Aura Revealed
Chapter V | Episode VIII | 3/13/2020
Once back at base, Rath set to work on a number of tasks. Having time to himself without Twil or the others breathing down his neck was a rare respite and he intended to take full advantage of the much desired peace and privacy.
Taking a seat at his suite of terminals, Rath decided to finally make use of the backdoor into the Empire’s databases provided to him by none other than his old, hated nemesis, the late Teemo the Hutt.
He still couldn’t believe the worthless slug had managed it, but Rath did indeed have full access to everything the Empire kept on their official records. Of course, there was no doubt so much more hidden from “official” view, but Rath would work with what he had and see where it would lead him.
In just a few hours, Rath was able to learn more than he had in the past eight years. All his work up to this point seemed like a waste of effort. And all he and the rest of the Sovereign crew had accomplished seemed like child’s play compared to what they must do now.
“I knew you could do it, kid.” Nox praised him, gripping his shoulder and gently shaking him, “You found them.”
Rath stared at the information displayed before him in awe. He knew that Twil could sense their location at the second planet that damned compass was leading them to, but seeing the information now, seeing their names displayed before him, seeing actual proof, it was all too overwhelming for the Chiss.
“They’re really there.” Was all he could mutter.
“Seems like it.” Nox agreed.
Rath’s back was turned to his brother, but he could hear the smile in his voice. It was the some tone that he used with Rath as a child any time he overcame any particularly grueling training challenge. Despite the praise, Rath could not feel the same sense of joy that his brother was feeling.
“But they’re not all there.” He continued.
Nox was silent for a moment, then said, in a much less enthusiastic tone, “Yeah.”
“Father… Taven, Liran, Bihan, the twins… Dash…” Rath muttered the names in pain.
“I know.” Nox agreed solemnly, “But this is still a great accomplishment. You’ve been working so hard on finding them. Finding us. Just because they aren’t listed as slaves there, it doesn’t mean they’re… it could just mean they’re being held elsewhere. I mean, look at me. You found me at that filthy Hutt palace.”
“You’re right.” Rath said, shaking his head, trying and failing to discredit his fears. Nox had a point, but he also had to prepare himself for the worst case scenario. He had lost his family once before. He may have to deal with that loss a second time. But more importantly, a great many more were still alive, according to Imperial records, and he knew the exact location of the two concentration camps where they were being held. Camps located on a horrid little planet hidden away from the rest of the galaxy, hidden even from the Ascendancy, as far as Rath knew. A planet where the sadistic, insane Empire was clearly working on something bigger than Rath could even fathom.
A planet called Ilum.
Twil and the others had just arrived at Rath’s base, upon entering into the base proper, Twil could overhear a conversation Rath was having.
“Since when do you throw your lot in with the Rebels?” Rath asked, laughing.
“Well, you know, after doing that drop off job of yours, I got to talking with the recipients and they seemed like good people, with a good cause. Plus, it don’t hurt that they pay pretty well for the jobs they hire me for.” A gruff, familiar voice replied, with it’s own hardy chortle following.
Twil definitely recognized the voice, but it was much more vibrant than the last time he heard it.
“Sounds about right, you salty old space dog.” Rath replied, joining in the laughter, his tone then changed in an instant, “So, about the job.”
“Yeah…” Zoroc replied, in a similar, yet still slightly upbeat, tone, “How sure are you of all of this? You say you’ve found your family on this, what did you call it? Ilum?And there’s massive Imperial activity? I’m sure it’s nothing I haven’t seen before.”
“I found this information in the Empire’s own databanks. Good ol’ Teemo left me a backdoor access. Fool of a Hutt never knew what he had. And this is what I’ve found.”
Twil listened closer but there seemed to just be silence.
Finally Zoroc spoke up, “Rath, this is just a picture of an ice planet. There are dozens of these in the galaxy, fo r all you know, this could just be an old picture of Hoth.”
“You’re good eye is failing you, Captain.” Rath replied, “Look closer, look at the equator.”
Another moment of silence.
“What in the blazes is that?” Zoroc asked, with new gravitas in his voice.
“That is Project Aura. That is what the Empire is doing in the Unknown Regions. That is where my family and my people have been sent, to work as mind controlled slaves.”
“Rath…”
“I know. It’s bigger than anything we could have ever imagined. It’s more heavily defended than anything else in the entire Galaxy. So I understand if you’re not up to the job.”
Zoroc let out another guttural chuckle, “Nice try old friend. You know the dread Captain Kor Zoroc has never backed down from a challenge. Especially not when it comes to those filthy Imperials. So, what’s the job exactly?”
“It is my hope that I can convince my crew to sneak onto the planet. Once there, we find my family, and get out. But if things go south, if we need help. It would be great if you were nearby to provide support of some kind.”
“The Orbalisk isn’t crewed like it used to be, Rath. Even if it were… a blockade of that size…”
“Still isn’t enough to put a scare into the most feared space pirate of all time.” Rath finished the thought.
Zoroc let out a gruff laugh, and said, “Too right, old friend.”
“When I give the word, head to these coordinates.” Rath continued, “It’ll be far enough out of the way and away from the shipping lanes so no one will see you. If all goes to plan, you’ll have nothing to do, and this will just be a waste of time for you. But if we need help. You’ll be close enough to provide it.
“Oh, and one more thing. Spread the word to your Rebel friends. If they really are who they say they are. If they really are interested in stopping the Empire’s insane machinations, they’ll want to know about this place. They’ll also want to know that this place was connect to another code name: ‘Mk. 2 | DS-2.’”
Twil arched his eyebrow at that last sentence, unsure of the meaning.
“Stay safe, old friend.” Zoroc replied.
After hearing the communique end, Twil decided to head into the room full of terminals, “That was quite the conversation.” Twil said, announcing his, and the others’, presence.
“I’ve figured it out, Twil.” Rath said, showing no surprise at their sudden arrival, “I know what Project Aura is, now.”
“What?” Twil asked, shocked at the confidence in Rath’s voice and thoughts. There wasn’t a hint of doubt to be found.
“Project Aura seems to revolve around the Empire’s obsession with experimentation on Kyber crystals. Turning them into weapons of unbelievable destruction.” Rath continued, “We’ve already seen evidence of this experimentation twice before. That wretched Death Star, or DS-1, that Ota told us about. You had firsthand experience in the cleanup of that unfathomable space station… and more recently, the Conqueror. The special Star Destroyer with planet killing weaponry that Draven somehow rigged to blow. Those were both experiments in what the Empire could do with enough Kyber crystals. But those were just experiments. Small attempts to see what was possible. I believe Project Aura is the end goal.”
“Wait, the Death Star was a small experiment?!” Twil asked, unable to grasp Rath’s meaning of the word small, “It was the size of a freakin’ moon!”
“Yes. It was.” Rath said, unfazed, “And what’s bigger than a moon?” Striking a single key on one of his terminals, the largest screen in the room lit up, displaying an image Twil couldn’t quite comprehend, due to the sheer unbelievability of what Rath was suggesting.
“What is that?” Twil asked, unable to say more.
“This is a planet in the Unknown Regions that the Empire refers to as Ilum. As you can see, the entire equator of the planet has been severely altered. They are building something into the planet itself. Everything in regards to Project Aura, leads to this planet. And that includes thousands of shipments of mining equipment, construction equipment, slaves, and something the Empire has dubbed ‘serum.’”
“Serum?” Zanroy asked.
“The mind controlling neurotoxin we originally thought was created by Teemo the Hutt.” Rath explained.
“No way…” Twil almost whispered.
“It’s all going to Ilum. And it all makes sense now. My family, my people, and thousands upon thousands of others have all been taken to that forsaken rock to help the Empire build their latest insane weapon of galactic destruction. And while under the effects of the serum, the slaves are forced to simply work and work and work. No chance of revolt. No chance of escape. No chance of free will of any kind.”
“You mentioned a blockade?” Zanroy spoke up after a long moment of silence as this new information had settled into the collective conscious of the crew.
“I did.” Rath nodded his head, “This is the most heavily defended location in the entire Galaxy. It would make Coruscant’s defenses blush.”
“So, how do you suggest we get down on planet to rescue your family?” Zanroy continued.
Rath shook his head, “For once, I don’t have any plans. With the stealth technology of the Sovereign, we are invisible to any Imperial sensors. Our best shot would be to find the least fortified position, and try out best to stay out of sight from any actual ship viewports.
“The only other idea I’ve had is that we create enough of a distraction to pull the Empire’s attention away from our intended coordinates, long enough to get planetside.”
“And how do you suggest we create this distraction?” Twil asked.
“We’d need a damned army.” Rath said shaking his head.
“The Rebels are in no shape to fight.” Twil interjected.
“I know.” Rath replied, “I never intended on asking them to throw their lives away on this. It would be suicidal, considering their position right now. But there is another whom we could call upon for help.”
“Venlana.” Twil said, seeing where Rath was headed.
“Yes. The Pirate Queen and her armada. It’s the only thing close to a rival army big enough to cause a distraction on the scale we need.”
“She’d never agree to this.” Twil said, shaking his head, “She’s a pirate, and a selfish one at that. She’d need something to really make it worth her while.”
Rath sighed.
Twil then had an idea, “But maybe we can make it worth her while. Rath, can you access the shipping manifests for the next five shipments scheduled for this Ilum place?”
Rath shrugged, “Should be easy enough, I still have access to the backdoor, somehow.”
Twil waited as Rath went back to his terminals. After a shorter time than Twil expected, Rath had the results of Twil’s request. “Here we are, three ISD’s within the next week are set to ship out, two from Coruscant, one shipping out from Naboo. In two weeks, we have… One ‘experimental ship’ shipping out from the Kuat Drive Yards… hmm… could be another Conqueror class ship… and, hmm, odd, one unclassified cargo freighter heading out from Hutt Space. Exact location not listed.
“None of these ships are labeled as fully staffed, mostly quarter and half crew, max.”
“Is the cargo listed?” Twil asked.
“Kyber crystals, mining equipment, construction equipment and materials, slaves, and serum.” Rath read off the lists.
“Nothing valuable enough for Venlana. Well, except for the Kyber crystals.” Twil summed up.
“I’m sure the Pirate Queen wouldn’t turn down some slaves and mind control serum either.” Rath quipped, “Question is, do you really trust that woman with this kind of stuff?”
“I do.” Twil replied, almost automatically, “But I shouldn’t…” He added on, reluctantly.
“Rath.” Idozzi spoke up, “Are my parents on that planet as well?”
“Idozzi.” Rath replied, “Sorry, I’ve been so caught up in my findings that I completely forgot to tell you. No. You’re parents are not on Ilum. However, they are more than likely orbiting it. They are listed as being held on the ISD Solicitude.”
“Solicitude?” Zanroy interrupted.
“Yes.” Rath continued, “The Star Destroyer helmed by none other than Dac Diggersby. Zanroy, your father is the mastermind behind Project Aura.”
“What?!” Twil exclaimed, unable to process this.
“I’ve told you all before, we’re all connected to Aura in some way or another. And in my findings, I have found Dac Diggersby’s grimy little fingerprints all over Project Aura. So, in answer to your next question, yes, there’s a good chance he will be there, in orbit.”
“So, an army attacking for distraction might be a very bad idea.” Twil added, “We can’t risk damaging the Solicitude, running the risk of hurting Idozzi’s parents.”
Rath sighed, “Agreed.”
“We’ve gotta get on that ship!” Idozzi exclaimed.
“No. First we need to get planetside and save my family.” Rath countered.
“Why do they take priority?” Idozzi asked. Twil could sense the anger swelling up in the usually calm Twi’lek.
“Because it will be impossible to sneak onto a heavily defended planet after causing mass chaos aboard the top Star Destroyer in the blockade.” Rath countered, more coolly, yet clearly annoyed.
“Okay, step back, both of ya.” Twil said, getting between the two, “Idozzi, Rath is right. We’ll have a much better chance getting on planet first, using stealth and avoiding suspicion. That doesn’t mean that once his people are safe, that we won’t make the Solicitude our next highest priority. We’re getting everyone out of this alive. But we’re going to be smart about it.”
Still irritated, Twil could tell his words had reached the Twi’lek as she slunk back without saying more.
“Question still remains, though, how do we get on planet to begin with?” Zanroy asked.
It was a question that had been burning in Rath’s mind for the whole conversation. Even the stealthiest of flying still ran unbelievable risks. It was then that an idea formed in his head.
“The shipments.” Rath said.
“What?” Twil asked.
“We can piggyback a ride from one of the shipments heading out, from the manifests.”
“What do you mean, like fly in it’s wake and hope no one notices us following behind?”
Rath shook his head, “No, I mean we literally hitch a ride from one of the ISD’s heading to Ilum. Those behemoths have millions of blind spots. With the Sovereign’s stealth tech, they would never know we were there. ISD’s have a standard procedure of dumping any and all trash before making a jump to hyperspace. We hang out in orbit over Coruscant, wait for one of their ships to leave atmo, fly in among the debris and garbage they dump, blending in, so as to avoid any potential eyes from TIE escorts or what have you, then magnetically lock onto the back of the ship, hitching a ride as it enters hyperspace. Once it passes the blockade and enters Ilum’s atmosphere, we break off, find a nice safe spot to land, some distance away from the concentration camps, then hoof it from there.”
The others stared blankly at Rath for a minute, before Idozzi finally responded, “That’s insane.”
“I love it!” Twil shouted, nearly cutting off the Twi’lek.
“It’s risky, but it could work.” Zanroy replied.
“Unfortunately, I still have no idea how we’re going to get on the Solicitude.” Rath said, somewhat defeated. The tasks at hand seemed almost too daunting for this ragtag bunch of misfits who had so often in the past pulled off maneuvers he would have considered impossible.
“I think I can help there.” Zanroy said.
“Do any of these things have access to the Bounty Hunter’s Guild’s bounty boards?” Zanroy asked, gesturing to the ridiculously massive suite of terminals Rath had set up.
“Well, if you’re still technically registered with the guild, you should be able to access that easily enough.” Rath shrugged.
Zanroy then watched as Rath’s hands began flying over the keys, he wasn’t exactly sure what he was doing, but he assumed it had something to do with the massive amounts of encryption needed to keep this base secret.
After a few moments, the Chiss turned back to him and said, “It’s all yours.”
It didn’t take long for the former Bounty Hunter to access the old bounty boards. With a quick search, he found what he was looking for. Sure enough, his own father had posted a bounty on his head. Eight-hundred thousand credits for Zanroy Diggersby. The bounty had been posted only days after the incident with the Immobilizer-418.
Zanroy couldn’t help but let out a slight laugh at the absurdity of the number his father was asking for his capture.
“Well, there you have it.” Zanroy said, “There’s your in to the Solicitude. You claim my bounty and they’ll have to let you on board.”
“Eight-hundred thousand credits?!” Twil exclaimed, reading the post on the screen. Zanroy could practically hear the drool forming at the side of the Zeltron’s mouth.
“What are you talking about?” Rath asked, emphasizing almost every word in the sentence.
“It’s simple, really.” Zanroy replied, “Once we have your family safe and secure, maybe… maybe we drop them off on Zoroc’s ship?”
“I like that idea.” Rath interrupted.
“We head back toward Ilum,” Zanroy continued, “With you lot posing as bounty hunters, claiming that you captured me, and are delivering the bounty straight to Dac Diggersby himself. They’ll no doubt allow you on board the Solicitude, Dac might even wish to speak with you personally. Rath, you can stay cloaked, Twil, you might want a disguise. But honestly, that might be the easiest way to on the ship itself.”
“But once we’re on, you’d be defenseless…” Twil spoke up, “If you’re intending to go up against your dad… You’ll need a weapon.”
Zanroy scoffed, “Twil, you know better than anyone that I’m never defenseless.”
“Yeah, yeah, but I’d feel better if you had some sort of way to hide a weapon or two… Hmm…” The Zeltron was eyeing Zanroy’s leg in a way that made him feel extremely uncomfortable.
“Never thought you’d have to hear this from a man, but, Twil, my eyes are up here.” Zanroy said, trying to get the Zeltron to stop staring at him in such a creepy way.
“Yes, but you can’t hide a lightsaber in your eye.” Twil replied, with a smile forming on his face.
“What are you-. Oh. I see.” Zanroy replied.
“Rath, would it be possible for you to hollow out Zanroy’s cybernetic leg to hide his lightsabers from within?” Twil asked.
Zanroy turned to face the Chiss who had a particularly surprised look on his face. “Uh… Well… I guess that could be possible. Yeah. Sure.” He stumbled over his words, gaining more confidence with each second, “Yeah, that should be doable, not a bad idea at all, actually. How do you want it designed?”
“Easily concealable.” Twil spoke up.
“Designed in a way that only I can access it.” Zanroy added.
Rath furrowed his brow for a moment, then said, “How about this. I’ll make two openings, one in the side of the thigh, and one in the side of the calf. The mechanics of the… doors, for lack of a better term will be fully integrated within the leg, there will be no way of opening it from the outside. But you, having your Force powers, you can manipulate the gears from within, causing it to open or shut.”
“Brilliant!” Twil exclaimed.
“Sounds good to me.” Zanroy replied.
“Alright. Let’s get to work.” Rath said, shaking his head.
With the augmentations and preparations complete. The crew of the Sovereign were ready to head out to Coruscant. Before Rath left for the hangar, however, he stopped to speak with his brother.
“How much of all of that were you able to pick up?” He asked in his native tongue. He knew that Nox was learning Basic, but he was unsure just how proficient he was in the aptly named language.
“Enough of it.” Nox replied in Cheunh.
“Then my next question is-”
Nox held up his hand, silencing Rath.
“Brother, you know how badly that I want to be a part of this. I miss them just as much as you do. And I would like nothing more than to be at your side to help rescue them. But I also know that I would be of much better use to you here. Should things go poorly, I will be in a better position to aid you here. And should things go very poorly…”
Rath nodded, and hugged his dear brother tightly. He understood. It was something all within House Ahnkylos understood. Missions were dangerous. Missions often meant the risk of never returning. And in the event that such a failure should occur, it fell to the rest of the family to clean up, cover up, or continue said mission.
Rath was leaving to rescue what little family he could. But it also meant that this might be the last time the two brothers would ever be together, because this could easily be the last mission of Rath’s short, tragic life.
“We are born in the shadows.” Nox said.
“We fight in the shadows.” Rath replied.
“We die in the shadows.” Nox continued.
“In the shadows, we do this for one unifying cause.” Rath continued.
“Justice.” The two said in unison, clasping their hands together.
“Bring them home.” Nox whispered.
Rath simply nodded, and rushed out towards the hangar.
Twil had been sitting in the cockpit of the Sovereign, hovering just outside of Coruscant’s orbit for hours. Despite not doing much of anything, he was far from bored. The tension in the cockpit was thick enough to cut with a vibro-knife.
Rath had agreed to handle the extremely precise piloting of the ship required to pull off the maneuver, by linking up his implant directly into the Sovereign itself.
They had already watched the first ISD leaving Coruscant, heading toward Ilum. Twil and the others agreed to try for the second, believing it to be the safer of the two, as it was less staffed, although not by much, according to the manifests.
“There it is.” Twil spoke up, spotting the Star Destroyer slowly rising from Coruscant’s atmosphere.
“The ISD Pride of Palpatine.” Rath cited the name of the ship, with clear disgust in his voice.
Not that Twil could blame him. The name was ostentatious and Palpatine was at the heart of all their troubles, when it really came right down to it. It was that wrinkled, old prune that ran the Empire, causing untold destruction across the entire Galaxy.
But now was not the time for idle thoughts.
“You ready for this?” Twil asked.
“Ready as I’ll ever be.” Rath said, his voice shaking slightly.
Twil watched with bated breath as sure enough, the Star Destroyer let loose a small load of debris and garbage. Acting quicker than Twil anticipated, Rath flew the Sovereign into the large chunks of scrap metal, somehow expertly weaving in and out, not getting a scratch on the Sovereign.
But the Zeltron could tell that the pressure was getting to his friend. Flying was not exactly his strong suit. It wasn’t the strong suit of anyone on the crew, ironically. They all knew how to fly, of course, but it was never a specialty. Flying of this magnitude certainly was never required of Twil as a cargo freighter.
Still, he wanted to help Rath in any way he could. Making use of the newfound power bestowed upon him by Suljo Warde, Twil attempted to see into the future. Sure enough, he was granted a vision as clear as day. He could see Rath weaving through the debris, flying up flush with the back of the Star Destroyer, barely missing the blast of the engines, settling in, and activating the magnetic feet of the Sovereign, latching itself to the larger ship without incident.
Using the Force, Twil projected this vision into Rath’s own mind. He could see Rath startle for the briefest of moments, but he was able to recover quickly enough. And just as Twil had foreseen, Rath managed to pull off the maneuver, expertly. Latching onto the ship mere seconds before it launched into hyperspace.
With an exhausted sigh of relief, Rath fell back into his chair, and said, “Now we wait. In one week, we’ll be on Ilum.”
The next week was quieter and more tense than the usual flights on the Sovereign, Zanroy noticed.
Rath was holed up in his quarters, working on the continued repairs of R5, with the occasional Chiss curse being shouted from time to time.
Idozzi was practicing her blaster training in the cargo room.
Twil was moving very oddly, peeking around hallways, checking in on people, then quietly laughing to himself, seemingly pleased with every mundane thing he observed.
But Zanroy had bigger things on his mind.
He knew he should probably be focusing on the trials that lay ahead of them, but there was only one thought on his mind that he could really focus on. A thought that he had not entertained in some time: Elaiza.
Reaching out with the Force, Zanroy attempted, once again, to seek out the old woman’s movements. They were, after all, headed to a location that was first revealed to them by the compass Elaiza had entrusted to them.
In his searching, he was granted strange visions, that did not seem entirely right. The vision of Elaiza’s farewell all that time ago kept replaying in his head. And yet, it seemed altered. He could see the woman getting into a small shuttle with her two children. He watched the shuttle take off. And although impossible to tell, he knew that when the shuttle leapt to hyperspace, it was heading towards the Unknown Regions.
Again, and again, he reached out with the Force. And yet, the same vision just kept replaying in his mind.
“What are you doing out there?” He wondered aloud, “Maybe I’ll find out sooner than later…”
“Look alive people, it’s showtime!” Twil called out.
Rath headed to the cockpit, and sure enough, they had just exited hyperspace. The sight before them was shocking, despite Rath knowing full well what to expect. Hundreds upon hundreds of Star Destroyers blockaded the planet. Defenses the likes of which Rath had never seen before.
He held his breath as the Star Destroyer that they were riding passed by without incident.
As they drew closer to the planet, Rath could make out more details of the project at hand. The equator was certainly destroyed. Whatever they were building, they were building it into the planet. This was certainly no city, or even a base of operations. This was something much more sinister. And equally defended.
Rath could not believe his own eyes as he saw the sheer number of AT-AT’s and AT-ST’s patrolling the surface. They certainly would have their work cut out for them here…
“Okay, Twil, detach now. We’re far enough from orbit and the ground, no one will see us. Stealth suite is activating properly.” Rath informed him.
“You got it buddy.” Twil said, releasing the magnetic hold the Sovereign had on the back of the Star Destroyer, “Where to?”
“This is the site of the first concentration camp. It has fewer family members in it. It’s my hope that fewer will be easier to smuggle out and back to the ship first.” Rath said, giving the coordinates, “We’ll need to land a few miles out from it, to avoid detection. Head in on foot.”
“Yep.” Twil replied.
Rath knew that they all already knew the plan, they had discussed it many, many times during the flight here. But nerves were getting the better of him. He had been working toward this point for over eight years, after all. No matter how he tried to quell it, he could not help but feel overwhelmingly anxious.
As they drew closer to the planet, another, unexpected emotion shot through Rath like a blaster bolt to the gut. This planet. Ilum. Rath could not help but notice the undeniable similarities between it and his home planet of Csilla. It was like a sickening, twisted version of his home. One, a source of constant comfort and protection, the other, a looming threat of utter destruction and annihilation.
Shaking his head back to the present situation, Rath spotted a cavern he suspected might be suitable enough to hide the Sovereign from view. “There.” He said, pointing it out to Twil.
“Seems as good as any.” Twil said with a shrug.
“Well, do I look the part?” Twil asked.
Rath looked Twil over approvingly, he was dressed in the Imperial uniform replica he had made by Solomahal so many years prior, in anticipation for just such an event. Twil was also making use of Rath Tech Flesh camouflage device, making the Zeltron appear to be no more than an average human.
“Should work.” Rath said, “Very few will turn an eye at a human Imperial officer, his bodyguard, and his Twi’lek ‘attache.’”
“As if there was ever any other role you guys would have me fill.” Idozzi replied, rolling her eyes.
“We play the hands we’re dealt.” Rath shrugged, activating his stealth suit, “Now let’s get going.”
As the four exited the Sovereign and began the long slog through the harsh winter storms of Ilum’s glacial terrain, they were eventually greeted with a fork in the road. Separated by towering mountains of ice, there were two paths before them.
“Which way, Twil?” Rath asked.
Twil could hear the impatience and anxiousness in the Chiss’s voice. It was unlike anything he had ever experienced from his friend before.
Using the Force, Twil could indeed sense the three family members that Rath had described earlier, they were some distance away, but certainly straight ahead. That information did him very little good, though, as it didn’t tell him which path would lead them straight ahead.
“I’m not sure.” Twil replied, “Rath, start walking toward the left path, and I can try to see where that will lead you.”
Twil couldn’t see the Chiss, but he could practically feel the all too familiar incredulous look Rath was giving him.
“Yeah, sure.” Rath replied.
As Rath began to walk forward, Twil made use of his newfound power of foresight, once again. He could see Rath taking the path with ease, eventually reaching a point where he stopped at a corner, and looked to the right.
“Alright stop.” He called out, after Rath had only taken a few steps.
“Now start heading right.”
He could hear the Chiss sigh, but the sound of footsteps followed.
Once more Twil was greeted with a vision. This time, Rath was seen pulling out his weapon.
“Stop!” Twil almost yelled, “The left path.”
“Okay then.” Rath replied, heading left once more, with Idozzi and Zanroy following.
Twil was about to head down the path himself, when a new voice shouted out to him. “Halt! State your name and business.”
Twil slowly turned to see an Imperial Stormtrooper, of some sort of special rank indicated by the colored shoulder pad, approaching from the right path.
“Oh, hello there.” Twil replied, “Lieutenant Jacobs. Fresh off of the Pride of Palpatine. They sent me down here to inspect the ‘help.’ See what needs reassigning, restocking, what have you. You, know.”
The Stormtrooper cocked his head, “Never heard of you, Jacobs. What regiment do you belong to?”
With a quick mind sweep, Twil was able to gather all the information he needed. “Charley group. Just got assigned, though probably won’t be there long. You know how it is. Always getting sent every which way. Well, every way except off this damn ice rock.” He said with a laugh.
The trooper chuckled in response, lowering his gun, “Tell me about it. Least they can do is send us some proper heaters. Two brand new droids, completely frozen over just today.”
“Ugh, isn’t that always the way?” Twil asked.
“Yeah.” The trooper replied, “Well, off with you then. You’re probably freezing worse than me in that uniform.”
Twil laughed, “Yeah, gotta love regulations, eh?”
He then watched as the trooper headed off in the opposite direction.
“Masterfully played, as always.” Rath commented, no longer impressed by just how easily Twil could manipulate people.
“It’s a gift.” Twil replied cheerily.
“One I believe we’ll need more than once while we’re here…” Rath replied.
As the four traveled down the winding paths, that was indeed the case, as Twil had to talk his way out of a few more choice encounters, including one with an AT-ST.
Yet, eventually they reached the main construction site. It took all Rath had to not completely lose his cool as the four wandered unhindered through the place. Everywhere Rath looked, there were hundreds, if not thousands, of slaves toiling away. All with the same glassy eyed look in their worn down faces. They were all under the influence of the serum. thousands of mind controlled slaves of every possible species, including his own. The people he had sworn on his life to protect. The sight was sickening. But even more gut wrenching was the knowledge that there was nothing he could do for any of them, at the moment. He was here for one purpose, and one purpose only. It was his great hope, though, that that purpose might some day lead to the freedom of every single slave on this forsaken planet.
This place was far too much for Twil to handle. He could feel the souls of every being here. Lifeless. Dead. Mindless. Unable to even hope for an end to their unimaginable suffering. What’s more. He could feel the cry of the planet itself. This was once a special place. A holy place. A place of light and goodness. And now… It was being warped and twisted in a way that Twil could not bear. But it was also a place enriched with the light side of the Force, despite the actions of its latest inhabitants. The planet exuded the light in a way that Twil had never felt before. And it was to this light that the Zeltron clung to for comfort.
Eventually they had made it to where the coordinates for the concentration camps were located. Standing at the door were three Stormtroopers.
“What’s your business here, lieutenant?” One of the troopers asked.
Again, Twil went into the same spiel he had given half a dozen times already, making use of the Force to influence the weak minds of the troopers. However, this time, his story was interrupted by his datapad alarm going off.
“Uh, hold on a sec, guys, someone probably wants a caf refill.” He said with a fake laugh.
Pulling up the datapad, he found that there were three Stormtroopers investigating the Sovereign. Apparently they hadn’t hidden it well enough.
Making use of the remote controls, Twil attempted to fire the ship’s turrets at the intruders. Due to the awkward angling and tight quarters, Twil had more trouble than usual. He was able to take care of two of the troopers, but one escaped.
Knowing that he would bring an army on the Sovereign, Twil remotely activated the ship’s engines, and flew it out of the cave as fast as possible. The next few minutes were sheer chaos as Twil inadvertently flew the Sovereign over a fleet of AT-AT’s. Using maneuvers he wasn’t sure he was capable of, Twil avoided the war machines’ blaster fire, and somehow managed to hide the ship within one of the planet’s many crevices.
By the time he looked up from his datapad, he found that the troopers were gone.
“What happened?” Twil asked, confused.
“They left the second your datapad alarm went off.” Zanroy explained, probably sent to deal with the ‘intruder.’”
“Oh, convenient.” Twil said with a smile.
With the last resistance out of the way, Rath was in no mood for delaying this any further. Pushing forward, they were met with yet another blast door. Through Zanroy’s incredibly strength in the Force, however, he was able to lift the massive blast door open.
As the continued further and further, opening a few more ridiculously large blast doors, Rath found that the man made structures had all but stopped. They were in the cavern’s of the planet now.
“You’re sure this is the way?” Rath asked, anxiously.
“Right through that door.” Twil replied.
“Zanroy?” Rath asked, as the human once more made use of his power to lift the otherwise sealed blast door.
As the door opened, Rath could hear the others cough and gag. Whatever it was they were smelling, Rath was immune, thanks to his suit. The cavernous room was dark and barren. But with Rath’s infrared vision, he could see well enough.
He led the others further into the area, reaching a turn in the cavern.
“Are those what I think they are?” Twil exclaimed.
Down one path was a wall full of naturally formed Kyber crystals. As the others rushed to investigate, Rath could only shake his head in disgust. He was not remotely interested in the trinkets of the Jedi. The xrystals now being used by the Empire to wreak untold havoc. That was not why he was here.
Continuing down the opposite path, however, Rath was greeted by a sight much more sickening. At his feet laid piles and piles of corpses. Chiss corpses.
“No…” Was all he could utter as he gazed at the death before him.
He felt sick. He did his best not to investigate the bodies too closely. His brothers were alive. They had to be. Carefully walking around the piles as best he could, he made his way further into the cavern.
And there, at the very end, he saw three individuals, sitting on the ground, hunched over, seemingly unaware or uncaring of his presence.
Rath walked slowly and deliberately, not even aware if any of the others had been able to pry themselves away from their damned crystals. Not even caring if they had. There was no other thought in his mind. As he drew closer, the features of the three became clearer in the dark cave. Their faces were sallow, their bodies were frail and emaciated. Their eyes were dull, lifeless, and glassy. They were shells of their former selves. But there was no mistaking who they were.
They were his brothers. Men whom he had looked up to all his life. Men who had taught, trained, and loved him. Azlan, his eldest brother. Ranik, and older, adopted brother. And finally, Thex, the brother who had taught him more than any other, save only for Nox.
They were there. They were alive. But they were clearly closer to death than life. And they clearly were not even aware of the man standing before them. Taking three vials of the neurotoxin antidote, which Nox had been producing ever since returning to Rath’s base, Rath injected the serum into each Chiss there.
He then took off his helmet, and watched.
Slowly, one by one, Rath could see the life returning to their eyes. As they became more and more aware of their surroundings, they finally noticed Rath standing before them. Confusion and exhaustion clouded their minds.
As Azlan looked up at Rath, though, he could see the confusion slowly lift, as a faint smile painfully crept across his lips, he said, “It’s good to see you, brother.”
