Dynasty: Chunk Forty-One
by Valerie Vancollie and Rebecca Thomson
"She's so cute," Anjaleen stated several days later as she shifted little Mirabel in her arms.
"Thanks," Nastalia replied as she watched her friend reach down and run her fingers through the thin black curls her daughter already had.
"You were lucky," Anja continued. "She turned out to be a nice mix between you and Nathaniel where her features are concerned. Your hair and his gray eyes."
Nastalia simply smiled proudly as she took a sip of the mixed juice she was having. As she did so her eyes fell once more on the two scarlet clad Imperial Sovereign Protectors which stood on either side of the entrance to the room. The two guards had followed her friend in like shadows and had remained silent the entire time Anjaleen had been here already. She was very curious as to exactly why they had been assigned to her friend, but then figured that since she was now known to be related to the Emperor it was safer for her. She had been tempted to question her friend on the matter when she had first arrived, but she knew better than to question anyone, especially members of the Royal Family, on security measures. It was an unspoken rule at court that the topic was taboo as it could mean the difference between life and death.
"I can hardly wait to see what traits she's inherited," Nastalia stated aloud. "Mother used to tell me that I had inherited my grandfather's habits."
"It is interesting to trace certain traits back to previous ancestors," Anjaleen agreed before she glanced at the chrono that hung on the wall. "Oh my, I'd better be getting back home if I want to get changed in time for the afternoon session of the court today. Will you be going?" she asked, remembering how her friend had missed several sessions lately.
"No," Nastalia replied as she got up and took her daughter from her friend's arms so that she could get to her feet. "Mirabel keeps me quite busy and, honestly, I'd rather spend time with her than with some of the people at court. Especially now that Nathaniel's gone again."
"I understand," Anja responded as she smiled down at Mirabel as the child reached out and grasped one of the jewels on her mother's dress.
"She goes for anything that sparkles," Nastalia commented as she led her friend to the front door. "Well, have fun and give my regards to Luke."
"I will," Anja promised her before she left the Bel-Zessa household, one guard in front of her and one behind.
"Randolf," Richards said as the ramp of the shuttle carrying his sister and brother-in-law descended and Mr. Winiterure came down it.
"Richards," Randolf replied as he stepped forward to shake the older man's hand. Unlike his sister, Richards was an enjoyable man to talk to even if he was prone to exaggeration from time to time. "It's good to be back in system, I've been on Coruscant too long."
"I can imagine," Richards stated with a smile. "From what I saw while there for Anjaleen's wedding, I'd get homesick quickly. There's simply no plant life there. How do you do it?"
"It was hard at first," Randolf admitted. "But you get used to it. At least Anjaleen won't have to worry about it anymore, Vader's Castle has a huge garden and so does the Palace."
"Sasha," Richards said as he saw his sister descend the ramp.
"Brother," Sasha replied as she smiled at him and hugged him. "Where is Lia?"
"Inside, she's waiting for you," Richards informed her and then watched her enter his home. "Randolf," he said as he turned his attention to his brother-in-law once more. "Tell me, did you know about the Vaders' relationship to the Emperor? It was quite a shock for everyone here and the press has constantly been mentioning the fact that the daughter of our representative will be Empress one day."
"No," Randolf declared. "I didn't know and, from talking with my daughter, it seems that while she knew of Skywalker being Vader's son, she didn't know of their relationship to Palpatine until after the actual engagement."
"Well she ended up with the best marriage possible," Richards said, slightly jealous that his daughter hadn't been able to get such a good marriage.
"Indeed," Randolf agreed proudly as they entered the building. "But right now I'm ready for two weeks of rest."
"My Lady," Mark said as soon as Anjaleen entered the castle. "There is a message for either you, Lord Vader, or Prince Vader."
"Thanks," Anja said as she took the datapad the servant held out. "Where are Luke and Darth?"
"They had to go to the Palace to see to some things," Mark informed her. "Lord Vader said he would be returning to change and take you over for the court session."
As if on cue, the door behind Anja opened and Luke entered. "Anja, Mark," he acknowledged as he saw them.
"My Lord," Mark replied before he left the room, seeing that he wasn't needed.
"My, my," Anja stated as she scanned the message. "It seems that we are invited to Ra'chealla and Davron's wedding in six months."
"Joy," Luke commented dryly as he came to stand behind his wife so that he could read over her shoulder. "But I guess we should go. After all, we want peace with Buchanan at this point."
"Very well," Anjaleen agreed reluctantly, Ra'chealla's assassination attempt of her still fresh on her mind.
"Don't worry," Luke comforted her as he hugged her. "This wedding will be the end of all that. Davron may be a fool, but he's no idiot. He's going to keep his fiancée on a short leash if for nothing more than to make sure that she doesn't make him any new enemies. Besides, I can already see him trying to put himself in the best position he can get as far as I'm concerned. If we go to his wedding then he'll try even harder to prevent Ra'chealla from doing anything to anger me, he'll think that he can gain something out of it."
"You and your political games," Anja sighed in mock exasperation while in reality she loved them. They made sure that there was never a boring moment for her as far as court was concerned and now that she had two guards constantly watching over her whenever she left the castle, she could relax while at the Palace.
"Let's get changed," Luke suggested with a chuckle before he stopped and looked at his wife when he felt a change in her aura. "What is it?"
"I was simply wondering..." Anjaleen began carefully, knowing all the complications involved in the answer she wanted.
"About what?" Luke prodded.
"Well I was just over at the Bel-Zessa's and seeing Nastalia with Mirabel it well..." Anja hesitated, looking for the right words. "It made me want to be in her shoes. To have a child of my own."
"Anja," Luke began as he lifted her face so that he was looking into her green eyes. "I would love to have a child as well. I admit, the thought of being a father scares me a little, but it is very appealing. Now, however, is just not the time. There is so much to be done and with Grandfather beginning to go downhill..."
"I understand," Anjaleen hastily stated, hearing the pain in her husband's voice at the mention of the Emperor's condition. It hadn't taken her long to realize that, although not obvious, there were strong bonds between Palpatine and his son and grandson. "I was just thinking about it," she explained. Although the topic wasn't often discussed she knew that Luke wanted it nearly as much as she did. She could see the difficulties that would arise in the near future if the Galactic Ruler was indeed reaching the end of his reign, but that didn't make it much easier.
"As soon as the situation is ripe," Luke whispered softly in her ear. "I promise."
"I know," Anjaleen stated feeling surprise run through her at the relief she felt. Her emotions were like a double edged blade; on the one hand she wanted a child soon, and on the other hand she wanted some more time as she was slightly afraid of all that could happen as her child was bound to be Force strong. The child would excel in an area she had no personal experience in whatsoever.
General Ragorsh walked down the line of armored men. They all were thin, with a hard-bitten look around the eyes. They had all lost family and friends to this war, and most of them to the Vaders. He had hand-picked these men, from the groups he had carefully culled from the rest of the Alliance over the last year. Groups of fighters willing to do anything for victory, willing to take chances.
"Desperate times call for desperate measures." The General said to the air. The men didn't move. "Not," he casually added, "that I see this assignment as a suicide run." He turned around, walking the line again. "No, most of you will make it back, we think. To fight another day. To kill the enemy, to make them pay." He stopped to look at the leader of this little group.
Nate Clay, distant cousin to the other Nate Clay, the one sent on the fateful mission to save the Princess Leia. Named after the same great-grandfather, an Alderaanian general. Ragorsh locked eyes with the man, forcing himself not to show any fear from the faint madness that lurked in the other man's eyes. Loosing his homeworld had nearly sent this Clay over the edge.
The General remembered what had been written in the man's file. 'Unstable, thirsty for revenge. Not recommended to be placed in charge of other men, willing to take unreasonable risks. Promotion denied.' It had been simple to pick this man up and transfer him to where his attitude was an asset. The General smiled, "Ready to kill?" he whispered, and Clay smiled back, and Ragorsh felt like a lean blood-thirsty wolf was showing his fangs. "You will get your chance to really make him pay, this time." He told the man, stepping away. It was dangerous to use this man, but he was the best one for the job.
The General nodded at them all, then turned towards the door. He thought about Clay as he left. It had been hard to protect him from the other Council members, especially after he had led the raid on the hospital that had resulted in the news footage of the burnt Imperial children. But the General wasn't about to let anyone use one of his men as 'an example' to keep the other Alliance fighters from using necessary methods.
He would have to take steps to protect the man, if he made it back.
Vess stalked back and forth in his assigned guest room. He rubbed his forehead, swearing under his breath in Huttese. Handy words you could learn from your lord, they were quite expressive.
"That bad?" Vess looked up to see his cousin standing in the door. Drirk was wearing today's colors, blue and black. It was almost silly to insist on matching the rest of Vader's staff when you where halfway across the Core from the castle, keeping watch on the in-laws, but no one had even thought of doing otherwise.
"Yes. They're talking about visiting the public gardens to see the flower show. And perhaps the ballet. As if court assassins can't buy transport out here. Or even the Rebels can't sneak onto the planet. 'But we're on vacation!'," Vess imitated Sasha Winiterure, making his voice high-pitched and whiny, "'And we've never had to go through all this trouble before!' I could scream," Vess continued, "and I've already sent word back to the castle. I hope Lord Luke can talk some sense into them."
Drirk smirked. "No one could, at least not her."
Vess sighed, sinking to sit on his bed. "And we're horribly understaffed, I didn't guess that their security was so lax here. We don't have enough men to make up the difference. They haven't updated their security hardware for twenty years. How am I supposed to protect them, when they keep on taking all these risks? I swore that I would guard them."
"Actually, you swore that you would guard Prince Vader's family, not them." Drirk slightly accented the word 'Prince'- all of the castle staff did. They were very proud of Darth Vader's new title. "You were only ordered to protect them, not guard. Which isn't as strict, after all, you guard no matter what happens, but only protect what you can protect. And if you have to chose, I'd protect Randolf. The Prince won't admit it, but he couldn't care less about her. You've sent the warning back home, I'd just do what you can."
"Failure is not an option." Vess sourly said, shivering. He didn't care if it was only the in-laws, pretty Anjaleen might be upset if something happened.
Drirk sighed. "You can't do any more. Just double shift us all, until you get word on a solution."
Vess nodded, knowing there were no other options.
"Here's the plan," Nate began two days later as he looked at his seated comrades. "This afternoon our target will be attending the annual flower show. He and his wife will be sitting on a floating platform which is in perfect view of any number of nearby buildings. Due to this their security staff will be completely spread out in a vain attempt to cover them."
At this the other men smiled, knowing all too well that it was impossible for Vader's men to cover the Winiterure's completely at such an event with the number of guards they had at their disposal. If planned and executed correctly, this would be one of the easiest missions they had done is a while. Some of them even wondered why the Council didn't support such attacks. They were quick, easy, and had a lower casualty count than most missions.
"Naturally we won't use any of the usual points of attack," Nate continued as he eyed his men. "Since the guards have checked the platform beforehand and are leaving several watchmen present until the Winiterures show up, we can not rig it with explosives. The buildings are out as they will be watched as well. The best place for us to be will be in the crowd itself."
"How will we destroy it then?" a man named Julip demanded. "We can't carry a weapon with enough destructive power to destroy the platform without alerting the people as they'll see its bulk."
"I know," Nate stated. "We'll have to use five weapons instead of one. You, Spal, Qule, Xsae, and Gius will each be armed with ultra-blasters," he explained, seeing the mentioned members of his team nod their heads as they understood what he had planned. An ultra-blaster was only slightly larger than a normal blaster but it carried far more firepower. While one ultra-blaster alone wouldn't destroy the platform, five definitely would. "You'll all be given cloaks so that you can hide the ultra-blasters from preying eyes until its time. When I give the signal, you shall all aim for the platform's repulsors and fire. That way when the repulsors explode it should destroy the entire platform and what doesn't get destroyed by that will be wrecked when the platform falls from the sky and hits the stands."
"That'll mean heavy civilian casualties," Qule pointed out.
"True," Nate admitted before he shrugged off the thought, it didn't matter to him. Those people showing up would be Imperials as the flower show was held in honor of the Empire. "It will be the best time to strike. Any questions?"
"Yes," Gius said. "How will we get away?"
"Since the guards are understaffed and the stormtroopers nearby aren't very experienced we shouldn't have too many problems getting away," Nate replied. "Besides, since the fire came from five different directions the guards and stormtroopers will have to spread out to go after each of us. And that is not to mention the mass panic there will be among the crowd, people will be running in every direction. If you drop the ultra-blasters nobody will be able to tell you from the rest of the civilians."
"Perfect," Gius responded.
"Let's do this," Xsae said as he saw that there were no more concerns.
"Oh, look at that one!" Sasha exclaimed as she pointed to a float covered in bright pink and orange flowers. "Isn't it pretty?"
"I prefer the ones with more natural colors," Randolf stated as he watched a float with red and yellow roses go by in the shape of the Imperial symbol. "But, honestly, I like the flower fountains best."
"They should be here soon enough," Sasha replied as she watched the float she liked go past their platform. "This is so much fun! I wish we could see it every year!"
From his place behind the couple, Drirk rolled his eyes. Although the show was nice, he didn't understand why the Winiterures' didn't simply watch it on holo from somewhere safe. After all, no show was worth risking your life. At least this was the last day of this insanity. Tomorrow the extra guards that Lord Luke had promised would be arriving and then things would go better. But until then they were vulnerable. It was a pity that the young Lord had contacted them when the Winiterures were away at a friend's house, otherwise he might have been able to convince Randolf to remain in his home until the extra guards arrived.
Drirk sighed and looked at Blin who was standing next to him. Despite Vess' best efforts, Sasha Winiterure had insisted that they attend the flower show as she rarely got to see it and it was her favorite show in system. Randolf had nearly been persuaded, but had finally decided to come saying that the people had already been informed that they would be present and that they couldn't cancel because the people wanted to see them. Drirk had to admit that there had been a warm welcome for the couple and the people had cheered them on, but he still thought it was pure stupidity.
Anyone in the crowds, he knew, could be a threat. A hidden danger, just waiting to strike. Shifting uncomfortably, he looked at the various nearby buildings and caught sight of the telltale black and red uniforms of his comrades lurking there. They had spread out as much as possible to cover the maximum area, but even their best efforts were pathetic at most. But, as he had told his cousin, it was the best they could do.
"How is everything here?" Vess demanded as he took the last few steps and came to stand next to Ched on the balcony of one of the buildings overlooking the floating platform.
"Quiet so far," Ched reported as he looked at Vess.
"Good," Vess replied as he looked at the platform and its occupants. They had secured it the night before and had double-checked it for any signs of sabotage this morning, but had found none. Indeed, if anything was going to happen, the floating platform wouldn't be the cause of it. That much he knew for sure. But that was all he was sure of. "I'll check back in an hour."
"Understood," Ched stated as he watched Vess go.
Vess descended the stairs and quickly made his way towards the next building. When deciding on the best way to defend the in-laws it had quickly become apparent that while there needed to be men on all the buildings, it would be best to have a few guards simply walking around and patrolling the area for anything out of the ordinary. He was halfway to his destination when a loud whistle sounded before screams of panic and fear erupted in the crowd near him. Spinning to look in the direction, he was just in time to see a thick, red bolt of energy come from among the civilians and reach up to strike the bottom of the platform.
For a moment Vess stood frozen in place, watching as four similar bolts of pure energy hit the platform and it exploded in a bright ball of red, orange, and yellow flames. Then his training took over and he brought his com to his mouth and began snapping off orders. Although the in-laws might be dead already, he would not let those who assassinated them get away if he could help it.
"Split up," he ordered. "I want whoever released those shots captured alive if possible, dead otherwise."
Vess put his com away and charged into the crowd, pulling out his blaster and putting it on stun as he made his way towards where the energy beam had come from. Reaching a small clearing in the milling crowd as they all made to get away, he saw a brown cloaked man throw aside an ultra-blaster.
"Don't move!" Vess ordered as he brought his blaster round in the direction of the man, even as he moved towards him.
Spal turned around upon hearing the words before starting to push his way through the now frantic crowds as he realized that he was spotted. Determined not to let the man escape, Vess began firing after him, wincing as civilians went down. But at least he knew that they weren't dead, merely stunned. As more people went down, he got a clear view of the fleeing human. Taking careful aim he pulled the trigger once more and watched as the blue stun bolt shot forward to hit the man square in the back. Rushing to the striking man, Vess made sure that he didn't have anymore weapons before binding his hands together behind his back.
"I've got one," Vess stated as he pulled out his com once more.
"Me too," a voice replied. "But he's dead."
"That's okay," Vess responded. "Mine's alive."
"So is this one," a third voice declared. "But his partner is dead."
"Good, that's four," Vess said. "Do we have the fifth one?"
"No," another voice stated. "I nearly had him, but he disappeared into the crowd. He also got past the stormtroopers waiting for him."
"At least we have a majority of them," Vess mumbled. "Get them back to the house, the dead ones too. You never know what information they might have on them or if they can be identified."
Vess felt anger and fear begin to bubble up within him as he hauled his prisoner over his shoulder and the adrenaline died. He didn't even want to think of where the wreckage of the platform had landed and how many civilians it had killed. Nor did he want to think of the fact that both his cousin and Blin were dead, having died in the explosion. However, thinking of what would happen when he returned to Coruscant worried him most. There was the possibility that Prince Vader would kill him, as he killed officers who failed him. True, he had never done that before to his personal staff, but there was always a first. But he knew that the Prince and Lord Luke's wrath wouldn't be the worst thing. No, facing pretty Anjaleen would be far worse for, although she wasn't as powerful as he husband and father-in-law, simply seeing the pain and anguish in her green eyes and knowing that he had been unable to prevent the death of her parents would be worse than any punishment the Dark Lords could hand out.
Luke jerked awake, the flames of his dreams fading around the edges of his sight. He looked around, hand reaching for his lightsaber that was never far away.
"Mumpf." Anja mumbled, waking up. "Luke?" She whispered, "what is it?"
"I don't know." He answered, sliding out of the bed. "I saw flames. Something has happened." He blinked in the dark room, realizing that something had happened- he didn't have to interpret the dream-vision, he just knew. And he knew- "Your parents." Anja winced, and Luke quickly added, "I think." He needn't worry her till he knew more. "I'll find out, you rest."
"As if I could." Anja whispered, pulling the sheets down. "I'll come with you."
Luke sighed, "No. It may have just been a forewarning- I'll just make a quick call, you wait here."
Anja lay back down. "If you insist." Luke woke from visions and dreams almost once a week, she reasoned. And very little came of it, most times. Anjaleen tried to reassure herself. Besides, she wasn't very awake yet, she was far too groggy to get up.
Luke pulled on his robe, using the Force to gently make his wife drift off back to sleep. He hated manipulating her this way, but it was better than dragging her out of bed until he knew more.
He met his father in the hall. His father growled, "Even I felt it this time."
Luke sighed, "I saw flames. And it's her parents. I know something has happened."
The Prince shook his head. "And they were under-guarded. The reinforcements were supposed to show up tomorrow." Darth looked down the hallway, "how's your wife?"
"Anja's asleep. She woke up when I did, but I convinced her to go back to sleep. I want to know before I worry her."
Luke was glad his father didn't rib him about using the Force on his wife. Instead, the two turned towards Father's study. The most secure holo-net projector was there. They could call Sergeant Vess, the head guard they had sent with Anjaleen's parents on their trip. It may be the middle of the night here, but it was late afternoon where the Winiterure's were visiting.
Vess kneeled on the floor, trying to think. The day had turned into a nightmare. Not half an hour after the attack, he had received a holo-call from the Castle. Vess had all ready been neck deep in attempting to track the last of the five assassins and any of his accomplices they could find. Trying to work around all the emergency personnel that were trying to attend to the wounded hit by the burning debris. Telling both Vaders what had happened had been hard, but it had only gotten worse.
The Prince had determined that he would come to personally oversee the investigation, and track down whomever had hired the assassins once that was determined. Lord Luke would be coming with his wife in a few days for the funeral. They had signed off, and Vess had turned around, only to be confronted by one of his guard.
"The holo-channels have received messages- a group of Rebels are claiming responsibility for the attack. The stations have already released the news, but they want permission to run the tapes of the message." The man held up a data-chip. "I have a copy, what should we do?"
Vess had called back the castle, transmitting the holo-message to Prince Vader. Luke was telling his wife. The look on Darth Vader's face had been murderous, and as soon as the Prince had signed off, Vess had sunk to his knees.
"Sir?" The guard behind him called, "the investigative teams want to talk to you."
"Wonderful." Vess said, climbing to his feet. "At least it can't get any worse."
"They want custody of the prisoners for questioning."
Vess snorted. "We may use their facilities to hold the prisoners, but Prince Vader will want to question the Rebels."
"Prince Vader?"
"He's coming here. On the fastest ship."
"Anjaleen?" Luke whispered, gently shaking his wife awake.
"What?" Anja sleepily asked, sitting up.
Luke just held her.
Anjaleen remembered that Luke had woken up to check on her parents. What had happened? "Is something wrong?"
"Your parents-" Luke stopped. How was he supposed to tell her? He had never had to tell her something painful before.
His father's voice boomed in his head. 'The Rebels are claiming responsibility.' Darth growled.
"What happened?" Anja asked, fear starting to fill her voice. Luke was acting so strange.
"There was a Rebel attack. At least the Rebels are claiming responsibility. Your parent's platform- they blew it up."
"Platform?" Anjaleen sounded a little detached from it all, Luke wasn't surprised.
"They were attending the flower show on a floating platform. The Rebels blew up the repulsors. It fell to the ground, burning."
"Are they okay? My parents, are they okay?"
"No." Luke whispered. "They didn't make it. No one on the platform did. It landed on the crowd."
"The crowd? Did it hurt anyone?"
"Yes. Quite a few people are dead."
"How many?" She sounded like she might get a little hysterical, Luke began to get worried.
"I don't know, the information isn't all in yet."
"Wait." Anjaleen said, "are you sure? I mean, maybe they made it, maybe they just got hurt."
"No, they didn't make it."
"Did you see? Did you see them? Are they really dead?"
"No, we don't have pictures yet. But I am sure. I'll summon the staff. We have to pack." Luke carefully sent out a soothing tendril of the Force. He didn't want his wife to get hysterical on him.
'Father?' Luke sent, 'has anyone told Grandfather?'
'I will, right now.' Luke could feel his father's unhurried rage as the older man snapped orders to prepare for his departure.
Luke sighed. Father wouldn't miss the Winiterures, especially Sasha, but he hated anyone who tried to strike at him.
Mon Mothma watched in horror as a reporter talked about the assassination of Randolf and Sasha Winiterure and how members of the Rebel Alliance had claimed responsibility for it. Seeing images of the destruction the floating platform had caused when it had crashed into the stands she felt as if the world was ripped out from under her feet. Comrades of her had done that?! It was just as bad the hospital incident.
Mon Mothma felt the anger begin to rise within her upon hearing the reporter give estimates on the number of people injured or dead as a result of the whole incident. This attack, as there was really no other word for it, went against everything the Alliance stood for! Indeed, she would expect the Imperials to do something like this, not her fellow Rebels. She was so angry and disgusted that she found herself unable to sympathize with the men Vader's guards had captured, even with the knowledge that Vader was going to be questioning them personally. They would get what they deserved.
"Carlist?" Mon Mothma asked as she turned on her com.
"Yes?" the General replied, his voice tight with anger.
"I take it you've seen the holo-news?"
"Yes," Rieekan confirmed. "Ragorsh is behind this, it has to be him. This is so like him. I should have known that he was up to something when he stopped offering those crazy plans of his lately."
"True," Mon Mothma agreed, remembering how relieved she had been when the other general had finally stopped being a hassle during the meetings. "But that's the past. We missed the warning signs and we can't undo that. We can, however, prevent him from causing any further damage than he already has."
"What do you suggest?" Rieekan inquired.
"Arrest him," Mon Mothma ordered. "And then have him brought to the Council room. We shall discuss this matter with him and see what he has to say for himself."
"Very well," Rieekan responded. "In the meantime we should also keep an eye on the news and see if we can learn anymore details of just what exactly took place."
"Good idea," Mon Mothma commented. "I'll also keep any eye on our desertion and enlistment numbers, no doubt this whole incident will effect those areas once more. Ragorsh is such an idiot, couldn't he see that we can't afford to have bad publicity like this at the moment?"
"No doubt he thought he was doing something good," Rieekan stated, his anger and disgust more than clear in his voice. "I heard a rumor a few days ago but thought nothing of it until now. The rumor suggested that anyone who refused to do anything and everything to win this war was an Imperial Operative."
"That's got Ragorsh's scent all over it," Mon Mothma declared. "Amazing how he can twist the situation around so. He is the one who is too much of an Imperial to be good."
"Agreed," Rieekan said.
Luke sighed as he watched his father's shuttle disappear from sight into Coruscant's sapphire sky. They had just gotten a copy of what a nearby holo-camera had recorded at the flower show. One minute his in-laws were sitting on the platform, happily watching the flower floats, the next all that was there was a brilliant ball of flames. Upon zooming in on the faces of the two guards on the platform with them, he had been able to see their alertness and the way they had constantly been looking in different directions had been a clear giveaway that they felt vulnerable in their position.
Luke turned around and headed back inside. Anjaleen had insisted that he inform her as soon as they had any footage of what had happened. Although he didn't think it was a good idea, he had promised he would tell her. Maybe seeing what had happened would make it sink in as she was still insisting that her parents had somehow survived the attack. Upon seeing just how hysterical she had gotten, he and Father had decided that it was probably best that he wait a few more days before taking Anjaleen over there.
"My Lord," Mark said as Luke was about to ascend the stairs.
"Yes?" Luke questioned.
"The cook has made some herbal tea," Mark began. "He claims it will help the Lady."
"It's worth a try," Luke replied. "Bring it to the sitting room we always use. I fear she'll want to see what the news broadcasted."
"As you wish," Mark responded, wincing as he went off to get the tea.
Like the rest of the staff, Mark had been enraged when he had heard of the attack, and worried about Anjaleen. Despite the fact that she was newer to the castle, she was well liked among the staff. The last thing anyone wanted was to see her hurting the way she now undoubtedly was. Indeed, she hadn't even left the bedroom she and Lord Luke used since last evening, a thing which had never occurred yet seeing as it was already past noon.
"Yes?" Nathaniel demanded as Captain Bruick entered his private quarters.
"Admiral," Bruick began. "I was just flipping through the holo-channels when I stumbled upon a channel broadcasting the latest news reports."
"And?" Nathaniel inquired as he put down the datapad he was reading. He knew Bruick long enough to know that the man wouldn't bother him during his free time unless it was important. "What has happened?"
"It seems that the Rebels have struck again," Bruick explained. "Only this time they targeted the Royal Family."
"What?!" Nathaniel exclaimed as he thought of his two friends. "Who? And did they succeed?"
"Yes. They managed to kill Randolf and Sasha Winiterure while they were attending a show held in the Empire's honor," Bruick stated, remembering his anger at the news. "They also killed a couple hundred civilians in the process."
"By the Force," Nathaniel whispered as his Captain's words sunk in. "The Prince and Lord Vader are going to be furious."
"Prince Vader is already heading towards the system of the attack and will personally oversee the interrogations of the captured Rebels," Bruick informed his superior. "Lord Vader is still on Coruscant at the time."
"Probably comforting Lady Vader," Nathaniel said. "Thank you for informing me of the situation, Captain."
"Sir," Bruick said before leaving.
Nathaniel was already heading for his com as the man left. Anjaleen would probably need all the support she could get at the moment. He'd better make sure that Nastalia was going to give his consolations to her when she went to see her.
"Anja?" Luke asked as he entered their bedroom and saw his wife leaning against the wall next to the window.
"Why didn't you do anything?" Anjaleen demanded softly, the pain more than evident in her voice.
"What do you mean?" Luke questioned as he moved towards her.
"You should have stopped it! Prevented it!" Anja accused. "But you didn't, you let them die!"
"What?" Luke inquired, stunned. "What could I possibly have done?"
"You should have had them better protected," Anja stated as she turned around and stared at him as she clenched her fists. "You knew something was going to happen. If you had used the Force, you could have saved them. But you let them die!"
Bewildered, Luke couldn't do anything but simply stand there looking at her. In all the years that he had known her, he had never seen Anjaleen loose control so completely, nor be so unreasonable. Sure, he had received a warning through the Force that something was going to happen, but he hadn't known when, where, or even who. Besides, her parents were nearly half a galaxy away. No one could use the Force well enough to prevent things from happening while being so far away. Absently he wondered if this was normal behavior for someone who had just lost people dear to them.
"You should have saved them," Anja stated once more, less forcefully this time before she seemed to crumple and sink to the ground.
"How?" Luke demanded as he moved forward and sat down next to her, pulling her to him and stroking her hair. "What is it that you would have had me do?"
"Stop the Rebels," Anja mumbled. "Kept them from shooting. You should have used the Force somehow."
"They were too far away," Luke whispered softly. "Even Grandfather couldn't have done anything. That's why they had guards with them. But they didn't listen to the guards, they wanted to see the flower show and the guards couldn't completely cover them. There were simply too many people nearby."
"No!" Anjaleen suddenly burst out as she began pounding her fists against her husband's chest. "Something, you should have done something! Anything!"
"Anjaleen," Luke exclaimed as he took hold of her wrists, startled at the sudden anger she displayed. "Calm down," he added and was just thinking of soothing her mind with the Force before she did something she'd regret later, when her anger vanished as quickly as it had begun and she began to sob once more.
"Do you have any visuals yet?" Anja finally asked.
"Yes," Luke replied, suppressing as a sigh as he did so.
Vess kneeled on the floor of the security office as Prince Vader swept into the room. He kneeled like a prisoner, not like a loyal servant with both knees on the floor, sitting on his ankles, hands in his lap, and head bowed. He had failed. He had been ordered to protect the Winiterures and he had failed. He still hadn't figured out what he could have done differently, but that didn't matter. He had thought about it over the last twenty-four hours, and he knew that death was the only thing he had to look forward to.
"Get up." Prince Vader snarled, and Vess staggered to his feet. "I won't argue your opinion on your performance, but I will need you for the remainder of the investigation. Afterwards, I will determine what I am going to do with you."
Vess only nodded, not wishing to waste the Prince's time with unnecessary thanks. He belonged to Darth Vader, the man could do what he wanted.
"Now," Prince Vader said, "tell me what you have discovered as you take me to the prisoners."
Vess bowed again. "Yes, my Prince." He started walking towards the prisoners' cells. "Our first point of investigation was determining how the Rebels had gotten their weapons past the checkpoints. That was easy to figure out- one entire set of guards at checkpoint A-15 did not report in later. We found their stripped bodies last night. There were six guards at the checkpoint, so there are at least seven Rebels involved in the attack that we still haven't accounted for."
Vess came to a guarded door. Four stormtroopers and two of Vader's house guard were posted at the door. Vess continued as the door was opened. "Naturally, the system was locked down, but we aren't sure the lockdown was done fast enough. Records show fifteen ships leaving between the attack and the lockdown that could have held the fleeing Rebels. About half of the ships have been accounted for, being properly registered. The other half are still being tracked."
"What's taking so long?" Prince Vader hissed, as they entered a security control room. The prisoners' cells were obviously down a short hall to the right. Half a squad of stormtroopers and six house guard were standing at attention along the walls.
Vess winced. "The security here is dismal. They aren't very structured, ships don't have to leave a record of their next port. We are having to track down each ship through their contacts here on the planet. It's taking too long."
"Well," Prince Vader hissed, a cold smile tickling his lips, "show me the first Rebel. I'll see what I can find out."
"This way," Vess said, almost smiling. The Rebels would finally get what they deserved.
Thoughts? Comments? Suggestions? E-mail Rebecca or me at valeriev84@hotmail.com
