CHAPTER ELEVEN
The Dawn of Tranquility
Ensign Lysa Dunter’s leg drummed nervously on the deck of the bridge. If any of her superiors noticed or were annoyed by it, they did not show it, already enraptured in the news they had just received.
Vice Admiral Holdo sat in the command chair, Captain Tarpfen standing beside her with a dour expression. In front of them both pace Admiral Cha Niathal, her arms clasped behind her back as she scowled out the viewport, as if that was going to fix things. The entire crew of the bridge watched on in hushed silence, anxiously awaiting their next orders… if there were going to be any.
The Chief of State was dead. It was all over the HoloNet and doubtlessly being reported on other intergalactic broadcasting channels. While hardly anyone Lysa knew had been a fan of Luewet Wuul — even her superiors had not been afraid to voice their frustration in the Sullustan’s lack of leadership skills — this was nonetheless a horrific event for the Galactic Alliance and perhaps the entire galaxy itself. Not only did they now have to answer the question of who was responsible for Wuul’s death, but they also needed to find a new leader to guide them in these uncertain times… and if the fractured state of the Senate was anything to go by, it did not look like that would be happening anytime soon.
Swallowing hard, she rubbed her thumb over the diamond ring adorning her ring finger. It looked like the wedding would have to wait….
“Does the King know about this yet?” asked Captain Tarpfen, breaking Lysa out of her thoughts.
“Admiral Bwua’tu is informing him as we speak,” Admiral Niathal said bitterly. “This will doubtlessly solidify Mon Cala’s decision in not going through with our proposed updates to their ships. Not to mention all of the other systems already on the verge of seceding….”
“Let us not be pessimistic just yet,” said Admiral Holdo. “Perhaps if the Senate finds a new leader, one that is stronger than Wuul—”
“They won’t,” Niathal snapped. “They’ll just find another Wuul; someone they can manipulate and use as a puppet.”
“How do you propose we respond to this news, then? Or if King Les-Char tells you that Mon Cala is seceding from the Alliance? What will you do then?”
Niathal glared at the vibrant-haired woman. “I swear to the gods, Holdo, if this is you trying to rile me up—”
“I am not trying to rile you up,” Holdo said sternly. “I am asking you to stop and reflect, for once, on what is best for the galaxy and not just the Alliance.”
Niathal ceased pacing and stopped to look at Holdo, her eyes narrowed. “Where is this coming from, Holdo? What are you trying to insinuate?”
Holdo sighed and rose from the command chair. She exchanged a glance with Captain Tarpfen before looking back at Niathal. “I suppose there’s not much point in trying to beat around the bush,” she finally said. “Leia wanted me to approach you directly, and I suppose now is as good a time as any.”
“Did you say Leia? What does the Princess have anything to do with…?” Niathal then stiffened, realization dawning on her face. “You’re with her, aren’t you? You’re part of her little ‘Resistance.’”
Holdo smiled thinly. “Was it that obvious?”
“I had my suspicions,” Niathal admitted. “I’ve read your record, Holdo, and I know how close you are with Princess Organa. Didn’t you work in the Apprentice Legislature together, during the reign of the Empire?”
“I see that you’ve done your research. But my past with Leia has nothing to do with this. It’s about doing what is right, not only for the Alliance but for the galaxy.”
“From what I’ve read, treason has done little good for the galaxy,” Niathal said darkly.
Many on the bridge tensed, including Lysa, the pace of her foot drumming increasing. Holdo, however, maintained a calm composition as she looked back at Niathal evenly.
“It is not treason,” she said coolly. “Those we fought at Mandalore were Sith, Imperials, and allied Mandalorians. None of them were Alliance forces.”
“But your actions at Mandalore were not sanctioned by the Senate and therefore illegal,” Niathal said tersely. “You acted without the approval of the Alliance and therefore acted against their wishes.”
“Is that truly how you see things, Niathal?” Holdo asked, her tone almost sad. “Are you that narrow-minded about how the galaxy operates?”
“It doesn’t matter how I see things,” Niathal retorted. “My duty comes first and take priority before my own wishes and desires. And my duty commands that I deal with those that I perceive to be… problematic in the interests of the Alliance appropriately.”
Holdo smiled again. “And how do you plan to do that?”
Niathal glowered at her but directed her next words to Captain Tarpfen. “Arrest her, Captain.”
Tarpfen shook his head. “I’m afraid I do not have the authority to apprehend a superior officer, Admiral.”
“You do when that ‘superior officer’ is a traitor to the Alliance, and when you are given express permission by her superior officer. Now, arrest her.”
“I’m afraid you’ll have to arrest both of us then, Admiral,” Tarpfen said, stepping up to stand side-by-side with Holdo. “Catch two fanladi with one net.”
Niathal’s right eye twitched. “You as well? Is your entire crew with the Resistance?”
“Not all of them.” Lysa could have sworn Holdo’s eyes briefly fell on her as she said this, but it was only for a passing second. “And I do not expect them to stand with us. Arrest us if you must, but please do not punish them for our sake.”
A tense silence fell over the bridge. Niathal kept her eyes locked on Holdo and Tarpfen. The rest of the bridge crew exchanged wary glances. Lysa kept tapping the deck with her foot, the only sound filling the room.
The first to break the silence was not any of the commanders but rather a Duros ensign who swiveled around in his seat, having paid more attention to his monitor than the drama unfolding around him.
“Sirs,” he said carefully. “Our sector border patrol is reporting a strange occurrence in the Dominus sector… specifically in the Lothal system.”
Holdo directed her attention to the ensign, ignoring Niathal’s prolonged glare. “What kind of ‘strange occurrence?’”
“They believe that Imperial ships are entering the system.”
This got Niathal’s attention and she finally broke her gaze with Holdo to walk over to the Duros’ station. Holdo and Tarpfen carefully followed her and all three of them looked over the ensign’s shoulder as they reviewed the data displayed on his screen. Lysa watched them with nervous anticipation, still rubbing the ring on her finger with her thumb.
After a moment, Niathal said, “Get me Admiral Bwua’tu, urgently. He’s going to need to see this….”
Lothal
The map that they had come to Lothal for was quickly forgotten about when a Star Destroyer suddenly appeared in the sky above the capital city, sending TIE fighters and shuttles out from its hangar bay. Without wasting any time, Poe Dameron and his fellow pilots had rushed back to their landspeeder, with Finn and BB-8 trailing close behind. Rey and her fellow Jedi lingered, exchanging glances with each other and at Kane Skywalker, who displayed no sense of urgency.
“You didn’t know anything about this, did you?” Toah Jarsan asked the white-armored Vader clone warily.
“I did not,” Kane replied. “I do not involve myself with local planetary politics. In fact, I have never set foot in the city in the years I have spent here on Lothal.”
Toah’s expression remained doubtful but he turned away to head towards the speeder. “Let’s get a move on then. Whatever is happening over there, we should see what it is about.”
Rey was about to follow him, Nira, and Chek only to stop and look back at Kane Skywalker, who remained where he stood and made no move to follow them.
“Aren’t you coming with us?” she asked.
Kane tilted his masked head to look at her and Rey felt an inexplicable chill run through her spine. When Kane spoke, his voice sounded colder than any nights she had experienced on Jakku.
“I have never seen a need to involve myself with this planet’s personal issues and I do not see one now,” he replied. “Do as you will. The map will be waiting for you.”
“Can’t you give it to us now?”
“And risk it falling in the wrong hands should you fail? I don’t think so.”
Rey’s brow furrowed in frustration and she opened her mouth to protest further only to hear Toah call her name. She clamped up and, with one last wary glance at Kane, turned to join her master, Nira, and Chek at the landspeeder. Within moments, they were speeding off towards the capital city, entering the shadow of the Star Destroyer looming over it.
* * *
“I must commend you for this wise decision, Governor Jalvon. The people of Lothal will forever be in your debt.”
Governor Cara Jalvon said nothing as she watched the red-haired man pace in her office. General Armitage Hux looked to be in his late thirties or early forties and carried himself with the haughtiness that she would have expected from someone in a sharp black uniform like his. She did not recognize the emblem sewed into the shoulder of his vest, though it invoked a similar feeling of dread that she would get as a child from the Galactic Empire’s insignia.
He came to stop in front of a glass cabinet that had been a mainstay of the office since Ryder Azadi was reinstated as governor following the Liberation of Lothal. His green eyes glided over the various pieces of historic memorabilia that inhabited the case, his face twisting into a look of what Jalvon felt was disgusted amusement.
“You seem rather proud of your ties with the Alliance,” he said.
“They played a huge role in liberating us from the Empire’s rule,” she replied carefully.
“And yet, you turn to us for help.”
As if I had much of a choice. Jalvon bit back what she wanted to say and instead said, “The Alliance is no longer the same entity that I or my predecessors once knew.”
“Oh, no,” Hux said. “It is very much the same entity that it’s always been. They’ve simply stopped trying to hide it.”
Jalvon was not sure what to say to that, so she resorted back to silence. As Hux continued to look over the items in the cabinet, another officer entered the room and saluted.
“General, we have just received news from Coruscant. The Chief of State is dead.”
While Jalvon’s eyes went wide at this news (as well as at how calmly the officer had delivered it), Hux continued to study the cabinet. “How unfortunate,” he said quietly. “Is the Senate handling things well?”
“As far as we know, the Chair of the Senate is fulfilling the Chief’s duties in the interim, as per the succession of powers. We are still monitoring events as they unfold, sir.”
“Understandable. Thank you for informing me, lieutenant.”
Taking this as a dismissal, the officer saluted once more before departing. Jalvon watched them leave before shifting her gaze to Hux, who continued to look unfazed.
“You already knew, didn’t you?” she said quietly. “You knew this was going to happen.”
Hux finally turned to face her, a smirk twitching onto his face. “I had to have the news delivered to you somehow so it wouldn’t come to you as too much of a shock later on.”
Jalvon narrowed her eyes, already beginning to question whether she had made the right decision. “What game are you playing at, General? What exactly is the meaning of all of this?”
“The restoration of order, Governor,” Hux replied simply. “And bringing back peace to the galaxy.”
He made a gesture and a pair of stormtroopers entered the room, moving to flank Jalvon on either side.
“Please take the Governor somewhere safe,” Hux ordered the white-armored soldiers. “We’re going to need to make some… renovations here before we proceed with business.”
Jalvon opened her mouth to object but the words caught in her throat as the troopers roughly grabbed her by the arms and carried her out of the office. They weren’t even halfway down the hall when she heard the sound of shattering glass.
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