Saga - OT The Journal of the Former Emperor's Hand [L/M] Updated: 12/24/17

I am still writing this story. Sorry for the long delay. I have been working a lot of hours this week. People are getting the flu and calling in sick to work.

I just wanted to share a little drawing a friend did for me. After seeing the movie I wondered how Mara would have responded to some of those movie scenes. So here's a drawing of Mara and Luke on the island.

 

I read your last two updates during my lunch break which is only half an hour. But those were 30 minutes well spent. I am glad you are back with new goodies for us. With one of my favourite fanfic couples.

 

Yeah, those two fools are in love. I hope Luke had somebody in the new canon. He seems so sad and broken in TLJ.

I think they were doing some sort of 'Fifty Shades of Grey Jedi'.

Yes, it is the same guy. But there is a complication. The interrogator can't use the Force to break the man because it will probably cause the suicide switched to be flicked. They will have to keep the Force binders on. So they may have to interrogate the old fashioned way.

I hope to write more next week. I have almost 50 hours at work this week and I may get up to sixty hours this weekend. It is because of people calling in sick with the flu. I should have a nice big paycheck this month.

Here is a short update.

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Entry 91
Luke left in the morning aboard a nondescript shuttle. My feelings for the man are growing and this goodbye was far more difficult than the others. To make matters worse, when I went into work I had to suffer through Commander Darten’s knowing looks and insufferable smirk.

“How did your case research go?” he said with a slightly teasing voice as he waved me into his office.

I gave him a tight smile as I took a seat in front of his desk. “Good. I’d like to pull in one of the Inquisitors we have under surveillance and bring him in for questioning. To be exact, I want to arrest the one situated on the Imperial world Sverdi and bring him to General Iwanuk for interrogation.”

He rubbed a hand over his chin in thought. “Don’t you think he may end up dead like the last Inquisitor?”

I gave a light shrug of my shoulder. “Skywalker and I think we have figured a way to prevent his death. I just need permission to do the arrest and one or two men to assist me…but I’d like to keep this from the Imperial forces on Sverdi until I have the situation under control. The Inquisitor may be able to sense danger. I want to be the only one to know my true mission until I captured him. Then we can alert the authorities to notify them that I have Imperial permission to transport my prisoner off planet.”

Darten nodded. “Of course. Just let me know what you need.”

“Thank you sir.” I stood with a salute and exited my commander’s office. I looked around the department trying to choose a suitable agent to accompany me. I noticed Sergeant Breon, back from the West Quadrant with little to show for his efforts. Maybe Breon was right about the difficulty of infiltrating the Kanjis. I heard from other agents that the Kanjis were a very wary and tightknit group of criminals. Most were related to each other in some way and they rarely brought in outsiders into their inner circle. Perhaps it was time to assign the sergeant to a more realistic mission.

“Sergeant Breon!”

I must have startled the red skinned Zeltron because he choked on the caf he was sipping resulting in a stream of steaming fluid exiting through his nose before he dropped the remainder of his drink down the front of his grey uniform. He quickly pulled off his tunic before the hot liquid seeped through to burn his skin. He looked up at me nervously. “Yes, Ma’am!”

I suppressed a smile at the man’s predicament. He was standing in the middle of the department wearing uniform pants, white undershirt and holding his uniform tunic dripping with hot liquid. “You’re out of uniform,” I said with a deadpan tone.

“Oh,” he went to put his tunic on, but I stopped him. “Go back to the barracks and change your uniform. You are accompanying me on a mission.”

He looked extremely apprehensive. I think I put a little more than a scare into the man the last time we talked. “Yes, Ma’am. May I ask how long we will be gone so I can pack accordingly?”

“No more than a week. Meet me at docking bay fifty-four in two hours. Bring a uniform, standard blaster and some casual clothing for undercover work.” When he didn’t immediately move I gestured to the door. “Now.”

He attempted to move out quickly and sharply, but slipped on the puddle of caf on the floor. After some impressive slippery footwork he was able to recover his balance and make his escape.

I shook my head wondering if I was making a big mistake taking this idiot with me.

Entry 92

We took a Lambda-Class shuttle to the planet Sverdi. Sergeant Breon sat in the copilot seat fidgeting nervously. “May I ask what’s the mission, Ma’am?”

I glanced over to him as I piloted the ship. “It’s best you don’t know the details.”

I know that had to sound ominous, but I was telling the truth. If the Inquisitor sensed we were coming for him there was little chance of taking him alive. Of course, my reluctance to brief the sergeant only made him more nervous. I am not positive, but I suspect he believes I’m going to send him off on a suicide mission or perhaps simply shoot him out the airlock for his earlier insubordination.

“Ma’am, I apologize for not being able to infiltrate the Kanjis. I tried repeatedly...” He trailed off and sat silent for a moment. “Am I being transferred? I know what happens to people who don’t perform to standard. I heard Specialist Tommins was transferred to Lola Sayu for filing fictitious reports.”

I laughed out loud. “What? This is the first I heard of this. Who told you that?”

He shrugged. “Word gets around the department. When she couldn’t gain any actionable intelligence on Chandrila she was transferred to the 64th Intelligence unit and a few weeks later we heard she was sent to a long duration undercover mission on Lola Sayu.”

I had to snicker. Lola Sayu was a volcanic planet that once was the home of a huge prison known as ‘The Citadel’. I‘ve never been there, but I was told the planet’s major geographic feature was a giant sea of sulfur. “The 64th is not a bad unit. It sound like she pissed off somebody in her new chain-of-command shortly after arriving.”

He nodded silently as apprehension continued to ooze from him.

I gave him a sideways glance. “You’re not getting transferred or any other horrific fate you can conjure up. I needed help on this mission and I thought I would give you a chance to make up for your subpar performance.”

He let out a relieved breath. “Thank you, Ma’am. I will do my best.”

I smirked. “Let’s just hope your best is good enough, or else I may end up volunteering you to assist Tommins on her undercover mission.”

Breon silently nodded and remained quiet for the remainder of the flight.

Entry 93

When we arrived on Sverdi I told Sergeant Breon to stay on the shuttle while I check out the situation. I read all of the surveillance reports of this Inquisitor. He was going by the name L’dor Timk. He was a thirty-six years old human, with dark brown hair, green eyes, average build and was working as a civilian security guard in the local starship port. The man was a creature of habit. He swiped his badge through the work timekeeper device at exactly 0600 hours. He gossiped with his coworkers and drank caf before getting his shift change report from the off going security staff. At 0630 he started his rounds ensuring the safety and security of travelers within the port.

He rarely deviated from his pattern unless he ran into unruly pilots or crew. All I needed to do was find the best location to stun him. After watching him for most of the day I realized one of the places he checked was the public restrooms that were located down a deserted hallway. Now that I have a location, I simply need to spring the trap.

Entry 94

“So you want me to wait in the bathroom until the right moment?” Sergeant Breon asked looking confused. He was wearing a crisp Imperial uniform with an intimidating blaster on his side “How will I know when it is the right moment?”

I looked at my wrist chrono. Agent Timk should be on his way any moment. “You will hear me call for you. Don’t ask questions, just get in there and wait.”

“Yes, Ma’am,” he said softly as he slipped into the male ‘fresher. I stood outside in my undercover outfit, which consisted of a flowery print dress, heels and purse. At my feet I had two small suitcases. One was a nondescript leather bag and the second was a smaller, vinyl sided suitcase with images of Tie Fighters along the side. It was a bag a small boy would carry. I hoped I looked like a mom waiting for her young son to exit the men’s latrine. I clamped down on my Force presence, which masked my Force signature, but also made it difficult to sense others with the Force. I just hope Agent Timk didn’t run into any detours along the way.

After about five minutes I noticed the man turn the corner and make his way down the hall. As he approached I smiled widely and motioned him over to me. “Excuse me, my seven year old ran ahead to the bathroom and he hasn’t come out. I don’t think he could have gotten past me, but it is possible. Could you please go in and check for me. I don’t want to barge in if other men are inside.”

The agent gave me a faint smile. “My pleasure.” He hesitated slightly at the door. I assume he sensed Sergeant Breon’s nervous anticipation as he waited inside the latrine. Instead of sensing a trap, I am certain he believed he was picking up the emotions of some pedophile ready to accost my fictional son. His eyes narrowed as he slung open the door. He didn’t get more than a step inside before I pulled the blaster out of my purse and shot him point-blank. The stunned man crumbled to the ground. A second later Sergeant Breon opened the door all the way and stared down at the unconscious man. “Can I assume this is the right moment, Ma’am?”

I put my blaster back into the purse and pulled out my comlink to contact my other agent that was supposed to have this man under surveillance. “This is Captain Colay, Imperial Intelligence. Agent Fianco, come in?”

My agent’s voice came over the comlink. “Yes ma’am.”

“Get to the bathroom on the west side of the port. I am bringing in the Inquisitor.”

Sergeant Breon took an apprehensive step backwards. “This is an Inquisitor?”

“Yes,” I said as I leaned down to the unconscious man and pressed a hypospray device to his neck, injecting him with a sedative that would keep him out for hours. Finally, I took out the pair of Force-cuffs and slapped them on my prisoner. I looked up and saw Imperial Agent Fianco running down the hall to our position. He was wearing civilian clothing, but pulled out a badge from under his shirt that identified him as an Imperial Agent. I pointed to the Inquisitor. “You and Breon get him to my ship. After you dump him off, Agent Fianco I want you to get a warrant from the local Imperial judicial branch to search Timk’s quarters, confiscate all documents, datapads and computers. Return to Epta Prime with any evidence you recover. We are looking for any information about possible child slavery shipments or who he is really working for.”

“Yes Ma’am.” He motioned to Breon to help get the man to his feet.

With any luck we will be loaded onto the shuttle and out of the area before any of the Inquisitor’s allies or confidants knew what happened.

 

Excellent team work there. Now to get some answers.

 

Yepp, loved the team work as well. This is the only way to get results.

 

Great team work to catch the Inquisitor.

 

This was neat. Poor Sergeant Breon, he's a lousy guy but he's really terrified of Litassa now I also had a good laugh at the idea that Tommins was shunted to a terrible place behind the scenes. And it was a great trap they laid for the Inquisitor. Hopefully they can smuggle him out before anyone gets wind of it!

 

If anybody could get information it would be General Iwanuk...aka Agent Kyramud.

Thanks.

Thank you.

Thanks. Tommins probably propositioned the wrong person. lol!
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Entry 95

I contacted General Iwanuk and explained the situation. He met my shuttle with a squad of Stormtroopers upon landing on Epta Prime. The Inquisitor remained sedated through the entire trip. The troopers loaded him on a repulsor gurney and whisked him off to our Intel building. I fell in step with the general as we followed close behind.

The general glanced over to me. “Commander Darten informed me that the Force binders have to remain on during the interrogation, is that right?”

I gave a curt nod. “Yes sir. I believe he may have a Force-suggestion that will trigger his suicide if captured.”

“I see,” he muttered softly. A slight grin graced his lips as he rubbed his hands together in expectation. “I guess that means I get to interrogate him the old fashioned way.”

I may be a hardened Imperial assassin, but General’s gleeful anticipation of torture caused a chill to run down my spine.

We brought the captive to the basement. The building we occupy was once an old hospital and the room the Inquisitor was maneuvered into appeared to be the morgue. General Iwanuk pointed to an autopsy table. “Put him there.”

The Stormtroopers placed the man on the durasteel slab. I went over and examined the makeshift hand and leg restraints that were obviously added recently. As the troopers secured the Inquisitor I walked over to a steel surgical tool table lined with a horrific assortment of tools that ran the gamut from scalpels and clamps to hammers and garden shears.

General Iwanuk came up beside me. “I will use the least painful means of persuasion first. If I can’t make him break we can stun him, deactivate the cuffs, and see if I can do a Force interrogation on an unconscious man.” He took off his uniform tunic revealing a grey undershirt beneath. He picked up a moisture proof vinyl apron and slid it over his head and tied it up at his back. “I would do it first, but your report said the last inquisitor’s Force choke didn’t stop even when stunned. I don’t want him to die before I have a chance to question him.”

“Good thinking sir.” I hesitated for a moment. “Do you wish me to remain?”

He picked up a nasty looking stabbing type of instrument. “This is not something for a young lady to see. I’ll call you when I have something.”

Although I have killed more than my fair share of sentients…I never resorted to torture. I don’t think I have the stomach for it. “Thank you sir.”

Entry 96

An hour later Commander Darten contacted me on my office intercom requesting my presence in his office. When I entered I found a jovial General Iwanuk lounging on a chair in my commander’s office. Commander Darten didn’t look as cheery as the general officer.

“Close the door and sit down,” Commander Darten instructed me.

I did so and sat in one of his office chairs. I glanced over to General Iwanuk and was relieved that he wasn't covered with blood. Perhaps the Force interrogation did work.

The general grinned. “That was a good catch, Captain Colay. I learned a lot from the suspect.”

“Thank you sir. May I ask what you discovered?”

He straightened in his seat as he ran a hand over his short-cropped hair. “He is an Imperial Inquisitor. He disappeared into the unknown region after the signing of the Galactic Concordance peace treaty. He said he met up with other expatriates to include Grand Admiral Sloane and General Brendol Hux. It is as I expected…a number of Moffs, admirals and generals fled to the unknown region in order to regroup.”

My brow rose in surprise. I was shocked that an Inquisitor gave up his secrets so easily. I guess the General noticed my astonishment and chuckled. “I wish I could credit my fearsome reputation as an interrogator when it came to acquiring the information, but to be honest, he was more excited that he was talking to the infamous Agent Kyramud than scared. He told me everything once he realized he was among Imperials.” He looked to Commander Darten. “He belongs to a new breed of Imperial called The First Order. He offered me a job in this new organization.” He looked to me. “In fact, he would like to recruit as many upper echelon Imperials as possible into The First Order…including the young Imperial that somehow managed to capture an Inquisitor.”

My commander slouched in his seat. “You mean, become deserters and break the treaty?”

General Iwanuk shook his head. “Not really. The Empire can stay with its treaty, but us, as individuals can desert our current posts and become part of this new Imperial government.”

Darten groaned. “I want to retire and never have to fight a war again.”

The general snickered. “Then stay. From what he told me, this First Order doesn’t mind the current Empire interacting with the New Republic. It gives the former Rebels something to focus on while they are off in the unknown region doing whatever the hell they are doing to regroup.” He looked in my direction. “How about you Colay? Will you join this new and improved Empire?”

I have heard of General Hux before, but I was unaware of his first name…Brendol…which sounds very similar to ‘Bread oil’. The children Luke and I saved said they heard their captors say they were bringing them ‘Bread oil’…or perhaps bringing them to Brendol. Could the General be the person ordering the abduction of younglings?

“It depends, Sir” I addressed General Iwanuk. “Are they the people kidnapping children?” My mouth drew into a tight line. “If so, I won’t agree to work for people who abduct children.”

The general stared at me intently. I wasn’t sure which side he decided to serve, but I would rather leave the Empire completely before becoming part of a slavery operation. “If the Inquisitor was telling the truth…and there is no way for me to verify his information without taking off the Force binders…they were recruiting younglings to train to be future Imperial soldiers…but the recruits were supposed to be volunteers…orphans or freed slaves. Recruits were not to be abducted. The people they tasked to find trainees obviously decided abducting recruits was easier than searching for volunteers. The First Order was unaware of the situation until recently.” He paused for a breath. “Anyway, I was told Brendol Hux was in charge of training the younglings.”

It took every milligram of self-control not to roll my eyes. “No offense sir, but he is feeding you a load of Rancor scat. The hundreds of children who have been reported missing in the last year were all old enough to inform General Hux that they were not orphans, but kidnap victims. Either this First Order ordered the abductions or they are turning a blind eye to how they are getting recruits. Either way, I’m staying here.”

“Same here,” Commander Darten muttered.

We both looked over to General Iwanuk who appeared disappointed. “I understand your reluctance. I don’t entirely believe the man and this child abduction business doesn’t sit well with me either.” He paused in thought before continuing. “But I’m also chaffing under the Galactic Concordance. We are subjugated to outer rim worlds while the New Republic occupies the Core.” He grimaced as he ran a frustrated hand over his face. “We used to own the Galaxy, but then morons like Grand Moff Tarkin decided to invest all of our military budget into planet destroyers. The destruction of Alderaan was psychotic and all it did was inspire the Rebels to fight harder. We lost the war right then and there. There was no way to put a positive spin on that particular military operation. It’s not like we didn’t try. Hell, our propaganda department invented evidence that Alderaan caused it’s own destruction while attempting to manufacture superweapons for the Rebels…but nobody believed it. The bottom line was nobody could remain neutral in the war anymore. You either stay with a government that slaughtered a billion people in one shot or you opposed that régime.” He blew out a frustrated breath. “I want to see this First Order. Hopefully they learned a lesson from history and are pulling their resources together to build fleets of Star Destroyers and legions of Stormtroopers, instead of putting their faith in idiotic superweapons.”

The General stood, prompting Commander Darten and I to rise to our feet. He shook our hands with a smile. “I might not see you again. I was told it was a one-way trip for me. The First Order wants to increase its size and power before revealing themselves to the New Republic. At that time there might be a way to merge the old Empire with the First Order.”

My brow shot up. “Is the First Order looking at maintaining the peace?”

The general shrugged. “I don’t know. They may wish to have peace, but they also want to renegotiate the treaty for more favorable terms for the Empire. Right now we were treated like the losers of the war…and the spoils went to the victors. I think they want a redistribution of those spoils.”

“What about the Inquisitor?” Commander Darten asked.

A frown crossed the General’s face. “I need him to get to the First Order. I’m taking him with me.”

“What about the other Inquisitors?” I asked harshly. “Even if the First Order isn’t ordering the kidnapping of children, they don’t deny forcing children they do acquire to serve the First Order.”

General Iwanuk made a placating gesture. “I will ask the First Order leadership to remove any Inquisitor working in Imperial territories.”

“And the ones working in New Republic space?”

He looked down at his boots and shuffled his feet uncomfortably. “I will leave that up to the New Republic to handle.” He gave us a curt nod before leaving.

I looked over to Commander Darten. “Well, this complicates matters.”

He nodded as he sat down. “Especially for you.”

I gazed at him inquisitively. “What do you mean by that?”

He gave a sardonic snort followed by a chuckle. “You know exactly what I mean by that. You are sitting on information that your Jedi boyfriend would love to know.”

I gritted my teeth in frustration. I knew this would happen; it was inevitable. “I’m a loyal Imperial. I don’t plan on telling him about the First Order…but this situation with the Inquisitors and abducting children…that I can’t condone.”

“Then out the Inquisitors to him,” Commander Darten suggested. “Let your Jedi capture them like you did.”

I gave my commander a hard look. “What you are suggesting may not be treasonous but a breach in loyalty at the very least.”

He shook his head adamantly. “You heard the General. He said to let the New Republic handle the Inquisitors within their domain. I interpreted that as permission to disclose their identities.”

I walked over and shut the door to his office. “I really don’t think that is what the General was suggesting.”

Darten rolled his eyes. “You mean the man who just told us he was about break out one of our prisoners and then defect from the Empire?”

My brow rose. “That’s right. We could have him arrested.”

Darten laughed as he waved me off. “You go ahead and try. I am going to retire in peace and not become embroiled in a court martial that could easily get twisted around and result in me sitting in the brig.”

I sat back down and thought about the situation. There was nothing to gain by preventing the General from leaving with the Inquisitor…but if the two Imperial governments did one day merge, it might be advantageous to have somebody we know working for the First Order.

“So,” I said slowly. “I have your permission to reveal the identity of the Inquisitors to the New Republic?”

He nodded. “Yes, and I hope every one of those child abducting Di’kuts Force chokes themselves when caught. Good riddance.”

I couldn’t agree more. Good riddance to Sith child abusers.

 

Iwanuk seems honest and principled about what goals he wants his government or the First Order offshoot to pursue. Puts Darten and Litassa in a bind about what to do/reveal. A literal and personal conflict of interest but they both draw the line at child abductors.

 

Definitely a sticky situation that Darten and Litassa will have to decide what to do.

 

"Sticky situation" doesn't begin to describe it! I don't like this Iwanuk character AT ALL. Besides the fact that the mere idea of a torturer gives me the creeps, it seems that there aren't many lines he's not willing to cross in order to restore the Empire to a semblance of glory. I kind of wonder how he'll fare once he's joined the First Order.

And now, Darten and Litassa are caught in the middle – the "legit" Empire is essentially sandwiched between the Republic and the First Order, it's just that most of them don't know it yet. But she has a pretext to meet up with Luke again, so it can't be all bad!

 

Iwanuk wants the Empire to return to its former glory. If the New Order can give him that then he will willingly go over to the other side. I do think he will be very disappointed when he discovers funds are being used to build another super weapon and not a huge fleet of vessels. He didn't approve of the Death Stars and Starkiller Base is going to disappoint him immensely.

Darten I think at this point is what the military calls "Retired on Active Duty". It is when you are at work, but you just don't care anymore. You are just going through the motions. Commander Darten hates the idea of slavery and he is going to give up those Inquisitors.

Yeah, she gets to see Luke, but this next entry is sort of an interlude between large chunks of time. This story is taking way too long and I want to get to the meat of the story. So I am going to jump forward and then have Litassa become lackadaisical when it comes to updating her journal in a timely manner.

Thanks everybody for reading.

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Entry 97

I contacted Skywalker to arrange a face-to-face meeting. He suggested that we meet on the planet Takodana since we been there before and it is in neutral territory.

Entry 98

A week later I arrived to Takodana inside a nondescript civilian shuttle. I don’t need the extra attention that an Imperial shuttle would bring. After the media frenzy I endured on Chandrila I want to keep my meetings with Skywalker low key. I have asked him to be discrete. I don’t need another appearance on The Gossip Zone.

I walked from the shuttle landing area to the grey stone citadel rising up from the shore of a pristine lake. As I neared the castle gate I gazed up at the flurry of flags hanging from the central spire. It was an eclectic collection of banners that included a Mandalore Mythosaur Skull, a number of Hutt and gang icons, old podracing pennants and even one flag depicting a stormtrooper. I did notice blaster burns through the lone Imperial flag. I have a feeling that the Empire is not well loved among the smuggler/pirate population.

Pushing open the heavy wooden doors I entered the smoke filled room full of a wide assortment of species. As I elbowed my way through the rough looking crowd I could feel Luke’s presence in the building. I sat at the bar and ordered ale, assuming Luke would find me.

“Well, well, well,” said a slightly familiar voice from behind me. “If it isn’t the beautiful Senni Kiffu.”

I turned in my seat and found myself gazing at the smirking bearded face of Captain Hal Kort.

“Or should I say,” he continued in a teasing voice. “Captain Litassa Colay.” He leaned towards me and lowered his voice. “From Imperial Intelligence.” He didn’t wait for me to answer but slipped into the seat next to me. “Imagine my surprise to discover Skywalker’s lovely fiancée was actually an Imperial spy.”

I smiled at the freighter captain who flew Luke and me to the Unknown Region. “Are you angry at the deception?”

He ordered ale and took a sip from the frothy mug before answering. “I was more worried than angry. After I saw the news reports from Naboo and Chandrila I was expecting to be boarded by Imperial frigates at any moment. As the weeks passed by I began to relax a bit.” He shrugged a shoulder. “Besides, Han told me your mission to the unknown region was instrumental in finding those abducted children.”

I nodded. “We first discovered the existence of a child slavery operation while on that shipment run. Your assistance was invaluable. I don’t know how to thank you.”

“I have an idea.” He gave me a wide toothy grin as he slipped a room key across the bar to me. “You can take this room key and make a lonely pilot a very happy man.”

I would have bristled at that comment if I actually thought he was propositioning me, but the Captain Kort I knew was respectful…almost to the point of being chivalrous.

I smiled widely. “Can I assume the lonely pilot is also a Jedi.”

The man laughed. “Awww, I thought I would get an amusing reaction out of you. How did you know I wasn’t making an indecent proposal?”

I finished my drink as I looked at the room number on the key. “I am an excellent judge of character…and you are no sleemo.”

He laughed. “Thank you. I saw Skywalker about thirty minutes ago. Unfortunately a freelance gossip reporter also spotted him and tried to get an interview. He thought if you two weren’t seen at the bar together there was a slight chance of not being stalked by the paparazzi during your stay.”

I gave a soft sigh. “Yeah, I really doubt that will work, but it is worth a try.” I stood and shook Kort’s hand. “It’s good seeing you again...and don’t worry about the Imperials. I didn’t identify your name or ship transponder number in my report to my superiors.” I gave him a knowing look. “Besides, Luke Dunerider and Senni Kiffu weren’t the only people using aliases that day…or am I wrong.”

He grinned good-naturedly. “No, you’re right, but I have gone by my current alias for so many years, I sometimes forget my real name.”

I nodded in understanding. “I hope we meet again.” I looked down to the room key. “I better go before he decides to send out a search party.”

I made my way down the castle’s maze of corridors until I found the room that corresponded to the key number. I didn’t even have a chance to put the key in the lock before the door flew open and two strong arms pulled me inside.

“Gods, Litassa,” Skywalker moaned as he kissed me passionately. “I missed you.”

I closed the door with a kick of my boot before leaning into his embrace. “I missed you too Farmboy.”

The next hour was magical…but my time with Luke is always bittersweet. There are hours, sometimes days of passion and happiness followed by weeks of separation and loneliness. He deserves better than this. He should have a proper wife and a growing family.

I don’t know why these depressing thoughts always weigh me down. I should just enjoy his company and stop fretting about the future.

Entry 99

After getting reacquainted, we dressed and had lunch delivered to the room. It was then I revealed to him the identities and locations of the Inquisitors within New Republic space.

Luke gazed down at the datachip I handed to him and frowned. “Why give me this information now? Did something change?”

I clamped down on my emotions. I didn’t want to discuss the information General Iwanuk gleaned from our captive Inquisitor. “Commander Darten gave me permission to reveal their identities to you.”

“But why? Previously the Empire refused to reveal the names of former Imperials.”

I was getting exacerbated with his questioning. “Skywalker, I have told you more than once there will always be secrets between us. I can’t divulge classified information to you. Do you want the information or not?”

“Yes, of course.” He said softly as he slipped the datachip into his tunic pocket. He took a sip of his drink before smiling at me lovingly. “How long can you stay?”

“A couple days.”

“Oh.” There was disappointment in his voice. “I was hoping we had more time than that.”

I reached across the small dining table and held his hand in mine. “Luke, if you want more…a wife and a family…maybe it is time for you to look elsewhere. You are a kind and handsome man, any woman in this galaxy would jump at the chance to be with you and give you a family.”

He scoffed. “You can’t say that because you are a woman currently residing in this galaxy and you are not jumping at the opportunity.”

I looked away. “Our situation is complicated.”

He squeezed my hand gently. “Litassa, I haven’t asked for anything other than a little more time together. I am not pressuring you to leave your job and run off with me. Why do you get so melancholy when we are together? Aren’t you happy?”

I blew out a frustrated breath. “I’m happy…and that’s the problem.”

He gave me a confused smile. “Why is that a problem?”

I sighed deeply. “Because we spend so much time apart and…and I think I’ve fallen in love with you.”

I felt a surge of emotion from Skywalker and I realized that this was the first time I confessed my love for the man. A wide grin blossomed across his face as he stood, moved around the table and pulled me out of my chair. “I love you too.” He crushed me in his embrace. “Don’t worry about the future. I’m not ready to settle down and I don’t think you are either. We love each other and that is enough for now.”

We didn’t talk much more after that. We got back to the job of getting reacquainted

.

.

.
Entry 100

Arrgggg! My computer crashed and my journal was wiped out. Luckily I had backed up the journal to an external hard drive around two years ago…but that means I lost twenty-three months of journal entries.

I guess there wasn’t much lost. After my meeting with Skywalker on Takodana my journal entries were mostly a series of updates where I lamented over not being able to see Skywalker followed by frenzied accounts of our intense reunions. Then, the enviable plunge into loneliness occurred as soon as we parted ways. Despite the ups and downs, our relationship is still going strong. We love each other. Skywalker was right...loving each other was enough for now.

Commander Darten was all set to retire last year, but General D’ronto of the Finance Corps embezzled most of the Empire’s retirement funds and fled to parts unknown. A financial forensics examiner is trying to trace the movement of monies, but so far there is no clue as to where the credits were transferred. My theory is the credits were funneled to The First Order. If that is true, then, if and when, the two governments merge the retirement funds might be reestablished. Unable to retire, Commander Darten grudgingly continues to work for a government that has screwed him over once again.

I have considered leaving the Empire and run off with my Jedi…but I don’t. I have never had a relationship outside of Skywalker and I sometimes wonder if the only reason it works is because we rarely see each other. If we had to deal with the stresses of day-to-day living, doing laundry, cooking dinner or paying bills…would the romance fade? I don’t know and I don’t want to risk losing our current relationship to find out.

The last entry I had backed up on the exterior hard drive before my computer crash stated I had given Skywalker the identities of the Inquisitors working in New Republic territory. Luke said he passed the information on to his Intelligence Corps, but they were unsuccessful when it came to gaining any information from the prisoners. The captives supposedly died in custody, but Luke didn’t elucidate whether they died from a Force implanted suicide command or if they perished while being tortured in Force cuffs. Luke said he didn’t ask and he didn’t want to know.

His young nephew, Ben, is four years old now. Leia and Han never did have another child. Luke is talking about training his nephew to be a Jedi. I told him he needed to become a master of the Force before he attempts to train others. Of course he doesn’t listen. He believes his destiny is to instruct a new generation of Jedi Knights. Maybe he sees something in his meditations that I don’t…but I don’t foresee the rise of the Jedi during my lifetime. Of course, I didn’t believe the truce between the Empire and the New Republic would last either, but here we are…at peace.

 

Luke is in for a rude awakening with Ben and I am wondering how close to The Force Awakens you are going to get in this story.

 

Super conversations with Kort and Luke. Understandable questions as to why their together and then separate relationship works. I don't think living day to day together would make the romance fade per se. There would always be snark and passion and candid talks. They make a great team professionally and otherwise.

Darten and Litassa are principled and observant, so they wouldn't stick to an Empire that was doing horrific things once they discovered it. I.e., they wouldn't be blindly loyal. But they seem to be hanging on /in because they're good at what they do and they personally haven't crossed the line into questionable alliances/goals.

 

A friend drew this for me. I know in my story Mara has her hair dyed black, but I wanted the drawing with her hair red so she would be recognizable.

https://www.deviantart.com/ag88/art/Canon-Luke-and-Legends-Mara-739529752

 

I am not sure. Right now I am aiming for the time Mara gets pregnant, but I do have a rough outline as to how Rey ends up on Jakku and how she becomes trained in self-defense and the Force.

We know from my short story this a based on that Litassa eventually gets disgusted with the Empire and becomes a spy for the resistance, but when that happens is later down the line.

Thanks everybody for reading.


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Entry 101

Bad news. It looks like General D’ronto laundered the stolen Imperial military retirement fund through an up and coming criminal organization called the Rinnrivin Di cartel. If that is true it is doubtful that the First Order was the recipient of the credits…unless this new Imperial government is colluding with crime lords. Maybe I shouldn’t dismiss the possibility outright, we are talking about a government that condones child slavery.

Entry 102

Eight months have passed since my last entry. I have been terrible about updating my journal. Losing two years of entries has greatly diminished my enthusiasm in journaling.

I was able to see Luke for a short time while I was on a mission to the planet Kintan. I was looking into criminal activities that were affecting trade between the Empire and various worlds. Some of our cargo freighters have been pirated. Luke said the New Republic was also having trouble with missing shipments.

It was wonderful to be in his arms again. What I don’t like is his new facial hair. He has become serious about training Jedi and thinks he needs a beard to look the part of a wise Jedi Master. Maybe I’ll like it better once it grows out. A full beard would be a vast improvement over the patchy, scratchy mange he currently has managed to sprout on his once beautiful face.

Oh well, at least he didn’t wear those awful Jedi robes.

Entry 103

I am no longer a frocked Captain. My orders came through and I am officially that rank. More good news, I was told the time I wore the Captain’s rank while frocked would count toward my ‘time in rank’. That means in two years I will have the time-in-service (TIS) needed to be promoted to Major. That is assuming I don’t get a TIS wavier. With the way Field Grade officers are disappearing (probably to the First Order) I might reach the rank of Major much sooner.

Commander Darten and his wife invited me over to their house to celebrate. I have grown very fond of the couple. They are like the parents I never had. I believe the feeling is mutual.

Entry 104

I was able to rendezvous with Skywalker this week. To my great dismay, he has taken to wearing Jedi Robes. As soon as I got him behind closed doors I demanded that he remove the offending garments. He didn’t seem to mind and actually enjoyed his time out of that ridiculous costume. Unfortunately, demanding that he strip and the ‘reacquainting’ that follows probably only encourages him to wear Jedi robes more often.

His beard has finally grown out and I am undecided as to what I think about it. I was a little shocked that his beard is almost black in color. Over the years Luke’s fair-haired mop has slowly darkened to what I would call a dirty blond or sandy brown hair…but his beard…it is dark, dark brown. It just doesn’t look natural.

Meh…I it would be hypocritical of me to criticize. First of all, I am not with him enough to justify a demand that he shave and, secondly, I have been dying my hair since I took up my current alias. I am certain he would be stunned if I showed up with my natural reddish gold hair.

Our time together was short, but blissful. I have tried to justify multiple excursions to meet with my Jedi, but work often takes me away for months at a time.

Entry 105
11 ABY

I got a frantic communication from Luke today. His nephew Ben has been abducted. Leia and Han had taken the boy to an amusement park for his sixth birthday and he disappeared. An alert went out and the gates of the establishment were closed. Leia is a Force sensitive and she was able to trace the boy’s whereabouts to a back gate used for supply deliveries. A small shuttle had just taken off when she arrived. She reached out with the Force and she could sense her son…along with another strong Force sensitive.

Luke believes it was an Inquisitor that took his nephew. He asked about the Inquisitors working in Imperial space. Kriff, I had to tell him that the Inquisitors on Imperial worlds had disappeared.

“I thought you had them under surveillance,” Skywalker shouted through the transceiver. “What happened?”

I briefly closed my eyes in frustration, not wanting to lie to Luke. “A senior intelligence officer defected.” I paused in thought. “He notified the Inquisitors that they were being watched.”

That was a true statement.

Luke ran a hand over his face in frustration. “Litassa, the Inquisitors that were in New Republic territory are dead. Leia was sure she felt the presence of a strong Force user. She said it was a dark Force user.” His voice faltered for a second before he forced himself to continue. “It has to be one of the Inquisitors in Imperial territory. Can you give me any information on who I should be looking for?”

I thought about it for a moment and didn’t see any problem in giving him what information I had. “I can send you photos and vids of the Inquisitors and what aliases they were using when under surveillance.”

Luke blew out a relieved breath. I think he thought I was going to withhold that information. He gave me a pleading look through the monitor. “Litassa, is there anything you can do to help me find him?”

I nodded. “I will use all my resources to search for Ben. I know Commander Darten will approve any mission to retrieve your nephew. I will have my people monitor the chatter on the holonet and see if we can come up with any clues.”

“Thank you,” he whispered.

“We’ll find him,” I assured Luke. “I promise you. I will do everything in my power to bring him back to Han and Leia.”

Entry 106

Weeks have passed and we still don’t know the whereabouts of young Ben Solo. Colonel Jakobs, our new commanding officer after General Iwanuk’s defection, authorized a full search for the boy. He knew the Empire would immediately fall under suspicion for the abduction and he wanted to show the galaxy that we had no part in that despicable crime.

We did facial recognition searches of all public and private video feed available. We were not only looking for young Ben but any of the missing Inquisitors…but so far we have come up empty.

Chancellor Mon Mothma and members of the New Republic Senate have been publicly vocal when it came to making accusations against the Empire. I don’t blame them…after all my government blew up a planet. We don’t have a very good track record when it comes to despicable behavior. After three months, tension has reached a boiling point. The New Republic senate was on the verge of dissolving the Galactic Concordance when I got a break in the case. I immediately contacted Skywalker.

“It may be nothing, but we picked up some chatter that the Cult of Vader may be involved.”

Even with the grainy reception on the transceiver monitor I could see the look of panic in Luke’s eyes. “Is it safe to talk?”

I had given Skywalker an encryption key for our communications. He was asking if it was an Imperial encryption that could be monitored by my government.

“Yes, it is my own encryption. The Empire can’t slice into it.”

His expression filled with worry. “Litassa, why would the Cult of Vader want Ben…unless…unless they knew about his heritage?” He looked nauseous as he averted his eyes. “Did you tell anybody?”

“No,” I said adamantly. “You said your senior leadership knew. Could they have been sloppy with their intel?”

“I don’t think so.” He shook his head sadly. “Palpatine and Darth Vader knew about me…they could have had records that fell into the Cult’s hands...and if anybody figured out Leia is my sibling...” He rubbed his temples before looking up at me. “Do you know where the Cult is located? I need to get there.”

“Yes, but we should go together, and keep this quiet. If you tell Han he will go barreling in on the Falcon with blasters blazing and that can get Ben killed. You and me…we’ll go in quietly and rescue him like we did your sister.”

He nodded in agreement. “Send me the information and a rendezvous location.”

 

Wonderful mixed bag: great about the permanent rank of Captain and socializing with the Dartens. Sweet reunions with Luke and amusing about the Jedi robes & beard.
then we get ... a cult of Vader and Ben Solo's kidnapping!

Happy and agree that Luke and Litassa together is a better strategy than official "rescue."

 

Oh no now Snoke or one of his operatives has Ben Solo and is changing him.

 

Ah, crap. Snoke got him!

I had to pop back in to see what had happened to our favorite couple and this happens...poor kid.

 

Thanks. We need a reason that Ben got so messed up and getting kidnapped by a bunch of Vader lovers will do that to you.

You will find out in this post who has him. Thanks for reading.

Yeah, it is terrible that this would happen to a kid, but in a way it makes adult Kylo Ren more sympathetic to the reader. He was mentally abused by his kidnappers and that is why he is messed up an an adult.

Thanks everybody for reading. Sorry for the long breaks between updates. I finished college and got a job and now I have to do "adult" stuff that occupies my time, but it could be worse, I could have graduated from college and not have a job. I would rather get paid and have less time to do fanfiction, than be broke and have tons of time to write.
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Entry 107

My intelligence indicates the cult is located on the planet K’don in the galaxy’s outer rim. K’don is a planet with a temperate climate and a number of large cities. The Cult of Vader purchased a large parcel of land at the foot of a mountain where the remains of an ancient Sith temple was supposedly located. I looked over the scientific reports from the archeologists who discovered the temple four years ago. Their initial belief that it was a Sith shrine was based on an inscription carved at the base of the temple stairs. It was an erroneous translation of the local language. Scientist mistakenly thought it was a prayer to the darkside because they believed it was written in the Balc language. It was a similar language, but it wasn’t Balc. The assumption was based on the planet’s proximity to the Sith stronghold Moraband or Korriban as some people call it.

Eventually it was determined it was an abandoned Kontsek religious temple that was probably no older than two hundred years old. Kontsek followers worshipped various benevolent deities and were basically the polar opposite of Sith. Archeologists made corrections in their scientific journals, but the mainstream media never recanted their original story. I guess finding a Sith temple sells more advertisements than common church remnants. According to my sources, the Cult of Vader purchased the ruins and surrounding property three years ago and has occupied the lands ever since. The holonet chatter I came across said the cult leaders claim the ‘Chosen One’ is reborn and has blessed them with his presence. Normally those type of comments wouldn’t catch my attention…but I happen to know that Ben is the grandson of Darth Vader (aka: Anakin Skywalker) and Anakin was once believed to be ‘The Chosen One’ of Jedi prophecy. It is too much of a coincidence. It needs to be checked out.

I met Luke at the closest spaceport to the temple, which was the town of L’hoya. He arrived before me and was waiting at the entry door of my assigned docking bay when I landed. I was happy to see he wasn’t in his Jedi robes. Instead he wore a black, one-piece, tactical suit with an assortment of cargo pockets to carry weapons or supplies. It is a much less conspicuous outfit and with his full beard I doubt many people would recognize him. At his side was a blue and silver R2 model droid. I have seen the diminutive droid before, but it was always locked away in the X-Wing’s astromech compartment. This was the first time I have seen it outside the ship, but I wasn’t surprised by its presence. I have known a lot of fighter pilots in my lifetime and every one has an overly fond attachment with their astromech. The fact that this is the first time Luke let the droid tag along is a shock in itself.

I quickly performed the shuttle shut down sequence and lowered the ramp. As I moved from the flight deck Luke was running up the ramp. We met at the center of the ship, falling into each others' arms in a comforting embrace. I could sense the intense sadness, concern and what I perceived at guilt oozing from the Jedi through the Force.

“Thank you for helping me find him,” he whispered in my ear as he held me tight.

“I don’t know if we found him or not,” I whispered back. “But it is our only lead.” I stepped back and looked at him concerned. “I sense you feel responsible in some way? Why?”

He sighed heavily. “I was busy searching for new Jedi to train…adults. I should have started training Ben. Leia, as a leader in the New Republic, is always a target for assassination or abduction attempts. I should have known her family would also face danger.” He ran a hand over his face then averted his eyes so I wouldn’t see them glisten with tears. “My family will always be at risk. We have too many enemies. If we ever recover Ben I’ll need to train him to protect himself.”

“When, not if we recover Ben,” I said adamantly. “We’ll find him. If the Cult of Vader took him because of his heritage, then he’s alive. They are not going to harm the grandson of their beloved Darth Vader. I think they are our best shot. If a criminal organization abducted Ben there would be ransom demands by now. If terrorists killed him to retaliate against your sister, they would have released a holovid of the execution.” I paused and drew in a long breath. “No, my profiling skills tell me Ben has been taken by somebody who wants him unharmed.”

Luke nodded softly. “How good are your profiling skills?”

I smiled. “I have only been wrong once…and that was about you.”

A faint smile graced his lips. “I’ll have to ask you about that later. Right now we need a plan of attack.”

Entry 108

Today, things did not go as expected. Luke and I decided to reconnoiter in my civilian shuttle. As we approached the location of the temple we immediately noticed dark smoke rising from the location. As we neared we realized there were multiple buildings burning. Although it is difficult to differentiate between scorched debris and the heat signatures of people, I could ascertain that none of the warm areas on the scanners were moving. That led me to believe that the cult members fled or were dead.

I glanced over to Luke in the copilot seat. “I don’t think we need to worry about stealth. I’m going to take her in so we can search the area.” I slowed the ship and maneuvered the shuttle toward the destruction. “Keep an eye out for whoever did this. Their attackers may still be in the area.”

Luke nodded silently as he checked the sensors. I could see him chewing his bottom lip nervously as fear and dread radiated from him through the Force.

I found a clearing and landed the shuttle. Before I could initiate the shutdown sequence, Skywalker was out of his crash restrains and running to the back loading ramp. “Wait for me!” I gave a frustrated grunt as I shut down the engines, auxiliary power unit and switched off the fuel pumps before jumping up and following the Jedi.

As I exited the shuttle my senses were overwhelmed with the smell of burning fuel and smoke. I ran in the direction of the temple and eventually spied Luke in the distance. He stopped running, looked down to the ground, and then dropped to his knees. An intense feeling of anguish hit me through the Force and I was certain he found the remains of his nephew. I sprinted over to his location and found him staring at the smoldering remains of two people. There was no clothing or flesh, just two intact, blackened skeletons.

Luke let out a strangled sob that, in all honesty, left me perplexed. These remains were adult size; neither were Ben. I didn’t understand the deep sorrow he was projecting. He turned to me with tears in his eyes and a jaw tight with anger. “The Empire did this!” His tone was bitter and accusatory.

“No,” I whispered. “We're not responsible.” I said the words, but the footprints crisscrossing the area told another story. They were the boot treads of Stormtroopers.

Luke stood and pointed at the smoldering bones. “Only Imperial flamethrowers can burn the flesh off bone like this!” His chin trembled as the words slipped out between tightly clinched teeth. “I’ve seen this before.”

I don’t know on which battlefield Luke witnessed this type of ghoulish death, but it was obvious that he had once cared deeply for somebody the Empire had incinerated. “Luke, my people weren’t involved and we don’t have time to argue about this. If the Cult took Ben, he might still be alive. He could have fled into the surrounding woods. We need to search for him.”

He nodded as he reined in his emotions. “You’re right.” He pointed to the west side of the compound. “I’ll search this side.”

He stumbled off in the direction of the next body as I turned to check out the east side of the small village. I had searched through two buildings and found multiple adult-sized bodies, but no children. After about a half hour my comlink buzzed. I answered thinking it was Luke wanting an update, but I was surprised to hear Commander Darten’s voice. “Captain Colay, have you reached K’don yet?”

“Yes, Sir. Skywalker and I are at the Cult of Vader compound. It’s been destroyed and everybody killed.” I pulled in a frustrated breath. “He thinks Imperials caused the devastation. I told him this isn’t the work of the Empire.”

There was a long pause before Commander Darten spoke. “About that…I got a message from General Iwanuk.” There was another long pause. “From what I’m told the First Order discovered the location of young Ben Solo and conducted a rescue mission. Iwanuk has the boy. They want to return the Ben to his parents, but because they don’t quite trust the New Republic they want you to act as a go-between. If you agree, he will send the coordinates for you to rendezvous with his ship in neutral territory. They will hand the boy over to you and you can bring him to his parents.”

“They did a rescue mission?” There was no way to hide the disgust from my voice. “There has to be a hundred bodies here. Half them were incinerated by flamethrowers. This wasn’t a rescue mission, it was a slaughter.”

I could hear Commander Darten sigh. “Litassa, I can’t order you to retrieve the boy. I honestly think it is a ploy to get you in their clutches. You saw how disappointed the General was when you didn’t join him. I can see this First Order government putting you in an impossible scenario--you stay and the boy can go.”

“The General wouldn’t do that to me,” I protested. “We had a great working relationship.”

I heard my commander scoff. “He might not, but the Moffs are in charge, not him. I just wanted to let you know there is a possibility of getting involuntarily conscripted into their organization.”

I looked around to the surrounding death and devastation and shuttered. “I have to go. Ben’s in the hands of monsters.”

“I understand,” Commander Darten said softly. “There is one more thing, Litassa, you have to go alone. They don’t want Skywalker or any other New Republic personnel with you. Just you.”

“Luke is not going to like that,” I muttered gravely.

“That’s the only way they will hand the boy over. If you agree, the General will send me the rendezvous coordinates. Do you agree?”

I drew in a deep breath and blew it out before keying my comlink microphone. “Yes, I agree.”


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Yes, Luke is definitely not going to like it when only Mara can rescue Ben and not him.

 

Luke's reaction to the burnt bodies. It's obvious that in that moment, he's back on Tattooine, the grief over the loss of his aunt and uncle overwhelming, but he has no time to mourn. And even as he comes back to reality, the wound that he thought had healed years ago is suddenly ripped open again, raw and bleeding, as painful as when it was new.

 

A lot of things went on in the past updates - darkness, sweet banter, external threads again. I can´t believe that I have missed so much.

Bringing the Cult of Vader in is an exciting idea.

I hope that our heroine can bring young Ben back.

 

Terrific details and plausible turn of events -- Mara has to agree but it's not a good position to be in.

 

That is an understatement.

That is what I was going for. Luke having a little PTSD at seeing the burnt bodies...especially when he thinks his nephew is somewhere among the destruction.

Thanks. We didn't get to see much about the cult here, but maybe Ben will have something to say about them.

Nope. Not good at all.

Thanks everybody for reading. I had some time this weekend so I decided to write a little.


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Entry 109

I shut off my comlink and turned to return to my shuttle, but stopped in surprise. About ten meters from my position, I saw Luke’s astromech facing in my direction with its small sensor dish extended up from the top of his dome. I scowled at the droid, sure that it was spying on me. I don’t believe Luke would have ordered it to snoop, but I know from experience that astromechs are fiercely loyal to their pilots and they also have a mind of their own. Most fighter pilots refuse to do memory wipes on these particular droids because their mechanized brains learn from experience. I have seen astromechs with over a hundred years worth of unwiped memory…and they always creep me out. I’d swear they are almost sentient. I wouldn't be surprise if his astromech decided to keep an eye on me.

“What are you looking at?” I questioned the little droid as I walked past it in the direction of the shuttle.

The droid pivoted and started to follow me while whistling out a string of beeps and whistles. I turned and walked backwards while addressing the droid. “I know enough of your language to get a gist of what you are saying. I’m going to tell Luke about Ben.” I stopped and pointed at the droid. “But you better be quiet about my commander’s fears. If your master thinks I may be in danger he will refuse to let me go alone and Ben Solo might end up dead.”

The little droid let out a mournful tone.

“Just let me handle this.” I took out my comlink and called Luke. “Luke, Ben’s not here, but he’s alive and well. Meet me at the shuttle and I’ll tell you more.” I keyed off the communicator before I could get a barrage of questions. I gave the droid a stern look. “And you, keep your beeps to yourself.”

Entry 110

Luke was ecstatic that his nephew was alive, but he absolutely wanted to accompany me to retrieve him.

“Why can’t I go?” He asked adamantly. “The New Republic and the Empire have a treaty.”

I blew out a very frustrated breath. “Because these Imperials are not part of my Empire. They are another faction that broke away.”

He glowered at me. “Did they take Ben? And why do they want you to come and get him?”

I had stopped my pacing and sat down in one of the shuttle seats in the crew cabin. “From what I was told this Imperial faction discovered the Cult of Vader had Ben. When I came here it was because of holonet chatter concerning the cult. They probably heard the same information and came here to investigate.”

“Why?” Luke insisted. “Why would an faction of the Empire come out of hiding to save my nephew? I can understand why your Empire might do so. We have a treaty with each other, but not with this other offshoot. It sounds suspicious. For all we know they are the ones who kidnapped Ben and are putting the blame on the Cult.”

I pinched the bridge of my nose exasperated at this line of questioning. “Luke, in a day or two you can ask Ben himself. For all I know this Imperial group just wanted to avoid a break in the treaty. If the Empire and New Republic go to war then they might be pulled into the fighting.”

“That still doesn’t explain why you have to go?” He gazed at me with undisguised concern. “Why you?”

I fidgeted in my seat. “Remember when I said one of our Intel agents defected?”

Luke nodded. “The agent that warned the Inquisitors that they were being watched.”

“Yeah, that one,” I said softly while staring at the deck. “It was General Iwanuk…and he asked for me to do the exchange.” I gave a weak shrugged. “I guess he trusts me.”

Luke let out a sarcastic “Pfffft” before a caustic laugh escaped his lips. “Why would he trust you over anybody else in the Empire? If the galaxy at large doesn’t already know we’re lovers they at least know we're friends.” He shook his head adamantly. “You’re not telling me something.”

Now I was getting pissed. I stood and shook a finger at the Jedi. “Do you want your nephew back or not?”

He sighed deeply. “Of course I do, Litassa.”

“Then let me do my job. I trust the general. We had a good working relationship. When I see him I’ll ask him for all the details. Hopefully when I return we will know who took Ben and why.”

Luke ran a hand through his hair as he looked away. I could feel his emotions churning through the Force. He turned toward me, his eyes pleading. “Please be careful.”

I smiled as I walked forward and pulling him into my embrace. “I’ll be careful…I promise.”

Entry 111

I dropped Luke off at the spaceport where his X-Wing was located and then quickly departed to the coordinates transmitted to me from Commander Darten. They led me to a location deep within neutral place…one located near the unknown region. I exited hyperspace to find…nothing. No planet, no ship, no space station. I waited for about twenty minutes before I startled by the sight of a jet-black, super star destroyer suddenly appearing on my starboard side.

“Unknown shuttle,” a gruff voice came over my radio. “Identify yourself.”

I reached forward in the pilot seat and toggled the transceiver microphone. “This is civilian shuttle Star Chaser piloted by Captain Litassa Colay of the Imperial 21st Intelligence Battalion, subordinate to the Empire’s 54th Military Intelligence Brigade.”

There was a short pause. “You are cleared to land on our middle starboard landing bay. Approach coordinates are being transmitted.” There was another pause. “Welcome to the Eclipse, commanded by Grand Admiral Rae Sloane.”

I didn’t reply. I don’t think I was capable of speech at that moment. I thought the Eclipse was destroyed years ago. It was once Palpatine’s personal command ship. It was the most heavily armored starship ever built. Why did the Grand Admiral come in an Executor-Class Star Destroyer to personally return Ben Solo? Was Commander Darten correct when he thought I was walking into a trap? Was I about to be drafted into the First Order? I wasn’t sure, but I did know there was no turning back at this point. I didn’t think I was in danger, but I didn’t relish the thought of never seeing my Farmboy again. If I ever get back to Imperial space, I’m going to think long and hard about my future with the Empire.


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