Space

[Sapphire]

Things got out of hand very, very quickly. There was the sound of multiple thuds and cursing coming from behind her, but Sapphire didn't dare take her eyes off the instruments. "What are you DOING back there?!?" she shouted back. Finally, four ion bolts laced out. But in the nick of time, their target vanished, and Emerald's shots connected with new targets. Four of them. And they looked angry.

 

"EMERALD! Now is NOT the time to make new friends!" Her hands flew across the instruments, sending the Glory juking and jinking, tumbling and spinning through space as she looked for a clear escape vector. There was no way they could take very many direct hits if these guys decided to take offense. And these GA types were just so easily offended. As if to prove it, several laser bolts lanced out, shaking the ship as they impacted off the shields. She winced. Where is it, where is it? How come the moment we need to escape the place is suddenly crawling with ships?!?

 

Suddenly she saw it. With an audible whoop she punched the engines again. The ship leapt forward, slipping under the bow of a Corellian Corvette and into clear space. A moment later, she had pulled the lever sending them into the safety of hyperspace.

[Ruby]

In retrospect, it was probably a very, very good thing that neither Emerald nor Sapphire had eyes on Ruby while they put the Glory through an impressive set of space acrobatics, because she was sure that one them would have had some choice words in multiple languages to toss her way if they had.

 

With Sapph at the helm and Em acting as marksman, Ruby knew that her skills as resident demolitions expert would come into play soon enough, once they boarded their target. Until then though... she waited, continuing to roll the thermal detonator from hand to hand almost without thinking. Left palm: on. Right palm: off. Back and forth, watch the light blink. One... two... three... Off again, well within thirty-second timer that she'd modified onto this particular detonator. Ruby rolled the explosive back into her left palm, flicking the switch absentmindedly, and glanced down to admire the belt the she had slung across her neck, and the red gem embedded in the mag-buckle. Faintly, she heard Emerald yell from the turret well and she winced, remembering too late the mass of tangled wires she'd left in there after their last escapade.

 

And that's when everything started to go wrong.

 

Just as she started to roll the thermal detonator back to her other hand, the Glory surged into motion as Sapphire gave chase to their target, throwing Ruby from her chair and the explosive from her hand. “Ktah!” She spat the Cheunh word as she struggled to her feet and leaped across the room after the rolling detonator, more curses in multiple languages spilling from her mouth as she imagined what Sapphire would do to her if she set off another explosive aboard her ship. Ruby had just managed to get her fingertips on the silver orb when her pilot compatriot threw the vessel into another set of twists and turns, eliciting another round of swearing as she lost her grip on the detonator and had to launch herself off of the wall after it as it rolled away. It wasn't enough, though, and she landed, stomach first, a few scant feet away from it as it continued on spinning path.

 

Knowing she had precious seconds to spare and seized by a moment of genius, Ruby grabbed the belt that was still somehow around her neck and whipped the mag-buckle end at the detonator. With a clank, it caught, and Ruby released a breath she hadn't released she was holding with an audible whoosh she yanked it back to her and it slapped into her palm, thumbing to switch back to off in one quick motion. A split-second later, she felt the ship shudder as it jumped into hyperspace, and Emerald came running back down the corridor.

 

Still lying on her stomach, Ruby looked up at her partner in crime and offered a lopsided grin as she held up the glittering orb. “Crisis averted!”

[Emerald]

“What--the--KRIFF--do--you--think--you’re--doing?!” Emerald shrieked as she rounded the corner into the main hold and found a disheveled Ruby sprawled out on the floor, cradling her thermal detonator. “Do you have any idea what that could have done?”

 

Her face was flushed from her own escapade of tumbling about the ship, and momentarily, the red color intensified. Then Emerald burst out laughing. She laughed until her sides hurt, until her eyes watered, overcome with the dangerous hilarity of juggling a thermal detonator during a sublight chase. “You idiot!” she burst out. She snatched the thermal detonator from Ruby’s outstretched hand and laid it into an open armaments locker before tackling her fellow pirate. The two women flipped over the back of the circular couch in the main hold, hitting the ground with a thud. After a brief scuffle, Emerald wrangled Ruby facedown on the floor and pinned her compatriot with a knee to the center of her back. Then, as abruptly as she began this roughhousing, she paused, a sly grin creeping onto her face.

 

“You’re so busted when I tell on you,” she taunted.

 

Releasing Ruby as she jumped to her feet, she sprinted towards the cockpit, calling ahead of her, “Sapph, guess what our brilliant tactician--!”

 

Or she would have, had she been able to get the full sentence out before faceplanting with an audible grunt as the thin line of cable Ruby had wound around her ankle snapped taut.

 

“Kriff,” she muttered grumpily into the floor panels, blinking repeatedly as the blow to her nose caused her eyes to water. “That’s gonna leave a bruise on my pretty face, Ruby.”

[Sapphire]

Sapphire brought the ship out of hyperspace again quickly, then plotted a new heading and re-jumped, just to make sure they lost anyone tailing them. Those GA drones were a dime a dozen, but they had fairly sophisticated tracking algorithms. A few minutes later and they were in the clear, so she dropped them out of hyperspace again into the empty void of deep space. She ran a quick scan, but there was nothing on the scopes. She let out a breath, then grinned. Still alive and still free.

 

She didn't like it when marks got away, but it happened occasionally. They were a very small group of pirates, and they just didn't have the resources to hit targets that were too big. It had been a risk anyway, she told herself. But it still rankled a little. Enough to need some rum, anyway. Ah, what was she kidding? She didn't need an excuse for rum. She reached for the flask she kept tucked in her belt and flipped it open. Taking a swig, she relaxed back in her chair. The fiery sensation burned back the sting of failure.

 

She remembered the first time she had tried rum. She was 18, at the first big party of her debutante year. She had been forced to make small talk about extremely inconsequential matters, giggle incoherently, and wear uncomfortable shoes for three hours. She had hated every moment--the insincere flattery of the other girls, the snootiness of the guests, the political backbiting and maneuvering that was always going on under the surface. She eventually found herself standing off to the side, trying desperately to stay out of the limelight for a moment. Captain Alara, one of her mother's guards that was watching over her that night, had come up to her and offered her a sip of rum from her own hidden flask, winking. The alcohol had given her the strength to get through the rest of the evening, despite the endless pomp and ceremony.

 

Of course, that had just been the first of many of those parties. She thought idly about Alara. She had been a good woman. It was a shame what had happened to her.

 

All of a sudden, Sapphire sat bolt upright in her chair. A wonderful, marvelous, incredible idea had just come to her. She jumped to her feet and ran back to the other Gems. "I just had--" she stopped mid-sentence at the scene before her. Ruby lay on the ground by the couch, a thin line of liquid cable stretching from her holdout blaster to Emerald's ankle. Both ladies were breathless from laughter and roughhousing. She shook her head in mock exasperation. "I don't even want to know." Her eyes jumped to the still-open armaments locker, and she crossed to close it. "Ruby, what did I say about making sure this is latched properly? With the inertial compensators dialed back, some of this stuff might have gotten loose and blown a hole in my ship."

 

She sat down on the couch, completely missing any looks the other two exchanged. "I thought of a brilliant idea," she grinned. "Have either of you heard of Hapan pulse mass mines?"

[Emerald]

Stifling the outburst of adrenaline-charged laughter that threatened to bubble up, Emerald shot Ruby an amused glance as Sapphire scolded them for a possibility that had almost become an eventuality. She leveled a too-innocent grin at the redhead who stepped over her to close the open locker and pushed herself up to a sitting position. Sapphire had that look again, the drive of giddy excitement she exhibited when a devious plan entered her head.

 

"Pulse mass mines?" she narrowed her eyes as her gaze bounced between Sapphire and Ruby, who had also lost her mischievous grin. That rang a bell distantly in her memory, something she had picked up when she was at Hapan boarding school. It must have been covered in her class on Hapan tourism and exports, but she didn't remember beyond that. Shrugging and shaking her head, she looked to Ruby for an answer. "I think I must have dozed off in class that day. But I'll bet the resident gun nut can tell us," she sassed the stoic Chiss sitting across the room.

[Ruby]

“Of course you didn't pay attention, I swear, sometimes I gotta do everything...” Ruby snorted as she pushed herself up off the floor, dropping back onto the couch. She pulled her datapad from one of many pockets and flicked her fingers quickly over the screen,flipping it around to show Em and Sapph after she found the schematic for the item in question.

 

“All right, Hapan pulse-mass generators. Derived from the Empire's gravity well projectors, they have, more or less, the same effect as an interdictor, just with a few minor issues. First, after we launch them, we have minutes... Ten at most, and that's if we're lucky. Second, unless we can find someone who knows how to modify these things without killing us all, once they're on, they're on until they run out of power. So our target can't get away, but neither can we.”

 

Ruby shrugged, turning the screen back to face herself, fingers moving lightly over the screen as she zoomed in on parts of the blueprint here and there. “All in all, we've done riskier things. Next best thing to having an actual interdictor I'd say, and we can launch them from the torpedo bays.” She leveled her gaze at Sapphire. “I'm going to assume that you have a plan for acquiring these already?”

[Sapphire]

Sapphire winked. It didn’t seem like Ruby had quite caught on yet. “It’s the perfect tool for us. We track a mark, get ahead of them, set up a pulsemass mine and yank them out of hyperspace. While their systems are resetting, we board them and do what we do best. Then by the time the mine dies, we’ll be finished and able to slip back into hyperspace and on our way. And using this type of disposable interdiction will make it harder for any local authorities to track us down.”

 

Ruby guessed she already had a plan, and Sapphire pulled out her datapad and put it on the small table in the middle of the ship’s lounge. “These things are only used by the Hapan military—they’re on all their Battle Dragons, which is how I learned about them in the first place. That means it’s going to be tough to steal them outright." She paused, biting her lip. "We'll need to run a con.”

 

There was a long pause as she thought through possible cons. Her sapphire eyes met emerald ones across the table, and suddenly a grin spread over her face. "I've got it!" she exclaimed triumphantly. "The Chandrilan Arms con!" She made notes on the datapad as she spoke for the other two. “It's a classic con. Ruby will work up a prototype mine that would be a better model of what they currently have,” she said, pointing to the specs on Ruby’s datapad. “We’ll have to buy parts, but the payout will offset the expenses. You’ll have to make two probably, but only one of them has to work. Meanwhile I'll create us a fake company. We’ll go to Hapan military command as arms dealers. We’ll inform them about this new prototype and offer them a deal to get in on the ground floor of mass production. I’m sure they’ll want a demonstration, and of course, they'll investigate our company. Once they’re convinced, we’ll make the deal and they transfer the credits to an company account. Once the credits are there, I'll transfer them to one of our other shell accounts. Then we set up delivery, which gets us access to their weapons storage. Since it’s a similar device, it’ll be stored in the same or adjacent storage bunkers. Then it’s just a matter of grabbing the real pulsemass mines and replacing them with empty shells of our prototypes. By the time they discover the deception, we’ll be long gone, and our fake IDs will lead them to dead ends. We’ll have disappeared with both a sizeable shipment of pulsemass mines, as well as all the credits they paid us for the fakes.”

 

She glanced at Emerald. “One of us will have to stay out of sight from Hapan command. We want to guarantee that the person who makes the delivery is a face none of them have seen before, otherwise they might get suspicious, no matter how small we claim our fake company is.”

[Emerald]

Nodding as she leaned in to re-read Sapphire’s proposed operation, Emerald narrowed her eyes in thought. There wasn’t an obvious choice for the one to stay out of sight of the military officials until the final delivery. Ruby wasn’t well known in the Hapan military, but her race made her stand out like a Caamasi at an Ewok Bothan roast. If they actually pulled this off, showing her face anywhere near Hapan space would be akin to blatant suicide. Emerald’s Mistryl instincts would serve her well operating in such a capacity, but royal familial connections made it more risky for her to be involved at a face-to-face level at all. Sapphire seemed the obvious choice, but her deft hacking skills meant she was the most proficient behind-the-scenes operator for their cons, even though her combat skills were equal to the task . With a knowing half-grin at Sapphire, she shrugged. It would probably have to be Ruby, but she wasn’t going to be the one to suggest it.

 

“It’s a great plan, if it works,” Emerald said dryly. “I only have a million questions. One, if Ruby can just build the kriffing things, why are we stealing them? Two, why does only one of them have to work? Three, how many are we going to have to lift for this to be worth our time? If this is only going to work once, I don't want to have to come back to stock up every year or so.”

 

Her Cheshire grin reappeared. “Four, why don’t we just steal a whole damn Battle Dragon while we’re at it?”

[Sapphire]

Sapphire raised a red eyebrow at Emerald's sudden skepticism. "It'll work, it'll work. Trust me. Hapans like to think they're better than everyone else, right? They'll eat up a prototype weapon that will help prove that to the galaxy."

 

A bunch of questions then poured forth from her fellow pirate, and Sapphire patiently answered them all. "We'd never get away with stealing a Battle Dragon," she said flatly. "Besides, there's no way we could crew a ship that size with just the three of us, and I don't see us increasing our capacity any time soon. As for your other concerns, these pulsemass mines are going to be really expensive to build, not to mention probably time consuming. I have no doubt that Ruby'll be able to do it," she tossed a glance at Ruby, "but it won't be cost prohibitive for us to mass produce them ourselves." She didn't like the idea of that shiny pile of credits in their account dwindling. The point was to make money. "To answer you second question, like I said, they're going to want a demonstration. We fire the working one off, and once they see it works, they won't need further proof. The next time they try to use one, it'll be in live-testing, and by that point, we'll have already made our delivery and vanished."

 

She tossed her hair a little haughtily. "As for how many we can grab, it all depends on how much time we can buy at the weapons storage facility. Obviously we're supposed to be loading things off the ship, not onto it, but if I can hack into the loading droids' systems, I can get us several crate loads before security notices anything suspicious. Worst case scenario, we get one pallet full--probably about 20 warheads. But if things go according to plan, I don't see why we can't fill up the hold with them." She shrugged. "Keeps us going for quite a while. And who knows, by the time we run out, something better might have come along."

 

She paused for a moment, thinking, calculating. In a way, running a con was similar to hacking a computer system. Things had to be placed just so. One piece out of place and the whole thing would crumble. "Now that I think about it," she said slowly, "I think Ruby should be the one making the actual delivery. She'll be the least suspicious as a dock worker, and she'll be in the best position to ID the real warheads that we want in case of some confusion. If you and I conceal ourselves in the ship," she said with a nod toward Emerald, "then I can still hack the droids and we'll be close by in case Ruby needs backup."

 

She met Emerald's eyes again. "That means it'd be up to you and I to sell the military on the fake mines."

[Emerald]

"Sales pitches? Again? I got into this business to avoid having to sell anyone anything legitimately," she complained, tossing the datapad back onto the table. With a sigh, she rolled her eyes disdainfully. "Okay, so, I take the nerd with me on a kriffing sales pitch, and the portable armory steals us a couple hundred interdictory warheads. What could go wrong?"

 

She leveled a sarcastic glance at Sapphire that was half-teasing, but carrying a grave undertone. Going back into Hapan space for any reason was absurdly dangerous for all three of them, especially--Emerald's glance caught on the glistening cerulean gem on Sapphire's belt--as their last heist in the Hapes Cluster had ended with a quite literal, messy, and signature bang. The plan as Sapphire had laid out could work, but contingent on several key factors. Their falsified company documents and details would have to be air-tight. They would have to avoid detection by any former contacts in the Cluster. They would have to dock their ship in a military bunker in order to unload the fake mines and confiscate the real ones, and then they would have to get out without being blown to bits or suffering the effects of a pulsemass generator themselves. She sighed and kicked her heels up on the table.

 

"Honestly, as much as I hate to say it, it sounds workable, if Ruby can actually mock up a functional mine without the plans and make it look different enough to be worth selling. I mean, I don't think that the Hapan military is just going to hand over one of the only good things to come out of that Force-forsaken system," she scoffed, half-waiting for Ruby to interject. "I don't think just a couple fake mines are going to cut it, either. We need an exit strategy. And our alibi has to be airtight. I'm talking physical office addresses, somewhere in the cluster, and contact frequencies. References from 'former customers'. I can talk to my contact at ChandrilTech if that gives us an edge." She frowned for a moment, struck by their surroundings. "I'd also want to be sure the Glory isn't going to be recognized," she shot at Sapphire.

 

But, Emerald conceded mentally, Sapphire was right, not only were there a whole lot of credits to be had in this heist, but the capability of restricting ships from hyperspace gave pirating a whole new outlook. She pulled a flask off of her hip and threw her head back to take a swig before passing it around. "I'm game if you are," she slurred. "So, we buy parts. Where are we going shopping?"

[Sapphire]

Emerald was being...uncharacteristically skeptical. Suddenly, Sapphire wondered if the plan was too daring for them. After all, she had learned to trust Emerald's 'bad feelings', even if she didn't understand them. They had kept the pirates out of hot water many times over the years. But after a moment, her fellow pirate seemed to reluctantly give in. "Don't worry," Sapphire repeated. "There won't be any holes in the story. We'll make sure everything looks absolutely legitimate. It's not difficult to do. I could even hack into a legitimate corporation and present us as reps of that group without anyone being the wiser. And of course, we're talking disguises for us and for the Glory."

 

She accepted the flask Emerald had pulled out. It seemed she was finally on board. She took a swig from Emerald's flask and immediately grimaced. "Emerald, what are you drinking that swill for?" She rose and crossed to the liquor cabinet and pulled out the good stuff--an 88-proof barrel aged Corellian brandy--and three glasses. With a practiced air, she opened the bottle and poured a glass for each of them. Taking her own, Sapphire turned to Ruby. "You've been awfully quiet, Ruby. What do you think?"

[Ruby]

Ruby had grown increasingly retrospective while her companions conversed, retreating to the part of her mind that was extremely analytical without really realizing she'd done so. Her brain had started to go into overdrive when the discussion had touched on modifying one of the mines in question, and he r fingers flew over her datapad screen as she immediately began to compile a list of parts they'd have to acquire, tools she'd need to do the job, and-

 

Sapphire's question pulled Ruby from her reverie and she jerked her head up to see the brandy that Sapph had set down in front of her. She didn't respond at first, electing to lift the glass to her lips and tilt it back, letting the alcohol roll across her tongue and down her throat, savoring the burn as it did. With a soft sigh, she set the glass back down, rolling her head to either side of her shoulders to crack her neck while she formulated a response.

 

“Couple things, one:” she started, ticking off her count on her fingers as she went. “If we can get our hands on a dead one of these, it might make this a whole lot easier and faster. I can probably get schematics off of one of my contacts if I need to, but building a gravity well from scratch isn't exactly a picnic. And two: if this is going to work, this is going to have to be a hard, fast sell, meaning we're going to have to come up with a REALLY good idea on how to improve these things, and then we're going to have to hope that it doesn't come back to bite us in the rear at some point in the future, because if I design what ends up being our demise at some point in the future. I am NOT going to be happy.” She downed the rest of the brandy, letting the silence punctuate her speech. “Do I think we can pull it off? Yes. Is it going to be easy? I highly doubt it, and we're not going to have much room for error at all.”

[Sapphire]

"Nothing worth getting is ever easy," Sapphire commented dryly. She had grimaced at Ruby's comment about creating the weapon that was later used against them. It wasn't nice of the Chiss to rub that Tralus job in her face. Coming up against her own code had been an honor, but one she could have easily done without. At least they had pulled it off then. With luck, this job would go more smoothly than that one.

 

She finished off her glass of brandy and for a moment considered pouring herself another one. Probably best to be sober for this next part, she thought regretfully. "Alright then ladies. Let's get to work."

 

And with that, they were off. It took a few days to track down an inactive pulsemass mine, but eventually they heard of a skirmish near Gallinore, and by timing it carefully, they were able to dip in the system, mingle with the scavengers, and pick up one before anyone even noticed they were there. As Ruby immediately got to work on the mine, and Emerald gathered the practical supplies they'd need outside of the weapons area--disguises, hidden comms, and the like--Sapphire began setting up their fake company. It was not difficult work, but time consuming. She ended up piggybacking it on a company called Tendrando Arms, a medium size corporation that had a reputation for good, solid products and honest business practices. They had formerly contracted with the New Republic, but with the demilitarization of the GA, they'd lost a good chunk of business. It was exactly the right set up for a company who was looking to branch out their market to the Hapans. She then set up a new account for the sale purposes, one that checkout as belonging to Tendrando Arms, but really funneled into one of the Blood Gems' accounts.

 

Once everything was as solid and secure as Sapphire could make it, she moved on to developing a sales pitch and making sure that both of her fellow pirates knew everything there was to know about the company. Soon, it'd be time to move.

[Emerald]

The Nebula’s Glory had been outfitted with false transponder codes, Sapphire had set all of their behind-the-scenes affairs in order, Ruby had assembled all the arms needed, and Emerald had just rounded out the last of their disguises. The Blood Gem Pirates had spent a good week busying themselves with the setup for their heist, and now, sat drifting in subspace just outside of the Transitory Mists that lingered near the Hapes Cluster. Emerald entered the cockpit where the other two women had been going over the timing.

 

“All right, you nerfs, listen up,” she said, pulling three identichips from a bag on her belt and handing them out. “Sapph, you’re undercover as Lyda Rohs from Corellia. Ruby, you’re Marin Pirou from, obviously, Csilla.” Preemptively responding to the dirty look she knew was coming, she avoided the Chiss’ luminous red eyes, continuing without a beat. “Don’t hate me, Csilla’s a big place. I’m going to be Ulae Shyn from Chandrila. We’re going to be the Lorell Distributors, a subcontractor of Tendrando Arms.”

 

Slumping into the navigator’s chair, she paused. “Now, I don’t have to tell you that this is going to be dangerous, but I will remind you that the timing is going to be essential. We’ll come out of hyperspace through the Transitory Mists, make a stop for comestibles on one of the Rifle worlds, and then make our way to Hapes.”

 

Emerald fiddled with the gem on her belt, scanning their faces and rocking slightly in her chair casually. “Any questions before Madame Pilot takes us out?”

[Sapphire]

The preparations were done. They had gone over every detail of the plan until they could quote it to each other perfectly. They had multiple backup plans in place in case things went south. They had flawless disguises, detailed backstories they knew by heart, and a company front that as was legitimate as the best hacker in the galaxy could make it. They were ready.

 

Sapphire met the eyes of both of her partners in turn. "Let's do this." She hit the lever, sending them into a short hyperspace jump that would take them to Harterra, where they'd meet their contact, Major Antilani Isolder.

 

((TO THE HAPES CLUSTER))

[Robert McNamara]

Crossing his arms over one another, Robert turned to Raven. Looking over her with a new depth- if the Sith were now their enemy, it would be some work to get ahead. Either way he looked now- she had pulled them into her plans. Whether intentionally or purely by coincidence, they were now connected by proxy. If that Rookwood character had anything to deal with the Sith, he would report this ship to the evil cult and they would keep an eye out for them- even if the ship had no distinct markings. If he had any stature within the order, they would listen to him.

 

"We will need certain assets, if you wish to keep the Sith at bay." He bit his lip, realizing what he had just said and implied. A deep, gruff chuckle came from Robert, "Heh, well. I guess that is that then..."

 

 

The girl- woman, Robert had to keep correcting himself- was still shorter than him, and while he looked down in the literal sense, he admired what she had become- even in that brief instance. "We are with you, Mistress Raven. And before you give me that look- I am not going to draw it out and call you 'Head of State Raven.' Too... stuffy and formal. What role would you like us to fill? Because... I have a few thoughts on that." The hyperdrive hummed in the background- they were still bouncing around in an escape route.

[Alora]

Once on Draken’s ship, Alora truly relaxed. The first thing she did while Draken was busy in the cockpit was to go through to the bedroom to get out a change of clothes, then into the bathing room. She filled the spa and was soon sinking into the bubbling water with a loud sigh of pleasure. It had been so long since she had felt clean…

 

(some time later)

 

Figuring she had better get out before she became a wrinkled prune, the Sith Mistress dragged herself reluctantly out of the spa. Since they were possibly going to run into more cultists at the Memorial, Alora had pulled out her black bodysuit and her deep crimson and black armored robes. She wrapped her whip around her waist, her sabers on her hips and her daggers in her boot sheathe. She also reloaded her dart launcher, making sure she had a good mix; lethal poisons, hallucinogens, sedation darts and pheromones. Now that her cybernetics were working again she would be able to choose which dart she fired instead of just relying on which one was next in the queue. She ran her maintenance checks on her cybernetics, making sure everything was in optimal condition. She would get some grenades from the armoury before they landed at the Memorial.

 

Once dressed and armed once more, Alora headed towards the galley to prepare a meal for both of them. With a caress through the Force, she let Draken know what she was up to.

[Emily]

They walked hand in hand towards the Shadow’s Shine, and Emily savored the moment. This was the kind of thing she had thought was gone forever; the quiet moments with him were ones that she treasured as much as the others. They made their way to the ship, the dust blowing around them and catching the rays of the sun brilliantly.

 

As they approached, she suddenly realized something--that this was Quietus’ first time on her ship. As an apprentice, she had always been with him on his ship. And afterward, when they traveled together, it was usually on the Shadow’s Gambit. So it had happened that he had never been onboard before. She watched him as he strode up the ramp, then couldn’t help but laugh a little at the look on his face.

 

Raia had succumbed to exhaustion, probably brought on by the turmoil she had been through. Emily toyed with waking her up, but figured the girl needed sleep more than anything right now. She made a mental promise to make sure she sat down and talked with the girl before things got much farther. Then she asked Quietus to move her off the couch and to the bunkroom while Emily prepped the engines.

 

Once in the cockpit, she began the preflight checks. As she did so, she suddenly remembered the reason she had come to Korriban in the first place. Slightly chagrined, she reached out with the Force, seeking Karys’ presence. But she felt nothing. Either her other apprentice wasn’t here, or he had picked a battle he couldn’t win. She gave a mental shrug. Perhaps their paths would still cross in the future. For now, there was no point in staying around.

 

The board lit up green, and Emily gently eased the ship off the ground. Then she disengaged the repulsorlifts and kicked in the throttle, sending the ship skyward with a satisfying roar. They were in orbit by the time Quietus came up to join her in the cockpit, brushing her hair affectionately as he plopped down and informed her that Raia was safe in a bunk. “Furion did a number on her it seems,” he said.

 

Emily nodded as she inputted the triple zero coordinates into the navicomputer. “Yes, I believe he made her fight to the death in an arena, promised her some training, and then vanished without a trace for two years. Sounds like typical Furion to me, but it messed with her for sure. She’s got a lot of promise though.”

 

Thirty seconds later, the navicomputer was ready, and she threw the lever to send the ship into hyperspace. She leaned back in the pilot’s chair and glanced over at Quietus. This was the first time they had been alone since his return, and suddenly she realized just how much his return had shocked her. Everything had now caught up with her, including this strange mixture of emotions that swirled in her as she looked at him. She had to talk to him. She had promised herself that there were certain things she would say to him if the Force ever brought them together again, and she knew better than to put it off. With him, she had to seize every opportunity.

 

Emily sighed. “We need to talk. I want to know about Jaina…and there are some things I need to tell you.” She rose. “But first, why don’t you get cleaned up? Or at least wash your face. You still have my blood on it.” She touched the lines of blood on his cheeks with a small smile. “I’ll brew some caf.”

 

She headed back into the galley and pulled out some ground caf beans. Setting it to brew with some hot water, she got out two mugs and a plate of cookies. The caf was done in a few short minutes. When it was done, she brought it out to the lounge area and set it on the table with the cookies. Quietus was already there, his face clean again. “Much better,” she said with a smile.

 

She sat down next to him on the couch, and her smile faded. “Where do we go from here?” she said softly. She put a hand to his face, cupping his chin. The touch was gentle at first, then she tightened her hand to clench his jaw. “Sometimes I want to beat the kriff out of you for abandoning me over and over.” But then she released her hand, letting it fall to her lap with a sigh. “But then I realize…this is our story. You take me as an apprentice, start my training, then betray me to gain power. By the time things resolve themselves, you’re dead, and I have to spend the next three years struggling to complete my training, seeking out other masters, finding my own path without my guide to show me the way, his promises null and void.”

 

She wasn’t meeting his eyes now. “And finally, after all that struggle, you came back. I was so happy that the Force had brought you back to me that I didn’t think twice. We flung wide the prison doors that had held back our feelings…and I was happy with you. But in another way, that was the most difficult time in my life. It was then that I truly lost myself. In desire and desperation, I was consumed, and Darth Eris was truly born. But that, too, was a betrayal. The dark side made so many promises…but in the end, the cost was too high. It demanded too much in return. It was a price I was not willing to pay—it cost everything I was and everything I had truly ever wanted. It took family from me, it took my freedom to make my own choices, and in the end it took you, too.” Her voice broke a bit. “But this time I had to watch you go, a slow decline while the Force showed me how utterly powerless I was to do anything about it. And in the end, I had nothing left.”

 

She paused. “But I think you have to be empty to be filled again. I fled, built myself a fortress of solitude, and slowly, slowly, put myself together again.” Her eyes finally flicked up to meet his, for just a moment. “I realized a lot of things about myself.” She glanced away again. “I studied. I trained. I…recovered. It wasn’t an easy road, and there were many times I discovered I had been going the wrong direction, but I persevered. And slowly I remembered who I was and who I wanted to be. It all finally came to a head a week ago. I was on the path of knowledge of ancient Sith sects, and my trail brought me to a former Dark Lord. Our encounter there turned into my master trials. I thought that was what I wanted, that becoming a Sith Master would set me back on the path that I felt I was supposed to follow. It tested me in ways I’ve never been tested before, and in the end, I realized two things, two things I had known all along but never really allowed myself to admit.”

 

She took a deep breath and this time when she glanced into his eyes, she didn’t look away. “The first was that I am not a Sith. I’ve tried to be, and for a time, I really was. But I’m not deluding myself anymore. The Sith will always be a part of me. They’re still my family. But the cost of being a true Sith is not one I want to pay anymore." Her voice grew strong. "I am a Grey Master. I see the Force as a whole, and refuse to limit myself out of fear anymore.”

 

She paused again. His actions so far, though, had increased her courage. She seemed to gather it, and spoke again. “The second thing I realized is…I love you. I love you, Raynuk, and I always will. And as long as you’re in this galaxy, I want to be by your side. And when…when you leave me again,” her voice wavered but then regained it’s quiet strength, “whether to death or to someone else, I know it’ll break my heart. I’m not going to kid myself that that won’t happen. But…that’s alright. You’re worth that pain. I want to love you like I’m going to lose you, because I know that it will come to that in the end. Because that is our story.” Her eyes blazed with pain, but also with courage and determination. “I choose to love you anyway.”

 

She leaned over, closed her eyes, and kissed him then, a vulnerable kiss, one that didn’t try to hide the poignancy of her mixed feelings, and yet also her determination to try, despite everything; to keep going, to keep risking everything. It was a short kiss, however, and she pulled away, her eyes still closed. Slowly, however, she opened them and met his gaze. This was perhaps, one of the most courageous things she had ever done; to be seen, truly, exactly as she was. It was all on the table. Would who she really was be enough for him? She knew he liked her, and had said he loved her, but that had been almost three long years ago. She didn’t know if anything had changed. She loved him, but she knew that while it would break her heart if he turned from her, she would survive, and come out whole again on the other side. It was messy, and painful, and complicated, but she also had hope. She didn’t know what the Force was trying to teach or, or say to her, or was doing to her by bringing him back to life, but right at this moment, she didn’t care. All she cared about was what he was going to do now, whether they would move forward together, or if she would go on alone.

[Raven Nasra]

Raven decided not to show on her frail features the terror that had nearly overcome her at the presence of such a powerful Sith Lord already attempting to infiltrate the new Imperial Remnant. She turned to Robert. “Well what kind of assets would you like to acquire? Ysalamiri? Would you be able to take a detachment to Mykr and acquire some? I would be in your debt if you could. Ad as far as my title… we are old friends.” Or at least she hoped that they were. “So you may call me what you will. I thank you for helping me.”

 

 

She looked towards her still attached ship and sighed. “I must go to Carida. As for what I would like you to be? You are elite enough to be whatever you would like. Though I assumed you would be shock troops like what we were in the old days.”

 

 

She smiled at him warmly. She was very glad to have him.

[Raynuk Montar]

If there was one thing that Quietus had exceled at the past few years, it was silence and listening; listening to the Force from the other side of death.

 

So, from the moment Emily began to speak to him in the cockpit of her ship, Quietus listened, for he had truly missed the sound of her voice. He had been given such a brief insight into what had happened to her apprentice, Raia, that every word and detail helped flesh out the bigger picture. It helped Quietus view a twisted reflection of his own Master-apprentice relationship. To Quietus, Raia was every bit the scared, sheltered, and innocent young girl that Emily had been when he found her and took her under his wing. Now he got to watch the woman that Emily has grown into address the same type of situation. But Emily had grown more so without Quietus than she had with him, and deep down he regretted those missed years, and more so the times he took her for granted; both as an apprentice, and as a lover.

 

In part, Quietus found himself now, on a path to retribution. He had died before, and he had returned before, but this time it was different. This time he had not clawed his way back from death, but been brought back by the choices of others. This time he awoke not with hatred and anger boiling through his veins, but with a sense of purpose and duty; just not the purpose and duty the cultists had planned. The seeds of the path he was on now had been planted long ago in his heart. He wanted Emily to succeed where he had failed her, and if, in some way, he could help guide her past the points that he himself had been led astray, he would be better served for it. Add to that the fact that Furion and his tactics had never truly set well within what was left of his humanity, and it was enough for Quietus to keep an extra eye on how Emily and Raia interacted; He would guide them both if need be.

 

Emily’s sigh brought Quietus back to the present again as she spoke.

 

“We need to talk. I want to know about Jaina… and there are some things I need to tell you,” She began as she rose to her feet. “But first, why don’t you get cleaned up? Or at least wash your face. You still have my blood on it.”

 

Emily reached over and touched his face with a smile, a gesture he mimicked with his own hands, feeling the dried blood on his cheeks. What… how long has that been there... he wondered silently, mentally kicking himself for it.

 

“I’ll brew some caf.” She finished as they both stood and walked back to the common room. Quietus moved to the refresher, and for the first time, looked at his face as it had become. Long gone was the youthful, dark haired man from Roon that had joined the Sith what was now almost thirty years ago. His body of course, did not show that age, but deep in his soul he felt it. The power of the Force had both destroyed his body, and preserved it, and now he could see just how far both sides of the sword had come. His once brown hair now lay flat and white, and his eyes, the color of chocolate in his youth, were likewise pale in color. This was who he had become now.

 

His gaze broke from the mirror with a smirk as he looked at the hastily drawn blood on his cheeks, bringing up handfuls of water and rubbing the crusty fluid from his face before grabbing the nearby towel and drying his hands and face. He returned to the lounge area and sat down, his silence betraying all the things that danced through his head as he watched her brew the caf and set out the cookies on the plate, and then bring both with her as she joined him.

 

“Much better,” she had said with a smile that faded all too quickly. “Where do we go from here?”

 

Wherever we want… he instantly thought. But her voice had changed, now softer, and with considerable less mirth behind it. The gentle touch that turned almost aggressive was enough for Quietus, for the first time probably ever with her, to shy away from looking at her. This was her ship; this was her life he had interrupted upon. This, was her conversation to have and to lead. Quietus found himself staring into the swirling steam that continued to rise off his mug of caf as Emily spoke. And Quietus listened to every word of it with intent, and a handful of despair.

 

At times, he allowed himself to smile at some of the things that Emily said, and other things tore it from his face and mind faster than it arrived. When she paused, he looked at her but found her unable to face him in turn. But then, she paused again for a deep breath, and her eyes finally met his. Behind those mismatched eyes, he saw it all. Within the pool of grey, he saw the pain she had endured, and knew that the deepest wounds had been from his hands, both from his actions and his inactions. He had found her alone, and had given her a sense of belonging, and love, and companionship, only to in essence tear it away from her. And then he did it again, and again. Every time she recovered and built herself back up, he had returned and eventually tore it all down again.

 

But within her hazel eye, he saw how much she had grown; she was more confident than ever, and she was stronger, both emotionally and within the Force. Each time he had broken her heart, or her mind, or her soul, she had recovered and was made stronger than before. But no matter how strong she was, it was clear to Quietus then that he still had the ability to cut her to her core, and wound her deeply.

 

“The first was that I am not a Sith. I’ve tried to be, and for a time, I really was. But I’m not deluding myself anymore. The Sith will always be a part of me. They’re still my family. But the cost of being a true Sith is not one I want to pay anymore. I am a Grey Master. I see the Force as a whole, and refuse to limit myself out of fear anymore.”

 

And there it was. There was the truth she had been wrestling with for a very long time. It was something that he had suspected from nearly the beginning of their time together, but in the end, it would always have to be her choice. She had always been resistant to the brutality and cold-hearted nature that Quietus often found himself emulating when in the company of other Sith like Ar-Pharazon, Ryu, Exodus, and even Furion. She had resisted and to a point questioned aspects of the Sith lifestyle the entire time she was his apprentice. And now she had not only made her choice, she had embraced it fully and come to peace with it. And in that way, she truly had become a Grey Master.

 

“The second thing I realized is…I love you. I love you, Raynuk, and I always will. And as long as you’re in this galaxy, I want to be by your side. And when…when you leave me again, whether to death or to someone else, I know it’ll break my heart. I’m not going to kid myself that that won’t happen. But…that’s alright. You’re worth that pain. I want to love you like I’m going to lose you, because I know that it will come to that in the end. Because that is our story. I choose to love you anyway.”

 

The kiss that followed was dripping with so many emotions from Emily that it actually pained Quietus, especially after her outlook on their time together, both past and potential future. It was short, yet conveyed so much of what she had said up to this point. He knew that he had failed her in the past. But there was also hope for the future, and desperation for understanding. And hope was something that he could latch onto, and prove himself worthy of. He met her gaze again following the kiss, and then broke it, standing up slowly in silence.

 

To her, it may have seemed that he beginning to abandon her again. But he took only a few steps from the couch, everything outside of this moment thrown aside in his mind as he stood with his back to her. The silence remained for a few beats before his voice emerged, soft, but solid as steel.

 

“Long ago, when I first joined the Sith as an apprentice to Barohm Zar, I was given a glimpse of my future power. A vision, ripped from the Force in the harshest way possible. It showed me everything I’ve become up to this point. But there was a voice… a prophecy if you will, that came with it. Do you know what It said?”

 

He turned and glanced at her, a small, almost hesitant smile flashing across his face as if he was remembering something fondly.

 

“No, of course you don’t… It said ‘the darkened heart, lush with power and hatred, will fall twice in the face of the family of balance, each his equal in life, only before the end can the one be true’.”

 

He paused again, his head actually dropping with a sigh after he spoke it out loud. And there it remained for a moment in silence before he turned on his heel, and walked back and sat beside her again.

 

“Only now do I see, and understand it,” he began, taking her hand once more between his. “We’ve been down a very long path, you and I. Yet through it all, you have been the one who’s taken all the lumps, all the pain, and all the scars. I see them even now behind your wondrous eyes. But I also see the woman you’ve grown to become… without me to influence you into the darkness. And it is there that your true self lies… not swallowed by the darkness as I have been. You are now, who you were always meant to become. You are the daughter of John Skywalker and Sirvani Zsahra, who themselves were far from the level of darkness that has… consumed me.”

 

He paused again, searching for words before he continued, “The prophecy… You are a part of that, as is Jaina. TheI don’t know what you remember of your aunt, but in the end, she abandoned me just as she had abandoned Jedi and Sith before. She was equally at odds with both sides of this eternal war of the Force. Like you… she was Gray; weaving together the best of both. You are the family of balance. And like you… I felt love for her. But she left me for another, and then…she died.”

 

Quietus trailed off at the end, his eyes squinting slightly as he focused on a point that could be forever far away. It was a rare moment when the pain of his life broke through. But he quickly recomposed himself, and refocused on the face of the beauty sitting beside him.

“Your aunt’s departure from me and her subsequent death, ripped a hole in me bigger than any I have ever felt. And in the time following, there was nothing to fill that hole but darkness, anger, and hatred. I was filled with it… And I believe… that was when Raynuk Montar truly died… even before I took the name Quietus.”

 

He began to continue, then had to pause, a small laugh emerging amidst the sadness that had grown to cover his face. “And then, in time, I found you… alone on that station. The daughter of two of my truest friends among the Sith; how could I not take you under my wing and guide you forward? But I think… the darkness within me wanted to punish Jaina by using you…” It was a hard thing to admit, enough to give him pause before he continued, “In time, I broke you. I created Darth Eris, and I made you a puppet of the darkness and hatred that swelled within my own heart. But even then, through all the pain and suffering I brought down upon you, I fell in love with you as well. And the more time we spent next to each other, the more the love I fell for you began to replace the darkness that had filled that hole.

 

“As I dragged you into the darkness, you were dragging me from it mīlu. You were dragging Raynuk Montar back from the ocean of darkness that has swallowed him.” He squeezed her hand with that revelation, and in that moment decided that she was not close enough to him, and so he gently pulled her closer to him until she was practically sitting on him.

 

“I came back this time… and it is different. I feel older, I feel my mind is clearer and less shadowed. I feel… that I am on a path I have never traveled before. I feel redemption on the horizon, to make up for the pain I caused you, and caused others in the wake of your aunt. I love you Emily, and everything you’ve become. Not the Sith I tried to make you. And, if I should die again, know that my last living thought, and every thought I have on the other side, will be of you. I will always be yours until the end of the galaxy.”

 

He embraced her tightly then, giving her a kiss that was much longer than the one she had given him. And when that kiss finally parted, he planted another, gentler kiss on her forehead before he spoke again, quieter this time.

 

“Whatever you want to know… About Jaina, about me, I will tell you all I can. For we are equals in this life. Now and forever more.”

[Robert McNamara]

Since it was just the two of them, he was much more relaxed. Good to see his paranoia was an overreaction. Peas in a pod is what they were it seemed. "Great minds think alike, Raven," Another gruff chuckle, "That is indeed what I was thinking- the ysalamiri. You know as well as I that if you try to fight the Sith- proactively or not- they will not hold back like the Jedi. Their chains are broken- nothing to hold them back. But now, I do have a feeling that you need me- us now, at Carida. I won't waste time elsewhere when that can wait."

 

Keying the comm link in his ear- "Adams. McNamara. What jump are we on?"

 

A reply was heard- but muffled outside of Robert's ear. After confirming they had not been followed or traced, he gave the instruction to plot a course to Carida.

 

Looking back to Raven, they had made their way aft at first, now working their way to the bow of the ship- "We'll be in Carida shortly. To your earlier bit- Outside of us eight plus Lisa and few droids- there isn't anyone left from the 1-1-5. After I was sucked into vacuum... well I don't know what happened, but when I woke up onboard the Strider, Lisa told me that she could only save just a few since the Strider had been bombed out. After we left- it was a miracle that any of us came back. Not many survivors of the Death Star battle. He drifted off, a bit caught up in everything that had happened.

 

 

"Anyways... we're almost at the bridge and I know Adams would be glad a chance to see you- and you remember Lisa of course. She has a hologram projection that she and Spook managed to conjure up. Or I can get you to a bunk and a refresher if you want some time to yourself? Either way." It was time to move on from that section of conversation.

[Emily]

He listened quietly, and for that, Emily was grateful. The moment came when she finished speaking, and the silence hung in the air. He rose, his back to her, and in that second she felt a sliver of pain pierce her heart. But then he began to speak. He spoke of a prophecy from his days as an apprentice. The words rang with weight and significance. Then he sighed and sat down next to her again, taking her hand in his. Slowly, she gathered the courage to meet his eyes. “You are now who you were always meant to become.” Those words echoed through her soul, causing a well of bittersweetness to rise up inside her. She hadn’t ever really thought of it that way, but he was right. She had kept her promise to her parents. She had become the legacy they had wanted to leave.

 

But even her parents couldn’t hold her attention right now. Quietus continued to explain what he had now realized—that she and Jaina were the ones that had been foretold to him. For a moment, that stunned her. Was all of this planned in advance? Had it been her destiny all along to live this particular life? Did the Force really work that intimately? The thought was both disconcerting and comforting. If that was the case, did their choices really have significance? But at the same time, it was consoling to think that everything was happening as it was meant to happen. That she had been meant to go through all this pain. It hinted at the idea that she was part of a larger story.

 

He kept speaking, admitting something she knew didn’t come easy—that he had partly used her as a way to get back at Jaina. The thought caused her some pain, but the greater part of her pain was for him. She knew what a dark place that was to be, for she had been there. She understood what it felt like to have a hole ripped in your life that nothing could really fill. And she knew the false promises of the darkness, what it whispered to you in those moments, but ultimately how it failed to make good on any of them.

 

“But even then, through all the pain and suffering I brought down upon you, I fell in love with you as well. And the more time we spent next to each other, the more the love I felt for you began to replace the darkness that had filled that hole. As I dragged you into the darkness, you were dragging me from it mīlu. You were dragging Raynuk Montar back from the ocean of darkness that has swallowed him.” He squeezed her hand and drew her closer to him. The confession was too much for Emily. A turbolaser blast of joy, deep and untainted, washed over her. Her lower lip trembled, and suddenly tears began to flow down her cheeks. “I love you Emily,” he said, “and everything you’ve become. Not the Sith I tried to make you. And, if I should die again, know that my last living thought, and every thought I have on the other side, will be of you. I will always be yours until the end of the galaxy.”

 

Her heart turned violently inside her chest, and the tears increased. But they were tears of happiness, tears of a release from darkness and loneliness. He loved her. She smiled through the tears, and then he was kissing her, and it was everything she had ever wanted. I am my beloved’s and he is mine. No matter what came…

 

She never wanted this moment to end. But eventually, they broke apart, and he planted a new kiss on her forehead. “Whatever you want to know…” he said. “About Jaina, about me, I will tell you all I can. For we are equals in this life. Now and forever more.” She turned and lowered her head to his shoulder as he held her. For a few moments, they sat like that, Emily’s tears slowly drying. When she looked up at him again, her face was radiant with the joy she was feeling, and the love she held for this man, this impossible, amazing man, who through it all, always returned to her. Perhaps that was the lesson here after all—that her life was about finding him, not losing him. About him returning, not departing.

 

She chuckled a little. “You’ve made me a mess,” she said smiling, referring to her tears. She kissed him on the cheek, then scooted away from him a little. There really weren’t any words that could follow that discussion. She let the silence linger a little while she poured herself a cup of caf. Leaning back into the sofa with the warmth of the mug in her hands, she sighed, her small smile never leaving her face. “Tell me about her,” Emily invited. “My memories of her are few, and hazy at that.” Her expression made it clear to him that she didn’t want to make him uncomfortable. Whatever he wished to tell her about Jaina, she would be glad to hear.

[Raven Nasra]

Raven nodded solemnly. "We lost far too many men for no reason back then. For emperors whose only goal was conquest, not the security of their people. We will not make that mistake again.I lost you in that Death Star, and I am not going to let it happen again." She followed him to the bridge. It brought her much joy to see her old comrades in arms. She shook their hands in turn and smiled. Even after such horrific battles, friendships still remained. The countdown timer began to chirp in the middle of their reflecting on times long gone.

[Raynuk Montar]

“Tell me about her. My memories of her are few, and hazy at that.”

 

Quietus took in a deep breath and sighed a little, letting the statement really sink into his mind. And for the first time in a very long time, he actually paused to think about her in more than just passing. Given the current situation that they found themselves in, it was only a matter of time before deeper thoughts of Jaina would come to his mind. He remained silent for a few moments after Emily asked, his brow furrowing as he really thought about it.

 

“What I remember most… The thing that still sticks out as the main thing I remember about her, physically at least, is her eyes; her deep green eyes. There was a sparkle that always seemed to be in her eyes,” he began, a small smile crossing his face. “Sometimes it was a sparkle of wonderment at what the galaxy has presented her with, sometimes it was the sparkle of a of a young woman who was constantly sarcastic, and absolutely knew it. A sarcastic comment was never far from Jaina’s mind, no matter the situation at hand…”

 

“Just, like, you,” he said, poking her gently before he continued. “She had hair the color of dark chestnuts, that no matter what, never seemed to be out of place or messy. But Jaina was; no, is, more than that. She was fiercely independent, never accepting anything easily without concrete proof to back it up. To say that she did whatever she wanted is an understatement. Stubborn as a bantha, but as sweet as sugar if you managed to get close to her and she let you in. I was lucky in that regard… Others were luckier.”

 

His head dropped a little, but he picked himself back up mentally and continued.

 

“When she decided to move on from my side, I fought that decision tooth and nail. I thrashed, I raged, and in the end, all I did was push her farther and farther from my side. And I chased her across the galaxy, blinded by the rage I felt. Several times in the following years I kidnapped her, stole her away, tried to force her to see things my way. But it never lasted.”

 

For the first time since he began, he looked Emily in the eyes, his own filled with a sense of understanding. “She feared me… by the end. She… still does. I can feel it. She awoke, still feeling that she needs to flee from me… or at least the monster I was back then.”

 

Another pause came and went as Quietus focused his mind again. “She had a sister… Did you know that? Her name was Ashley. Ashley Jade Skywalker. I even kidnapped her along with Jaina a few times. Every bit the trouble-maker Jaina was, but she was the more grounded and skeptical of the two. While Jaina’s head was in the clouds, Ashley would be the one to meticulously examining everything. Jaina would jump without looking; Ashley wouldn’t jump without a plan and two backup plans. Being around the two of them at the same time, which I was for a good chunk of time, was nothing less than exhausting. But it was also some of the best moments that still hold on to as memories.”

 

The smile played across his face again, for he truly was remembering Jaina, not as the woman who scorned him, but as a woman that he had spent so much time in close proximity to and enjoyed every moment.

 

“She was very much like you Emily… Perhaps that is why I find myself here now, with you. Perhaps on a deep level you remind me of the best of her, and that is what drew me closer to you. Only this time apparently, I’m the one who keeps leaving you. Ironic no?” The smile returned with a dash of self-deprecating humor.

 

“Later on, she got mixed up with Chaos Gods… much like Alora. Both of them in fact are champions of Slaneesh; that is where she got that whip you still hold. And then, with the arrival of those pirates on the Shadow’s Gambit, what should one of them be carrying? That whip. I recognized it, and the feeling of its owner, instantly. So, in a way, we have those… Red Diamond pirates I think it was, to thank for your Aunt’s renewed life.”

 

He allowed himself to fall silent again, chewing over the things he had come to realize. if Emily had more she wanted to know, he would answer.

[Emily]

Emily listened as Quietus painted a picture of a woman who sounded extraordinary. She was mostly quiet as he spoke, content to listen and sip her caf, although as he made the pointed comment about their shared sense of sarcasm, she couldn't help replying dryly. "Me? Sarcastic? I don't know where you got that idea."

 

She smiled as he continued. She could tell that it was painful for him to talk about her, but at the same time, it was good. Especially as they were seeking her out. As he spoke of chasing her across the galaxy and of Jaina's love for him turning to fear, her own heart hurt in sympathy. He lashed out at her as a Sith Warrior, and when she saw the darkness, she ran. Perhaps that is where we truly differ, after all. Another thought struck her. I suppose I'll get to talk to her in person soon enough. It was startling in a way to remember that Jaina really was alive again, and out there.

 

"She had a sister...Did you know that?" Quietus' next words startled her. She hadn't known. She knew next to nothing about Jaina, really, only that she had been married to Andon. And she vaguely remembered a happy, brown-haired woman who was always smiling. The news that the whip had belonged to her was not as surprising, as it had been used in the ritual and Quietus had gone half mad shaking it in her face when he had first awoken. But the idea that it had come from Slaneesh was interesting. She had read about the Chaos Gods, of course, but had never found any of that history very interesting. Really all she remembered about Slaneesh was that the goddess had been a seductress and trained her followers in her ways. It made Emily wonder suddenly if the whip had...other uses...besides just as a weapon. It was an intriguing hypothesis. Quietus might know...but if so, she figured she'd probably find out later.

 

He had fallen silent, thinking, and Emily finally spoke up again. "She sounds like an incredible woman. I look forward to getting the chance to really meet her, and talk to her." She took another sip of caf. "Maybe when we find her...I should be the first to talk to her. If she is really running from you, perhaps I can get her to calm down. And then you two can talk." She set down her now-empty cup. "I just wish we knew where she was. It's going to be difficult to find her in a galaxy as large as this. You don't have any idea where she would have been buried, do you? Or where she would run to?" She didn't think it likely. If he had, she assumed they'd already be going there. The cultists could wait. This was more important to her, and she hazarded a guess that it was more important to Quietus too.

 

She suddenly rose. "Like I said, I only have a few memories of her. But I do have this." She crossed to a small table on the other side of the room and pulled a holo from the drawer in it's side. Bringing it back, she handed it to Quietus and sat down again, then tucked her legs up and curled against his side. "I found it not too long ago, actually, buried in some of my mother's old things." The holo showed two couples, their arms around each other, smiling at the camera happily. John and Sirvani stood on the right, while Andon and Jaina were on the left. Andon and John were standing next to each other in the center, while their wives were on the outside. There was a certain cocky smugness on Andon's face, an air that John shared. The women both looked very happy, Sirvani in a quiet way and Jaina with a mischievous glint in her eyes. Emily loved that holo. It had captured her parents so perfectly, and she had always been certain that it had captured her aunt and uncle equally as well.

[Raia Montar]

Raia wasn't sure how long she'd slept, but as she opened her eyes, she knew she wasn't still on the couch where she'd been meditating. Confused, she looked around. This...isn't my bunk, she thought as she extricated herself, pausing when something clattered to the floor and rolled under the bunk when her hand bumped against it. Uttering a mild Dathomiri curse she knelt to retrieve whatever the fallen item was, her fingers barely brushing the cool metal that was just beyond her reach. She reached out again, attempting to will the thing to her, jumping back in surprise when the cold cylindrical object all but leaped into her waiting hand. The Dathomiri girl hadn't actually expected that to work.

 

Rising to her feet once more, she looked down at the object in her hand, feeling a chill run through her body. The Lightsaber...then this wasn't all a bad dream.

 

That same prickle of fear that seemed to have renewed itself as her ever-present companion sidled into her consciousness like the old friend it was. This time though, she resisted its pull, opting to return to her bunk in the farthest corner of the room. She would not give into the fear, but use it to forge something new instead. From under the mattress, she retrieved a leather-bound book she'd taken from Furion's library very early in her abandonment. She'd taken it because, unlike the rest of the flimsi, holos, books, and datapads, this had been utterly empty, devoid of any marks or mars on its pristine pages.

 

Raia had begun to change all of that as she'd found writing implements, inks, and other means of transforming the surface of the pages to whatever she wished. The first few pages were of the plants, animals, and things she missed most from her jungle home of Dathomir. In the margins of some of the drawings, there were even notes she'd made to herself about the strange and utter alien galaxy she now found herself in -- the tattoo as it had begun, still the same crimson red as it was now visible at the top of her breastbone; Rose Furion, her master's daughter who oddly made him weaker -- all preserved within the pages as the teen struggled to make sense of them.

 

Digging in the small bag she'd brought with her from the station, she found one of the writing sticks and turned to a fresh page.

[darth shadowlord]

Draken sat at the helm of the ship for a while, testing the new auto-pilot system until he was satisfied with the system. He knew she was enjoying the edition to the ship since the last time she had been onboard the ship. After testing the auto-pilot, he ran a few tests on the weapons systems and adjusted several setting by minute amounts, tweaking all of the systems to his specifications.

 

(later on)

 

A delicious smell wafted its way into the cockpit and causing him to smile, he knew exactly what she was cooking. It had been a very long time since he had eaten what was being cooked in the galley. Draken stood up and walked to the galley, pausing for a moment to enjoy the sight and smell of her cooking before slipping up behind her and wrapping his arm around her waist. He leaded forward and kissed the back of her neck. "Feeling better?"

[Raynuk Montar]

"Maybe when we find her...I should be the first to talk to her. If she is really running from you, perhaps I can get her to calm down. And then you two can talk.”

 

Finding Jaina. That was the ultimate goal, wasn’t it? He had to admit that for the moment his focus was torn between finding her with Emily, and pursuing the cultists that had caused the whole mess in the first place. He would never tell Emily, but the thought of going after Jaina alone had crossed his mind a few times. But as was often too true in the galaxy, the woman was right. Emily would have the best chance of approaching Jaina without spooking her. But that said nothing to the fact that she might get spooked simply by sensing he was close. It would be a tricky task to say the least.

 

"I just wish we knew where she was. It's going to be difficult to find her in a galaxy as large as this. You don't have any idea where she would have been buried, do you? Or where she would run to?"

 

Raynuk had also thought on that subject as well while they were walking to the ship back on Korriban, and was about to share his idea when Emily continued, and retrieved a small holo from across the room before placing it in his hand. It took a very large amount of self-control to not instantly destroy the object, of which his mind came up with several methods instantly.

 

There she was, Jaina Jade Colos Skywalker, alongside Emily’s parents, looking as happy and full of life as he chose to remember them all. It was an image that should have brought Raynuk some joy, but the whole thing was ruined by the fourth individual in the holo. Raynuk’s hands both tightened instantly; the hand holding the holo gripped the object tight enough to cause a creaking sound as the object strained under his grip, while his other hand balled into a tight fist. Only because he had been so at peace in the prior minutes was Raynuk able to not utterly crush the object in his hand, instead focusing all the anger, rage, and hatred that he felt for the last individual into his fisted hand, which began pounding the couch gently.

 

Raynuk had always held a deep seeded loathing of Andon Colos; he was after-all, a Jedi, and one who had never given Raynuk a reason to think any more of him than a pest. Some of the Jedi had earned his respect, and most of them would probably be dead at this point. And no more than three had solidified themselves as distant-friends. Andon was nowhere near any of those. It was a hatred that rooted itself deeper when he and Jaina had run off together. Each day that passed, he hated the man more and more. The mere memory of him was pushing on his mind.

 

Pushing Raynuk back into the enveloping darkness that he wore as Quietus.

 

He did everything he could to focus on John, Sirvani and Jaina, to admire them in what was clearly a time of happiness. It was one of the first times Raynuk thought about John and Sirvani since he had met Emily, and he found himself suddenly missing their company within the galaxy.

 

So many years have passed… so many friends and brothers gone…

 

Raynuk looked away and quickly gave the holo back to Emily, practically throwing it at her, choosing to remain silent. Emily would think of and remember her uncle as she wanted; not as Raynuk did. That was his cross to bear. Instead, he redirected the conversation, back to their previous conversation as his anger began to seep away.

 

“I… have a thought on how to locate Jaina. Clearly the whip is strongly tied to her, or else it wouldn’t have dragged her back with me. If we meditate on the whip, together, and maybe with Alora since she knew Jaina as well, perhaps we can locate her through the connection with the whip. Perhaps after we finish tracing the steps of the cultists on Coruscant we can give it a try.”

 

As silence fell over the pair again for a few heartbeats, Quietus noticed something; or rather he heard something. It sounded like physical writing, and he turned his head and reached out with the Force to place it, a moment later realizing it was coming from the bunk room.

“Seems Raia might be awake…” He murmured to Emily passively before he grinned slightly and reached out with the Force, finding Vex’aedr, who had found his way elsewhere in the ship. He summoned the tuk’ata through the Force, and a few minutes later the massive white pet emerged into the room, padding softly up to the couch and resting his snout on Raynuk's arm. The Sith reached up and gave the tuk'ata a quick pet before speaking.

 

“Vex’aedr… ieneses” He said, before pointing in the general direction of the bunk room.

 

It was all the command Vex'aedr needed, as he practically snapped around and bounded off towards the bunkroom almost playfully. In a matter of moments the white tuk'ata had made to to the doorframe of the bunkroom, spotting Raia in the back corner bunk. it paused barely for a second before crossing the room with just as much exuberance. The only problem was that after being on the surface of Korriban for so long, Vex'aedr was not quite used to the slicker durasteel floor plating of the Shadow's Shine, and so as it attempted to stop in front of Raia's bunk, its massive paws slid instead, sending the whole mass of white fur and muscle tumbling and sliding across the floor until it hit the wall next to Raia's bunk with a thud and a small yelp.

 

Raynuk of course, instantly heard the thud and yelp from Vex'aedr and practically jumped off the couch and jogged towards the bunkroom without a single word to Emily. He arrived at the doorway and saw Vex'aedr on the floor, only slightly jumbled up and upside down. Raynuk's gaze instantly shot to Raia, still sitting on her bunk.

"What the hell happened?!" He said, his voice having a bit more edge than he expected, a result of residual anger over the holo mixed with the surprise and confusion he now felt.

 

Vex'aedr, for his part, seeming completely fine, answered with a whuff.

[Raia Montar]

Time was lost to Raia as she gave herself over to sketching in her book, she hadn't even been aware of the door to the bunk room opening and the white tuk'ata entered in a bundle of energy. It wasn't until he'd hit the bulkhead next to her, causing the teen to jump sending her book and writing implement clattering to the floor and skittering towards the open doorway. She let out a scream of surprise a half-second behind the beast's yelp without meaning to and felt very foolish once she'd registered what had just happened with Quietus's tuk'ata.

 

Her heart-rate had just begun to return to normal when Emily's former master appeared in the doorway, causing her heart to leap into her throat once more as he demanded to know what had just happened with his pet. "I-I don't know." She began, her eyes wide. "He-He just came running in and crashed. I didn't do anything to him, I swear." Instinctively she reached out towards Emily in the Force, before adding quietly. "Would I still be standing whole if I hurt him?"

 

She let her gaze fall slightly, not wanting this male to think she was challenging him and tried hard not to look at the sketchbook which now lay open on the floor to the pages of Furion and Rose alongside her scribbles of trying to make sense of things. Part of her wanted to reach out to the other tuk'ata, just to make sure he wasn't hurt from his tumble, but a greater part reminded herself that this wasn't Emily's beast, but Quietus's and all he'd have to do is give a command and the tuk'ata would tear her to shreds.

 

In the back of her mind, she knew the same was true of Roe'gall, but she doubted Emily would ever give such a command unless the girl had truely done something to warrent it. Please...don't hurt me...

[Emily]

His reaction to the holo was not what Emily had expected. At first, it was, but then he noticed Andon. She was not expecting the wave of anger and hatred that rolled off him through the Force--she had simply thought he'd have been pleased to see that Jaina had ended up happy after all. But she didn't count on the fact that that old wound hadn't fully closed yet. She was about to rescue the holo from him as he pounded the couch with his other hand, but as she moved to take it, he thrust it back into her hands and quickly changed the subject.

 

She rose and returned the holo to the drawer where she had found it. "I'm sorry, my love. I wasn't thinking." At least he didn't break it...

 

She let it drop then and accepted his change of subject. The idea of meditating on the whip was an interesting one. She nodded. It just might work.

 

In the silence that followed, she got a ping on the ship's unique comm line. She frowned. No one knew that number. Crossing to the comm station, she acknowledged that Raynuk was saying something, but it didn't register. She put in the earpiece and listened to the message. "Sirvani, if you can hear me, this is Jaina. I know it’s been a long time.” A wave of shock and astonishment rolled over Emily. “If you get this message, can you let me know you’re all right? A--all of you? I’m on Coruscant. I need to find you. Please.” The message ended there. Emily was stunned. What were the chances of this? Clearly the Force was at work here.

 

It was a good thing Quietus jumped up right then and dashed towards the bunk room, because Emily didn't want him to hear her response. She had no idea how he would respond to hearing Jaina's voice again. She barely knew how to respond herself. After a pause, she returned the call. "Aunt Jaina? This is Emily Zsahra-Skywalker, Sirvani's daughter." She decided to play innocent. "I thought you were dead! I want to see you. I'm coming to Coruscant. Just tell me where to meet you. And...it's good to hear your voice again. It's been a long time."

 

She hung up at that. Just then, she felt a surge of fear from Raia, and belated realized what Quietus had said. She turned and hurried to the bunk room to see Raia cowering against the bed, Quietus looming in the doorway looking menacing, and Vex'aedr a pile of white fur and teeth on the ground. "What is going on here?" she asked. She gave Quietus a playful push to the side and moved into the room. "Quit freaking her out," she said to him with a smile. For a moment, she was going to tell him about Jaina's message, but the next moment, she changed her mind. Given how he had responded to her holo, she wasn't sure what he would do. They would find her when they got to Coruscant, and then things would play out. For now, what he didn't know didn't hurt him, and if he found out anyway, there was no harm done.

 

She sat down on the bunk Raia had recently vacated, picking up the girl's book as she did so. "Raia," she said suddenly, seeing the drawings inside. "These are wonderful. Where did you learn to do this?"

 

It was time to have a real talk with her apprentice. She hoped her casual attitude would help Raia realize she had nothing to fear. No one here would hurt her. But she intended to make that clear to her with words, too.