that destroyed every shred of data. At the same time, the Gorug Pirates launched a raid that led to them grounding near the city of Breezewater. It was during the battle that an industrial building being used a massive chemical and toxic waste dump exploded and triggered the blast” He shrugged, “What I cannot tell you is if the raid on the labs and the pirate attack were connected. Nor can I come up with a reason why all that dangerous material was stored that close to a city of one million”
“Keep digging” Harrison ordered, “I want to know who was responsible. In the meantime, as callous as it sounds, the disaster on Sarna should tie up the Republic in that region for little while”
“In the meantime, we’ll keep feeding Miles our troop figures, locations and projected movements to show him we haven’t abandoned the Republic March. You, Subhash, will track the Republic movements on the other side. I want to know exactly who I can trust in the Republic March”
———————————————–
Dac Government Hall.
Mon Calamari.
Free Worlds League
321ABY.
January 12th.
Jesmin Akdool looked at the document a second time, absorbing the words within, then for good measure read it again. Eventually, she rotated her bulbous eyes to gage at her Intelligence Minister, “Your thoughts?” She asked handing him the document
Moren Zatoq, current head of the League Intelligence Ministry, took the document and running his fingers along the flimisplast edge, located the capsule hidden in the flimsies construction, crushed it and let the document fall in the metal waste bin.
Almost immediately, the chemical reaction caused by the breaking of the capsule exploded into a blue-green flame that quickly ate into the document. The flames painted a ghoulish tint to his tentacle face and then when he could stand the heat no more, he stepped away and looked to the leader of the Free Worlds League.
“If the signature and personal holograph of Subhash Indrahar had not been woven into the very fabric of the paper itself, I would never have believed it myself” He gazed at the fire still burning in the bin, “That the New Republic actually produced and succeeded in putting a double of Harrison Tarn on the throne for a short time is chilling. Though it goes some way to explaining much of the problems with relations twenty years ago, especially during the Galtor campaign”
Akdool thought for a moment, “Could it happen here?”
“It’s possible, though it would be difficult. To make such a substitution would require the duplicity of so many people as to disrupt normal activity” He closed his eyes for a moment and was silent for so long, Akdool thought the Quarren had gone to sleep. Then his eyes opened, “But were you to be hospitalized for a period of time due to illness or injury, a substitution could be made then Your convalescence would allow for a gradual conditioning of the double and allow people to forget what you were truly like” He nodded, “Yes, it could happen here”
“I know you Moren, as soon as you leave this office, you’ll review hospital procedures and staff records” She thought silently, then added aloud, “Then I shall be careful in the future until you can assure me that it won’t happen”
Zatoq nodded in acceptance of the jest, but saw no need to trade quips with her today, “The disturbing part in what Indrahar tells me about the plot is that the double underwent either a mind wipe or suppression of his memories and personality” His tentacles curled up in a Quarren approximation of a frown, “When he was unmasked, his original personality may have attempted to reassert itself causing the mental breakdown Indrahar detailed in that report” He paused for a moment, “Had he not been unmasked, I believe the outcome would have been the same. The living body of any species is far more complicated than anyone can prove, the mind more so. I believe that sooner or later, the double would have suffered a breakdown as their original personality attempted to reassert itself”
“So despite the New Republic’s technique, not something that can be used over a long period?” Akdool nodded her large head, “But in the short term, effective”
“Effective enough to do significant damage, depending on the person involved” Moren nodded.
“How easily could we identify someone that had been replaced with a double?” Akdool asked.
“With DNA testing and comparing against a database sample, fairly easy” Moren shook his head, “But that presumes that the database itself isn’t altered as well. Brain wave examination would also be useful method. A duplicate could be detected by the presence of a secondary pattern beneath the primary. But again, they may have taken that into account too”
“True” Akdool nodded, “After all, the NRI spent years infiltrating the Skye government just to slip in their double. They were planning for the long game”
“Also true” Moren agreed, “But the resources involved in finding, creating and conditioning a double, not to mention the work in getting them in place would have been immense. It’s not something they could do for more than few key people and even then the circumstances would have to be right for getting them into place”
Akdool stood and moving to the large open window gazed up at the sky above, “I don’t like this. Moren” She sighed, “The New Republic has begun resorting to far darker, more sinister tactics ever since Reisk Fel’lya became Chief-of-State and I fear, as our alliance with the Skye Alliance becomes stronger, so too our enemies tactics will change”
“You fear what may come next?”
“I do” The Calamarian nodded, “And so should we all”
————————————————
Balmorra.
Republic March,
Skye Alliance.
321ABY.
January 15th.
Col Levin sighed as he dropped his jacket over the back of his chair. After nearly two weeks of questions, analysis and investigations, the ISF investigators had finally finished their work and had left Col and his unit alone.
Weary from the constant scrutiny he and his unit had been put under, Col had at least maintained some sense of civility with the investigators. Unlike Saul Tarkin, the off world ISF guys had been strictly business, treating everyone with suspicion and taking no answer at face value.
It hadn’t helped having his entire unit under house arrest for the duration of the investigation either. Confined to base and permitted access only to the mess hall and rec rooms during certain periods, the trainees had weathered the scrutiny and suspension of rights well, but Col knew another day or two of it would have caused a mutiny.
Worse still, he and all his senior officers had spent almost every hour of everyday shadowed by an ISF officer. Even Alexandria Tarn had been treated like a potential enemy agent by the no nonsense ISF.
Still they were gone now and things could go on as before.
A knock on his door reminded him of a little business he’d planned to deal with today, “Enter” He called out.
“Sir” Alex Tarn saluted, “You wanted to see me?”
“Yes Alex” Col nodded, “Please take a seat, “And drop the ‘Sir’ stuff. For the duration of this meeting everything I tell you is off the record, so call me Col”
“Yes Si….Col” Alex frowned as she took a seat at Col’s desk.
“I sorry we didn’t have this talk sooner” Col said taking out a bottle of metallic blue liquid and two shot glasses, “But it was a bit difficult with the ISF crawling over us”
“It was” Alex nodded, “At one point I thought my shadow was going to follow me into the shower”
“I know” Col sat down and poured some of the blue liquid into the glasses and shoved one to Alex, “But that’s ISF for you”
Alex held up the glass and looked at it dubiously, “What’s this stuff?”
“Taurian Brandy” Col answered swirling his glass, “Brewed on some world in the Concordat. A FWL Officer gave me a few bottles back on Galtor in exchange for some Amarian Whiskey”
“I see” Alex frowned.
“The trick is to get it down before……”
“Before what?” Alex looked at him curiously.
“Try it and see” Col smiled, then knocked his drink back, screwing his eyes shut against the jolt, “Go ahead” He whispered hoarsely.
“Alex reared her head back and tossed back the drink. She swallowed, then coughed and then wiped the tears that sprang to her eyes. She waved her hand in front of her mouth a few times, then swallowed again, “I see” She coughed, “Not a sipping drink is it?” Then she frowned, “My mouth is numb”
Col laughed, “That’ll pass” He poured another glass each, “Anyway, I asked you here because I promised you the story about what happened to Ravik Nar. Now what I tell you is part of a confidential report that was prepared for your father –the First Prince- to determine if Nar would receive his Medal Excalibur. How much do you know of what happened on Spica?”
Alex thought for a second, “His unit got hit on Spica during the Republic attack, they were near the village he’d grown up in and he and his people got ambushed. His family and most of the village was wiped out, but Nar managed to lead his troops out, destroying a lot of the enemy and buying time for his men to get themselves and their wounded comrades out. He saved them all. After the Republic was driven off Spica, he chose to take a training role to recuperate” She shrugged, “I saw the holo-drama” Then she frowned, “But I’m guessing, that there’s another story there?”
Col nodded, “The basic story is accurate. Nar’s unit was ambushed, but they were ambushed because he’d led them into an area he had no authorization to be. With the front moving so swiftly, the Republic troops had taken that entire area. Nar’s nearest support was four hours away” Col paused, “Nar’s family may have still died in the fighting, but the two dozen men and women with him wouldn’t have. The ones he saved, should never have been in that situation in the first place”
Alex nodded silently.
“By the time the truth came out. Nar was a hero, a media darling of a holo-drama. When he was awarded his medal, high command also hoped he’d agree to retire. When he refused to step down, they gave him a training assignment” Col shook his head, “When Intel learned of his plan to hijack a transport and take his trainees off on a revenge strike against the Republic, I refused to allow him to get the trainees killed and dismissed him”
Alex paled slightly, “I appreciate your sharing this information with me” She knocked back her drink, coughing slightly less than last time, “Do the others know?”
“The other Lieutenants and Sergeant De Mensil do” Col answered, tossing his own drink, “A couple of the other trainees too, the ones that were fiercely loyal to him. Craon and Di’ka’an do”
Alex frowned, “Then why would they…the fight? If they knew…..” Realization came to her expression, “Typical hazing of the new Lieutenant”
“That and the fact that while he was a dangerous loose cannon, Nar was a damn good leader. He was popular with the trainees, got the best out of them without pushing them too far” Col sighed, “He was well liked. Face it, you’ll be measured against his example for a while yet”
“Whooopee!” Alex muttered sarcastically.
“One more thing” Col smiled, “You did well in the fighting for your first time under fire. Kept your people together despite the circumstances. And you didn’t fall apart when you lost Chartres and Viclan”
“I nearly did” Alex scowled, “Let myself get to absorbed with that damn bomber too. I’ll admit I wasn’t expecting to see combat quite so soon”
“It was a surprise” Col agreed, “But don’t knock what you and your squad achieved. You didn’t freeze, you barely hesitated. Your orders were clear and easy to follow and you made good use of your assets” He smiled, “Don’t knock yourself for a few first time hiccups”
“Thanks for you confidence” Alex smiled, then stood rather shakily, “If you don’t mind, I’m going to go get some rack time. I want to start working directly on my squads training tomorrow”
“Anything is particular?” Col asked, “From what I know the range is free tomorrow”
Alex winked, “Then we’ll start with weapons practice. We’ll show my uncle just how good these ‘green’ troops are”
————————————————————————————
Pacifica (Chara II)
Circinus March,
Skye Alliance.
321ABY.
January 17th.
“I don’t like this one bit, Sir” Jub Hoob muttered from where he stood near the window, wincing with each lightning strike as he anticipated the discomfort of the upcoming crack of thunder on his sensitive ears, “This storm is getting worse, and I don’t relish the idea of being here in this great stone lightning rod”
Jacob Tarn looked over at the Sullustan, “If you want to make a run for a lower building, be my guest”
Jub looked out the window again. The rain was coming down hard now, hard enough that just looked like a sheet of falling water after more than a few feet. Already, huge puddles were opening up on the landing field tarmac between the observation tower and the outer buildings, “On second thoughts. Maybe I’ll stay here”
Jacob joined his diminutive officer at the window and placing his booted foot on the sill, rested a hand on his raised knee, “Looks like it’s going to be a bad one” He observed, “Worst one we’ve see yet”
“And they call this place Pacifica” Jub muttered sarcastically, “Still if it weren’t for the storms, I could almost like this place”
Jacob laughed, knowing the Sullustan was joking, “You’d be the only person in the galaxy to develop any sort of affection for this planet”
“I’m never happy anywhere” Jub grunted, “Not since Sullust”
Jacob frowned. He sympathized with the Sullustan. He been one of many who’d disagreed with the current policies of the Oberon Confederation and had gone into exile rather than end up being ‘vanished’ in the night by members of the OIS.
Outside, the storm lashed even harder.
Chara III, a large moonless planet in the Skye Alliance, had proved to be one of the most contradictory places in this region. On one hand, the fertile soil readily accepted a wide variety of plants and produced fruit abundantly. The world had enough water to make it a natural paradise and to warrant stationing a full regiment on world to guard from raids by the Circinus Federation. Having arrived on a placid day, the first explorer had been inspired to name the planet Pacifica.
Yet anyone who spent any time here, wondered about the peacefulness implied in the name. As a large body with no moon, Pacifica rotated every fourteen CST hours.
Compared to the Coruscant Standard Time hour (Sixty minutes made an hour, twenty-four hours made a day etc) An hour on Pacifica was only thirty-five minutes long due to the planets fast spin, which also bestowed on it some very unpredictable weather conditions. Sudden unexpected rain or thunderstorms were common. As many of the locals put it, ‘if you don’t like the weather, just wait a minute and it’ll change’
“Any ideas on when we’re getting off this rock?” Jub sighed, moving away from the window.
Jacob shrugged, “Within the next couple of days hopefully. The Fourth Donegal Guards are due to put down tomorrow. With them are coming elements of the First Fleet to relieve the Black Hand, so we’ll be moving onto our next stop”
“Not before time too” Jub grunted, then winced as a crack of thunder rattled the windows and his sensitive eardrums.
“You know you didn’t have to come dirt side, you could have stayed on the Black Hand and just worry about keeping your navigation console clean”
Jub shot him a dirty look –not exactly permitted etiquette when dealing with a ships first officer, but Jacob wasn’t the type to make his subordinates toe the line, “Stay on the ship and miss the chance to breathe some clean, unrecycled air and get some solid dirt beneath my feet?”
“True” Jacob laughed, “Best to make the most of it while we can”
“Does it disturb you that we’ve had seven stations in as many months and not even heard a single report of Circinus aggression, let alone seen any?” Jub frowned.
“A little” Jacob nodded thoughtfully, “It’s been thirty years since their last major strike. Fifteen since they made a raid deeper then the border worlds, and nearly a year since they made any kind of incursion in Alliance space” He sighed, “I’d like to think that they’ve finally learned their lesson, but I know it’s unlikely”
“About as likely as my being crowned tallest sentient in existence” Jub chuckled, “Any ideas where we’re heading next?”
“Elom” A voice cut in before Jacob could answer.
“Patrick!” Jacob spun in the direction of the voice and offered his hand to the new arrival, “I thought they still had you guys stationed down on the southern continent?”
“We were” Patrick Tarn-Varik smiled. The tall blond haired commander of the Genyosha Mercenaries ran a hand through his hair, “But we’ve rotated back up here as we’re shipping out with you guys on the 19th”
“How did you find out before us?” Jub asked suspiciously.
“I only just found out myself” Patrick shrugged, the movement sending rainwater cascading off the soaking wet poncho he wore, “Had to grab a shuttle up here to get the transfer order as the damn comm arrays are down again”
“Yeah, I knew the comms were having problems” Jacob said, “It’s the damned weather. Atmospheric conditions prevent satellite based comms working half the time, so they use ground based relay stations which are a magnet for the lightning, even with the shielding”
“All things considered” Patrick frowned, “I’ll be glad to get off this rock”
Jacob and Jub exchanged knowing looks, “Oddly enough Cousin, we were just taking about the same thing before you arrived”
—————————————–
Command Bridge.
Trinity Class Super Star Destroyer ‘Black Hand’
Pacifica Orbit.
321ABY.
January 19th.
“Admiral” Jacob said, handing the datapad to the Togruta officer, “The last of the Genyosha equipment has been stowed and secured. We’re good to go on your order”
“Good Commander, good” Admiral Vika Zaan nodded, his striped head tails flopping over his shoulders, “Ahead of schedule too. Good. Have a course laid for Elom, jump to hyperspace once we reach the beacon. Relay the same to the Farlander, Pride of Angmar and Cucalamus”
Jacob relayed the navigational orders to Jub at the helm, then gave the remaining instructions to the communications officer for relaying to the three other ships currently under Zaan’s command.
Jacob glanced at a chrono, “Five minutes to hyperspace jump Admiral”
Zaan nodded thoughtfully, “Tell me Commander Tarn, any thoughts on why we might be heading to Elom? So close to the border with the Circinus Federation”
“Well, I hadn’t heard that Elom had been hit” Jacob shrugged, “Perhaps we’re going in to reassure the Elomin. A show of force”
“Or bait” Patrick said stepping up to them.
“Major” Zaan nodded, his distaste of mercenaries not sufficient to colour his judgement of Patrick, “I do believe you are right. The drop off of activity by the Federation over the last few years either indicates a change in their stance from aggression to defense or they are planning something”
Jacob nodded in understanding, “If they are preparing for an attack, what better than the possibility of taking out one of the Alliance’s most advanced ships”
“And the heir to the throne” Patrick pointed out.
Jacob blanched, “Don’t remind me”
“I do not like the idea of being bait” Zaan scowled, “But we will not be an easy target. The rest of Fleet Group Six will be positioned in several nearby systems ready for me to give the word. Should the Federation chose to attack, they will discover a lot more than they bargained for”
Jacob smiled and was about to reply, when the comms officer called out, “Message for you Commander Tarn. Marked private”
“You can take it in my office if you like Commander” Zaan nodded.
“Thank you, Sir” Jacob nodded, then turned to the comms officer, “Send it through to the Admirals office, I’ll take it there”
With a nod to Zaan and Patrick, Jacob made his way to the office at the rear of the bridge. He just reached the door when the deck trembled as the Black Hand made its jump to hyperspace.
Entering the office, Jacob found the communication terminal already lit and waiting for him to enter his codes to unlock the transmission. Seating himself at the terminal, he entered his password and hit the play button.
A burst of static punctuated the silence, then resolved itself into the White horses head over green and blue checked background that was the emblem for the Free Worlds League, which told Jacob whom the message was from.
The insignia dissolved and the face of Jacob’s fiancée, Hanna Leong, smiled out from the viewer at him. Her long blond hair was styled into two braids that framed her face and hung down her front and she wore a simple high-necked dress.
“Jacob, my love” Hanna smiled, “I’m hoping this message reaches you before your birthday as I want to say this” She grinned, “Happy birthday Jacob!”
Jacob nodded, his birthday was tomorrow. The message had arrived just in time.
Hanna smiled, “I wish we could be together to celebrate, but you have your duties and I have mine and they do conspire to keep us apart” She glanced to one side, “I wish we could be more open, but with my father being the head of the Corellian Government in Exile and with you being the son of the First Prince of the Skye Alliance, the news of our relationship could shake up things in the New Republic. They may start worrying about an attempt to retake Corellia. I just hope things can change soon” She sighed, “I wish we could just be a couple without having to consider the political side of everything. Captain-General Akdool has told me to be patient and things will fall into place. But I can only wait so long, if I’m forced to wait longer we may just have to elope”
Jacob couldn’t help but smile at her mischievous tone. They’d actually talked about eloping several times, but had always agreed that they would wait and marry properly. Yet she still occasionally dangled the idea in front of him to tell him just how much she wanted to marry him.
“Anyway, I hope your keeping safe. It’s uneventful here at the Corellian Embassy, so I hope at least one of us is having an exciting time. I love you so much and I can’t help but look forward to when we are next together. Until then, my heart yearns for you my love”
The image of Hanna dissolved into static leaving Jacob alone with his thoughts for a girl half a galaxy away.
—————————————————-
The Sprawl.
Mandalorian Space.
The Sprawl was, to put it gently, an eyesore. An almost random mish-mash of freighters, space stations, platforms, transports, liners, cruisers, battleships and even an Executor Class Super Star Destroyer, linked together by a bewildering array of support beams, transport tubes, pipes and conduits.
Almost two thousand vessels of a variety of ages, size and design comprised the immense city like structure that hung in close to the Stenness Hyperspace Node and had begun life as a refugee convoy that had stopped in the Stenness System and never moved on.
A dozen ships had locked airlocks together and stayed like that. Overtime, more refugees -some fleeing conflicts, others fleeing oppression or just an unfavorable political climate- had found their way to the little colony, bringing supplies, expertise and other ships. Soon though, population numbers had begun to overwhelm the limited space and soon, the Scavengers –or scavs as they were often called- began raiding scrap yards and decommissioning facilities for new ships to turn into homes. They avoided raiding and stealing vessels in service and for the most part their activities were permitted as long as certain lines weren’t crossed.
Initially tolerated by the first the Skye Alliance, then the Mandalorians when they carved out their area of space, The Sprawl quickly became the place to go to when you wanted something less than legitimate.
High grade spice, Ryll, illegal ship parts, restricted weaponry, information, historical artifacts of various origins, pleasures of the flesh or mind and import/export banned items all passed through the sprawl.
Sure, the Hutt’s had better connections, but the Scavs were less likely to have you killed rather than hand over what you’d purchased. As long as you followed the rules, you were welcome.
Another attraction in the Sprawl were the games. Violent, bloody and often fatal blood sports were all available in the various districts of the Sprawl. Live fire war games, gladiatorial matches and even game hunts in a variety of simulated environments were freely available to watch, bet upon or if you were feeling particularly brave or just foolhardy, take part in.
As his shuttle curved around the engine block of the Lusankya –her engines long since cannibalised for other purposes- Gar Noton gazed out over the expanse of the sprawl.
“There’s no reason or rhyme in its construction” Noton thought, “Ships were just brought in, put near an airlock and then supports and connections welded in place. Sometimes hulls of two different ships have just been welded together”
A few moments later, his shuttle cleared the bulk of the Lusankya and Noton saw his destination. An old, but well maintained Mon Calamari Cruiser still bearing the legend ‘Pride Of Dac’ on its bow.
Without needing to be instructed, his pilot –a slim and pretty Bothan female- sent the recognition signal that would permit Noton’s shuttle to enter the Pride’s private hanger bay.
Almost delicately, the pilot brought the shuttle to a landing in the bay and shut down the drives.
“An excellent landing as always Misha” Noton smiled at her.
“You don’t pay me for shoddy flying Mister Noton” Misha winked.
“Very true” Noton nodded, “I do only pay for the best. I’ll be gone for a few hours, so shouldn’t need you for a while”
The Bothan nodded and began locking down the shuttle, “I’m going to do some work on the ship, nothing major just general cleaning work. Just give me a call when you’re on your way back and I’ll be ready for you”
“I shall” Noton smiled and turned for the boarding hatch.
As he approached the hatch he caught a reflection of himself in the angled mirror Misha used to keep an eye on the hatch itself. Tall and barrel chested, his uniform styled tunic stretched tight across his muscular physique. His clean-shaven face betrayed little sign of his fifty years, though as a concession to vanity, he shaved his head to better disguise the bald spot.
Nodding proudly that he still looked every inch the mercenary legend that had had holodramas made about him, Noton stepped from the ship.
Though there were some looks in his direction as he crossed the bay, he paid them no heed. He feared no one here, for it was well known that to attack or cross Gar Noton, was to die.
As he approached the bay doors though, someone did move to intercept him. A slender nervous looking man emerged from what had once been a storeroom and was now a well-appointed office.
“Welcome back to the Pride, Mr Noton” The man smiled, “”Your usual booth is ready for you in Silesia and your guest arrived only a few minutes ago. However, Mister Shang requested a brief meeting with you first, he is waiting for you in the shield hall, watching the matches”
“Thank you Roger” Noton nodded, “Does Mister Shang know about my other guest”
“If he does, I did not tell him. But he is resourceful as you well know” Roger tapped a finger absently against tabaac stained teeth, “He just came in and expressed an interest in watching the games. I offered him a private viewing lounge in Silesia, but he declined”
“Very well, Roger. Thank you” Noton nodded and set to walking again, heading for the elevators, “Careful, Gar” Noton thought, “If Shang can predict when you return to the sprawl, then you’ve gotten predictable. Fatally so”
Suddenly wary, Noton slipped into the elevator down to the Shield Hall and rode it in silence as it descended. When the doors hissed open, he waited a few heartbeats to be sure, then stepped into the garish ambiance of the Shield Hall.
His senses assaulted by tasteless neon displays, load music of the neo-synth-tec variety and the chatter and cheering of the crowd, Noton pushed his way through the crowds. As he passed the bar with it’s overpriced drinks, he spotted Shang in his usual booth on the other side of a massive holo-projection of a pair of fighting creatures –an Aklay and some sort of massive serpent Noton had never seen before.
“Something from the unknown regions perhaps?” Noton thought.
Even as he worked his way around the crowds surrounding the projector, a cheer went up and he turned to see that the serpent had wound itself around the Aklays body. The Aklay though, wasn’t quite finished, it’s razor sharp legs struck at whatever parts of the serpent it could reach and inflicted enough hurt that it’s opponent backed off.
Finally, Noton reached the booth that Shang occupied and slipped into the dim interior.
“Shang” Noton nodded.
“Gar” Shang nodded, “Delightful to see you again. Congratulations on a job well done”
“Congratulations?” Noton frowned, “I don’t know if you noticed, but that mission blew up in our faces. You sent me out to bag a training unit and your little infiltration unit got itself smashed”
“Yet” shang raised an eyebrow, “You are here”
“Only because I stayed out of the fighting” Noton shot back, “You paid me to arrange transport for your little unit through the Free Worlds League into the Republic and then into the Skye Alliance. After that, I just observed. If you wanted me fighting, you should have paid extra”
“Touché” Shang nodded, then went silent as the serving girl appeared.
“What can I get you gents?” The pretty Twi’lek asked.
“Another plum wine for me” Shang nodded, and slid a bowl filled with blue-purple rind and fruit pips towards her, “And another bowl of kincha please”
“Certainly” The serving girl nodded, “And for you sir?”
“Beer, Timbiqui Dark” Noton nodded.
“So, we didn’t have quite the success we hoped” Shang continued after the girl had retreated, “But we did learn a lot about these training units of Harrison’s and kept the Alliance looking at the Republic instead of the Federation”
Noton shook his head, “Trainees they may be. But they have experienced commanders and aren’t the green troops everyone thinks they are”
“True” Shang nodded, then went silent as the server appeared and deposited their drinks before sliding a bowl of blue-purple fruit into the center of the table.
Shang immediately slid the bowl closer to him and plucking out one of the fruit, began to peel it with a silver blade he produced from somewhere.
Noton took a drink of his beer, “Usual procedure for my payment?”
Shang nodded absently, his attention focused on the kincha, “A bet has been placed on a fight in the Coliseum. Fifth fight” He slid a betting slip over the table.
Noton examined the slip and frowned, “Snoori va’ki versus the Ikan brothers? Snoori won’t throw a fight and the payout if he wins won’t be enough”
Shang shook his head, “Your bet is that Feh Ikan survives the fight”
Noton looked at him surprised, “Tsen Ikan will die?”
Shang nodded, “He has lost his nerve and disgraces ancestors who served the Circinus Federation proud. He will give his life in this fight”
“And if he doesn’t?”
“Then he knows both he and his brother will be dead by tomorrow evening” Shang smiled and popped a slice of the kincha in his mouth. His eyes closed in ecstasy as the slice of fruit dissolved on his tongue.
“Ah, Shang” Noton thought, “Have your days serving the Circinus Federation as one of its ‘Shadow Agents’ made you forget what it was like to be a warrior? You have become so careless and your addiction to kincha marks you as one of the Federations lost legion. Do you revel in the sensations of the kincha to forget the shame of losing its homeworld to the Skye Alliance or do you believe that your position allows you to breech the law of the Federation that has forbidden consumption of Kincha by any of its citizens?”
“I should have more work for you soon” Shang said at last, “In the meantime, keep your ears open regarding the Seventeenth Training Battalion. Seems that we missed a bet. Alexandria Tarn is in that unit”
“Really?” Noton was surprised, “I hadn’t heard”
“Neither had we” Shang shrugged, “Seems she’d only just be assigned the day before. Believe me, heads have already rolled on that one”
“I’ll bet” Noton smiled, the stood to leave.
Shang’s eyes flicked to Noton’s drink, still almost full.
“You’re so bound up in tradition, you’re almost predictable” Noton thought, “I leave my drink unfinished and you’ll take it as a sign that I am prosperous. In return, you’ll leave your prized kincha to prove your own affluence. You will respect me for what I do, while I will find your action laughable”
Shang smiled –a little uneasily-, “Again Gar, I extend to you the thanks of the Circinus Federation. I look forward to other projects with you in the future”
“And I with you Shang” Noton smiled and departed.
Noton made his way to another elevator located at the rear of the Shield Hall. This one was almost unnoticeable. Just a door set in the wall and a reflective one-way mirror, behind which Noton knew hide a pair of heavies to turn away undesirables.
Standing before the door, a sensor beam lit up and scanned his body, checking that he matched the criteria for Gar Noton that were contained in the security system files. The door briefly opened and he stepped quickly through.
“Greetings Mr Noton” The Barabel, Tull, growled. The Feeorin, Bral, just nodded.
Noton nodded in return and proceeded down the corridor and into the elevator proper. This time as it dropped, he felt the slight shift of gravity as the car passed from the Pride of Dac to the small, ancient and unobtrusive Carrack Cruiser that was the location of the very exclusive Silesia.
This time when he departed the car, there was no garish lights, no eye assaulting music and no crowds. Just a series of small, darkened booths running down the walls of a vast rectangular room. Themed on some ancient warriors hall, the walls were bare brick, the floor was stone flagstones, an imitation bonfire dominated the centre of the room and at the far end, a raised dais where the current games champions held court.
This was Silesia, where the greatest of the games fighters could be found, along with representatives of some of the most powerful people in the galaxy. Nearest the door, were diplomats, lords, countesses, corporation heads and occasional Mandalorian Clan Leaders. Nearest the dais, dwelt the warriors of the games. But it was nearest the door that the true power lay. While it might have been an honor to sit with or near to Snoori va’ki, Douglas Trend or Zeegee-Fourteen, it was far more profitable to visit further back with one of the political forces from one of the great nations.
It was a well-known fact that at least half the games combatants in Silesia were equal to or better than about ninety percent of the military personnel in the larger galaxy. The nature of the arenas led to a honing of the combat edge that made them capable warriors, but unlike the military there was no retirement to a parcel of land. For the combatants of the games, there were only three ways out, death, a position with the Mandalorians if you were good enough or getting out of the games and into a profitable and equally dangerous career like Noton had done when he became an information broker and problem solver.
Noton didn’t care that some of the warriors here saw him as a betrayer of their profession, “Once” He thought, “As a warrior in the games, I tipped others from their alcoves. Now I conspire with royalty and spill leaders from their thrones”
His own alcove was halfway down the room and was perfectly situated to watch both the dais and the entryway. When he arrived at his alcove, he found his guest already waiting for him.
“Greetings Baron Von Gyndine” Noton slid into the booth and nodded to the dark haired corpulent noble from the Free Worlds League.
“Greeting Gar” Enrico Rimmer nodded, his jowls quivering with the movement, “Enjoyed your little adventure in the Alliance?”
“Keep your voice down you idiot” Noton snapped, keeping his own voice low, “You request a private meeting, then you start shouting my business about the place. No wonder your uncle prefers to keep you here on the Sprawl instead of on Gyndine. I’m surprised he didn’t get you posted as a diplomat to Almania” Noton paused, and then added cruelly, “No, I suppose he couldn’t risk you starting a war”
Rimmer affected a look of hurt, “My dear Noton, nobody cares what others do in this place or what they say. And if they did, who would dare cross you” The fat man shrugged, “In any case, you travel all over the galaxy and the Alliance is a big place”
Noton frowned, “Either you’re an incredible fool posted here to stop you causing too much damage” He silently thought, “Or you’re hiding your own schemes behind this foolish façade. I shall take steps to find out which it is”
Reaching for the control pad in the centre of the table, he pressed a button, “Coliseum. Fifth fight. Tonight” He said aloud. A flurry of images began to flicker across the display, before settling on the frozen image of a pair of humans fighting a Trandoshan. Before the footage could begin to play, Noton added a command, “Display only the results”
Rimmer sniffed, “A most uninteresting fight…”
“More the fool, I think” Noton glanced at the corpulent man. Text superimposed itself over the image. Noton smiled. Feh Ikan had survived and would be ready to fight again in a month. He had lost his brother, however, and the battle to Snoori va’ki. Beneath the results was a note that this was his twenty-third straight victory and the first time he’d failed to kill a human opponent.
The Baron sniffed again, “He should have killed the other brother too. I lost money because he did not”
Noton looked at the petulant look on Rimmer’s face, “So, what was so urgent that you requested this meeting?”
“There are some people” From Rimmer’s tone, Noton knew he referred to Aldo Rimmer, the Duke of Gyndine, “Who believe there may be a way to divert a military vessel from a particular course”
“Definitely the fool” Noton thought, then added aloud, “If you’re talking about capturing a military vessel then stop right there. They are too well defended and I know of no one with the equipment who would be willing to draw that much attention to themselves”
“Well, not a military vessel as such” Rimmer amended, “But a vessel of some importance. Likely a passenger liner with a very, very important passenger aboard”
Noton thought for a moment, “Okay, that would be doable and well within my resources. What ship? Where?”
“I don’t have that information yet” Rimmer shook his head, “I know the ship will be in the vicinity of the Cron Drift, so your contact will need to be near there to strike. We anticipate a lead time of about three months on this”
“Good” Noton nodded. An operation like this would require precision timing, “It will be expensive”
Rimmer nodded and produced a notebook, “There’s an advance of up to sixty thousand credits to cover operational costs….”
“Eighty five thousand”
The Baron hesitated, “I’m only authorised to offer up to sixty thousand”
“Get new authorization then” Noton shook his head. If they were desperate enough to try to capture a liner, then they were desperate enough to pay for it, “I assume you’ll want the passengers held for a certain length of time. Preparing a place to hold a liners worth of people will be costly. While you’re talking to your uncle, tell him my cut will be fifty thousand and that my people will want a balance of three hundred and fifty thousand upon completion of the operation”
Rimmer’s eyes bulged, “That’s way over budget”
“No, it’s not” Noton smiled, “Your people can supplement the payments by ransoming the passengers. This is going to be a high-risk operation. My people won’t even consider it if the pay isn’t good enough”
“I’ll pass the message along” Rimmer nodded.
“Good” Noton answered. The only person passing through the region of space close to the Cron Drift that would be of interest to Aldo Rimmer –Enrico’s uncle- would be a courier from Captain-General Jesmin Akdool to Prince Harrison Tarn. Though the alliance between the Free Worlds League and the Skye Alliance was gaining strength everyday, it stood firmly in the way of the plans of Aldo Rimmer. Noton assured himself that Rimmer would pay well to sabotage that growing alliance.
Noton smiled as the visibly nervous Baron shakily stood, “Contact me when you have some real figures Baron. Until then” He gave a dismissive nod.
Once the Baron had left, Noton settled into the shadows of his booth. This was why he’d got out of the games, this work was far more profitable.
From his own booth across from Noton’s, a single pair of eyes watched Baron Enrico Rimmer slip from the both of Gar Noton and head towards the exit from Silesia.
He regretted that he’d not had chance to bug the booth once he’d followed Rimmer here and learned who he was meeting, but from the attitudes of the two men, this was a regular enough occurrence that he’d have another chance at this.
In the meantime, following Rimmer to where he went next and whom he spoke to next could prove useful.
Slipping from his own booth, Ran Gavin set off after Enrico Rimmer.
Fractured Galaxy 