Abi Ocopaqui frowned as she descended the Muurian transport\u2019s boarding ramp. The six Wookiees were in tow, one of them carrying the dark Jedi over his shoulder like a sack of rocks, with no indication or concern that she would be awaking anytime soon.<\/p>\n
What concerned her, though, was the officer running the Cathleen<\/em>\u2019s comm board. He had indicated that Halyn had been unavailable, and was in fact in the ship\u2019s medical bay.<\/p>\n The Twi\u2019lek turned at the whine of repulsorlifts, saw Li Coden float an X-wing into the hangar. Might not support starfighter operations, but there\u2019s sure enough space to set one fighter down.<\/em> She glanced around the crowded hangar. Of course, the fact that all the Muurians are currently parked here makes it a bit more cramped.<\/em><\/p>\n The New Republic pilot found a clear patch of decking to set the fighter down, then vaulted from the cockpit and jogged over to Abi. \u201cWhat\u2019s going on?\u201d he asked breathlessly.<\/p>\n Abi shook her head. \u201cI don\u2019t know. We found the traitor, and I tried to comm Anishor and Halyn to report it, but neither of them would answer. The comm officer reported that they\u2019re both in the medbay.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMed bay?\u201d Li frowned. \u201cDid he go and do something and get himself stabbed or beaten?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWouldn\u2019t surprise me, and it\u2019s not like he doesn\u2019t occasionally deserve it.\u201d<\/p>\n Li nodded agreeably and walked behind the Wookiee carrying the unconscious traitor. \u201cThat\u2019s her. Where did you find her?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cShe walked straight into a firefight between us and the Vong, swinging a lightsaber around.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cLightsaber?\u201d Li asked, raising both eyebrows.<\/p>\n \u201cDark Jedi,\u201d Abi said grimly.<\/p>\n \u201cHow\u2019d you put her down?\u201d<\/p>\n Abi hesitated. \u201cI\u2026didn\u2019t. We were fighting on the Muurian\u2019s boarding ramp and she just collapsed.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat doesn\u2019t sound very Jedi-like.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNot so much, no. Ran a medical scan with the Muurian\u2019s on-board gear, and she looks like she got the crap kicked out of her by someone or something\u2014broken bones, bruised ribs, a mild concussion. Nothing to explain the collapse, though.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cJust be grateful,\u201d Li advised.<\/p>\n \u201cI would be, if I wasn\u2019t worried she\u2019d wake up and go after us with a lightsaber again.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThen make sure she doesn\u2019t have the lightsaber,\u201d Li advised.<\/p>\n \u201cAlready took care of that,\u201d Abi said. \u201cYou think I\u2019d risk keeping a lightsaber on the same ship as a knocked-out dark Jedi? Hardly.\u201d She shook her head. \u201cWe\u2019d better get moving, find out why the boss is in the medbay.\u201d<\/p>\n The two of them fell into step, the Wookiees clustering in behind with the captive dark Jedi held in the middle. \u201cLi, I have a question,\u201d Abi asked quietly. \u201cDoes it feel to you like we\u2019re losing this war?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou mean here on Iridonia, or the wider war?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIridonia.\u201d<\/p>\n Li hesitated, waited until the turbolift doors were closed before he answered. \u201cHalyn and the Zabraks have held out longer than anyone else so far with Vong occupation forces actually on-planet, but they\u2019re slowly losing ground. The fighter defenses are being whittled away by the constant combat. If the Vong sent another fleet here, the planet would fall within a week.\u201d<\/p>\n Abi nodded. \u201cI\u2019m seeing a lot of the same things. The ground forces have been pushed through a ringer, and there\u2019s not much left of them. I mean, there\u2019s not enough food and medical supplies to go around, and the battalion leaders are starting to combine squads to keep fighting forces capable of engaging the Vong. Hell, half of Rak\u2019Edalin\u2019s been reduced to rubble, and if the Vong keep pushing it\u2019ll be three-quarters before we know it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhy are you asking?\u201d Li asked.<\/p>\n The Twi\u2019lek was silent until the turbolift\u2019s doors slid open again. \u201cI\u2019m trying to figure out if there\u2019s a way to turn it around, or at the very least, escape from the trap this planet\u2019s become.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou don\u2019t think Halyn can do it?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cLi, I was at Ithor, Ord Mantell, Fondor, Duro, and Coruscant. I don\u2019t know if anyone<\/em> can do it anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n The two walked without further comment until they reached the medbay. Whatever Abi was expecting to see, it wasn\u2019t the scene in front of her.<\/p>\n Three beds bore sheet-covered bodies. Small bodies<\/em>, Abi observed. Children.<\/em><\/p>\n Other beds in the medbay were mostly empty, save one holding up a blue-skinned Twi\u2019lek woman whose skin was ashen. Abi Number Two!<\/em><\/p>\n Around the Twi\u2019lek were three people: Halyn, standing upright but with his eyes lowered and head bowed. Anishor and the Jedi Knight Kelta Rose both knelt, their hands outstretched and resting on the fallen Twi\u2019leks arms. Neither of them looked up, and Abi had the sense of profound concentration from both of them.<\/p>\n \u201cHalyn,\u201d Abi said softly. \u201cHalyn, we nailed the traitor.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHal,\u201d the dark Jedi whispered.<\/p>\n Abi turned and had her scatter pistol leveled at the traitor in a heartbeat. Her finger was tight against the trigger, ready to squeeze should she do so much as murmur another word or wave a hand or do anything that suggested she was about to accomplish more than lay limply over a Wookiee\u2019s shoulder.<\/p>\n To her not-so-mild annoyance, Halyn\u2019s hand twisted her wrist, forcing the scatter pistol away. \u201cNo,\u201d Halyn snarled.<\/p>\n \u201cShe\u2019s the traitor,\u201d Abi hissed. \u201cLi and I both identified her. I don\u2019t care who she is, but she has to die. She\u2019s a dark Jedi, Hal, and if you let her wake up she\u2019ll kill us all.\u201d<\/p>\n <No, she won\u2019t,> Anishor rumbled. He was rising from the floor, a troubled look in his eyes. <Halyn, what\u2019s going on?><\/p>\n \u201cSet her down on a bed,\u201d Halyn instructed, ignoring his old friends and allies. The berserker gave Anishor a questioning look first, then set the dark Jedi down with his leader\u2019s approving nod.<\/p>\n \u201cHalyn,\u201d she whispered.<\/p>\n Abi watched tensely as Halyn leaned over the dark Jedi. Her eyes slowly opened, and she whispered, \u201cThe children?\u201d<\/p>\n Halyn struggled to speak, and a tear rolled down his cheek. \u201cNop and Sash,\u201d he whispered. \u201cI\u2019m so sorry, Katie. It was my fault.\u201d<\/p>\n Her hand came up and slapped him, but he didn\u2019t pull away. \u201cI\u2019m so sorry. It\u2019s my fault,\u201d he repeated.<\/p>\n The dark Jedi screamed then, a sound so mournful and savage that Abi leveled her scatter pistol at the traitor in spite of Halyn\u2019s proximity. \u201cGet back,\u201d she barked at Halyn. \u201cShe\u2019ll kill us all!\u201d<\/p>\n This time it was Anishor<\/em> who pushed the scatter pistol down. I am getting sick of that<\/em>, Abi grumbled silently. Next time someone tries it, I\u2019m going to shoot him.<\/em><\/p>\n <This is Halyn\u2019s sister, Kativie> Anishor rumbled quietly.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s what one of the berserkers said,\u201d Abi said tightly. \u201cDoesn\u2019t make any difference to me.\u201d<\/p>\n <She is a Jedi Knight and no traitor to Iridonia,> Anishor insisted.<\/p>\n \u201cWell, she sold out the Iridonians to the Vong,\u201d Abi snarled. \u201cLi and I were there and watched it!\u201d<\/p>\n <The Vong have killed two of her children,> the Wookiee replied, his voice even quieter.<\/p>\n Abi glanced over at the shrouded beds again. \u201cOh,\u201d was all she could manage. The sound of a slap brought her attention back to the bed where Kativie was lying flat on her back. Halyn\u2019s face was turned away, a red imprint already spreading across his cheek.<\/p>\n Halyn slowly straightened. With his back still turned, he said, \u201cAbi, I know you believe Kativie is a traitor to Iridonia and to the Republic. She\u2019s not.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m going to require more convincing than that,\u201d Abi said shortly. \u201cAnd what happened to Abi Number Two?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSandarie was poisoned,\u201d Halyn said hoarsely. \u201cThe scarheads sent a team to assassinate me, here on the Cathleen<\/em>. She was supposed to be with the clan children, several decks and a dozen locked bulkheads away. Instead, they came to surprise me and walked straight into a Vong ambush.\u201d<\/p>\n Abi grimaced. She had been a bounty hunter, a soldier, a warrior, a New Republic agent. There were certain lines even she<\/em> hadn\u2019t crossed, and slaughtering defenseless kids was one of them. \u201cWhat happened?\u201d Abi asked slowly.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Vong were locked in a room with them for ten, maybe fifteen seconds. Three of the kids were killed by the Vong, and an amphistaff bit Sandarie, before we could intervene.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThey were supposed\u2026be safe,\u201d Kativie mumbled from her bed. Abi glanced over, saw the traitor trying to sit up.<\/p>\n \u201cI know,\u201d Halyn said, his voice even hoarser. \u201cThey should have been safe. It\u2019s my fault, Katie. It\u2019s all my fault.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHow is it your fault?\u201d Li asked, his voice low and tight. \u201cShe\u2019s the traitor.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cShe was working for me<\/em>,\u201d Halyn hissed. \u201cDon\u2019t you get it? She\u2019s been feeding the Vong information so we can predict their actions. As long as she was feeding them knowledge that was accurate, they wouldn\u2019t try to infiltrate another spy into our ranks. It was supposed to be my role, but after Argus died\u2026\u201d Halyn\u2019s voice died, and it was nearly a full minute later before he could speak again. \u201cAfter Argus died, I had to put someone I trusted in that role. Someone I trusted absolutely, that I knew could never, ever betray Iridonia.\u201d<\/p>\n The Zabrak sighed. \u201cFrom the fall of Ithor, Argus and I planned for this. We knew that, sooner or later, the Yuuzhan Vong would come here to Iridonia. We spent months preparing our defenses. We planned every detail. We wargamed every scenario. The two of us concluded that we would have to put our own infiltrator among the Vong\u2019s ranks, a traitor that would allow us to feed the Vong the information we wanted them to have.\u201d<\/p>\n He shifted uncomfortably in his seat. \u201cArgus was supposed to be the great hero, the leader who would command Iridonia\u2019s forces. Neither of us expected the Council to appoint an Ul\u2019akhoi, but it would\u2019ve\u2014should have\u2014been him, not me. I was going to take the risk of being the traitor, of working with the Vong and giving them information. When Argus died, everything changed\u2014I was suddenly in the commandership, because there was no one else to do it. I needed a traitor, someone I could trust absolutely to do what was necessary for Iridonia. That traitor was Kativie\u2014a Jedi Knight, my own sister, the one person no one would suspect as the turncoat who betrayed Iridonia.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhy didn\u2019t you tell<\/em> us?\u201d Abi asked sharply. \u201cWhy let us chase our tails around trying to find a traitor that wasn\u2019t?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHow could I know that you<\/em> hadn\u2019t defected?\u201d Halyn rasped. \u201cHow could I know if you were still loyal? There\u2019s a lot of old-timers who have gone over to the Peace Brigade, to the Vong. Especially now that Coruscant\u2019s fallen and the galaxy is getting worse and worse. I couldn\u2019t trust anyone<\/em>, except her.\u201d<\/p>\n <Not even me?> Anishor\u2019s question sounded very displeased to Abi\u2019s ear.<\/p>\n \u201cI trusted you, Anishor, but not with everything. You didn\u2019t need to know everything. Only Katie did, because she was my second\u2014if something happens to me, she\u2019s the only one who has the knowledge of our plans and defenses to still keep Iridonia free.\u201d<\/p>\n <So you didn\u2019t trust any of us?><\/p>\n Halyn shook his head. \u201cNot completely, no. Most of you I hadn\u2019t seen since Endor, and people change.\u201d He locked eyes with Anishor. \u201cEven Wookiees.\u201d<\/p>\n The answering growl was wordless but clearly unhappy.<\/p>\n \u201cI won\u2019t pretend any of you like the decision I made,\u201d Halyn said quietly. \u201cAnd I\u2019m sorry for not trusting you. But I\u2019ve done what I\u2019ve done for the sake of Iridonia, not myself.\u201d He looked up at Anishor. \u201cCan you save Sandarie?\u201d<\/p>\n The Wookiee\u2019s answer was slow. <The venom is not of this galaxy, not in the Force. Were it a Sith creation, she would already be healed. But this poison\u2014I cannot touch it with the Force. With my strength, I can hold it at bay, but only for so long.><\/p>\n \u201cKelta?\u201d the Ul\u2019akhoi asked.<\/p>\n The red-headed woman reluctantly removed her hands from the Twi\u2019lek. \u201cNo,\u201d she said quietly. \u201cI\u2019m not a healer, and Anishor\u2019s skills surpass mine. There\u2019s nothing I can do for her, except perhaps ease her pain.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cUh, didn\u2019t the New Republic develop antitoxin for Twi\u2019leks after Ithor?\u201d Li asked cautiously.<\/p>\n \u201cYes,\u201d Kelta spoke up. \u201cJedi Knight Daeshara\u2019cor died from amphistaff venom on one of the herd ships. Shortly after, Master Cilghal and the New Republic\u2019s medical corps researched the venom and developed antitoxins for a wide range of species, including Twi\u2019lek.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSo what are we waiting for?\u201d Li asked.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is Iridonia,\u201d Halyn said softly. \u201cKeeping up to date on Twi\u2019lek medical research isn\u2019t really a priority here. Our Holonet relay was cut at the same time the Vong assassins hit my quarters, so we have no way of getting the information short of a courier.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSo send a courier,\u201d Abi said tightly. \u201cNot to be selfish, but I\u2019d like to know I\u2019m going to live if one of those snakes bites me.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s nothing on Iridonia that can break the blockade,\u201d Halyn said. \u201cEven the few smugglers who enlisted wouldn\u2019t be able to fly their way out.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSo we just let her die?\u201d Kelta asked tiredly.<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u201d Halyn\u2019s voice was almost inaudible. \u201cIf she\u2019s going to survive, the only thing we can do is freeze her in carbonite. Put her in hibernation, slow her system down until we can get her offworld. It would buy her weeks, maybe months, to get her an antitoxin.\u201d<\/p>\n <If it doesn\u2019t kill her.> Anishor was not a pessimist, but he was not confident in Halyn\u2019s plan. <Freezing someone in carbonite is stressful\u2014not everyone survives the experience.><\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s why I need you and Kelta both doing whatever you can to keep her alive during the freezing process.\u201d Halyn\u2019s voice grew stronger. \u201cAnd we need to do it now, before more time passes and the venom further damages her. The longer we wait, the less the odds of her survival.\u201d<\/p>\n Nods were exchanged around the room. Halyn took a deep breath. \u201cI need you all to leave,\u201d he said softly. \u201cSo I can talk to Kativie alone.\u201d<\/p>\n Abi bit down the urge to argue with him. What if she really is a traitor?<\/em> she asked herself. Just because Halyn thinks she\u2019s working for him doesn\u2019t mean she couldn\u2019t have been playing him, too.<\/em> But when the Twi\u2019lek looked at the Ul\u2019akhoi, then the Jedi, she decided it wasn\u2019t likely. No, she wasn\u2019t. Not if they’re siblings. Family ties run deep on Iridonia.<\/em><\/p>\n Instead, she waited until Anishor had picked up Sandarie, then fell into step with Li and Kelta behind him, following him out of the medbay and to a carbon-freezing chamber.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Halyn waited until the others had left the medbay, then dropped to his knees. \u201cI\u2019m so sorry, Katie,\u201d he whispered. \u201cIt was all my fault. I thought I was so smart, but I made horrible mistakes. My arrogance got two of your kids killed.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWhy?\u201d Kativie rasped. \u201cWhy was it me who paid for it? Why wasn\u2019t it you?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBecause you had so much more to lose,\u201d Halyn replied, his eyes closed because he couldn\u2019t bear to meet her gaze. \u201cSo when I made the mistake, it was you who suffered. It\u2019s all my fault, Katie.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI killed my own children,\u201d she whispered, her voice hollow. \u201cThey might as well have died by my lightsaber. I betrayed them.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u201d Halyn\u2019s voice was firm. \u201cDammit, Katie, it wasn\u2019t your fault. You followed my orders and expected me to uphold my end of the deal. It\u2019s my fault, not yours. It\u2019s all my fault.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThere was a third, wasn\u2019t there?\u201d Katie whispered after several minutes of silence. \u201cThree bodies. And Sandi.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cTriv,\u201d Halyn said, leaving it at that.<\/p>\n \u201cI just want the killing to stop,\u201d Kativie said, a tinge of desperation in her voice. \u201cBefore we\u2019re all gone and there\u2019s none of us left. Before the Sanshirs and the Lusps all die in this miserable war. Why did it have to be us, Hal? Why are we the ones leading this fight and taking these losses?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBecause we were the ones who could,\u201d Halyn said. \u201cIt\u2019s the same reason we\u2019ve been in it since the fall of the Old Republic. We\u2019ve always chosen to fight because we can<\/em>, and because we can make a difference.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIs that our legacy?\u201d Kativie asked, sobbing. \u201cWhen all our children have died in our wars, is that what we leave behind? A maybe-better galaxy that we sacrificed our kin for?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cKatie\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI know. This isn\u2019t what you wanted for any of us.\u201d Her tone was sardonic. \u201cWho would want<\/em> this for his family? It wasn\u2019t what you wanted, I know. But it\u2019s what you chose<\/em> for us.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe<\/em> chose,\u201d Halyn reminded her. \u201cWe three. Argus, me, and you. We chose to take up this fight because there was no one else we could trust to fight it as well.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd it\u2019s cost us everything.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNot everything.\u201d Halyn\u2019s tone was resolute.<\/p>\n \u201cNot yet.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNot ever.\u201d Halyn shook his head. \u201cMost of your children still live, as do half of Allanna\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cEdlin?\u201d Kativie asked abruptly.<\/p>\n \u201cHe was beaten by the Vong, but he still lives.\u201d Halyn did his best to keep his voice even. \u201cHis mother would have been proud, if she had been here.\u201d<\/p>\n There was silence in the medbay, and the siblings simply sat together, sharing each other\u2019s grief as only family can. At last, Halyn slowly rose to his feet. \u201cAre you able to fight?\u201d he asked quietly.<\/p>\n Kativie sat up with agonizing slowness. \u201cI will be, once the doctors patch me up.\u201d She smiled faintly. \u201cI\u2019d be able to now, if someone hadn\u2019t dropped a building on me.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cKatie, I\u2019m so, so\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cShaddup,\u201d she said with the most teasing tone she could muster. It wasn\u2019t much, but it was enough.<\/p>\n \u201cThings are getting worse,\u201d he said grimly.<\/p>\n \u201cWe knew it would,\u201d she replied. \u201cWe knew this wouldn\u2019t be short or bloodless. The children\u2026\u201d her breath came in ragged gasps for several long moments. \u201cWe didn\u2019t expect our kids to be in danger, but we should have known. We both know what has to be done.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe fight,\u201d Halyn said softly.<\/p>\n \u201cUntil there\u2019s no one left to fight, or no one left to fight,\u201d Kativie finished, her eyes closed.<\/p>\n Untl there\u2019s no enemies left, or no Zabraks able to pick up a zhaboka,<\/em> Halyn translated in his mind over the redundant words. \u201cI need you,\u201d Halyn said. \u201cI can\u2019t do this without you. And we\u2019re running out of time.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHow long?\u201d Kativie asked, her voice strengthening. Halyn guessed she was drawing on the Force for strength and wisdom.<\/p>\n \u201cNot long. A week, give or take a few days.\u201d Halyn forced himself to swallow.<\/p>\n Katie closed her eyes. \u201cAlright.\u00a0 We fight together until the end, one way or the other.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cTo the end.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Abi Ocopaqui frowned as she descended the Muurian transport\u2019s boarding ramp. The six Wookiees were in tow, one of them carrying the dark Jedi over his shoulder like a sack of rocks, with no indication or concern that she would … Continue reading