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  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

Home In Time for Supper--Wraith Squadron/OCs >>Update! 1/6<<

Discussion in 'Fan Fiction Stories--Classic JC Board (Reply-Only)' started by Xaara, Sep 2, 2002.

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  1. Xaara

    Xaara Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Jun 30, 2002
    First of all, thank you for the UP's: Guinastasia, Ultima_1, and LM!

    Welcome, TK. I also thought Falynn was killed off prematurely, but hey, this is AU...I can keep her around as long as I want... *evil grin* This next one's dedicated to you, my newest reader! :D

    Wow, it's been a while since I updated here, but you can blame it on school, or activities, or music, or anything else I do. :) But anyway, here's the post:

    EDIT: And how could I forget? Today's post is also dedicated to my little sister (and one of my biggest fans), who turns 11 today! Happy b-day, sis! And don't eat all the cake! :D

    **************************************************************

    The base was remarkably busy, Jax noted, as he moved from the turbolift along a hallway which promised something to eat. Sentients of all genders, shapes, sizes, and colors swarmed through the corridor, talking, gossiping, briefing one another on the most recent events. Jax caught snatches of conversation: "?and I still am not convinced that's going to work!" "?the Empire's influence is waning; I don't think?" "?but Kayce and that mechanic from hangar bay twenty-three?" before the speakers disappeared once more into the throng.

    Despite efforts to make his way though without endangering his or Nascha's health, Jax found himself jostling as many humans and nonhumans as he avoided. Eventually, he gave up and submitted to the tide, riding with the crowd instead of trying to create his own pocket in it. Nascha seemed to have no trouble following him, and they proceeded in the same direction for several minutes, nearly missed the sign for the mess, and had to backtrack until they could turn off into a tiny corridor that ran perpendicular to main hall. In the sudden absence of the crush of bodies, Jax halted momentarily, regaining his breath and orientation.

    Ahead, the hall curved sharply, the bend of the wall cutting off his view of anything indicating a cafeteria, but Jax was positive the room existed somewhere near his current location. Taking a deep, unimpeded breath, he continued on, Nascha at his side.

    "That was fascinating," she said with a little smile. "I've never seen so many people in such a tiny space before."

    Jax shrugged and scratched his chin absentmindedly. "I've seen more in smaller spaces. Crowds make me nervous?you never know where to look."

    "If it makes you feel any better, I'm not going to let anyone shoot you." Nascha's voice had a hard edge and Jax mentally replayed his own words, wincing at his disregard of Nascha's merits.

    "Sorry," he said. "I'm just not used to being places without my partner."

    She smiled again, a gesture he took as forgiveness. "How did you meet her, anyway? You're not related, are you?"

    "No, well, not by blood anyway. We act like a brother and sister sometimes though, and it can be useful for undercover work. I dye my hair black and wear grey contacts and we can pass as being related."

    "So did you know each other growing up?"

    Jax had opened his mouth to answer when a bang and thud reverberated down the hall. His fingers scrabbling for a blaster he belatedly realized was not there, Jax dropped into a crouch and pulled Nascha down behind him. "Stay here," he mouthed, shuffling forward cautiously, his hands in a defensive position. Slowly, carefully, he leaned one eye around the corner, keeping his center of gravity low to the ground and slightly behind him to facilitate an escape, should it be necessary.

    In the hallway stood two men and a woman; Jax recognized them as Commander Antilles, Garik Loran, and Alahna. He was about to round the corner and take Nascha with him when the sound of Antilles' voice drifted through the recycled air and echoed through his head.

    "Attention!"

    For a single moment, silence reigned supreme, and then Jax heard the sounds of cursing and scraping furniture. What's going on in there? he thought.

    A figure appeared at his left and Jax started, only to relax when he realized it was Nascha,
     
  2. LadyMairead

    LadyMairead Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    May 20, 2002
    Lovely post Xaara. So glad you're back!

    Jax thought he could detect a smile on the man's face. "Lieutenant Lucio Arii, Coruscant Special Ops."

    Alahna stiffened sharply.


    Hmmm... Interesting. I wonder what's going on there. Ex-flame, perhaps? *ponders*

    "?but Kayce and that mechanic from hangar bay twenty-three?"

    *snickers* I want to hear more of that conversation. I love picking out the completely innocuous quotes and making them inappropriate. ;)

    Can't wait for more. And Happy Birthday to Xaara's sister!
     
  3. Ultima_1

    Ultima_1 Jedi Knight star 5

    Registered:
    May 16, 2001
    Great post. Thanks for getting back to the story.
     
  4. Guinastasia

    Guinastasia Force Ghost star 6

    Registered:
    Jun 9, 2002
    Oooh, wonder why Alahna is getting nervous around Lucio....
     
  5. TKeira_Lea

    TKeira_Lea Jedi Knight star 5

    Registered:
    Oct 10, 2002
    Great post, I could visualize all the people, feel the press of them in the confined space. What made Alahna stiffen? You better not keep up white knuckled about that. Now get to writing there needs to be more stuff this good to read!

    Bravo! :)
     
  6. Xaara

    Xaara Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Jun 30, 2002
    Thank you, LM! As you know (probably better than anyone ;) ) I've been gone quite a bit in the past few weeks. This was mostly written on the plane trip home. Yes, Alahna's stiffening will have implications later. No, I will not tell you any more than that. :D

    Lil' Sis says: Thanks, LM! I can't wait to go bowling for my birthday, because we're going on Saturday! *insert picture of dutiful older sister sitting in bowling alley with a bunch of hyperactive fifth graders*

    Ultima_1: Thank you for dropping by.

    You'll find out, Guinastasia, you'll find out... [face_plain]

    Well, you're going to be white-knuckled just a little longer, TKeira. :) Thanks!
     
  7. Ultima_1

    Ultima_1 Jedi Knight star 5

    Registered:
    May 16, 2001
  8. LadyMairead

    LadyMairead Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    May 20, 2002
  9. Guinastasia

    Guinastasia Force Ghost star 6

    Registered:
    Jun 9, 2002
    Oh yes-UP!
     
  10. LadyMairead

    LadyMairead Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    May 20, 2002
    Up for my wonderful and talented beta.
     
  11. TKeira_Lea

    TKeira_Lea Jedi Knight star 5

    Registered:
    Oct 10, 2002
    Yes an up and when can we have some more?
     
  12. Ultima_1

    Ultima_1 Jedi Knight star 5

    Registered:
    May 16, 2001
  13. Xaara

    Xaara Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Jun 30, 2002
    Thanks for the UP's everybody--here you go!

    ********************************************************************

    Alahna cornered Jax later that day when he was returning to his quarters for a well-deserved nap. She tried to appear unthreatening, but she felt Jax's comprehension of her unconscious body language. "What do you want?" he asked tiredly. "Can it wait? I haven't slept in what feels like forever."

    "No, it can't wait," she said. "But it can move inside the room you've been assigned."

    "Fine." Jax stood away from the door and let her into the room before him. She ordered the lights on, and, when they did not respond, groped for a wall panel, flipping the switch inside.

    "Jax, just what do you think you're doing?"

    She could see him resisting an internal impulse, most likely to say something along the lines of 'Trying to sleep,' but he mastered the wayward thoughts and said neutrally, "I don't know. Perhaps if you elaborated slightly?."

    Losing her threadbare patience, Alahna flung one arm toward the window, which displayed a grime-coated glimpse of the enormous city-planet outside. "Do you see that? Do you know how horrible it is to stay trapped here? If we don't leave soon, we're not going to, Jax, you know that." Some voice inside her warned Alahna that she was not being rational, and analytically listed Jax's possible reactions her wanton speech. For a second, she contemplated apologizing, but she instead held her breath, waiting for Jax to say something.

    The puzzled expression on his face turned into something not so easily recognizable. He shrugged. "I don't mind it. Besides, Nascha has to stay here if she wants to continue her Jedi training. I don't know what you're so worked up over. You can leave whenever you want, or at least take a drive through some of the upper traffic levels."

    "It's not that," she said, shaking her head. "It's being here. I hate the city?I hate the noise and the mess and the not being able to come and go as I please. I want to take off as soon as I get clearance, and that is going to be soon." Jax's mouth dropped open, but she ignored him. "Get ready to go."

    A short silence followed, broken finally by Jax's words. "If I didn't know you better, Alahna, I'd say you were scared of something," he said, his voice somewhere between a sneer and a query. "You're running."

    An inexplicable irritation rose in her, and Alahna bit her lip to keep from shouting at him. "I am not afraid of anything here, Co-pilot, and I am not running." She could feel the heat rising to her face as they locked eyes, and willed Jax to back away before she shouted something she would regret later. Abruptly, she broke eye contact and looked away, out the window. "The Mynock leaves in an hour, whether you're on her or not."

    The hurt shone from his face, but he did not say anything more to incite her temper. He seemed to struggle over his next words, eventually murmuring, "Then this is goodbye."

    Alahna had to check herself sharply to keep the incredulous laugh from her lips. "What?"

    "You heard me. I'm staying. Nascha needs a friend here, and I like being a part of the New Republic. They show me something to aspire to." For a moment, he looked uncomfortable; then he turned away. In a tiny voice, he said, "I'm sorry, Alahna."

    At first, Alahna could not decide whether her tears stemmed from anger or sorrow, and she took a minute to prevent them from falling. Tilting her chin up to avoid looking at Jax, she said, "Thank you for your help onboard my ship. If you come back with me, I can give you last month's share."

    "That won't be necessary," Jax said, voicing the regret and pain that she could feel emanating from him.

    "Very well." A small part of her registered the fact that they were again talking as they had at first, as strangers would to one another. "Goodbye." She extended her hand, and he grasped it, his grip warm and firm.

    "Goodbye, Alahna," he said. "Clear skies."

    She felt the tears rising in her
     
  14. Xaara

    Xaara Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Jun 30, 2002
    An UP for my sister, who just finished her final performance as the Tin Man in "The Wizard of Oz." [Insert picture of dutiful older sibling spending the entire day in the scalding school auditorium] I'm proud of you, sis, but I swear, if I hear "If I only had a heart" one more time, someone's going to pay... :)
     
  15. Guinastasia

    Guinastasia Force Ghost star 6

    Registered:
    Jun 9, 2002
    Oooh, Alahna's leaving?

    :(
     
  16. Xaara

    Xaara Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Jun 30, 2002
    Yup. *nods* Of course, any number of things may conspire to stop her... ;)
     
  17. TKeira_Lea

    TKeira_Lea Jedi Knight star 5

    Registered:
    Oct 10, 2002
    Don't let her leave. :(

    I had a Wraith Squadron moment in my thread. Some people loved it so I sent them your way. I hope they read your story. :)

    CLear Skies!

    Nice post!
     
  18. Ultima_1

    Ultima_1 Jedi Knight star 5

    Registered:
    May 16, 2001
    Nice post
     
  19. LadyMairead

    LadyMairead Jedi Padawan star 4

    Registered:
    May 20, 2002
    Interesting post. I really liked the dynamic between Alahna and Jax. I think it's nice that they're such good friends.

    The hurt shone from his face, but he did not say anything more to incite her temper. He seemed to struggle over his next words, eventually murmuring, "Then this is goodbye."

    *sniffles* And then Alahna went and cried.... :( She really can't leave, you know that, don't you?

    Of course, any number of things may conspire to stop her... Yes, like my body. I won't let you take her! *leaps in front of Alahna*

    Anyway, great post! Can't wait to see what happens next. I shall not be defeated, you demon fiend... ;)
     
  20. Jane Jinn

    Jane Jinn Jedi Knight star 5

    Registered:
    Jan 12, 2000
    I found it again, I found it again! I was reading this story at the beginning, then lost track of it during a busy period, but now I'm back!

    This is well developed and entertaining. I really like Nascha, and Alahna, and Jax, and the Wraith Squadron members are all in character as well. Good job!
     
  21. Xaara

    Xaara Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Jun 30, 2002
    Thanks, TKeira. [face_blush] I'm honored you thought enough of my story to recommend it!

    Ultima_1: Thank you for dropping in.

    Hey, LM, Alahna doesn't like being pushed around...you'd better watch your step around her. She and Jax have been together forever, as you'll find out, or not, depending on whether or not it actually fits into one of my future posts. Thanks!

    Welcome back, Jane Jinn. :) I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far, and I hope you stay on for the ride.

    ANNOUNCEMENT: I'm going to be on vacation from tomorrow until April 10, so I've taken the liberty of posting a small teaser from a post that I'm coinsidering adding later on in the story. Thank you all for reading!

    Grinder immediately activated his lighting system, leaving his terminal screen illuminated but shrouding the rest of the small enclosed area in a sort of semi-permeable murk. Unsure of what to do with his hands, or the rest of him for that matter, Face opted to sit in the only remaining seat in the room, an ancient ejection couch no doubt appropriated from the remains of some luckless fighter. Face often found it disconcerting just how many ejection seats could be found as furniture in Alliance and New Republic bases. If there were that many seats to be had, did that mean that so many fewer pilots than seats survived the shock of hard vacuum? He shrugged off the thought. Now was not the time for such academic exercises.

    "Found it," Grinder said, his tone unemotional. "Here's her room assignment, and here's her passcode. And you probably won't even be arrested for breaking and entering, since I realized that all the real codes have false ones programmed in over them. A lesser code slicer would have just given you the first one he came across, and you would have typed it in, and we would have both been taken into custody as traitors to the New Republic." The Bothan smiled, displaying a row of even white teeth. "Of course, I'm not even going to ask why you want to be able to get into Alahna's room." He stopped expectantly, evidently waiting for Face to supply the information for which he would not ask.

    Face smiled in return. "Good. I'm not going to tell you." Turning to leave, he was stopped by a distinct growl coming from the slicer. "Oh, yeah, I forgot." Even as he reached into his pocket, Face's mind sped over the list of things he could buy with a good twenty credits. Resolutely, he swallowed and placed ten on the table. "Thanks, Grinder."
     
  22. TKeira_Lea

    TKeira_Lea Jedi Knight star 5

    Registered:
    Oct 10, 2002
    teasers and then you go away

    no fair
     
  23. Jane Jinn

    Jane Jinn Jedi Knight star 5

    Registered:
    Jan 12, 2000
    I'm planning on staying on board for the rest of the ride, but I might be late in replying to posts because of real life.

    Great teaser! I loved the little rumination about the ejection seats. Now I'm looking forward to seeing why Face wants to get into Alahna's room.

    Hope you have a nice vacation!
     
  24. TKeira_Lea

    TKeira_Lea Jedi Knight star 5

    Registered:
    Oct 10, 2002
  25. Xaara

    Xaara Jedi Master star 3

    Registered:
    Jun 30, 2002
    I'm back, TKeira, and in honor of your declaration that it was not fair of me to post that teaser (and in truth it was not ;) ) I dedicate this section of *wow* plot development to you. *bows*

    Thanks, Jane Jinn. I'm glad you'll be around, and trust me, I understand completely about Real Life. It's one of those necessary evils. (Oh, and about the little ejection seat thing: it was a completely random thought that came to me as I re-read the X-wing books and realized that the pilots' furniture consists almost wholly of packaging crates and ejection couches. :D )

    ********************************************************************

    Wedge Antilles prided himself on his ability to assess accurately the thoughts and opinions of the people who worked under his command. Though he admitted freely that he did not possess Face's training or Janson's charisma, he did secretly believe that he had a sort of empathy that allowed him to solve problems through his capacity to see both sides of any conflict. His decisions, both those made under the stress of a battle and those made in the relative comfort of his office, had rarely come to cause him undue worry. Rather, it was the decisions of those higher up on the chain of command that caused him the agonizing concern for his pilots he faced now.

    Alahna's leaving was not going to help the general morale.

    He had called a small meeting, including only the twelve members of his squadron, and proceeded to the conference room to voice his worries to those he trusted the most. He suspected that some of the higher officers had forgotten what it was like to fly through the heat of a life-and-death struggle, and he knew that his pilots would rally behind the battle plan most likely to bring them out alive. Of course, he would not be leading a group of inexperienced children as he had with the beginning of Rogue Squadron. His pilots were true veterans, hardened to the reality of war and wartime losses. It did not make it any easier to throw them into a situation about which he knew nearly nothing.

    The call had come down from the Admiral earlier that day: the Wraiths were to prepare for their first covert mission, a small infiltration maneuver intended to evaluate the defenses of an Imperial planet, Noráshi, and its nearby moons. The republic had decided that Noráshi's position would be valuable in an effort to free the Outer Rim, and charged the Wraiths with the task of posing as civilians and landing onplanet, taking holos of the defenses and notes on the structure of the government and the planet's resources, possibly contacting resistance cells, and somehow escaping undetected. This would involve entering on a small starship, preferably a shuttle, and masquerading as locals who belonged on the planet. Wedge had immediately asked if Cubber would be allowed along on the mission, reasoning that the mechanic could fly a shuttle capably and that he needed his entire squadron free to perform the vital assignments. In response to his request, he had received an unconditional no. Though they reserved Cubber's services for their own requirements, the higher-ups carefully told Wedge that they had no control over whether he wanted to take "that smuggler girl" along with him. For a short time, Wedge had actually considered taking Alahna, had even been on the verge of asking her, and then she had run into him in the hall and told him in no uncertain terms that she was leaving.

    Wedge was, to put it mildly, slightly skeptical of the entire scheme. Though the Wraiths were all good at what they did, they did not have the raw experience to pull off such an intricate plot without a good deal of practice beforehand. Practice was out of the question, however; High Command had stressed the need for a quick and seamless mission. There was no room for error, and the stress of the entire situation wore on Wedge's nerves until he felt ready to snap. The incident at the mess hall earlier had not ameliorated his ever-present queasiness, and Alahna's leaving had esc
     
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