“We must be near Paradise City,” Ryvo said, as he hiked alongside Skate through the grassy plains of the unnamed world. “Because the grass is green and the girls are pretty.”

     “I’m flattered, but why didn’t you tell me there’s a city on this planet?”

     “There isn’t,” Ryvo said, shaking his head. Skate looked at him, confused. “Over your head.”

     “How long have we been walking?”

     Ryvo looked at his wrist chrono. “Nine hours. Not bad.”

     “Not bad?”

     “Yeah, nine hours of walking without any grass snake bites,” Ryvo said.

     “Grass snakes?” Skate looked at him, twisting her lips. “You’re joking again, aren’t you?”

     “Trying to.”

     “Do you want me to laugh as a formality?”

     “I want you to laugh because you think it’s funny,” Ryvo answered.

     “Don’t hold your breath.” Skate gave him a sidelong glance. “Now’s a good time to tell me what you didn’t want to tell me earlier.”

     “What?” Ryvo asked.

     “About what speaks volumes.”

     “Oh that.”

     “Yes. That.”

     “Well, I think you…” Ryvo began and then looked off into the sky.

     “Huh?”

     “Do you hear that?”

     Skate tried to enhance her audible range with the Force, and whether or not she succeeded, she heard the faint hum of a starship engine. “Duck!”

     She dove into the tall grass, as did Ryvo. The sound of the grass swaying from the gentle breeze cut off the sound of the nearby starship. The only cover for at least two kilometers was the grass. Skate knew their strategy of taking cover in the grass was a futile one, and she was proved right when the whine a repulsorlift engine came toward them from the right. The sound slowed down and she felt a tremble on the ground, the ship landing.

     “Make a fight of it?” she asked Ryvo.

     “Yeah. Keep’em busy with your lightsaber while I circle around.”

     As Ryvo crawled away, Skate unhooked her blade and prepared to spring up. She heard a loud hiss followed by a hum. A ramp was being lowered. Footsteps. She jumped from the grass, igniting her lightsaber and swinging it in a small circle. She then dropped it and smiled.

     “Lieutenant!” Trebaum stood there with five armed troops from the SSD, who were clad in their stormtrooper armor with crimson helmets, shoulder plates and boots. Skate shut down her lightsaber. “It’s okay, Ryvo!”

     Ryvo stood slowly and stopped when he had taken site of Trebaum. “Damn.”

     Skate looked over at Trebaum, who had an expression of pure hatred in his eyes. “Lieutenant, he isn’t at fault. He’s innocent.”

     “Silence.”

     “Excuse me?” Skate asked, astounded by Trebaum’s boldness.

     “I told you to shut up. Drop your lightsaber on the ground.”

     “What’s going on?” Skate narrowed her eyes. “Did Jace send you? I can understand why he’s angry-”

     “You have no idea what’s going on here, do you?” Trebaum tilted his head back. “Take them.”

     “Belay that order,” Skate told the troopers.

     “They won’t listen to you.” Trebaum grinned coldly. “These are some of my loyalists aboard the SSD. Why couldn’t my agents on Kiffu kill you? It matters little, for it presents me with the opportunity to kill you myself now.”

     Then it all came clear to Skate. Jace hadn’t sent Trebaum to save or retrieve her, as it was highly unlikely that he knew where she was, anyway. Trebaum was the one who had altered the data on the SSD’s computer. The one who had been collaborating with TOS. The one who was responsible for Reno’s capture. All that time she thought he had been hiding feelings for her, he had been hiding a much darker secret. A secret that lead to mutiny. She gritted her teeth in anger at Trebaum, filled with an ire that she could barely contain.

     “You’re not going to take me alive, Pawl,” Ryvo said, still crouching in the grass.

     Pawl? Skate thought. Is there something here I don’t know about?

     “Yeah,” Skate agreed with Ryvo, raising her chin.

     “I’m afraid you’re outnumbered,” Trebaum said, pulling a blaster from his side.

     “Outnumbered, but never outgunned!”

     Ryvo jumped from the grass, a blaster in each hand, and opened up on the two troops approaching him. Skate took the cue and ignited her lightsaber. Before the troops approaching her had a chance to open fire, the rearmost troop snapped two shots, sending blaster bolts into his supposed comrades’ backs. He then turned to the two that had started for Ryvo. The Kiffar had already taken out one of them, so the trooper put a bolt in the last one’s side, sending him to the ground. During the confusion, Skate tore Trebaum’s blaster from his hand with telekinesis. The treacherous first officer looked at his empty hand with a look of horror on his face.

     “So much for your loyalists.” Skate looked over at the remaining trooper, who had his blaster trained on Trebaum. “You will be rewarded.” The trooper reached up with one hand and pulled off his helmet, revealing himself to be a brown-haired man with a youthful face.

     “Tyros! Stang! It had to be Tyros!” Skate smiled and shut down her lightsaber again.

     “What about him?” the former Imperial Guardsman said, indicating Ryvo. “Is he really innocent?”

     “Yeah. Long story. Ryvo, this is Tyros Dakon.” Ryvo nodded to Tyros. Skate glanced over at Trebaum. “It seems that you don’t need an introduction to him.”

     “He’s my cousin,” Ryvo said.

     “Brettu’s son?”

     “I see you did some research during your search for me,” Ryvo said.

     Skate snorted. “Jace even went and talked to him.”

    “Did he rough him up?”

    “I don’t think so.”

    “Damn.”

    Skate strode over to Trebaum. “Mapatsan fever, eh? The whole time you were sitting in your cabin altering databanks, Pawl Lorell.”

     “I think we should get out of here,” Ryvo said.

     “Can’t I just hit him just once?”

     “Well, okay,” Ryvo said, shrugging.

     Skate reached back and threw a punch with deafening speed. It connected with Pawl’s mouth, sending blood flying.

     “Good one,” Ryvo acclaimed her. “Let’s go.”

     “Tyros, are there any more ‘loyalists’ on board?”

     “There were the pilots, but I tossed a gas grenade into the cockpit as I came out.”

     “Heh, he said cockpit,” Ryvo said. “Let’s go.”

     “You’re not going to get far,” Pawl said, blood on his chin. “My loyalists aboard the SSD will make sure of that.”

     “Right about now, your ‘loyalists’ on the bridge are laying on the ground with blaster wounds, courtesy of one Nuprin Karnes,” Tyros said, hustling Pawl up the ramp. “Say what you will about aliens, but that little guy gets the job done.”

     Ryvo snorted. “Aliens? What’s wrong with aliens? What, did you co-write the New Order?”

     “You don’t know the half of it,” Skate said.

     In less than two hours, they set down the shuttle Vintage Chariot next to a small rocky area. Skate followed Ryvo down the ramp, who was shoving a bound Pawl through the exit. Tyros had wanted to take Pawl back with him to the SSD, probably due in part to distrust of Ryvo, but the Kiffar conman had insisted in taking his cousin with him. Once they were clear, Tyros headed for orbit and the awaiting SSD.

     Ryvo lead them into the rocky area, which formed a semicircle about sixty meters in diameter. He shoved Pawl down against the rocky wall and headed for the other side. Skate noticed a big brownish-green mass against the far wall. Obviously Ryvo’s ship with a camo-net over it.

     He returned a few minutes later with a long, cylindrical piece and what looked like an autochef meal. He dropped the dinner next to Pawl and folded his arms. His cousin looked up at him in fear.

     “W-what, is this my last meal or something,” Pawl said, looking at the cylindrical item in Ryvo’s hand. Skate now noticed that a sword hilt was protruding from one end.

     “Actually, yes.” Ryvo grinned in a feral manner. “But I’m not going to watch you eat and simply stick this rantok through you. I am making the Reddal Challenge.”

     “We don’t even have a Reddal pole,” Pawl said, obviously trying to find a way out.

     Ryvo looked up at a small overhang of rock. “That will do. Now eat that meal. I want you at your best.”

     Skate cleared her throat. “Reddal Challenge?”

     “A fight to the death from old Kiffu law,” Ryvo explained, setting the tip of the sheath on the ground. “When the colonists first arrived on Kiffu, they split into several clans. There were conflicts over who would take what equipment and so forth. The leader of one of the factions, Tobus Reddal, proposed this fight to the death, with the winner having choice over the equipment. The object is to be the first to get to a raised weapon, and use it. They had a tournament with a representative of each faction until there was a winner.”

     Skate smiled. “And Tobus Reddal won.”

     “No, he lost in the first round.”

     “Oh.”

     “So the Challenge became a staple in our culture.” Ryvo shrugged.  “It’s rarely used these days, but I’ve heard of it happening in my lifetime.”

     “I have only one problem with it,” Skate said.

     “And that would be…”

     “I want to kill him.”

     “You have no idea of how much we need to see who the better man is. This has been going on for years and now it’s finally come to a head. All the mind games are over and now it’s time to settle it.” Ryvo grinned. “Besides, it would be too easy for you. Watch him. I am going to go prepare.” Ryvo looked over at Pawl, who was reluctantly eating his meal. “Twenty minutes.”

     Skate kept an eye on Pawl Lorell, willing herself not to unclip her lightsaber and slash him down. The man she had once had a secret crush on now looked so different. Instead of seeing him as a tall, handsome, silently charming man, she now saw him as a lying, spineless, self-important ass. She didn’t know anything about the history between him and his cousin, and she could only guess about his association with TOS. Oddly enough, she actually felt more comfortable around him now. Before, he had been in control, but now that she was enlightened as to his true identity and intentions, she was in control.

     Ryvo impressed her with his sense of honor in making the Reddal Challenge to Pawl, rather than just blasting him away or allowing Skate to slash him down with her lightsaber. Ryvo was a freelance criminal, it seemed, so honor wasn’t in his nature, meaning that this fight was of high importance to him. Honor amongst thieves…

     Ryvo returned with his overshirt and utility belt removed. He still wore the bacta patch on his arm, readily visible since he was wearing a tight fitting sleeveless shirt. “Skate, if you would put this on that outcropping.” He unsheathed the sword, revealing its wicked look. It wasn’t very long, but it was thick. The straight blade’s flat sides each had a line of spikes. Skate took the sword and used the Force to levitate it to the small cliff.

     Ryvo looked over at Pawl, who was still sitting. “Let’s go.”

     Pawl slowly rose to his feet, totally ill prepared. Skate found it funny that Pawl had eaten the meal and then sat there the rest of the time instead of getting ready for the imminent clash. Ryvo crouched into a combat stance, slowly taking steps to the right. Pawl assumed a similar position and circled with his cousin. Ryvo faked Pawl once, prompting him to draw back for a second. And then Pawl charged Ryvo, throwing a right-handed hook aimed for the head. Ryvo dodged to the right, grabbed Pawl’s arm and twisted in behind his back. He then locked his left arm under Pawl’s chin and placed his left leg in front of Pawl’s legs and pushed all of weight forward, taking them to the ground. Ryvo gritted his teeth as he pushed up on his cousin’s arm, obviously trying to break it. Pawl poked Ryvo in the eye with his free hand and rolled out of the arm lock.         

     They both rose to their feet quickly. Pawl was favoring his right arm and Ryvo took advantage, sending two left-legged rapid-fire kicks to the arm. Without pausing, he kicked Pawl’s left ankle with his right foot, sending him down. Ryvo stiffly kicked him in the face and grabbed his head. He rammed Pawl’s cranium against a nearby rock, and then proceeded to scrape his face on it. Apparently satisfied that Pawl was out of action, he went for the rantok. He started to climb up the rocky wall when Pawl, now with a bloody face, arose. He unsteadily ran at Ryvo and swung his arm, hitting his ankles, knocking the longhaired man off of the craggy wall onto the ground. Ryvo lay motionless for a moment, so Pawl stared at him for only a moment and started up the wall himself, climbing as best he could with an injured arm, facial lacerations and head trauma. Ryvo looked up and saw how close his cousin was to reaching the sword. He got up quickly and started up the wall, adjacent to Pawl. When he had almost reached the height of his slower climbing cousin, he gripped a smaller overhang of rock than the one the sword sat on and pulled his legs up. He gave a hard two-legged kick to Pawl’s injured arm. Pawl lost his grip and took a nasty spill to the ground, landing on his shoulder. Ryvo’s inertia left him swinging and he, too, fell to the ground, but in a much more harmless manner, landing on his feet.

     Ryvo approached the still prone Pawl, and when he was within a half meter’s distance, Pawl kicked his bent right leg back, nailing Ryvo in the knee. Skate knew it had been hyper extended, as Ryvo’s face was in anguish. Pawl stood, holding his right arm and kicked Ryvo in the gut. Ryvo, who was already kneeling, folded over. Pawl smiled wickedly at Skate, wrinkling his crimson mask, and headed for the wall. Even if he beats Ryvo, does he really think he’ll make it out of here alive? Skate asked herself.

     Pawl started to scale up the rocks when Ryvo abruptly jumped up and limped over to the wall. This time he climbed up directly under Pawl, who tried to kick him down. Ryvo ducked the poorly aimed kicks and grabbed his cousin around the waist. He then threw them both backward. They landed on their backs and both were slow to move. Ryvo made it up first, and he waited for Pawl to stand, measuring him. Pawl stood, disoriented, and turned around to face Ryvo. Ryvo kicked him in the stomach with his good leg, doubling him over. Ryvo wrapped his arm around Pawl’s neck and drove his head into the ground. Immediately, Ryvo went for the wall and scaled it as best he could with his bad leg. Finally, he grabbed he hilt of the rantok with his left hand. He threw the sword down, sticking it in the ground, and followed after it, landing on his good leg. Taking the sword from the ground, he walked over to Pawl, who was still on the ground. He turned Pawl over with his foot and stuck the point of the wicked-looking sword to his neck. Fear was in Pawl’s eyes, and that gave Skate satisfaction.

     “Before I kill you,” Ryvo began, “I want to know where my parents are.” He looked over at Skate. “And Reno.”

     “I don’t know!” Pawl cried out in a hoarse voice. “I swear I don’t know! I’ll help you find them! Just please don’t kill me!”

     “We don’t need help.” With that, Ryvo thrust the sword into Pawl’s neck. He removed it and with a howl he thrust it again, this time into Pawl’s chest. Ryvo fell to the ground, panting, leaving the sword standing in Pawl’s chest.

     Skate walked over and knelt beside Ryvo. “Good job.”

     “He put up a better fight than I thought he was capable of.”

     “Thank you,” Skate said, curling her lips.

     “For what?”

     “Rescuing me,” she answered. “Killing him.”

     “No problem,” Ryvo said, looking up at her. “The latter was my pleasure and the former was…my duty.”

     “Your duty?” Skate asked. “Now that we have a moment, can you tell me what speaks volumes?”

     “I’m sure you know what it is,” Ryvo said.

     Just then, a distant roar of a ship could be heard.

     “Not again!”

Skate helped Ryvo to his feet and they made for the rocks to take cover. They hit the ground and rolled as close to the wall as they could. Then the source of the sounds came into view. A Preybird and TIE interceptor circled and sat down in center of the rock encirclement.

     “Yes!” Skate jumped up and ran for the two snubs. The hatches opened and Jace and Jen debarked from the ships. “How in the hell did you know how to find me?”

     “Ante told us,” Jen said, sliding down to the ground.

     “I don’t understand,” Skate said shaking her head. “Did he send a distress signal?”

     “No, he took your X-wing back to the site where the SSD was supposed to be and found us,” Jace said in his stern voice, more stern than normal.

     “You guys have no idea what’s happened here-“ Skate began.

     “We do,” Jen corrected her. “Tyros filled us in.”

     “I’m so glad to see you guys,” Skate said, grabbing Jen’s arm.

     “I’m so glad that you’re not a traitor,” Jen said dryly.

     “This is a real tender moment, but this isn’t over by a long shot,” Jace said, pointing at the two women. “But…it’s great to see you alive, Skate.”

     “You’re not getting soft on me, are you, Jace?” Skate asked.

     “No, never.”

     “I want you guys to meet someone,” Skate said, indicating the approaching Ryvo. “This is-“

     “Ryvo Lorell,” Jen finished. “Tyros told us that he’s innocent?”

     “Yeah,” Skate said.

     “Please elucidate.”

     “It’s a long story but it boils down to this: Xanthis took his parents and forced him to set up Reno. I had been communicating with Ryvo, who was using an alias, and he knew I was coming here alone. Knowing it was a stupid decision, he showed up here and rescued me. That about sums it up.”

     “We’ll tell you our story later. Tyros is organizing a strike on the base. We need to get back up there and get ready.” Jen looked over at the dead Pawl. “Trebaum?”

     “Yeah. Another story in itself.”

     “Which should be told in another time and another place,” Ryvo interjected. “We need to launch that attack. We can’t allow Veego to escape. By the way, nice to meet you.”

     “Likewise, we’re sure,” Jace said, only half-dryly. “Why do I have the feeling that I should incapacitate and incarcerate you until this is all over?
     Ryvo looked at Jace in astonishment. “You don’t lock up heroes.”

     The hint of a smile appeared on Jace’s face. “I think I’m going to like this guy. Isn’t Veego the TOS general? I remember the name from some intelligence reports.”

     “Correct. He’s probably the only one that would have the location of Reno and my parents, save for Xanthis and Zarin.”

     “And the locations of Vanicus and Gimmer,” Jen added. “Anywho, let’s get going.”

     “I guess I’ll go up with Ryvo,” Skate said, starting for Ryvo’s ship.

     “Hokay,” Jen said and headed to her snub alongside Jace.

     Skate and Ryvo started for his ship, but he brought himself to a halt and started in the other direction.

     “What?”

     “I have to get something,” Ryvo said, limping along.

     “Some kind of Kiffar burial ritual or something?”

     “No. I want the sword.”

     “Oh,” Skate said, almost laughing.

     “I could sell that thing for a hundred thou with the blood on it,” Ryvo yelled back.

     He returned with the sword and they made their way to his ship. It took some work to remove the camo net, but when they did, what appeared to be an oversized TIE Advancedx1 was revealed.

     “A Lone Scout,” Skate said.

     “An LSA-2, to be precise,” Ryvo said, smiling.

     “I’ve seen a few of these,” Skate said, looking over the ship.

     “I call her the Thrill Seeker. Most of the time.”

     Several minutes later, they were en route to orbit and for the first time in days, Skate felt relaxed and secure. Reno hadn’t been found yet, but she felt like a weight had been lifted from her chest. She had found Ryvo Lorell, or, rather, he had found her, so that was one less thing to dwell on. Along with that, she had learned the truth of Ryvo’s involvement in the whole fiasco. Then there was Lieutenant Trebaum, or Pawl Lorell. She no longer had to worry about regretting not speaking to him about her attraction, or asking him to have dinner with her, or anything else of that nature. No more worrying about whether or not he was hiding any kind of feelings for her. No more contemplating whether or not he was the man in her dreams, since Ryvo was more analogous to that role. Pawl Lorell was dead, and dead with him was Skate’s stress concerning him. She found it ironic that the man she had been hunting was her rescuer, and the one she had only dreamt of being rescued by was almost her demise.

     Now she only need worry about Jace’s promised reprimand for her recklessness. And for Ryvo to tell her whatever it was that spoke volumes. Like he had told her and she had told herself, she probably already knew what it was.

     Skate dove her X-wing towards the surface if the unnamed planet. The starfighter’s damages had been repaired by SSD crews when Ante had returned it to the command ship. Skate was proud of her droid and had awarded him an oil bath.

     While on the SSD, she had taken the chance to clean up and rest a bit after the ordeal she had went through. That rest included several glasses of Whyren’s. Jace hadn’t dealt her punishment yet, as he was too busy preparing the assault on the TOS base.

     Skate hadn’t seen Ryvo until the meeting. Apparently, Jace had decided–at Thunder’s insistence--to lightly interrogate the Kiffar. Skate didn’t want to press her luck by protesting to Jace, but Thunder had assured her that no IT-O’s would be used in the questioning. Thunder had then teased her about her concern for Ryvo. Skate had defended herself by saying it was out of respect for someone who went out of their way to rescue her.

     Ryvo had taken a role in the mapping out of the strike. While the most of the squadron had been apprehensive about trusting a man who just one week ago had been their number one target, Skate believed he had impressed every single one of them with his tactical know-how. Jace had even given him permission to fly an interceptor in the attack.

     The plan was simple. The SSD would take out the remaining sensors and any weapons emplacements on the base by means of orbital bombardment. Twenty AT-AT walkers would surround the base while AT-ST’s and other assault vehicles would move in and secure the place. Two flights from Sith Squadron would fly cover and intervene if necessary. The first phase had been implemented and now the assault force was making it’s way down with their fighter cover.

     Skate glanced over at the interceptor next to her, which Ryvo was piloting. “This is going to be too easy. Why couldn’t we have left some fighters in the hangar so we would have something to do?”  

     “Never ask for something unless you really want it. I have multiple contacts approaching from the southeast.”

     Skate looked at her board to confirm what Ryvo had said. Sure enough, at least thirty small ships approached. “Where did they come from?”

     “Probably entered the atmosphere from their mother ship on the other side of the planet,” Ryvo said. “Avoiding the Super Star Destroyer.”

     Skate switched to a tactical channel. “Lead?”

     “I see them. They’re not fighters, not all of them. SSD says there’re twelve Gauntlet fighters and some airspeeders. They’re going to try and pick off as many as they can.”

     “Roger that.” Skate grinned. “I hope they leave something to vape.”

     “Then you better hope that the gunners have bad aim,” Ryvo commented.

     “Then I better hope that Tyros is gunning,” Skate said. “I hear he has bad aim.”

     “I heard that,” Jen said over the comm.

     “Stay sharp,” Jace cut in.

     Skate looked down to see the landers deploying the walkers. Their castle gray hue with burgundy trim contrasted to the lush green of the grassy plains. A few others landers deployed combat landspeeders and troop transports. If the enemy fighters were allowed past, they could possibly pose a minor threat to the mighty AT-ATs, but the other vehicles were a different story. They would be sitting ducks.

     The approaching fighters and airspeeders began to take form. They appeared as a flock of distant avians soaring through the blue sky. Their perceived organic appearance soon departed, replaced with their true mechanical nature, as lances of green turbolaser fire from the SSD made good, exploding them into fireballs. When they were within range, Jace ordered the SSD to cease fire. Skate’s sensors indicated that the SSD had taken out five of the enemy fighters. The rest, apparently realizing they were outnumbered, turned around and sped back the way they had come.

     “Pursuit,” Jace ordered. “S-S Nine and S-S Sixteen walker commanders, turn to one hundred thirty five degrees and open fire on any approaching ships.”

     “Copy, Sith Leader.”

     “SSD, do you have anything coming in from the north?” Jace asked.

     “Negative, Lead,” Seven answered. “Wait, yes, looks like a Lambda surrounded by Gauntlets.”

     Skate grinned. The TOS fighters had attempted to lure them away from the base so a shuttle could come in from the other side, presumably to pick up Veego.

     “Just as I thought,” Jace said. “Sith, hold your courses. We’re going to pretend we’ve fallen for their little ruse. SSD, open up on that Lambda whenever it’s convenient. And send three squadrons of fighters and one of bombers to deal with the source of all these ships.”

     “Copy.”

     “S-S Nine and Sixteen, as soon as you get an open shot on that shuttle, take it. All other walkers, continue to the base and execute the original plan.”

     Skate’s secondary sensor screen indicated that the Gauntlets were now in range. Setting her lasers to cycle, She dropped her aiming reticle over one of them and fired twice. The second shot hit the Gauntlet’s starboard engine pylon, severing it from the fighter. It spun toward the ground until it crashed into the forest. The pilot must have had all of his shield power pumped into his engines, as Skate’s shot had met no kind of resistance.

     “Chalk up another one.” That was Ryvo. Skate looked at her sensors to see that another Gauntlet was missing.

     “Two, Eight, Eleven, you’re on me,” Jace ordered. “Everyone else, stay here and take care of the rest of these fists.”

     “Roger, Lead,” Skate responded. “Watch out for snakes. Okay, five on five. Everyone mark their targets because if you get mine, I’m going to be pissed.”

     Seeing that some of the Sith had turned back for the base, the Gauntlets stopped fleeing and came about to face their pursuers. Skate laughed to herself at the thought of those old fighters in a head to head run. Apparently the pilots weren’t as daft-minded as she thought they were. Three dove and two climbed simultaneously. Skate took the second one from the left, which had dove, and painted her target on her sensor screen. The fist kept on for the ground, with no sign of letting up. She fired a few shots at it, none hitting. The bogey pulled up at the last possible moment and skimmed the trees at a distance that had to be measured in centimeters. Skate pulled up and increased her velocity, trying to close on the Gauntlet. She took some more shots at it, but it juked and spun, evading the shots like a flying insect from a swatting hand. At that point, she realized the pilot was good. But they couldn’t maneuver her shots forever, and outrunning her was out of the question.

     Skate switched over to proton torpedoes. She got a lock almost instantly, considering her proximity to her target, and let loose with a pair of torpedoes. She pulled up and away, looking back to see an enormous ball of fire, fueled by the planet’s rich oxygen atmosphere.

     “Skate, veer right!”

     Skate responded to Ryvo’s command without question and looked at her sensors. One of the Gauntlets was on her tail. She held her course but throttled up. Ryvo bellowed into the comm what was presumably a Kiffar battle cry and came in at Skate’s pursuer’s port size, lasers blazing. And then there was one more fireball in the sky.

     “Thanks, Ryvo.”

     “Old school tactic,” the Kiffar said brashly.

     “If everybody vaped their targets, let’s head back to the base,” Skate said.

     “Eh, that kid is having some trouble.”

     “Fox?” Skate asked.

     Ryvo laughed. “Fox! What kind of name is that?”

     “Nine, Ten. We’re heading back to the base. I think Fox can use some help.”

     “Copy.”

     Skate swung her X-wing around and headed for the TOS base, with Plo’kre and Ryvo right behind her. Her sensors alerted her to a new ship entering the fray. She glanced down at the data to see it was Easy Rider.

     “Glad you could join us, Melt,” Ryvo said over the comm, also observing the arrival of the Dark Star Hellions.

     “Glad to be here, man.”

     “Meltdown, what are you guys doing here?” Skate asked.

     “We got bored up there in your Super Star Destroyer. They kicked us out of the lounge. And the other one. And the other one. Man, say what you will about an overkill on a warship design, but that bad boy doesn’t lack on lounges. Anyways, we got bored, so we thought we’d come join this fight.”

     Skate snorted. “Who invited you?”

     “We invited ourselves,” Meltdown answered. “Badasses can do that, ya know.”

     “Okay, just don’t mess anything up.”

     As they approached the base, it became evident that the next stage in the plan hadn’t worked. Veego had decided to make a fight of it. Battle droids and SSD troops battled on the ground, exchanging blaster fire. The SSD troops had set up several heavy repeating blasters and grenade launchers, which made the task of taking out the skeletal droids that much easier. Skate also saw a few droidekas blasting away, but their shields would be no match for the artillery pieces, not to mention the powerful vehicle-mounted weapons. The airspeeders that had come in with the first group of Gauntlets had thinned in their ranks, thanks to the AT-ATs.

     Skate located Jace and the rest of the Sith on her sensors. They were taking on the remaining two Gauntlets that had been escorting the Lambda, which didn’t appear on her sensors.

     “Lead, you guys okay?” Skate asked.

     “We’re okay, but the ground commander says they’re having problems with those STAPs. They’re too fast and small for the AT-ATs to hit. They’re starting to jack up the fatality rate on our side.”

     “We can take care of that,” Meltdown said.

     Off to starboard, the HT-2200 neared the battle zone. A huge ventral hatch opened on the port cargo hold, which along with the starboard hold sandwiched the cockpit at the rear of the ship. About three dozen swoops dropped through the hatch and zeroed in on the battle.

     “That maniac is going to get himself killed,” Jace commented.

     “Walker commanders, we have a new group of friendlies. Swoops, about forty of them.”

     “Copy.”

     The swoops entered the fray, taking shots at the battle droids’ STAPs with their handlebar-mounted blaster rifles. The STAPs returned fire, sending at least two Hellions to the ground. One of the swoopers jumped away from his doomed swoop, falling to his almost certain death while the swoop crashed into the base’s wall. While a few of the Hellions were downed, it was the TOS battle droids that were dropping at a higher rate.

     An enemy airspeeder crossed Skate’s path and she quickly tapped her trigger a few times, sending laser bolts into the armor of the craft. The engine caught fire and exploded, and the airspeeder fell, landing on the grassy ground in a ball of flames. It wouldn’t be long until the enemy forces were squashed.

     “Sith Leader, this is S-S One,” came the voice of an AT-AT commander.

     “Go ahead.”

     “Troops have entered the base through a breach made by one of the swoops.”

     “Copy, S-S One,” Jace said. “I’m going in. Ten, Ryvo, you’re with me. You two have been in there before and know your way around. We’re going to land in the courtyard.”

     “Roger,” Skate said, swinging her X-wing around to form up on Jace.

     Ryvo slipped in on Skate’s other side in his borrowed interceptor. “We shouldn’t meet much resistance. From what I saw on the battlefield, most of their droids are out there.”

     The trio of fighters hovered over the main courtyard and then dropped slowly with repulsorlifts, each facing a different direction. Skate saw a small team of humans with a heavy repeating blaster on a tripod at the main entrance. They fired several shots at her, which bounced off her shields with ease. Linking her cannons together, she pulled the trigger once. Instantly, the enemy crew’s position was in flames. Remains of their cannon scattered the area along with bloodied limbs.

     She set her lasers back to single shot and fired again, blowing the huge door off, leaving it half melted. “Do I know how to make an entrance or what?”

     “Let’s go,” Jace said.

     Since Jace and Ryvo had to leave their fighters in hover, she thought it would be wise for her to so the same, in case a quick escape became necessary.

     “Stay alert, Ante. Lockout the controls.”

     The droid tootled its acknowledgement as Skate popped the canopy. She climbed out and jumped to the ground. Jace leapt from his interceptor, landing softly on his feet. Ryvo, lacking any telekinetic ability, took a bit longer in getting to the ground. Skate reached down to her belt and unclipped her lightsaber. Jace already had his ready, and Ryvo drew a DEMP gun and a small blaster.

     “Set to stun,” Ryvo said. “As much as I want to blast that kriffing pile of shit, I can’t.”

     Jace looked at Ryvo. “We understand your pain, but you can’t set a lightsaber to stun. Who’s to say we can’t sever a few limbs before you stun him?”

     Ryvo smiled. “Just make sure it’s the fifth limb. Choppy, choppy.”

     “I swear I like this guy more and more every minute,” Jace said to Skate. “Come on.”

     They entered slowly, weapons at the ready. A few more humans—unconscious or lifeless—lay on the ground motionless. With Ryvo in the lead and Jace taking up the rear, they moved down the long hallway. There were no doors in this hall, only pillars and the occasional piece of artwork. When the trio neared the perpendicular cross-corridor at the end, a single battle droid stepped out from behind a column. Ryvo fired his DEMP gun at the droid before it could get a shot off. It sparked and fell to the ground.

     Ryvo looked back at Jace and Skate.

     “Droids…we can’t sense droids,” Jace said.

     “I guess that’s one thing they have to their advantage,” Ryvo said, looking at the fallen machine. “It bet he has them hiding everywhere. He knows you can’t sense them.”

     “If they’re controlled by a central computer via signal transmission, couldn’t we just jam the transmission?” Skate asked.

     “Perhaps,” Ryvo answered. “But we’d also be blocking our own communications. It’s a double-edged sword.”

     “So we can’t jam them. And we can’t sense them. But I know something that can.” Jace pulled out his comlink. “Lead to SSD.”

     “This is SSD,” Seven responded.

     “Do you still have scout fighters out?”

     “Affirm. We have four recon fighters on patrol.”

     “Send one of them to the TOS base and have the pilot feed his data to you. Look for a grouping of similar signals being sent out from various locations. Lock onto my position and try to locate the nearest transmission.”

     “Copy.”

     Jace looked over at Skate and Ryvo. “The droids send back sensory data to the control computer for processing. If the SSD can pinpoint the droids’ transmissions, we can get them before they even have a chance to raise their guns.”

     Ryvo nodded. “Very smart. I don’t know why I didn’t think of it.”

     “Because your initials aren’t J.S.”

     Ryvo frowned. “Actually, I have a complete set of I.D.’s for Jaxil Selveni.”

     “Well…I’m just smarter than you.”

     “Oh yeah? What’s the square root of four?”

     “Two.”

     “What planet was the late Grand Moff Tarkin from?”

     “Eriadu.”

    “What did-“

    “Would you stop?!” Skate exclaimed. The two men looked at her shamefacedly. “Jaxil Selvini? How many aliases do you have?”

     Ryvo shrugged. “Well, they do call me the man of a thousand names.”

     “Okay, the recon fighter should be in position by now,” Jace said. He crouched down at the right corner near the end of the entrance passage. Taking his lightsaber, he tapped the hilt against the wall several times, sending reverberating thuds throughout the passageways. “That should get their audio pickups working.”

     They waited several moments, which seemed like several hours. Finally, Seven’s voice came through the comlink.

     “Lead, SSD. I think we’ve found what you’re looking for. Nearest transmission is approximately twenty-one point three meters to the southeast from your position.”

     “Copy that.” Jace looked at Ryvo. “Do you have a compass?”

     Skate snorted. “Not of the moral sort.”

     Ryvo reached into a belt pouch and pulled out a compass. He smiled at Jace as he held it up. “A conman’s way saves the day. But Skate is right…morals not included.”

     Jace grabbed the compass. He moved lower to the ground and peeked around the corner, holding the compass in front of him. A few seconds later, he turned back around.

     “There’s a huge tapestry on the east side of the corridor. Obviously the droid’s hiding place.” Jace eyed Ryvo’s DEMP gun. “I have an idea. I’ll pull back the tapestry with T.K. and blast it with that thing.”

     “Okay,” Ryvo said, handing the weapon over to Jace. “You just pull the trigger there.”

     Jace looked back a Ryvo. “I have fired a gun before, you know?”

     Ryvo threw his hands up. “Okay.”

     Skate watched as Jace stood with his back flat against the wall. Quickly, he spun around the corner, waived his hand, and fired the DEMP gun. Then she heard the sound of metal hitting the permacrete floor.

     “It worked,” Jace said, handing the gun back to Ryvo. “SSD, you still there?”

     “Affirm.”

     “The tricked worked. The Trade Fed battle droids are sending out sensory data signals back to the central computer. Transmit the location of all the signals to the troops that got into the base. And give me the next nearest signal to the south. We’re about to turn some battle droids into bantha fodder.”

     “Wait,” Skate said. “Couldn’t the SSD trace the command signals going out to the droids and locate the central computer?”

     “That’s a good question. SSD, also attempt to locate the source of the command signals.” Jace looked at Ryvo. “You want to take the lead again?”

     “Why me?”

     “You’re the one with the gun.”

     “But you have fired a gun before.”

     Jace shook his head, “But that—“

     “I’ll take the lead,” Ryvo cut him off, looking at Skate. “There’s a beautiful woman here to impress and my ego demands that I take the lead. It’s a macho thing.”

     Skate only rolled her eyes.

     “SSD to Lead,” Seven’s voice came from the comlink. “I think I’ve located the control computer, but it’s directly beneath the base.”

     Jace sighed. “Well that’s a sand mine. Okay, scratch that plan, just tell me where the closest droid is.”

     “Looks like forty-four meters…about thirty degrees south from your facing east position.”

     “Copy that.” Jace looked around the corner and then at Skate and Ryvo. “Around the next corner to the east.”

     In the next ten minutes or so, they moved through the manor’s halls, taking out three more battle droids that had taken up hidden defensive positions. It became clear to Skate when they had passed from the old manor to the TOS annex, as the floors went from permacrete to a more modern floor material. Also very conspicuous was the change from stone pillar and woodworked walls to that of plasteel. Though the materials were different, the more contemporary style that TOS had added on meshed well with the classic building technique. The hinged doors and motif floors did well to go with the old style.

     Skate knelt down next to Jace and Ryvo at a corner and closed her eyes. “I feel him.”

     “How close?”

     “Close. Somewhere over there.” Skate nodded around the corner.

     “SSD, next droid?”

     “I’m getting a combination of signals from the south, about fifty meters away.”

     Jace looked at Skate. “How many signals?”

     “I can’t tell.”

     “Copy,” Jace said. “Must be his last stand.”

     “Should we wait from some troops to assist us?” Skate asked.

     “I’m sure it’s nothing we can’t handle. They’d only get in our way.”

     “I remember this area,” Ryvo said, looking around. “I passed through here when I was on my way to the holding cells. I saw two droids guarding at the end of that hall.” Ryvo gestured to the adjoining passageway.

     “That’s probably it, then,” Jace said.

     “I can take them all out,” Ryvo said. He pulled a grenade from his chest pouch.

     “What kind of moron flies a fighter with a grenade strapped to him?” Jace asked.

     “The kind that have it to use when it’s needed,” Ryvo said. “Like now.”

     “Just don’t blow up Veego with them,” Jace implored.

     Ryvo nodded and tapped a few buttons on the grenade. “Three seconds.” The Kiffar leaned over into the hall, hit the activate switch and threw the explosive underhanded, ducking out of the way just in time to avoid red laser bolts. Then a resounding explosion set Skate’s ears to ringing.

     Jace hazarded a glance around the corner. “I don’t see anything. Good throw.”

     “Lucky I’m ambidextrous. It would have been hard to throw it with my right hand on this side of the hall.”

     “And all this time I thought you were a southpaw,” Jace said.

     “Why is that?”

     “They have lower life-expectancy, and the things you do are going to get you killed.”

     Ryvo shrugged. “Since I’m ambidextrous, I don’t have a low life-expectancy, so I have to do stuff to compensate.”

      Skate laughed and Jace shook his head. “Come on.”

      Skate ignited her lightsaber and followed the two men down the hall. The smoke was clearing, and fragments of battle droids could be seen scattering the floor. As they neared the cross corridor at the end of the hall, Skate’s danger sense kicked in. She brought up her blade as a prone human fired his blaster at her. She deflected the bolt into the wall and Ryvo shot the attacker with his blaster. The man was badly burned, obviously from the effects of the grenade.

     Skate looked at the door, which was of the more modern style than the rest of the doors. “What do you think?”

     “I’m certain there’s more of them in there,” Jace said. “I don’t sense any life forms. Let’s just cut our way in. Ryvo, as soon as there’s enough room, start blasting.”

     The Kiffar nodded and Jace approached the door. Skate followed suit, readying her lightsaber. They stabbed the door high and brought their blades down in semicircles. Jace waved his hand at the door and it caved in. Ryvo began blasting away with his blaster, but no return fire came. Skate took a look through the huge hole. It was a small antechamber, with some chairs and another door. Extending from under the remains of the door that had been cut, were four battle droid legs.

     “Nice shot, Jace,” Skate said.

     “Let’s take this door down,” Jace said, ignoring her compliment. Stepping atop the remains of the first door, he slashed vertically and horizontally a few times, making a square. He kicked in the cutout and jumped into the room. Ryvo went next, and Skate last.

     When she jumped in, she saw the two men standing there, their weapons lowered. She walked around them and her hear sunk as she saw what they were looking at. Veego sat at a desk, his head face down. Ryvo walked over and felt Veego’s wrist, then shook his head.

     “Damn it,” Jace said softly. “Damn it!”

     “Suicide,” Ryvo said. “Cowardly bastard.”

     Skate looked at the expired TOS general. He was dead, and any information on Reno’s location dead with him. Skate felt a sense of disappointment tinged with failure. But another part of her was happy that Veego was dead, although he deserved to die a thousand deaths for his actions.

     “Lead to SSD,” Jace said into his comlink, breaking the silence.

     “Copy.”

     “Objective was found dead. Send down an intell team.”

     “Copy that, Lead. The source of the fighters is a Strike-class cruiser on the other side of the planet, and it has been disabled by the fighter squadrons.”

     “Good. Swing around and secure it.”

     “As ordered.”

     “Sith Lead out.” Jace clicked off his comlink, looked at Ryvo, and then at Skate.

     “Now what?” Skate asked.

     “We leave,” Jace said, brushing past her.

     Skate looked at Ryvo, who gave her a empathetic look. She could tell that he was feeling the same way she was, perhaps even more so, since his parents were his concern. She put her arm around his waist and they followed Jace out of the room.