Beyond - Legends Possibilities Unknown (post-NJO fic, original characters - mostly)

Name: Possibilities Unknown

Era: Post-NJO

Genre: Star Wars

Notes: This was written entirely in Microsoft Word, so I apologize for any format errors the translation of it to this online format has caused.



Ten years after the defeat of the Yuuzhan Vong, the Galactic Alliance is engaged in another power struggle. An enemy seemingly lacking in motives, save for a past affiliation with the Peace Brigade, has arisen from the shadows of the fringe to challenge their rightful domination of galactic government.

As the touch-and-go political battle mercilessly stretches on, a smuggler named Tad Arole and his partners, Gregge Arron and Ilo Flete, make their way to a space station orbiting Bespin for a very important rendezvous that will change the course of not only their lives?but the entirety of galactic history.

Unlikely heroes join forces as the power struggle rapidly descends towards open war, and betrayal is rife in the air. Thus begins the first chapter to chronicle the Second Galactic Civil War, in a galaxy already wearied of the fight?

Dramatis Personae

Of the Galactic Alliance Armed Forces:

Calliope, Verto - Colonel (male Human)
Caly, Cen - SpecForces Captain (male Human)
Da?nors, Swepe - Lieutenant (female Togruta)
Eridas Thesin - Justice Officer (female Iotran)
Falnis, Mig - XM-1 Missile Boat pilot (male Human)
Graycliff, Masun - Sea Commander (male Human)
Grenta, Siemon - Corporal (male Chagrian)
Kaywroth, Samith - Lieutenant (male Human)
Kre?fey, Traest - Supreme Commander (male Bothan)
Lich?vonkry?kurano [Kryk, Ch?von] - Lieutenant (male Chiss)
Mans, Irek - Lieutenant (male Human)
2-1B - Medical droid (android, masculine personality)
Ryan, Saf - General (male Human)
Vahlince, Tenithy - Star Destroyer Captain (male Human)

Of the Galactic Alliance Armed Forces, Jedi and Force Sensitive Division:

Ashlon - Young Jedi Knight (male Codru-Ji)
Clighal - Jedi Master (female Mon Calamari)
Durron, Kyp - Jedi Master (male Human)
Horn, Corran - Jedi Master (male Human)
Horn, Valin - Young Jedi Knight (male Human)
Katarn, Kyle - Jedi Master (male Human)
Kel, Waxarn - Jedi Knight (male Human)
Madurrin - Jedi Knight (female Anx)
Rask, Corvis - Young Jedi Knight (male Human)
Sebatyne, Tesar - Jedi Knight (male Barabel)
Skywalker, Luke - Jedi Master (male Human)
Solusar, Kam - Jedi Master (male Human)
Solusar, Tionne - Jedi Master (female humanoid)

Of the Galactic Alliance Senate:

Brelvar - Chief of State (male Mon Calamari)
Crowes, Darrik - Senator of Naboo (male Human)
Lutus, Vunin - Senator of Gravlex Med (male Anx)

Of the Imperial Remnant:

Pellaeon, Gilad - Grand Admiral (male Human)
Temm, Miat - Imperial aide (female Human)

Of the Hapan Consortium:

Tibal, Loersha - Hapan Consortium fighter pilot (female Human)

Of the Independent Underground:

Atrix - Commander, Battle Group One (male Velrosian)
Dol, Bolge - Governor of Pharides IV (male Human)
Remoret, Foulis - Commander, Battle Group Two (male Nid)

Of the Naboo:

Agard, Verne - Captain, Narmle Security and Defense Force (male Human)
Ammania - King of Naboo (male Human)

Of the Fringe:

Arole, Tad - Captain of the Stargleam (male Nautolan)
Arron, Gregge - First Mate of the Stargleam (male Human)
Bazza - Freelance mercenary (male Zabrak)
Bigar, Yuuth - Freelance mercenary (unknown species and gender)
Dustblade, Marty - Explorer (male Human)
Fett, Boba - Bounty hunter (male Human)
Flete, Ilo - Turret gunner of the Stargleam (male Sullustan)
Ja, Trazza - Bounty hunter (male Gado)
Redenn, Tari - Bounty hunter (female Twi?lek)
Rojerta, Ytar - Bounty hunter (male Mon Calamari)
Rorsk - Bounty hunter (male Trandoshan)
Sibil, Werex - Mercenary (male Barabel)


Shroud of Darkness


Chapter One

The disgruntled tech stormed down to that same office again, the fourth time in the past week. He touched the button to open the door, fuming.

?I don?t suppose the Independen

 

There aren't any format errors that I can see.

Very good start. I like your OCs...

 

Glad you like it so far

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Chapter Two

Tad Arole glanced around, wondering where Lieutenant Kryk could be. A Duros, two Ithorians, a Xampster, about twenty Humans, a couple of Mon Calamari, a Velrosian, and a handful of pasty-skinned Twi?leks could be plainly seen in the fancy space casino. He suddenly spotted two glowing red eyes.

?Come on,? he muttered to Gregge, who was standing behind him. Tad walked casually towards the crowd, heading in the general direction of the Chiss he had seen. He was aware of Gregge tailing close behind.

Tad pushed his way through the crowd. Gregge appeared out of it right at his side. He could plainly see the Chiss? face now. He managed to catch the alien?s eye. The Chiss smiled slightly, as if he was glad to see them, and beckoned casually towards a pool room marked ?RESERVED.?

Tad understood perfectly. He nonchalantly headed towards the room, keeping his hand on his blaster. Gregge followed, slightly to his left, in case of a double-cross.

Tad opened the door with his left hand, keeping his right on the hilt of his blaster. He stepped inside the room. There were no lights on inside, but the light from the main lobby reached in. Gregge walked in, followed by the Chiss, who closed the door.

?Lieutenant Ch?von Kryk,? the Chiss identified himself, though Tad already knew this.

Tad knew from years of experience that Chiss concealed their emotions well, and that when their emotions did show through, they were hard to identify. Even with his ability to scent out pheromones to identify other beings? emotions, he could not detect a thing from Kryk nor read his blank expression.

?Lieutenant, I am not sure why you wanted to see us,? the Nautolan said, a hard, brittle edge to his voice, as he decided unilaterally to start off the conversation in an aggressive and bold manner. ?We know nearly nothing about the hierarchical and political structure of this movement, the Independent Underground. We are not even directly affiliated with it.?

Kryk?s expression flickered, though Tad could not read the emotion, even with his pheromone-sensing tentacle-tresses. It was most likely annoyance. ?Arole, you are indeed working for the Independent Underground directly,? he hissed, turning the tables easily on the two smugglers. ?Do you know the motives of this movement? That is what I came for.?

Feeling slightly cheated by Kryk?s deft manipulation of the verbal exchange, Tad snapped back, ?Kryk, we merely supply the Independent Underground with metals, food, and crystals, along with the occasional weapons shipments.?

Their contact smiled sardonically. ?You didn?t answer my question.?

?Good observation,? Gregge retorted from the other side of the room. He walked over to join the conversation. Tad couldn?t tell whether or not Kryk was annoyed enough to turn tail and leave. Probably not; he wanted answers.

Kryk?s comlink beeped, just as he opened his mouth to reply. ?Kryk in,? he said into the comlink. He listened intently for a few seconds. ?A double-cross? I have you covered. These two must be part of it.?

Gregge?s face reddened angrily. Though in the back of his mind, warning bells were tolling urgently, Tad turned to him and motioned for him to let it pass. He stole another glance at the Chiss officer and casually dipped his hand down towards his blaster, hanging loosely in its holster.

?No, no,? Kryk was saying now. ?I can get my answers?one way or another.?

One way or another? Tad?s mind was whirling with alarmed confusion, and his twin hearts? beating was becoming irregular, sending jolts of surging blood through his veins. Everything seemed to be orbiting around the thought that Kryk had some trick up his sleeve, some sabacc card that he had not yet played that could win the game. And as if to confirm this, Kryk warbled something in a Chiss dialect that didn?t seem to be directed at the person on the other end of the comlink. Feeling a sense of resigned finality, Tad drew his blaster and clicked off the safety

 

Chapter Three

Ilo stifled a yawn as his ship approached Denon. After Coruscant?s razing at the hands of the Yuuzhan Vong, the Galactic Alliance had established another city-planet in the warm, semi-tropical environment on the former industrial planet, located on the Coreward edge of the Mid Rim. As far as Ilo knew, Coruscant was still being rebuilt. Ilo also knew that Denon had much better defenses than Coruscant did.

The mottled blue sky of hyperspace flickered and faded into starlines. As the ship slowed, the starlines became stars. And the form of a YV-666 was beside him. Ilo guessed that the Stargleam?s 0.48 class hyperdrive could outrun any YV-666, but he didn?t have time to check.

The Stargleam was a beautiful ship, in his eyes, anyway; with a blunted, semi-hexagonal nose, a boarding seal on each side of the fuselage, two sets of wings, one pair right after the other, two short tailpipes (one on either side), and one long tailpipe in the middle. It had a dorsal turret right behind the cockpit; a turret which he, Ilo, usually manned.

Ilo flicked this turret onto pilot control. The turret swiveled, aimed at Kryk?s craft.

The lumbering YV-666 freighter was slowly turning towards the Stargleam. Ilo squeezed the trigger, sending a series of shots into the side of the enemy craft.

* * * * *

The ship violently jerked. A pounding could be heard, as if the musty YV-666 was under attack.

Groaning, Tad groggily opened his eyes. He had been taking a refreshing nap.

From across the aisle, Gregge glared blaster bolts at him. ?Tad, this isn?t the time to be dozing off,? he hissed, just loud enough for Tad to hear. ?Ilo?s trying to lower the shields so he can disable this bucket of bolts.?

?And you know this?how?? Tad asked sarcastically, coming fully awake.

Gregge rolled his eyes. ?Who else would be attacking this prefabricated rat?s nest!??

?Pirates,? Tad said simply. ?They really don?t care how pretty a ship is if they think that it has valuables inside it, it could be useful in their pirate gang, or some big-shot important person?s aboard and they want a ransom.?

Gregge sighed. ?Well, I hope it?s Ilo. We?ve had enough excitement for one day; we don?t need a pirate group to show up now.?

Tad nodded. He tried to shut out the pounding, but couldn?t help but notice that Kryk was now firing back. Whether that was good or bad was not a call he could make right now.

* * * * *

The YV-666 completed its turn, but apparently the pilot didn?t realize that both ships were still moving. Not to mention the fact that the Stargleam was doing so twice as fast as its boxy adversary.

The freighter, now several klicks behind and facing right at a 90 degree angle, fired a pair of ion pulse missiles at the Stargleam.

Warning bells were going off in the back of Ilo?s mind. He executed a drop-kick maneuver, twisting away, braking, then accelerating and twisting again. The ion pulses couldn?t keep up and exploded, out of range.

The Stargleam started rotating, turning 180 degrees, and was now facing the battered YV-666. Ilo decided to return the nice favor that the YV-666 had given. Arming not two, but four ion pulses in his secondary weapons bay, he smiled grimly. Another close call that he, Gregge, and Tad would escape from unscathed. And right above Denon, too! Good deal.

Ilo squeezed the trigger.

* * * * *

Ch?von Kryk watched the battle from the passenger?s seat.

?Sithspawn!? the pilot snapped, clearly very frustrated, as four ion pulses dropped from the enemy ship?s secondary weapons bay and headed in the general direction of the YV-666.

?Nothing the laser cannons can?t handle,? Kryk said coolly. ?Now fire at the incoming warheads.?

?Yes, Lieutenant,? the pilot grumbled.

Twin lasers lanced out from the sides of the freighter, striking one ion pulse. ?Good job,? Kryk said in a very patronizing voice. ?Now let?s blow up another one. Want me to help you out again, or can you handle that simple task y

 

Chapter Four

Tari Redenn scanned the area with her macrobinoculars from her perch on the clifftop. She studied a small dot intently, moving through the field of green.

She had followed her bounty across the galaxy, it seemed; from Nar Shaddaa to Rodia, from Rodia to Lok, from Lok to Umgul, from Umgul to Sullust, from Sullust to Sacorria, and finally, from Sacorria to Chandrila.

And now she was certain that she had him. 200,000 credits were put out on this space pirate?s head, and she was determined to take them. She only needed about 8 million more to buy her own world. The one she had in mind was a smaller planet called Y?Duul. It was located in the C?Aigan system, and was populated by perpetually fat, short, gray creatures called Y?Dal.

Y?Dal were sentient, but not too bright. Their world was feudal, with tribes, so-called kingdoms and empires, and a few dictatorships. No democracies.

Tari hoped to change all that.

The attractive violet Twi?lek had a natural talent with a blaster, and had picked up melee combat very quickly. She had needed to, under the situation. Still, she liked blasters more though, less messy, and with less hard memories to accompany it.

She grabbed her Xerrol Nightstinger and activated her jetpack. A roar filled the air as she dove off the cliff and began to hover about seventy-five feet off the ground.

She began flying towards her quarry at a fast speed, but the jetpack?s fuel wouldn?t last more than another two minutes.

Tari Redenn had those two minutes. Twisting her lekku headtails to communicate unspoken victory and confidence, she increased speed, diving down to four feet from the ground, leveled her Nightstinger at the now-panicked pirate, slowed, and was about to fire when an all-too-visible blaster bolt suddenly tore through the air.

Straight into the bounty?s head.

The man?s head snapped sideways, and he toppled over in that direction like a ton of durasteel plates.

Tari?s head also snapped sideways ? but this time to face the man?s killer.

The recently repainted but still visibly scarred Mandalorian armor stood out against the short, pale-green grass. Boba Fett.

Rage tore through the young, lavender-skinned Twi?lek like a wampa tearing a tauntuan apart. Barely noticing that she had dropped to the ground, she pointed her Nightstinger straight at him. ?Fett,? she hissed, skewering him with a look of pure loathing and contempt. ?Never steal my bounties. You?ll learn from it and you?ll pay for it.?

?I?m sure,? Fett replied sarcastically, his blaster pointed at her head. He had apparently changed a lot since their last meeting, but that had been before the Yuuzhan Vong invasion. She?d heard he had a Mandalorian remnant following going and wondered where they were now.

Tari bared her sharp teeth. ?Don?t play games with me, Fett,? she snarled. ?It?s too dangerous, considering that my reflexes are, what, three times better than yours??

Tari couldn?t read Fett?s expression through the Mandalorian helmet, but she would bet Y?Duul that Fett was smirking beneath his armor. ?The impudence of today's youth." He made a clucking sound through his helm. "Then, my smart little child, why didn?t you shoot the bounty the moment you saw my blaster??

??Lightspeed is the only thing constant,?? she said, quoting a famous math professor from Mrlisst.

Fett?s posture indicated his amusement. ?Really? I didn?t know you were that clever,? he taunted. ?A lecture in physics is not what I want. I want my two hundred thousand credits. And I will have them.? He gestured to the corpse.

Tari glanced over to the body instinctively, but suddenly realized her mistake. A stun wave washed over her as she turned to Fett once again. Her last thought was that Fett was at least compassionate enough to use a stun setting rather than a killing blaster bolt.

* * * * *

The boarding had been interesting. With the Oytar?s only boarding seal taken, the Galactic Alliance had to resort to the rather unorthodox method of prying the Starglea

 

Chapter Five

The next standard day, Gregge, Tad, and Ilo found themselves inside a Galactic Alliance military courtroom.

?Gregge Arron, please come up to the front,? a sharp voice rapped out. Gregge complied, then sat down.

?Gregge Arron, you have been accused of double-crossing peace conference guidelines. Do you deny this?? the Mon Calamari judge asked.

?Yes, I do, your Honor,? Gregge said. ?Tad Arole and I didn?t tell anyone but Ilo Flete that we were going to this meeting. Ilo stayed back in our ship, the Stargleam, in case anything happened. It pays to be cautious, but this did not break the guidelines in terms of that Ilo wasn?t present at the meeting and did not impose a threat to the Galactic Alliance.

?However,? he glanced at Tad, ?I would like to bring up charges against Lieutenant Ch?von Kryk, specifically for breaking these guidelines, which he set himself ?? he glared at Kryk, who pretended not to notice ?? and having his soldiers attack Tad and I with killing blaster bolts. We could have been killed.?

The room was deathly silent. ?Not the time for accusations, Mr. Arron,? the judge said quietly. ?Now, you said that he had brought backup troopers?? he asked Gregge.

Gregge?s throat bobbed nervously, and he nodded rapidly. ?He did indeed, and this was before he knew about that Dreadnaught. Ilo told us about that, said Lieutenant Kryk had mentioned it. Could you fill me in on that??

The judge looked thoughtful. ?Hmm, yes, I suppose we could. A Dreadnaught with an Independent Underground-used ID came out of hyperspace close to Denon. Calliope Base launched fighters, and the matter was cleaned up quickly with only one A-wing destroyed, and the pilot had ejected.?

Gregge glanced around the room. ?You have also been charged with assaulting a Galactic Alliance officer, Lieutenant Ch?von Kryk,? the judge added.

Gregge was embarrassed. ?I can buy him a new comlink. I didn?t harm a hair on his body, I just blasted his comlink.?

?Why did you not use a stun setting??

?My blaster was an older make, and it wasn?t equipped with stun,? Gregge answered truthfully.

?Bring me the weapon,? the judge commanded a couple people at the end of the room. After about a minute, the two returned, carrying between them a small pillow, upon which rested Gregge?s blaster.

The judge examined the blaster carefully for about five minutes, then said. ?This blaster indeed does not have a stun setting. Jury, please proceed to discuss.?

The jury vanished into a room. They came out only about fifteen minutes later, and went up to the judge and said something to him.

?All right, Gregge Arron, you are guilty of damaging personal property. Your punishment is a fine of 2000 credits. That?s due in a week.?

Gregge was relieved. ?No problem. Thank you, your Honor.?

The trial went on and on. Tad was found not guilty of murdering a Galactic Alliance soldier, as the soldier was attacking his party, but Ilo was found guilty of attacking a Galactic Alliance freighter without being attacked and without definite knowledge of its identity. However, he had used ion cannons, and so was only sentenced to a month in prison.

* * * * *

It wasn?t until a week full of paperwork later that they were sitting in the courtroom again. The blue man with red eyes was seated up at front. He was not smiling.

?Lieutenant Kryk, you have been charged with violating a ceasefire,? the old Calamarian judge rumbled. ?Do you deny this??

?Yes, your Honor, I do.? he said, looking slightly uneasy.

?Explain,? said the judge, a steely glint in his huge eyes.

?Well,? Kryk stammered, ?it was two on one! I thought that I should bring someone along. And so,? he glared across at Tad and Gregge, ?I did.?

?Fetch me the agreement!? the judge snapped. The two men hurried out and returned with the document, on a datapad.

?This clearly reads,? the judge said, ?that ?the parties should come alone. This should be a meeting between Lieutenant Ch?von Kryk, Captain Tad Arole, and Gregge Arron. There should be no inter

 

Chapter Six

The duo ran to the turbolift, rode up to the highest story (this took several minutes), ran through the hall, opened General Ryan?s door, and rushed inside his office.

General Ryan whipped out a blaster and pointed it somewhere between the two.

Tad drew slightly back. Though he and Gregge were unarmed, General Ryan still did not trust them. ?General Ryan, sir, may I inquire as to what?s going on??

General Ryan looked them over and lowered his blaster. ?The Independent Underground has bombed a presidential suite on Gannedon,? he informed them warily. ?Known official fatalities include an Ishi Tib Senator.?

?What?? Tad asked, alarmed. ?So they just killed an Ishi Tib Senator??

?That?s what I just said,? General Ryan replied.

?Aren?t Ishi Tib very?vengeful?? Gregge asked timidly.

General Ryan sighed. ?That?s just the problem. Tibrin will attack, Tibrin will get blasted by a stolen Star Destroyer or something, we have no authority to step in to assist, as we do not want to get involved in a war, and Tibrin will leave the Galactic Alliance after the Independent Underground turns it into a wasteland.?

?I see,? Tad said, ignoring the calm, feminine voice announcing over the comm reiterating what General Ryan had just said nearly verbatim. ?So, a lot of other worlds, misinterpreting your reluctance to step in, will secede from the Galactic Alliance??

?Exactly,? General Ryan groaned, scratching at his thick head of black hair and sighing.

?We were headed up here already to tell you how you might find out what the Independent Underground wants,? Gregge put in, trying to change the subject. ?If you allowed us to speak with them, under supervision, of course, seeing that we have joined the Galactic Alliance, they might be more willing to cooperate.?

General Ryan looked up at him. ?That?s a pretty good idea,? he stated slowly, emphatically. ?We could mediate for the Ishi Tib and the Independent Underground?s impending conflict, and resolve the whole problem!

You are given permission, no, an order, to interrogate those prisoners. You will be accompanied by six Galactic Alliance soldiers. Begin at once.?

?Thank you, General.? Tad bowed respectfully, and the two exited. They waited for their escort, which didn?t take too long.

They headed down to the interrogation chamber. A prisoner who was somehow familiar-looking was brought in, a defiant look on his face. The look suddenly vanished when he saw Tad.

?You two are Undergrounders!? he accused. ?You betrayed us!?

Tad cocked his head, ignoring Gregge, who had begun fuming. ?What? Why would we want to fight for the Independent Underground?? the Nautolan asked.

The Human prisoner glared at him. ?The government is too strong; it needs to go for good to better the galaxy. Anarchy is the only way. You know that, don?t you, traitor??

?No, actually, but thank you; you just told me precisely what I needed to know,? Tad said coolly. Behind him, he could hear the soldiers tapping furiously on their datapads.

?I might add that you are about as smart as a womp rat for falling for that gag,? the Nautolan added. ?I didn?t trip over that one when I was seven years old on Glee Anselm.?

The prisoner suddenly looked horrified, as if he had just realized his mistake. ?I have betrayed?? he cried in anguish.

Tad and Gregge turned their backs to him in unison. Tad ignored the prisoner?s wails as he was led away. ?Must be a real big secret, huh?? he muttered.

?No, I don?t get it either,? his first mate agreed, scratching his head of thick dark hair.

Pulling out his small viewscreen-equipped communicator, Tad pressed the button that would immediately patch him through to General Ryan. Naturally, immediately took about thirty seconds. Then, finally, the vid-screen flickered to life. General Ryan?s head and upper torso swam into view. The General was, quite unsurprisingly, sitting in the chair in his office.

?Make your report,? he ordered without preamble.

?General Ryan, sir,? Tad began. ?Durin