Journey's End pt II

   ~@~Other Inventions

   Atamvr Luminas stood in a docking bay aboard the New Republic vessel Exonerator, his hands clasped lightly behind his back. The Jedi Knight watched patiently as a YT-2400 light freighter identified as the Northern Star set down with ease.  Two familiar forms soon disembarked from its boarding ramp: Luke Skywalker, dressed in his Jedi robes, lightsaber at his side, was followed closely by Lara Dare Skywalker.

   "Luke," Atamvr clasped the older man's hand, relief in his voice.  "Thanks for coming." 

   Luke hugged his friend in greeting, and nodded as the two men pushed back to arm's length. The seriousness of the situation at hand was evident in both their faces.

   "Lara," Atamvr greeted her with a grateful hug as well.

   "Wouldn't miss it," she murmured, her grin as rueful as her tone of voice. Lara was dressed in a simple nondescript grey tunic paired with matching pants and high black boots.  A dark traveling cloak was draped over her left shoulder and a modified blaster pistol was strapped to her right hip.  

   Atamvr released her hesitantly and stood back a step, his expression briefly cautious as he took in her appearance.

   "What are we dealing with here?" Luke asked.

   "There was a skirmish in space over Myrtle Major approximately twelve hours ago – all the signs of an ambush.  But still no sign of Laus, and no sign of Karrde either; that doesn't make sense," Atamvr concluded as the three of them made their way toward the bridge. "Whether he had anything to do with this or not, I expected Karrde to be here."

   "I don't know," Lara stated dryly, a hard edge to her voice, "if I was Laus, Karrde had been hounding me for months and I didn't know who I could trust, faking my own capture wouldn't sound like such a bad idea."

   Atamvr threw Luke a questioning glance.

   "Do it close to your home base, maybe sneak in unnoticed in the chaos..." Lara continued on, undaunted. "It'd be an easy way to buy yourself a little breathing room."

   "By the time the truth comes out," Luke followed that train of thought, "Laus has been able to do what ever it is he came here to do."  Luke didn't sound entirely convinced, but any misgivings he had didn't prevent him from considering the possibility.

   "We haven't been able to figure out what would have brought Laus here in the first place," Atamvr offered, "but my team is already on the ground checking out that base; hopefully it will give us some insight into Laus' activities, and possibly his whereabouts."

   The door opened in front of them and the bridge came into view.

   "Luke, how are you?" The Exonerator's captain was making his way toward them. "Or should I call you Jedi Skywalker now?" he asked jokingly.

   Luke smiled. "Only if you want me to call you Captain Senesca." The two old friends embraced, slapping each other's backs enthusiastically.  "It's been too long, Zev."

   Zev nodded in agreement as he released Luke, and his eyes flickered with surprise toward Luke's companion. Years of combat-sharpened instincts told him that there was a dangerous and formidable warrior concealed beneath the lovely face whose eyes were trained on his.  His gaze quickly glanced over the petite figure, taking special note of a dangerous looking DL-18 blaster pistol and a dark traveling cloak which was meant to conceal one's identity. Luke's ally meant business.  Then Luke stepped back and looked in her direction. Comprehension dawned with the look that passed between the two of them, the deliberate way he placed himself close to her side, and Zev suddenly remembered that he had seen her once before: she had given testimony against Laus during the Senate hearings broadcast just after Laus' attack on Coruscant.

   "Lara, Zev saved my life more than once," Luke explained, "but chances are Han and I both would have frozen solid on Hoth if Zev hadn't found us when he did."

   "After all the tight scrapes we got ourselves in and out of, you didn't really think I was going to let you do something as boring as freeze to death on that ice cube, did you?"

   Luke Skywalker chuckled in amusement.  "No, I guess not," he answered.

   Meanwhile the lady smiled a disarming smile as she nodded at Zev.  "Always a pleasure to meet someone who's saved Luke's life."  Her eyebrows raised just slightly as she glanced at Luke. "Though there do seem to be an awful lot of people who fit into that category," she observed with a teasing gleam in her blue-green eyes.

   Luke grinned, still amused.  "It would seem so."

   "We were all a bit more reckless in those days," Zev conceded. "Something about being the underdog, having nothing to lose and everything to fight for."

   A reminiscent silence fell across Zev's lined face.  His right side still carried the heavy scarring he had acquired during the Battle of Hoth.  Zev, Luke, and Hobbie had all been grounded by AT-AT walkers that day, but Zev had gotten the worst of it.  After several direct hits and a subsequent crash landing, he would have died in his burning cockpit if the impact of the crash had not buried his speeder under a layer of snow and ice. The fiery crash combined with a lengthy convalescence had generated many rumors of his demise, but Zev had gotten lucky a second time when Luke and Hobbie had managed to take out the surrounding AT-AT walkers, allowing Alliance medical personnel to reach him.

   Zev didn't remember much about his convalescence.  He remembered learning that the medics hadn't been able to save his gunner, and he remembered their reluctance to take credit for his miracle survival.  Every time Zev had tried to thank them they had stubbornly attributed his recovery to the selflessness of his fellow Rogue Squadron pilots.  Their dogged resistence during the battle and evacuation from Hoth had enabled the Alliance to salvage a great deal of medical equipment and transport it safely off the planet, without which, the medics had persisted, they would have been unable to do anything for the worst of the wounded.  Zev had never forgotten his gratitude for them all.

   "But there was no one else I'd rather have at my back," Zev finished certainly.  "That still holds true."

   Luke nodded in a blend of agreement and appreciation, but before he could respond an incoming transmission brought their reminiscence to a close.

   From the ground on Marnia, Hobbie's gaze took note of Luke's presence with a ready nod, but his attention remained focused on the report he was making to Atamvr.

   "Jedi Luminas, Crusade Squadron has secured the spaceport and the surrounding perimeter. Nothing will get in or out without our knowing.  There's no sign of Laus, but the cantina site has been hit hard.  I've got ground troops standing by to investigate as soon as we can get inside, but I think you'll want to see this too."

   Atamvr nodded in agreement.  "Stay where you are.  We'll see you shortly."

~

   One of Marnia's signature squares spread out around them as the trio made their way out of the spaceport where the Northern Star had just set down, and they started off at a walk through the surrounding city streets.  The mid-morning sky was light behind the rays of sun that managed to peak through the low, grey clouds.  Pink-blossomed trees that had once lined the way now overflowed into it, and the occasional light breeze caused blossoms to shower down into the grass and the street.  Otherwise the streets were eerily quiet, but that didn't keep Lara from scanning their surroundings warily, her face cool and rigid, her emotions dark and foreboding.

   Luke hadn't spoken and his attention also remained fixed on their surroundings, but she felt the touch of his mind lightly brush her own.  A concerned silence lay beneath his casual touch. Lara swallowed hard and nodded determinedly in response. Luke caught her nod from the corner of his eye and he felt her thoughts refocus, the conscious effort she made to restrain a sea of difficult emotions awoken by these familiar surroundings....  Luke had seen her similarly unnerved once before, years ago on the approach to Coruscant. Then she had been facing an unpleasant reminder of a place and a past she longed to forget.... A different kind of danger permeated this dark homecoming, but with characteristic grit Lara steeled her emotions and walked with her head held high to meet it, like a Tusken walking into the Krayt's den.

   Without a word the three of them continued unimpeded past the narrow side streets where Luke and Lara had once fled from Laus' forces toward the spaceport and escape.  A waist high wood-worked wall surrounding a small park came into view next, but just before they came within sight of the cantina Hobbie emerged from a nearby watch position to meet them. After a brief exchange of greetings Luke's former wing mate cut straight to the point.

   "I think it's safe to say Karrde wasn't behind what happened here," he decided, "but you'll understand what I mean when you see it," Hobbie finished ominously, turning away and indicating that they should follow him.  His three companions did so without a word.

   They had known the sudden change in plans that had brought them down to the planet was serious, and the expression on Hobbie's face warned that the news was very bad. It was still hard to be prepared for the sight that greeted them where a familiar landmark had once stood.  The entrance of the cantina that had served as Laus' operations cover on Marnia had been completely blown away.  A high-power explosive had been used to gain entry to the site, and what was left of that familiar cantina was hardly recognizable as a building from the street.

   Atamvr's eyes flickered cautiously over the scene as they moved closer.  Despite knowing that the attack had come hours earlier, he scanned the length of deserted street as though expecting a follow-up attack at any moment.  The destruction looked so fresh... it was hard to believe that it was over.

   "Your team has secured the site?" he prompted softly.

   Hobbie gave a curt nod.  "We've locked down the perimeter and the spaceport. The structure itself is in tact; no explosives left behind."

   "Good. Let's search it from top to bottom; chances are somebody's already turned it over, but any clue they left behind could make a difference."

   "Yes, sir."

   Atamvr watched as Hobbie called for his ground troops to gather around and relayed their orders, then he, Luke, and Lara followed Commander Klivian and the New Republic troops inside. Two things became immediately obvious once they entered.  First, Laus had reinforced this building to withstand an external attack – that was the only explanation for the amazing fact that the structure was still standing.  Second, everything remaining inside had been ransacked – right down to a back room that was only rumored to exist.  That fact alone was clear indication that this attack had been an inside job.

   "I knew things were uncertain in Laus' camp, but I had no idea it had gone this far." Atamvr shook his head and took a deep breath as he slowly walked the inside perimeter of the demolished cantina.  "This was one of Laus' most secure operations, right down to the back room that never existed," he mumbled. "He had complete confidence in his security here; that's the only way he would have considered returning."

   A silence fell as Atamvr's heavy voice trailed off and everyone spent a few minutes surveying the destruction.

   "Seeing this," Hobbie asserted, "I think we can assume that we're no longer dealing with Laus."  Three sets of eyes turned to focus on the leader of Crusade Squadron, who was standing framed in the doorway to that back room. "Even if he managed to survive," Hobbie continued pointedly, "Laus is no longer the same power that he was a few hours ago.

   Atamvr nodded in thoughtful agreement. "The possibility of his disappearance has already thrown his territories into disarray; they don't expect him to return, and if he did they wouldn't follow him, not after this great a show of weakness." 

   "But given all this," Hobbie motioned to the destruction that surrounded them, "it's far more likely that he didn't survive at all."

   Lara's jaw clinched involuntarily. "Laus would love for us to think that he's no longer a threat."

   "You believe he would go so far as to destroy his own base, this base?" Hobbie questioned.

   "He would go a lot farther than that," she replied coldly. Her hand slid unconsciously to the blaster at her side, making her look every inch the dangerous pray Laus had tracked for so many years.  "Until I know the man is dead, I refuse to assume that he couldn't behind all of this; it's dangerous to underestimate Laus," she added darkly.

   Hobbie studied her with curiosity. "If you think it's a trap then why come here?" he asked evenly.

   Her eyes took on a briefly unfocused look, and Lara Dare Skywalker moved past him into the room whose defining feature had been a large meeting table.

   "This is where it started; this is where it will end," she said simply.  Then more quietly, her brow furrowing over the words, "I have to be here," she added certainly.  "I can feel that."

   There was no time for further explanation before the other's attentions were drawn away by noise in the outer room.  It sounded as though the troops guarding the entrance were questioning some locals. Hobbie went to investigate, his stride steady and brisk; he was well-assured of his troops and their ability to handle the situation, but he was also curious to find out what brought these locals so close to the wreckage of the cantina site when most of the beings around here seemed eager to avoid the area.

   Atamvr gave Luke a knowing, slightly amused glance, and his eyes flickered cautiously in Lara's direction before he followed Hobbie.

   Luke stayed behind, unworried by the commotion outside, but Lara seemed hardly to have noticed it at all.  He could only partially make out her expression as she turned to stand in profile within the dimness of Laus' destroyed secret room.  Absently, Lara reached out to touch the place where the corner of a nearby wall angled into the room.

   "My destiny is here," she whispered under her breath.

~

   A short distance away Dangin sat aboard his grounded ship, his expression sour as he watched the activity in the spaceport from his cockpit.

   "It's too dangerous to linger here with New Republic troops on the ground," Dangin protested, bringing his attention back to the transmission; "I could be boarded at any minute."

   "That is a risk you will have to take unless you believe you can blast out of the spaceport undetected, without drawing the attention of Crusade Squadron, the Exonerator, and it's Jedi commander."

   Dangin paled at being so bluntly confronted with the reality of his circumstances.

   "That's settled then," Morph decided calmly. "Your only concern, Dangin, is delivering your cargo safely to the rendevous – after you determine why Laus chose to return to Marnia in the first place."

   "We already searched the wreckage and found nothing. It would be prudent, once the Jedi leaves, to return directly to base."  Dangin squirmed, deliberately holding back the information that more than one Jedi Knight was now on the ground on Marnia.

   Morph mistook Dangin's discomfort as an indication of reluctance to take responsibility for his valuable and dangerous cargo. "The man is no longer of any consequence," he said soothingly, as though explaining something simple to a small child.  "His plans have been upset and have backfired upon him. Laus is ruined," Morph concluded.

   Dangin's next protest was abruptly cut off, Morph's previous show of patience swiftly exhausting itself. He was already preparing for the next phase of his attack; he had far more important things on his mind, and little time and energy to waste on Dangin and his insecurities.

   "The plan is proceeding exactly as I said it would, is it not? The rumors have taken hold that Talon Karrde has fought and killed Laus over Myrtle. Thanks to Tubachin's trickery, the New Republic believes that chaos has enveloped Tritis.  They will have no idea of the attack being marshaled against them."

   "What of the Jedi? If they suspect the truth the New Republic–"

   "We need only avoid suspicion a little longer. Once I can address our forces and officially take command, then it will be too late for the Jedi or the New Republic to stop us... and my onslaught will make Laus' plans look feeble by comparison.

   "Once the Jedi has gone you will complete your search; interrogate the locals, do what ever is necessary to get answers – but do not damage the cargo.  I want to know what Laus was doing on Marnia," Morph finished heatedly, leaving no room for further discussion.

   "And what if any unexpected problems arise with the cargo?"

   Over the transmission divide Morph considered Dangin with a lazy smirk.  "Bring them to the rendevous, as scheduled. I will deal with it there. And make sure you don't attract undue attention when you leave; I don't want any Jedi interference just yet."

   Dangin fell silent, then posed a hesitant question.  "What will happen to him?"

   "He will be dealt with," was the only answer Morph chose to afford Dangin.  "I told you, the man is ruined.  All that's left now is to put him out of his misery.  And I intend to take care of that, myself."

~

   "I am Leia Organa Solo.  Representative of the New Republic. Jedi Knight, and friend to Jedi Luminas."

   The Millennium Falcon and the Lady Luck hung in orbit over a planet on the outskirts of the Tritis system.

   "Welcome to Destonis, Jedi Organa Solo.  How may we be of assistance?"

   "My team has come to complete some of the work that Jedi Luminas began here. We need to investigate an area of unusual sensor readings he discovered down on the planet. Can you provide us with a scout to show us the way to that place?"

   "Of course.  We are greatly indebted to Jedi Luminas, and to his friends in the New Republic.  Proceed along the flight path that is being submitted to you.  Our scout ships will intercept you as you descend and provide you escort to the place you seek."

   "Thank you," Leia answered, and with a slight bow she signed off.

   A few minutes later three light fighter ships rendezvoused with the Falcon and the Lady Luck.  One ship flew to each side while the third assumed a point position. Han and Lando followed them, flying away from the cities and through lush forests until they were skimming over massive jagged rock formations and a great volcanic mesa.

   "I hope none of those things are active," Han mumbled.

   "Not for a generation," one of their escorts was quick to assure them, "but the molten pools remain beneath, carrying their heat deep under the rock.  That makes it impossible to use the land for building or for vegetation.  As you can see, Jedi Organa Solo, the area is deserted."

   Artoo Detoo beeped quietly while Leia studied the Falcon's sensors. 

   "Yet the readings remain," she murmured curiously. The readings were centered on a huge rock face rising up from the mesa directly in front of them.

   "I don't get it," Han admitted.

   "Han, remember that base Luke found at Red Eye?" Leia questioned.  "What if this is a similar disguise?  No one would think to look for a base where it obviously could not exist."

   "But the base at Red Eye did exist; Luke said only the mystery fighters could get close to it with their shield–  Hey, that just might work," Han decided.  "Chewie, shields full," Han barked the orders.  "Lock in the frequency we used to break up the shielding on those fighters.  Lando, hang back just in case this doesn't work."

   "What doesn't work?" Lando practically yelled.

   "If I'm right, we fly straight through the rock face."

   "Through the rock face!" See Threepio echoed in horror.  "Captain Solo, are you quite sure that's a good idea?"

   "And find what on the other side?" Lando demanded.

   "Good point," Han conceded.  "You'd better take one of the guns, Leia."

   "I'm in," her voice came over the comm system a moment later.

   Chewbacca gave a halting growl as he finished the preparations.

   "Here we go then," Han breathed.

   The Falcon flew straight at the solid rock face... and disappeared.

~

   "They're okay," Atamvr interrupted, not bothering to repress a smile as he joined the gathering of sentry guards who were having words with some uninvited guests outside the cantina on Marnia.  "You can let them in."

   "Thanks," Karrde mumbled, giving another dissatisfied glance at the guards before he and Mara made their way in through the wreckage, flanked by Karrde's expert slicer, Ghent. They took in the grim scene as Atamvr accompanied them toward the back, where Luke and Lara stood.

   "I take it from the surprised looks all around that we don't know who's behind this," Mara Jade accessed.

   "Actually we've just ruled out one primary suspect," Atamvr noted, tongue-in-cheek, "unless of course you want to take credit for Laus' disappearance?"

   Talon Karrde didn't look amused. "Any idea what happened here?" he asked. Greetings forgotten and not in the mood for jokes, Karrde was waiting for more of an assessment to what all of this meant.

   "We're still searching the site," Atamvr answered. "Hopefully something here can give us an indication of who was responsible for this attack, and what their next move might be. We also have the only spaceport on world under surveillance, as I'm sure you know since you avoided it."

   Karrde favored him with a tight smile. "Ghent was able to give me a heads up on your communications, and I thought it best not to advertise my arrival," Karrde added, turning his attention next to Luke.

   "So far it looks like an inside job," Luke offered; "chances are someone within Laus' organization is responsible."

   Lara made a small noise under her breath.

   "Though we're not ruling out the possibility that Laus could have staged it," Luke amended smoothly.

   Karrde fell silent, looking between Luke and Lara for a second.  Then Lara turned and wandered away from them, as if some small item had unexpectedly caught her attention. Likewise, Mara was visually scanning the room, a distracted expression clouding her face; a few seconds later she also began walking.

   Luke watched warily as the two women drifted away in opposite directions.  Since Hobbie's transmission Luke had begun to feel that Lara's suspicions about Laus might be unfounded; it felt more and more to him like Laus' disappearance was authentic.  But it was going to be hard to convince Lara of that without hard evidence.  Her barely contained feelings for Laus didn't help....  Luke's gaze settled on Mara's red-gold hair for a second just before she disappeared into the once tightly guarded back room. Watching her, Luke suddenly placed where he had felt such barely contained feelings of hatred and suspicion in the past....

   Karrde caught Luke's eye just as Atamvr was called aside to meet two of his investigating officers who had just arrived at the cantina site.  Karrde then glanced in each direction, confirming that there was no one else in earshot. Luke picked up on the unease in his sense as he did so.

   "We'll get to the bottom of this, Talon," Luke assured him quietly.  "I know we don't have much to go on at the moment, but everyone is still hard at work," Luke continued, motioning to the busy room around them.

   "It's not your lack of answers that bothers me, Luke.  It's mine," Karrde responded frankly.

   Luke fell silent and waited for his friend to explain.

   "I'd been hearing for months that Laus was scouting this area, but I was content to sit back for a while longer and see what came of it.  My intent was to stick to my game plan, keep depriving Laus of his bases and wait for something important to slip through the cracks in his wake."

   Luke nodded.

   "I think something finally did fall through," Karrde said secretively. "At Cesde we found residual sensor readings, like a large energy source had been in effect there.  Lando recently found similar readings on Pacibec."

   "What if I told you Atamvr found something like that on Destonis, only the readings there weren't residual."

   "You mean the source of the readings was still active?" Karrde breathed. "Finally!"

   "Leia is checking it out," Luke told him.  "She and Han took Lando along."

   Karrde fell silent in consideration.

   Luke watched his face for a moment.  "You never told me what made you change your mind, Talon, why you came here," he prompted.

   "Nothing," Karrde answered simply. "It was Mara who was rather emphatic that we be here, now. She wouldn't tell me much more than that though. I trust her judgement," Karrde concluded, "so we're here."

   Luke nodded, but offered nothing.

   "I was hoping that you might understand it," Karrde added after another moment's silence had passed.

   Luke shook his head, vaguely troubled by Karrde's assumption.  "I'm afraid I don't have any answers for you either, Talon."  An unexplained shiver ran down his spine as Luke looked across the room to see that Mara and Lara had crossed paths; the two women could be seen through the doorway engaged in curious discussion in the shadows of Laus' secret back room. Luke understood Lara's reasoning for being here all too well. But what was it Mara had sensed about this place that had made her come here?

   Luke and Karrde stood watching them for a handful of heartbeats before Atamvr rejoined them.

   "This is unexpected," Atamvr admitted curiously. "Crusade Squadron reports a suspicious ship at the spaceport. Unlisted in any registry we've run it through. Been here for months, keeps sending out calls on a strange wide band frequency."

   Luke and Atamvr were both perplexed by the new information, but Karrde grinned widely.

   "Would you mind if Ghent took a look at those transmissions?"

   "You think there's a code there?" Luke assumed.

   "I'm sure there is, and I've got a pretty good idea what it means."

   "Hobbie can bring you and Ghent up to speed on what we've got so far," Atamvr offered readily. Karrde nodded, and excused himself to collect Ghent. "What do you think that was about?" Atamvr asked Luke under his breath.

   "I'd say Karrde's on to something."

   "You think the culprit may not have left the scene of the crime?"

   "It's possible.  Or they've left a scout ship behind to see who turned up next, and what they found."

   Atamvr fell silent in thought for a few seconds. "What if Lara's right, and Laus is behind this... he just didn't make it off world before we got here?"

     The uneasiness in Atamvr's emotions didn't escape Luke's notice.  Atamvr had brought them into this because he needed their help, but he couldn't hide the regret he felt at this particular turn of events.

   "Laus can't be underestimated... but I tend to agree with Hobbie on this one," Luke stated heavily.  "I think this was a coup, and if Laus survived it his power and standing are minimal."  Luke looked toward Atamvr, his blue eyes deeply troubled. "That means that if he has survived, he's more desperate and more dangerous than he's ever been."

   Atamvr swallowed hard, contemplating that unpleasant possibility along with the rest of this difficult situation  he had brought his friends into.  He hadn't wanted to have to bring them here.  Lara faced enough of a struggle just in returning to her home system; he would have liked to have been able to shield her from the pain that was still in her heart for this place, but it seemed that that task was an impossible one. And he didn't like the change that occurred in Lara's demeanor every time Laus' name came into the conversation.

   Atamvr and Luke both watched, worried and slightly confused, as the conversation in the back room broke up and Lara resumed her investigation of the room's interior. 

   "There has to be a reason Laus came here in the first place," Luke breathed. Then both men picked up on a fluctuation in Karrde's emotions: cautious hope evaporating back into the worry behind it.

   "I'll see if Karrde's turned up anything he'd like to share yet," Atamvr offered.  And placing a hand to his friend's shoulder he walked away toward the small mobile comm station that Ghent and Karrde occupied, accompanied by Hobbie and several New Republic information retrieval specialists.

   Luke watched the gathering curiously for a moment. Then his gaze returned to the back room, just as a familiar tickling sensation began to bloom at the back of his mind.  Something didn't add up.  The outer cantina consisted of nothing more than a bar and the remains of tables and chairs that had filled it.  The back room consisted of nothing but a meeting table.  There wasn't even a comm station. Laus would have required at least that to successfully operate out of this place, as he had done for years after Endor... but Luke would have expected a lot more in the way of technology.  It couldn't have been stripped; it was as if it had never been here... or been concealed somewhere out of sight.

~

   The ship rocked for a couple of seconds, like it had gotten caught in a turbulent slip stream. Then the Millennium Falcon emerged into clear air. Han pulled up, bringing them to a halt.  They had come through the shielding and now found themselves in a large but deserted hangar.

   Chewbacca murmured a cautious assessment.

   "Yeah, Chewie," Han agreed.  "They went to a lot of trouble to hide it, but it looks empty now."

   "I can't sense any life forms, but I wouldn't expect Laus to not keep ysalamiri around," Leia stated.

   "Lando, you read me?" Han asked, activating the Falcon's comm.

   "Loud and clear!"

   "Come on through.  Best we can tell, it's deserted."

   The Lady Luck appeared out of thin air just as Leia made her way back into the cockpit.

   "What about the scout ships?" she asked.

   "They couldn't reproduce the frequency," Lando explained.  "I told them to stay where they are and keep watch for us. They'll sound the alarm if we don't reemerge."

   Han and Lando each set their ships down.

   "Looks like a hangar all right," Han stated once they were all standing on the rock floor. The surface felt slightly warm under their feet, but the rock face was far enough from the ground to prevent the heat from harming people or ships.

   "A hangar, but no ships," Lando noted dryly.

   "Artoo, Threepio, let's see if we can find a command center, figure out what happened here," Leia suggested.

   "Yes, Mistress Leia," See Threepio answered, shuffling down the Falcon's boarding ramp behind Artoo Detoo.

   The smaller droid beeped eagerly as he rolled across the room and plugged himself into a computer terminal.  His dome wheeled back and forth several times before he emitted another series of beeps.  Han, Chewie, and Lando looked up warily from their investigation of the hanger.

   "What does he say? Han asked."

   "He says this base has been deserted for some time.  There have been no transmissions in or out–"

   "Is there a command center, goldenrod?" Han interrupted impatiently.

   "Down that corridor, Captain Solo, but no commands have been issued since all the fighters were ordered moved to a precise set of coordinates."

   "Where were they moved, Artoo?" Leia asked.

   The droid beeped in reply, and Threepio translated.

   "The base's records name a place called Bermudi, Mistress Leia.  But I believe they are referring to the Burmui sector of the Myrtle system, a location where the Myrtle and Tritis systems intersect with New Republic space–"

   The group of them exchanged concerned looks.

   "C'mon," Han prompted, leading the way toward the command center Threepio had just spoken of.

   "Wasn't Atamvr just there? How could the Exonerator and Crusade Squadron have missed an entire fleet of mystery fighters?" Lando questioned rhetorically.

   "Sir," See Threepio interrupted, hastily shuffling toward a comm station.  "That flashing light – it indicates an incoming transmission."

   "Can we tell who from?" Lando questioned.

   Artoo beeped excitedly as soon as he plugged in.

   "No, Captain Calrissian, but he can track the location from where the transmission originated."

   "Where?" Han asked.

   "The transmission is coming from Marnia, sir."

   "Marnia," Leia whispered.

   "Luke's there," Han exclaimed.

~

   Lara paced slowly and carefully around the room's interior.  For a secret room it wasn't horribly impressive. A large table filling the center of the rectangular space was surrounded by heavy chairs that had been thrown aside in the haste to search the room. She picked one chair up and pushed it back into place at the head of the table, facing the room's only door, and she stood staring down at it for a handful of heartbeats, trying to put her finger on what felt amiss.

   "There's something not right," Lara mumbled after a moment.  The feeling persisted.  "Something's missing," she amended.

   "I see what you mean." Mara Jade stood watching her.  Now she slowly walked over to the place where Lara stood.  "This section here," Mara murmured in agreement.  The wall came to a corner at an odd angle, jutting out into the room behind the place where Laus' chair occupied the head of the table.

   Mara casually pulled her blaster and fired on the spot.

   Before the smoke could clear a half dozen panicked troops were rushing into the room. 

   Mara paid them no mind except to look up with a slightly self-satisfied smirk on her face.

   "Well, would you look at that?" Karrde intoned as he, Hobbie, and Atamvr came to a standstill behind Luke, all of them staring ahead in stunned disbelief.

   Mara's blast had knocked a sizeable hole in the already hollowed-out wall, and a dim artificial light could be seen within.  The wall was completely opened with a few lightsaber strokes to reveal a flight of dimly lit steps.

   Luke and Atamvr led the way down, lightsabers drawn and ignited. They could feel no life forms ahead of them, but caution was warranted.  At the stairs' end they found a second room directly below the first and roughly equal in size to the entire cantina above them, but this room was untouched.

   "What in the stars," Mara mumbled as they reached the bottom of the stairway, and the Force moved from around them.  It felt like they had been surrounded by ysalamiri, but there were none of the creatures in sight.  Troops quickly fanned out into the room and confirmed that it was deserted. "Have you seen anything like this before, Skywalker?"

   "Only once," Luke replied ominously. "The ysalamiri influence is distilled into that tubing," he answered, motioning overhead.

   "Then it works like the serum?" Mara questioned.

   "Something like that," Lara conceded.  "But the serum has a short life span once it's injected into a being. Circulation through the body isn't able to support it indefinitely, but this tubing can. As long as the system keeps running, the influence is kept alive, vital."

   "So it doesn't wear off. Great," Mara noted sarcastically.

   "Not unless we can find the generator and disable it," Luke added.

   "And it looks like Laus thought of that," Lara finished. One look around the room ruled out the generator's being located on site. "It could be anywhere in a ten block radius."

   "Maybe he learned from Imago's mistakes," Luke stated grimly.

   Atamvr seated himself at one of several information consoles while the rest of them spread out and began more thoroughly searching the cavernous underground room.  After several minutes Karrde came to a standstill behind him, waiting as Atamvr patiently navigated through the information held there, slowing even further as the information started becoming more relevant.

   Karrde took a deep breath. "Now things are starting to make more sense," he said quietly. Atamvr had found the files depicting Laus' strategy and offensive against Karrde. It revealed, among other things, an elaborate surveillance system that was watching Karrde's bases. "So that's how they've been finding us," he added grimly.

   "And how he's been able to act so quickly," Atamvr noted.  "He's using mobile base stations." 

   Karrde swore under his breath. "We've looked for that–"

   Atamvr swallowed hard as he pulled up the next screen: a design plan.  "They're cloaked. That's why you haven't been able to find them."

   Mara stifled a curse. 

   "That's also how he's been able to execute those fades, eluding us so effectively," Luke added. 

   "All he had to do was get to one of those mobile bases, activate the cloaking device, and for all intents and purposes, he actually could disappear," Lara echoed. They had all gathered around to watch Atamvr's progress.

   Atamvr keyed another series of commands. This time he was met with an access deigned code.

   "That might be all we can get," Karrde mumbled.

   "Wait a minute," Atamvr breathed, trying again.  This time he got a different warning. Access denied without data insert.  "Insert," he repeated, and he began rummaging through the nearby compartments.  "Let's see if this will do it," he said placing a found data card in the slot.

   The computer pulled up another schematic.  This time it was a map: first a series of dots appeared, then they took on different color-codes to indicate which dots represented base worlds and which were automated spy stations.

   "Is that everything?" Lara finally asked skeptically.  "All this is just within a few parsceks of here."

   "And all these bases have been abandoned," Karrde noted.

   Atamvr keyed again and a different message appeared. Linkup required for further access.

   "A safety," Karrde breathed.

   "To prevent someone like us from learning too much," Atamvr accessed in agreement. "Laus must have suspected...."

   Luke was tugging thoughtfully at his lip.  "Strange though, the only information he left behind applied to Karrde."

   "I'll bet he didn't mean this for me.  He left this behind in case his security was breached from within; all it would confirm is that Laus was obsessed with me, just as his critics suspect."

   "Then there must be more that Laus is hiding," Lara breathed.

   "I agree," Karrde nodded.

   "How do we get around that safety?" Luke asked.

   "From here, we can't," Atamvr admitted.  "Only this computer, linked with one of the other major base computers," he motioned to the lights on the display screen, "can interpret the data.  It's probably a security program Laus left running anytime he left here."

   "So how can we make that connection?" Luke asked.  "Could a password be enough, something Ghent could manufacture?"

   "No."  Atamvr shook his head.  "I keyed in the linkup and nothing happened.  If it was as simple as one computer accessing another through a passcode, we should have gotten a response."

   "I think it will have to be a physical connection," Karrde agreed heavily. "That's the whole idea."

   "We'd need another card then, the same as this one, linking in from one of the other bases.  Ghent can do that," Mara Mara thought out loud, "but we'd still need a way to extract the information for copy."

   "What if I could handle that part?"  All eyes turned to Karrde. 

   "I've got something in the works, an information extraction system that Ghent's been developing for me.  That's the one thing I've got going for me out of the Tangrene data," he conceded dryly. "He's very close now. I think we could use it."

   "And the card?" Atamvr asked.

   Karrde snorted.  "Child's play for Ghent.  But we have to get someone onto one of those bases to be able to use it."

   "And the only map he left behind is of bases he's long abandoned," Mara noted.

   Luke slowly leaned over the information console, drawing everyone's attention back to the place where Atamvr was still seated. "I think you just got a response."

   "That flashing?" Mara questioned.

   "It's an incoming transmission," Atamvr answered with a nod. He looked at Luke. "From Destonis."

   "Everyone move aside." Luke's features blurred as he settled himself at the console and the rest of them took a step back. Luke glanced behind him, assuring himself that only he would be visible when he keyed the transmission, but Luke Skywalker was hardly visible to the eye.  He now bore a strong visual resemblance to one of Laus' alien body guards, but to Atamvr, Lara, and Mara the deception was marginal.  Only his surface appearance had changed.  In the Force his presence continued to shine brightly.

   Luke keyed in a command. The feed waivered for a second then resolved itself, revealing a humanoid female with a stern face and brilliant purple eyes.  Atamvr recognized the characteristic appearance of the Destonian female, but she also was not what she appeared to be.

   "Leia," Luke breathed. The mask he had created for himself melted away.

   "Luke," she smiled, similarly relieved.  Her features likewise reverted to their normal appearance.

   "Kid!"

   "Have we got news for you."  Han and Lando appeared to one side, the droids and Chewie to Leia's other side.  Luke knew his audience had also moved into sight, eager to hear. 

   "Laus has invented a cloaking shield," Leia spoke quietly. "He's using it to disguise his base here."

   "That was the cause of the readings we found on Destonis," Atamvr breathed.

   "We know about the cloaking shield's creation," Luke answered. "Laus has been using it to hide fleets of mystery fighters all over the galaxy. We found the plans for it here."

   "Do you know he's moved the ships to Bermudi?"

   "Bermudi," Atamvr echoed.

   "The base on Destonis received instructions for all ships to report there for refitting."

   "Refitting?" Karrde questioned.

   "Of course," Luke realized.  "When Karrde found a weakness in the shielding Laus had to recalibrate. He just barely had time to move the ships from places like Cesde and Pacibec, but he didn't get away clean at Destonis. The cloaking shield was left behind, still operational."

   "Then the entire fleet of mystery fighters must be at Bermudi now," Atamvr offered.  "That explains the erratic energy field there.  Too many ships are being covered under too small a cloaking field."

   "We have to shut that operation down before those ships are refitted and we lose our only means of fighting them," Karrde declared.

   "Agreed," said Luke. "Leia–"

   "We'll head for Bermudi," she acknowledged with a nod.

   "The moon," Atamvr realized. "The moon must be their control center.  We didn't scan it for energy readings; we were looking for a base on the moon's surface."

   "I'll bet they're disguising it the same way they disguised the base here," Lando added.

   Luke nodded. "From there you should be able to learn if the refitting is done."

   "And find a way to shut down the cloaking mechanism," said Karrde.

   "One more thing, Leia," Luke paused. "See if there's a card like this one anywhere around you."

   "I've got it." Leia held up a matching card, then plugged it in.

   Linkup established, read the console on Marnia, but even with the two computers connected, a great deal of information was missing from Laus' files.

   "Laus may have suspected the coup, taken action to protect himself," Leia offered.

   Luke nodded. "Especially after Destonis unexpectedly fell."

   "The question is, what happened to him?  Was he taken or has he disappeared again?" Han asked.

   "What I still want to know is, why come back here at all? Talon Karrde interjected.  I can only think of one reason that would be worth the risk. Those missing files are likely the Tangerene data. And either Laus removed them to protect them, or they were stolen from him in the coup."

   "Either way, those files have to be recovered," Leia stated firmly.

   "We'll handle that," Atamvr promised.

   Luke nodded. "Good luck, to you all.  May the Force be with you."

   "Good luck," Han and Lando answered, accompanied by a howl from Chewie.

   "May the Force be with you," Leia whispered. Then the transmission flickered out.

   A heavy silence filled the room beneath Laus' cantina.

   "How are we going to recover those files?" Atamvr posed the question.

   "We don't know where to look," Mara spat, "we don't even know if Laus is dead or alive."

   "But someone does know," Lara breathed.  "Someone is responsible for this."

   "We can start with that ship in the spaceport."  Hobbie stood in the shadows at the bottom of the stairs, Ghent at his side. "Jedi Luminas, the slicer broke the code on the ship's registry and traced its transmission signature.  It's a shuttle class freighter called the Recluse, registered to a formal Imperial named Dangin."

   "Dangin."  Mara turned from Hobbie to Karrde.  "You think he can lead us to the missing files?" she questioned skeptically.

   "We know he has ties to Tritis.  Dangin could be the key to this mystery," Karrde stated.

   "He's certainly not here by accident," Atamvr agreed.

   "Only one way to find out," Lara challenged. She wasn't entirely sure that Laus was out of this picture, but Lara was certain that Dangin would lead to Laus or to his successor; either way she would get the missing files and the opportunity to foil any attack Laus had planned on the New Republic.

   Gazes slowly turned in Lara's direction.

   "It's too dangerous for anyone to try it alone," Luke argued, protectiveness for his wife evident within his argument.  But he made the argument as strongly to her as to anyone else; he knew what she was thinking.

   "Luke's right," Atamvr agreed.

   "No."  Something in her voice easily brought their arguments to a halt.  "Laus wanted me for this. There's a chance that I can use his intentions against him, and get in."

   "Laus isn't in control anymore," Luke was first to object, "this would be dangerous enough even if he was," he stated evenly, his voice the equal to hers. "But I don't like the idea of your going into the middle of all this on an assumption that there'll be respect for you there."

   Lara swallowed hard, forcing a small smile.  "I'm not so sure I like it either," she conceded softly.  "But an infiltration is our best chance at getting those plans without inciting more violence in Tritis, and I'm the only one who has a shot at getting in and out of there easily."

   Luke took a deep breath. He recognized the familiar determination in her face, just as he could sense the truth in her words.  It was hard to put his personal feelings aside, but he said no more, conceding.

   "How will you get in?" Atamvr finally asked.

   Lara suppressed a sigh.  She had known what she was getting into by coming back here.  Still, she had a bad feeling about this....

   "I'll have to convince the new boss to recruit me," she answered with a devious smirk.

~

   The others had made their goodbyes and offers of good luck down below. Karrde had also supplied Lara with a device for the data transfer.  Luke had followed her upstairs to the main level, where the burned out wreckage of Laus' former base now appeared deserted.  That was the illusion Hobbie's team was maintaining in the hopes that they could pull Dangin out from cover. Soon the Exonerator would get into the act.  Once Lara had had time to make contact with Dangin, Captain Senesca would take advantage of the proximity of Myrtle and the nearby moons and use them to shield his ship from sight on Marnia, making it look like the New Republic had abandoned their search and left the system.

   They came to an uneasy halt at the top of the stairs.

   "Lara. I want you to take this," Luke said softly, removing a small object from within his robes.

   Take this... he had asked that of her once before. Her eyes dropped to the cylinder in his extended hand, and she accepted without hesitation. This time Lara recognized the training lightsaber that Leia had used until a short time ago; her presence was there, in echo, as was Luke's, but it was his imprint that she felt strongly on the weapon. She wondered if that was due to the weapon's being of his creation or just the fact that it was his familiar presence, which she knew well and felt easily.

   Lara's eyes rested on Luke's.  "Is this a binding Jedi contract?" she questioned him playfully.

   He responded with a weak smile, his hand held close to hers as they both gripped the lightsaber.

   "I think it might be." He could feel no sign of reservation as she lightly considered such a commitment, but at the moment Luke would have readily confessed that it didn't matter to him if she chose to pursue the training or not. "We can talk about that when you're back safe." 

   He moved closer, and Lara smiled at the intensity of his concerned gaze... mixed with the shear unfamiliarity of their sudden reversal in roles.

   "Trust your feelings," he whispered. "Feel the Force. Don't be afraid to use this. And please–" He couldn't say anything more.  Words couldn't express how excruciating the possibility....

   She nodded, her smile softening further as Luke's arms encircled her.  Her free hand cupped his neck and her other arm curled around his shoulder, pulling him closer.  Luke hugged her for a long moment, holding her close in his arms....  He had never fully appreciated how difficult this moment was all the times their roles had been reversed. His wife was a good actress; he had always suspected that much; now he was certain she hadn't felt the strong front she had always shown to let him go gracefully.  All he wanted right now was to hold on to her, to keep her close to him and out of danger... but he eased back.

   "I love you," he whispered against her lips.

   "I love you too," she whispered back and kissed him.

   They held close for another moment before her eyes flickered up to meet his. There had been more difficult goodbyes over the past five years than either of them liked to consider, but with so much uncertainty permeating these circumstances the intensity underlying their goodbyes wasn't unexpected for either of them.

   His hand caught hers briefly as she pulled back, smiling, brave and determined, and then she slipped away.  Luke followed a few steps in her wake.  Pausing at the entrance to the back room, he watched her pull the shadowy cloak of a fringe mercenary around her shoulders as she strode toward the front of the bombed out cantina.  Lara slipped the Jedi weapon into a pocket within the cloak, where it would be secure and easily accessible, then she headed for the exit.

   This would be no easy challenge for her: infiltrate the lair of a despised enemy, learn to rely on a talent that frightens you, and go it alone....  Luke Skywalker stood there, reluctantly watching her go.  Deep down, he had known a long time ago that this path had already chosen her.  He suspected that Lara also knew where her future was leading; it was only a matter of time until she could come to terms with that knowledge. But he felt a pang of uncertainty and regret over the way it was all playing out. 

   Lara stood still for a heartbeat, surveying the street outside, before she pulled the hood of her cloak over her head. Luke took a deep breath, crossed his arms over his chest, and reached out to the Force.  Watching her go, he longed to hold on to the familiar feel of his wife's warm presence, her steady comfort, her fierce strength, and her intense love.  A small part of his mind held that contact as she walked out into the brightly lit night... and disappeared from sight.

   "Come back to me safe," he whispered under his breath, feeling her move deeper into the night along Marnia's nearly deserted streets.  Luke turned on his heel, suddenly anxious to rejoin the others. And from the corner of his eye he saw Mara Jade quickly move away, but not before Luke had seen her standing idly watching Lara's exit.  If he didn't know better he would have called her expression worried....

~

   Lara took a deep breath and stepped out of the shadows just as she spotted her quarry. Dangin turned the corner. And he almost ran into her as she stood blocking his path in a narrow side street.

   "You're not Laus," she noted coldly before he had a chance to gather his wits. "You the man who made him disappear, Dangin?" she mused curiously, cooly. His eyes narrowed from fright to suspicion.  He had recognized her voice even before she had moved into the light enough to allow him to see her face; her presence here hadn't come as a surprise to him.

   "And you're here to thank me for that, if I am; I doubt that.  I know you're here with Skywalker and Luminas. You can drop the act, Dare."

   "So can you," she responded evenly. 

   "Oh no.  Skywalker and Luminas are trouble, and you are too."

   "You may be right about that," she responded.  "But you don't know why I'm here," she began, guarding an air of secrecy.

   "I already know all I need to know," Dangin argued stubbornly.

   "You've managed to get rid of Laus," she continued, ignoring his protest.  "But I'd be willing to guess that there are still a lot of things that you don't know," she trailed off.  "What made Talon Karrde such a threat to Laus?  What happened to all of Imago's research after his demise?  And surely there must have been some reason that Laus would spend so much of his valuable assets, and years of his life, trying to recruit Lara Dare. There must have been a plan. A big plan." She paused for emphasis, her eyes searching his. "Don't these things make you curious, Dangin?  They make me curious," she answered her own rhetorical question without leaving space for hesitation.  "Laus, I had no desire to work with, but that has changed, now hasn't it?  And you, I could help," she decided darkly.

   He was intrigued, but still cautious.  "What do you get out of this?" he finally asked.

   "Simple," she smiled.  "I get the ultimate victory over Laus.  I reap the rewards of his lifetime of planning, while he rots."

   "How do I know–"

   "You don't," she cut him off cooly.

   "Why should anyone believe–" he tried.

   "Why would anyone be suspicious? Isn't this what Laus plotted, for years? Now he's gone. And you can do what he couldn't: deliver on his grand promises to all those die-hard Imperials.  I can help you – and all the power Laus intended to have for himself can be yours for the taking," she finished.

   He looked away, considering what she said for a moment.  When he turned back she could see it in his eyes; he was hooked.

   "You have a ship waiting," she assumed.  "We should make ready to leave."

   "What about the cantina?"

   "There's nothing left; I was there the whole time the New Republic searched it.  We can break orbit as soon as they leave, which should be soon."

   Dangin suddenly looked suspicious. "And they won't notice that you've gone missing?"

   "I staged my exit earlier; after the scene I made they won't want or expect me back."

   His suspicion deepened.  "Not even your husband?"

   "Husband," she scoffed.  "No.  He cares for the arrangement little more than I do. I daresay he'll welcome my absence."

   Dangin watched her for another moment; he was still suspicious, but the fact that he had unexpectedly stumbled into a circumstance better than anything he could have hoped for was causing his doubts to quickly evaporate.

   Lara allowed a slow smile to cross her face. Middle tier Imperial through and through: blinded by his own greed and ambition, and too dull-witted to suspect he was being played for a fool. But her satisfaction over that small victory quickly dampened. There was someone behind this who was not a fool.  She would soon find out who.

~

   A short time later Lara followed Dangin up the boarding ramp of his converted Imperial shuttle.  He turned to glance back in her direction, as he had every so often during their walk to the spaceport, as if still in awe over her presence and his good fortune, and wary of the same.

   "I trust you won't object to being confined to your quarters for the duration of our trip, for security purposes."

   Lara responded with a measuredly scathing look.  "Your ship. Your rules," she said cooly. Clearly she did not have to, but for now she would concede.

   Dangin accompanied her to the quarters he had spoken of. Lara walked inside and turned back to face him.  Her expression offered just enough genuine dislike to remind him that she was dangerous, but allowed Dangin the temporary pleasure of seeing that, for now, he held holding authority over her.

   "Then we will leave immediately," Dangin declared, triumph in his voice.

   Lara watched the door slide shut in front of her and listened to the sound of a lock being programing on the other side, his sense overflowing with smug satisfaction. Lara turned and seated herself on the bunk that filled one half of the small room. The first part of the plan had succeeded.  She was aboard a ship that was leaving Marnia for Tritis space. She had convinced Dangin to take her into Laus' stronghold.  Now she had to keep up appearances long enough to relay the information they needed back to Luke and the others.

   There was a shudder as the ship's engines came up, and a feeling of inertia stole over her emotions. There was no turning back now. She would get to the bottom of this mystery; one way or another, she would learn the truth. Despite her earlier flattery to Dangin, she did not remotely believe him capable of the actions she had credited him with. If Laus had truly been overthrown, then Dangin would undoubtedly deliver her to the person responsible... but there was a second possibility that Lara wouldn't dismiss. She believed it very likely that she had just handed herself over to Laus, himself.

   A shiver crept down her spine as a second shudder, matched with a slight, momentarily feeling of weightlessness, told her that the ship had just entered hyperspace.  She could almost feel the dark of mottled space and stars moving by at light speeds all around her.  She bent down and removed a small parcel from her boot.  Regardless of who or what awaited at the end of this trip, somehow, she knew that she would find a way to make this succeed. Her eyes fell to the data pad she held in her hand, the key to her success in this mission, but what she caught herself remembering was another hyperspace jump, leaving Marnia many years ago.

   She hadn't gotten to see much of that trip either. From detention aboard an Imperial Star Destroyer hyperspace felt pretty much like any other boxed in room.  Detention... actually they had called it a debriefing.  In reality Imperial debriefing was probably only a slight step above Imperial interrogation.  A standard procedure, its chief purpose was to convince a new recruit, through high levels of brainwashing along with other more primitive methods, that his sole loyalty was now to the Empire.  Lara had learned to bury her feelings deep when it came to guarding her talents and abilities, and she had instinctively drawn inward then. That was the beginning of the walls she would have to build to protect herself and the truth of her existence, that her only loyalty and purpose would belong to her family, to getting home.

   It had been a trip of five standard days, by star destroyer, from the Myrtle system to Vader's newly completed Super Star Destroyer, and then an extra three days aboard that vessel on to Coruscant. The first leg of her journey was spent in debriefing, the second in isolation. During transit there was a brief tussle over a distant rim planet called Tatooine.  And Lara had been transferred to the Executor just as it was preparing to intercept Vader and return him to Coruscant for his report to the Emperor on the Battle of Yavin.  As no underling was willing to risk approaching Vader with such seemingly minor news as the presence of a new conscript, Lara remained in isolation until they began the approach to Coruscant.

   But upon approach, she was transferred to a shuttle and then taken to a ready room overlooking the planet.  Her guard of three storm troopers backed and wheeled in exit with a hand motion from Darth Vader. He stood framed in an open viewport, taking in the approach, or so it would seem.  Lara stood still too, unmoving from the spot where her guard had left her.  The silence, she understood, was meant to intimidate her.  It was starting to do just that, and he had probably sensed it.

   Vader half turned, hands clasped behind his back. 

   Lara stood fast, holding her gaze as strong and steady as she could will herself to be.

   "Come forward, conscript Dare."

   Lara crossed the room toward the viewport, making her steps strong and smart, fully aware that the feeling out process had begun. Every movement and reaction now would play a part in determining her fate here.

   "I understand that you have been, debriefed."

   "Yes, Lord Vader."

   "Then you are ready to serve the Empire, in what ever it may require of you."

   "I am."

   He turned back to the viewport that Coruscant was now rapidly filling.

   "Do you understand why you have been chosen, conscript Dare?"

   "I was told only that I was considered of value to Lord Vader, himself."

   He turned to her, with surprise? And she returned Vader's intimidating gaze, unflinching.

   "Yes," he stated slowly. "I believe you will be invaluable indeed, Agent Dare," he added heavily.

   The bright light of entering atmosphere shown around them for a heartbeat before it was regulated by the viewport's panels. The two figures stood alongside one another, watching the city scape grow closer, and the city bustled at unimaginable speeds around Vader's shuttle as the shuttle came in to dock at the Imperial Palace. Lara had to work at holding her awe to check as she flanked Vader, as ordered, through a lavishly decorated courtyard and into the Emperor's Palace.  She waited there, just inside the courtyards, until Vader had made his initial report; after that, she was to be presented to the Emperor.

   Royal guards lined his throne room, the dark scarlet of their uniforms standing in stark contrast to the deep blues of the throne room's lighting and the pitch black adornments of the Emperor and Vader.  But all that and more was secondary. Lara entered when she was summoned, and slowly crossed to the center of the room to kneel down before the Emperor, himself.  Lord Vader remained at her side, his attention also focused upon the presence of his Emperor. Lara knelt, and waited for Palpitine to speak.

   "Conscript Dare," his voice grated in greeting, dripping in condescension.

   "I am your servant, my Emperor."

   "Rise."  He commanded her. "The Force is with you, my young conscript."

   Lara suppressed a shiver, and instinctively cleared her mind as the Emperor's gaze cut through her.

   "Your potential is large indeed. She will be an asset to you, Lord Vader."

   "As I am to you, my Master."

   "Of course."

   "Guards. Show our young conscript to her quarters.  Then leave us. 

   Lord Vader and I still have much to discuss...."

   Lara had not seen the Emperor's Hand step forward from the shadows as the Royal Guard has exited, but she had seen Mara Jade there that day, a discrete presence at the Emperor's side... one whom Lara had immediately recognized as much more than she would appear to most.

   That meeting had given Lara her first clear interpretation of her role.  She would serve as a second to Lord Vader, certainly chosen for her talents in the Force – an irony in the extreme considering that the Emperor and Darth Vader had already hunted the Jedi to their extinction. And as the Emperor had clearly implied, it meant that she would have to be careful never to become a threat to him. Lara remembered vividly walking out her comfortable quarters several times in quick repetition before she cautiously sank into a conforming chair. Instinctively, seeking to calm her emotions, she reached to the Force to gather peace onto herself... but peace had become an illusive thing over the past few days, and with a deep breath she had realized just how fully her life had slipped beyond her own control.  The feel of that moment was something she had never forgotten....

   Lara suppressed a shiver and shook her mind firmly away from the past as she felt the shuttle come out of hyperspace. In some ways it seemed that no time at all had passed; she still remembered  those dark moments of uncertainty and helplessness as if they had happened yesterday. But Lara had spent the last years trying to come to terms with everything that had happened to her since that day: her actions within the Empire, and the losses Wanton Laus had inflicted upon her afterward. She thought about her family, about the good and the bad that she had seen inside herself, and the life that she had made for herself.

   In some ways it had been many lifetimes ago... but this moment felt eerily similar.  It felt as if she was coming to another crossroad. She stood from the bunk, blaster holstered at her side, the lightsaber Luke had given her tucked inside her cloak. Each one represented a different path, like two different sides of the person she was.  Lara wondered if she truly had the strength to do what Luke believed she could do, what he had told her to do when they had parted a short time ago... what Mara had already done. 

   She could feel his voice in her mind.  Trust your feelings. Feel the Force.  Don't be afraid to use this.

   Could she really learn to rely on the Force, the light of the Force, in the way of a Jedi Knight?  If Wanton Laus really did await her at the end of this journey, Lara truly feared her own reaction. Would she be able to control her emotions if she came face to face with the man whose greed and malice had hurt her more deeply than any other? Since the moment she had set foot on Marnia again she had been wondering that. 

   Lara gave the data pad in her hand one more appraising glance, and a surprisingly simple answer came to her mind. She would have to. She had come here for a reason, and this mission was bigger than her.  Karrde's invention looked like a regular data pad. But, he had assured her rather proudly, when its data card was plugged into any central computer, it would begin extracting information from the system and transmitting that information back to their team on Marnia.  And when the transmission was received, Atamvr's force would be ready to move in.

   She took a deep breath and returned the pad safely to her boot.  A great weight settled upon her shoulders in the knowledge that that bit of technology along with her own success could greatly determine the course of future events. Lara reached out to the Force, deliberately clearing her mind of that weight.  Now was the time for action. She could hear Dangin's footsteps drawing closer to her door.  It was time to focus completely on the task ahead of her.... She hoped that Leia's part in the plan was also off to a successful start.

~

   In the Bermudi system a lone yacht slowly approached a strange energy field, coming as close to the fluctuating energy source as it dared. Then two things happened: an escape pod was fired from the ship just as all electrical systems aboard the vessel went down.  The yacht hung dead in space for a heartbeat, and space seemed to flicker around it, revealing a sea of mystery fighters where a moment earlier there had been only the glitter of distant stars and a nearby moon.  The flicker subsided after only a few seconds; the stars returned to normal, and a single mystery fighter could be seen swooping down on the stranded vessel. But before the mystery fighter could make it within firing range of the stranded ship it exploded.

   "You waited long enough," Lando quipped bitterly.

   "Just power back up already," Han retorted. 

   "Those pods don't come cheap, you know, and I didn't notice you volunteering to play the part of the bait."

   "You know the Falcon's escape pod is dicey, and there's only one."

   "What does that matter?  You'd go down with the ship before you'd ever use it."

   Han opened his mouth to respond, but Leia interrupted.

   "If you two are done arguing, maybe we could work on investigating that moon, finding the control center for the cloaking shield," Leia suggested pointedly, "you remember, the reason we're here?"

   "If you put it that way," Lando answered, his voice regaining its usual suave demeanor.

   "Sure, your Highnessness," Han echoed.

   The Lady Luck fell into formation alongside the Falcon as the two ships skimmed the moon's surface, flying low and close in an effort to avoid detection.

   Chewie rumbled an affirmative sounding report.

   "Yeah, that's the spot," Han confirmed, "but it's too small to be a hangar."

   "No ship's gonna fit through there, so don't even suggest it," Lando warned.

   "I wouldn't dream of it," Han breathed.  "All that fuss over an escape pod, we'd never hear the end of it if there was a scratch."

   "I replaced the dish!"

   "And it hasn't been the same since!"

   "Chewie, we'll have to land on the surface," Leia instructed, ignoring Han and Lando's familiar bickering. "I'm betting we'll set off every alarm in the place when we do." She paused, grinning.  "But I've got an idea.... Hold the Falcon steady over the cloaking shield. Lando, you're supplying the frequency."

   "What are you going to do?" Han demanded.

   "Nothing," she responded with an evasive shrug.  "I thought I'd just drop in."

   "Wait – Leia," Han started to follow but Leia caught his shoulder and gave him a push back into the pilot's seat.

   "You stay here and cover me, Flyboy."

   Chewie rumbled a cautious reply as the cockpit door slid shut behind her.

   "She knows what she's doing, Chewie. I hope."

   Leia climbed up the access ladder to the top hatch and pulled herself out onto the Falcon's hull. The moon's surface appeared as solid as ever below her as she stood and leaned slightly over the edge. It was a long drop. Her hand tightened around her lightsaber as she reached out to the Force.... Its touch calmed her mind, a welcome energy pulsing around her, as real as the Falcon's powerful vibration under her feet.  Everything else seemed to slow as she stood still, her eyes closed in concentration, trusting in the Force to guide her actions. 

   Han and Chewie brought the ship to a hovering stop with no more than a nearly imperceptible lurch. Leia felt the Force prompt her into action a second later. She removed her Jedi's weapon from her belt and opened her eyes to walk determinedly to the forward edge of the hull.  Without hesitation she jumped from the ship toward the moon's surface. The leap should have been enough to cause serious injury, but she felt only a slight impact where the surface should have abruptly ended her free fall.  Then she disappeared from sight and fell into nothingness.

   Her lightsaber was ignited in a flash of motion before her feet had even hit the floor.  The Force cushioned her impact, and the green blade swept through the air deflecting blast bolt after blast bolt in her defense. A seemingly effortless motion guided the blade, anticipating each new attack before the last had come to a halt, and the deflected bolts found their way back onto the automated firing system, destroying the guns one by one until the shots stopped completely.  Leia brought the blade to a halt, poised in a ready position.  She took a deep breath, feeling the Force filling her and receding from her.

   Her searching gaze swept the room, quickly finding a control board.  Leia shut down the power supply, and empty space immediately became visible above her head. Her senses extended, she heard two ships set down a short distance away from the entrance that they could now see; she heard no other noise and felt no life forms inside the base.

   Leia pulled a comm link from her belt. "Han, Lando, all clear."

   A few minutes later the two of them dropped in through the overhead hatch and surveyed their surroundings.  Lando let out a low whistle at the destroyed targeting system.

   Han nodded, equally impressed. "Very nice, madam Jedi," he seconded before returning to help Chewie lower the droids inside.  "Artoo, plug in to that terminal, and be quick about it.  It won't take them long to come looking for that missing ship and find us camped out here. Lando, Chewie, take watch at those corridors.  I'll guard our golden deity here."

   Leia deliberately ignored Threepio's characteristic offence as well as Han's deliberate instigation of the protocol droid.

   "What does it say, Artoo?  Can you find a status on those ships?"

   "All ships here are classified as incompletely refitted," Threepio translated somewhat dapperly. He had never fully recovered from his short time as a divine entity, and it remained a bit of a sore subject for the droid.

   "How do we destroy the cloaking shield?"

   "Those instructions are not contained in these data banks, Captain Solo?"

   "You don't say, goldernrod," Han shot back with a smirk.

   "Can we use the same frequency, unmask them like we have the bases?" Lando suggested.

   "Sure," Leia answered, "if we're flying straight at them."

   "At a fleet of those things? No thanks," Han decided. "There's got to be another way."

   "Threepio," Leia asked, "what happened when we saw that mirage?"

   "An unstable energy pattern was created when the fighter left the confines of the shielding, causing what appeared–"

   "Then what we need is a way to destabilize the energy field," Lando interrupted.

   "If a ship flying through can do it, a particle stream should too," Han stated.

   "What do you have in mind?" Leia asked, suspicion in her voice.

   Han raised his eyebrows. "A chunk of this moon would create an awful lot of particles."

   "And once the ships are exposed, then what?"

   Han frowned. "I hadn't gotten that far yet."

   "I bet there are only a handful of sentries," Lando suggested. "Most of the ships are just here for refitting. They would be unmanned."

   "Still, we don't know which are which until they start firing at us," Leia offered.

   "That could be a problem," Han admitted dryly.

   "Agreed," said Lando.

   Han's frown deepened.  "I think it's time we call in a little back up."

~

   Lara stood silently in the shuttle cockpit, watching as Dangin hunched over the ship's console to enter a series of coded transmissions directed out into the empty space beyond them. When he finally straightened to look out the viewport, the area in front of them shimmered and faded to reveal a small orbital base station.  The station was roughly the size of a large asteroid, and similar in appearance.

   Lara waited.

   "Shuttle Recluse," a voice addressed them, "you may transmit your landing codes now."

   "Now what?" Lara asked once Dangin sat back from the controls for a second time.

   "Now we go down to the base... and I take you to my partner."

   She had suspected that Dangin hadn't accomplished any coup alone.  She had seen from previous experience that the man's ambition sorely outranked his ability in most cases, so she wasn't altogether surprised by his revelation of a partner; she also recognized the discrepancy between his words and the truth. The being Dangin spoke of was more than his partner. And from the discomfort that was suddenly evident in his sense, Lara could that tell he was having second thoughts about her presentation. Since there would be no cause for those emotions if he was about to hand her over to Laus, Lara could only assume that the being awaiting them down on the mobile base station must be the true mastermind behind a coup that had actually removed Laus from power. 

~

   Lara followed Dangin down a long hall with a single door at its end; two guards were stationed outside. Dangin keyed for entry, eyeing the guards carefully as he did so, but they made no move to detain the two visitors. The door slid open and Lara entered the room behind Dangin, watching its sole occupant carefully.  A young man sat behind a massive desk which was surrounded by a bank of windows looking out on the surrounding star field. This room had the feel of a command center and its occupant did not look up from his work immediately.  He continued entering information into what looked like a transmission console until Dangin reiterated his presence by softly clearing his throat.  Lara hardly heard the sound and she was standing right next to him, but the room's other occupant glanced up. 

   "What is the meaning of this, Dangin?" Morph asked, his voice straining to keep measure. His expression had changed from mild annoyance to surprise, but Lara saw a flash of recognition cross his face, intermingled with a strong look of disdain. 

   He stood from his chair a moment later, the motion slow and deliberate.  The man was tall, thin, and graceful.  His wavy light brown hair was meticulously slicked back from chiseled features and hollowed out cheeks.  Brown eyes studied her with an almost metallic glint, as though they were flaked with gold, but there was no more warmth in his eyes than there was in his face. Lara was still studying him warily as he closed the distance between himself and his visitors. He had an unexpectedly young and strangely familiar face, but what her eyes told her was very much at odds with what her senses were telling her. There was an evil in his presence, foreign, inhuman, dangerous.... This was the being Luke had sensed, and the one Anakin had warned him of.  Lara quickly clamped down on those emotions.  This creature could not be allowed to lead Laus' invasion army.

   "She found me, on Marnia," Dangin explained, "and I was intrigued by some of her ideas.  I thought–"

   "You know, of course, that her husband and his apprentice Jedi, and the entire New Republic fleet likely won't be far behind her?"

   Dangin stuttered the beginnings of an argument that he had difficulty finishing.

   "Enough. You have already brought her here," he conceded impatiently. "Leave her to me.  We will discuss your real reasons for being here," he addressed Lara.

   Dangin hesitated.  "Sir–"

   "You are dismissed, Dangin," Morph repeated himself more forcefully. "Return to the shuttle and finish your business there. You are personally responsible for securing your cargo aboard the Furtive."

   "Yes, Sir," Dangin acknowledged meekly.  Then he turned and exited.

   His boss did not want him present for this conversation, and Lara watched the door close behind Dangin before addressing her host. She had never encountered an Altevarian before.  There were stories about various unique powers and properties belonging to the youthful race that kept themselves a mystery. She'd always assumed those outlandish stories to be folklore and legend of the type that arises when fact has become scarce over many generation.  But it seemed that there was truth to at least one part of the legend.

   "Curious," she said to the youthful Altevarian, "I didn't notice it at Aci.  You were just some young face I vaguely remembered seeing before, one of a million Imperials waiting to move up the ranks."  She paused, studying him.  "But that's been years ago, and you haven't aged a day."

   "An Altevarian birth right.  It has its advantages," he conceded.

   "The appearance of youth shrouding the advantage of experience.  Must have helped you to infiltrate Laus' organization," she suggested, "gain his trust without appearing as a threat to him."

   "Laus never suspected the truth. But that doesn't surprise me.  The galaxy no longer concerns itself with a forgotten race that was long ago driven into extinction – that will soon change."

   Lara smiled knowingly. "Then you are the one called Morph."

   "Septis Morph. You catch on quickly.  So do I," he assessed calmly. "I don't know what you hope to accomplish here, but I've watched Laus throw away opportunity upon opportunity because of you. You will not derail my plans as you did his. And you most certainly will not win my confidence as you seem to have won Dangin's." 

   "I've got a lot more at stake here than your confidence," she cut his argument off icily. "I did four years in the Empire, and I lost everything I had because of it.  Maybe I'm not as forgiving about that as some in the New Republic would like for me to be," she offered sardonically. "Or maybe I just decided that payment was long past due."

   "What does that have to do with me?" Morph demanded coyly.

   "More backstabbing than you suspect," she answered.  "Dangin, for starters," she added as he stepped away, and Morph paused, considering. "I guarantee he's running some simple plot behind your back. Nothing dangerous. But enough to drain you of valuable assets.  And at some point he will try, probably unsuccessfully, to use them against you."

   "Naturally, I assume you can prove that," he stated ominously.

   Lara produced a data pad from her pocket and held it aloft.  "Now that Laus is gone, Dangin thinks he will be the one to lead all those simple-minded, die-hard Imperials back to power in the galaxy. If I have anything to say about it, the Imperials will never come back to power."

   "And you've chosen to settle your debts here, instead of through the New Republic," Morph noted wryly.

   "Even after I informed to them on Laus, they never trusted me. Now they think Laus is dead and Tritis is in shambles without him.  They are blind to the truth."

   Morph held the silence for a long moment, digesting what she had said. "My business here is almost done," he acknowledged her reservedly. Then his voice became icy cold with dangerous intent.  "I think it's time that you and I join Dangin aboard the Furtive.  Very soon, there will be no doubt who is really in charge here."

~

   A short time later Lara found herself staring out the forward section of the mobile base station's cockpit, watching as the empty space in front of her eyes shimmered and wavered. But this time when it faded into solid form, it was to reveal a ship almost equal in size to a star destroyer, though its highly modified appearance differed greatly beyond that.

   She could see Morph's pride in the chilling sight, and Lara realized what he didn't have to say. This was much more advanced than the cloaking mechanism for a small orbital base station, or for an automated spy station, like the ones Laus had been using to watch Karrde, and Coruscant, or even the heavy shielding that protected the familiar mystery ships. If a ship the size of a star destroyer could be cloaked, then so could an entire battle force.

   "I'm sure you're wondering how all this is possible," Morph intoned, a devious pride resounding in his voice. "I've made certain upgrades at our production facilities in Tritis, things that Laus was kept unaware of, of course. This particular piece of ingenuity uses a combination of the shielding design that Imago helped develop for Laus, and the cloaking prototype that Laus obtained from the Aci scientists at Rhaci.

   "Here we have actually combined integral parts of the two. Borrowing from the shielding design we've been able to make the cloaking device stable enough for use on larger vessels, and much more resilient to attack than the Acii's original prototype."

   Lara stood staring at the sight before her, a sick feeling of dread deepening in the pit of her stomach. There was much more going on in Tritis than they had suspected.  They had been preparing this for some time, and now they were gearing up for a full-fledged invasion of the New Republic.  Judging by what stood before her, the threat they posed would be very real. 

   "This is my prize, my flagship," Morph proclaimed, speaking proudly of the ship that lay before them, "the Furtive." He glanced to her, almost confidingly. "From this ship I will command my fleet, and lead the great offensive."

   He turned and activated a display screen.  Lara watched as a map appeared depicting tactical readouts.  Small orbital bases and orbital spy stations held positions close to many of the New Republic's key systems, including Coruscant itself. Then came a wide scattering of base worlds, each one close enough to the satellites to provide launching areas for fighter ships.

   "With the push of a button, battle stations that I have positioned at key locations throughout the galaxy will uncloak and attack their targets. But they are only the first wave.  My entire fleet will go on the offensive at my command, a second wave, to crush the New Republic and secure victory."

   Lara had to work at suppressing a shiver at his words. My entire fleet.  All those base worlds on the display map before her – they were not stationary worlds but cloaked warships, every one. 

   "And the New Republic's tactical superiority?" she challenged him cooly, just now slowly turning to face him.  "They have already developed the ability to penetrate your ship's shielding using a specially modulated command frequency. Who's to say that they cannot weaken the cloaking device, too?"

   "Yes," he acknowledged her first statement.  "Luckily the orbital spy stations will eliminate that advantage. Laus really was narrow-minded to use them as surveillance vehicles only. A few minor modifications, and not only was I able to provide them with quite capable defensive armaments, but they will also be equipped with the necessary technology to block out all incoming communications channels, including those the New Republic intends to use to weaken our shields. They will form our first line of defense." 

   He paused in the proud assessment. "The relay I sent before we left my ready room prompted them to begin powering up their grids. Once they receive the final order the systems will come fully on line. Then my army will be invincible.  Septis Morph let that assessment hang in the air as he turned back to the forward view screen. The mobile base station they stood aboard was moving into position to dock with the Furtive.

   "The New Republic will fall. Coruscant will fall. My moment is at hand," he proclaimed into the silence.

~

   Aboard the Furtive there was a forceful banging at Laus' cell door. 

   He cautiously backed to one side of his small confines, just in time to see the combined weight of two huge forms break through the adjacent wall. 

   He remained still, suspicious. Just a few moments earlier Dangin had shoved Laus in here and went back for the others.

   "You okay, Boss?" he recognized Hack's grating drawl through the darkened room. 

   "I've been better," he answered gruffly, the suspicion remaining though somewhat lessened. "You told me   Dangin would be eliminated before my arrival on Marnia."  

   Gavin appeared at Hack's side, kneeling. "The ship was booby-trapped. We were captured when we boarded it.  Please forgive our failure; let us take you out of here."

   "We will not fail again," Hack added.  And a broken body hit the cell floor at Laus' feet.

   "Guess he won't be making it to his meeting after all," Laus grated, staring down at Dangin's body.

   Laus' eyes moved back to Hack. "Morph?" was all he asked.

   They waited, recognizing Laus' yet unstated intention and knowing their place, offering nothing. Their silence served to assure his suspicions.

   "I want him brought to me. Or his lifeless body."

   "Boss–" 

   Laus' eyes flared at the perceived moment of hesitation from his loyal security force.

   "You should know," Hack offered cautiously, "the Jedi Luminas – he has been joined by Skywalker. And Dare has returned with him," he finished, his head lowered, awaiting Laus' next command.

   "Dare is here," Laus spoke the long awaited words under his breath. 

   "Finally.  I will have her," he stated softly. His voice lowered dangerously. "Then I will deal with Septis Morph."

~

   As soon as Morph had boarded the Furtive, each vessel had broken to hyperspace.  The mobile base station would move into a position somewhere within New Republic space, where it could relay orders to the rest of Morph's cloaked army.  Lara did not know where the Furtive was taking them.... She followed Morph through a series of halls and turbo lifts as he made his way from the Furtive's docking bay to the bridge. She could tell from his stance and demeanor that he was nervous, anticipating important events to come.  But she could not sense that. Morph had masked his Force presence from her.

   A startled chill ran through her as another piece of the puzzle fell silently into place in her mind.  She had wondered why she and Luke had not sensed him at Aci. Morph had masked his Force presence from them then, but he had been surprised by Luke at Red Eye, just as Lara had surprised him by arriving here with Dangin. 

   The Furtive had already emerged from hyperspace when Morph stepped onto the bridge of his flagship.  From what she could see of the nav readouts they were deep within Tritis space now. Lara slowed her stride and let her gaze follow Morph's steady progression across the bridge.  His every movement showed strength and leadership as he evaluated his bridge and crew, and the Furtive continued into orbit of a small planet directly ahead. When she reached out to the Force Lara could sense the other life forms aboard the vessel, and many more on the brownish-blue planet which was visible from the forward cockpit ahead of them.  But from Morph, she continued to feel nothing. 

   Morph greeted the Furtive's captain last, and the two of them stood quietly watching the base world come closer. From what Lara could feel in the Force, there was a large audience awaiting their arrival on the planet below.  Presumably Morph had planned an important address here, one that would rally his troops behind the coming offensive he spoke of. 

   Lara watched the planet slowly com