11: EXPOSING THE TRUTH
Bastion
Grand Admiral Gilad Pellaeon, head of state of the Imperial Remnant, was not happy.
Less than an hour ago, he had received word that Hosnian Prime had been struck by the terrorists that called themselves the Children of Vader, mere days after a similar attack on New Alderaan. The fact that these cultists dressed themselves to resemble Darth Vader had caused many in the New Republic—and the general public—to believe that the remnant state of the Galactic Empire was behind the two attacks. Pellaeon had already assured Chief of State Leia Organa Solo that this was not the case, and he had told her the truth.
But that did not mean he himself wasn’t being deceived.
He knew that the Imperial Sith War that had ended two years ago was still fresh on everyone’s minds. It had only been at the last minute of the battle, during the final showdown at Coruscant, that Pellaeon and several like-minded officers decided to turn on their Sith commanders, having been fed up with Darth Vorath’s self-serving plot, especially when they realized that they had no place in the Sith’s grand vision. They had made peace with the New Republic then and there, due to their forces having been halved after the betrayal. But that didn’t mean that everyone within the Imperial Remnant was content with surrendering and staying in the small patch of territory that the New Republic had allowed them to keep.
Pellaeon was more than happy with the status quo, having long grown tired of fighting a losing battle. But he could not speak for the others, especially for the ones that were far younger and bolder than he was. There was only so much he could do to keep them all in line, and there was no telling what they could be plotting behind his back.
Maybe he was just being paranoid. Then again, sometimes a leader had to be paranoid in order to stay in control….
As soon as he had gotten the news of the incident on Hosnian Prime, he had called in an emergency session with the Moff Council as well as the eight sector fleet commanders that served under them. Due to the short notice, several of the Moffs and admirals were joining in via hologram, while others had made a hasty arrival to the capitol building in Ravelin.
Pellaeon regarded each and every one of them, keeping his expression blank while he calculated the likelihood of which of them was the most likely to be behind the incidents, if at all. He did not trust a single one of them, and could not bring himself to think of any one of them to be a trusted friend or confidante.
In this game, he had no allies and only enemies. It was all just a matter of keeping those enemies in check.
Clearing his throat, Pellaeon began the meeting. “I am sure you are all aware of now of the events that have transpired on both New Alderaan and Hosnian Prime.”
“A very unfortunate turn of events,” said Moff Crowal, transmitting from her residence on Valc VII. “I offer my condolences for the victims and their families.”
Pellaeon did not miss the sarcasm in her tone, but he did not call it out. He doubted any of them had genuine concern for the people who had been affected by the attacks.
“It is clear that these attackers hold Darth Vader in great reverence, given their uniform,” Pellaeon continued. “It should not come as a surprise that many suspect the Empire of either being involved with these attackers or secretly endorsing them.”
“And are we?” asked Moff Sarreti, standing to Pellaeon’s right.
“You tell me.”
Pellaeon let those words hang in the air as he gauged the reactions of the sixteen Moffs and admirals. A good number of them seemed to be caught off-guard by the silent accusation after they had processed it; others did not have a change of expression or hid it as they raised a hand to their chin, feigning contemplation. It was Moff Flennic, one of Pellaeon’s most prominent rivals on the Council, that voiced the thought on all of their minds.
“Are you trying to insinuate something, Grand Admiral?” the older man asked, his eyes narrowed in suspicion.
“I am not blind to the inner machinations of the political world,” Pellaeon retorted. “You may dismiss me as a military figurehead for you to use as a puppet, but I know more about the typical scheming of Moffs than you might suspect. If any of you are involved with Children of Vader, then speak now and come forth with the truth. I myself do not yet have a stance on their actions; it is simply the concealment of the truth that I despise most of all.”
Glances were exchanged between the Moffs and admirals. Pellaeon wondered if perhaps they were all in on the scheme, if indeed there was one. Or perhaps he had now planted the seed of doubt in their mind and they were now just as suspicious of each other as he was of them. Either way, he knew this was a situation he would need to rein in and quickly if he wanted to hold onto power.
“Perhaps,” he interjected, causing their attention to return to him, “it would be prudent if we enlisted the services of our Intelligence Division in order to get to the root of this situation.”
“And how do you know that Intelligence itself isn’t involved?” asked Moff Freyborn.
“I don’t,” Pellaeon admitted. “Which is why I am open to any other suggestions you may have.”
He knew they had none. He had trapped them all in a corner; regardless of whether they were all in on it or not, none of them were going to come forward with the truth. While he doubted he would get far by enlisting the aid of Intelligence, he knew it was the path that would present him with results.
Knowing that none of the Moffs were going to speak up, Pellaeon was about to deliver his closing remarks when one of the Moffs finally spoke up. A woman in her early forties, Vynda Tareth was the newly appointed Moff of the Velcar sector, ruling from the planet of Entralla where the Empire had established a subsidiary of the Kuat Drive Yards, producing new vessels for the Imperial Navy.
“I do know of a recent incident that might be of interest,” Tareth said, her tone cold and clipped.
Pellaeon raised an eyebrow at her. “And what would that be?”
“Last year, two Imperial-class Star Destroyers that were to be salvaged for parts at one of the orbital depots in the Entralla system vanished without a trace. There are no records that they were properly destroyed, leading us to assume that they had been stolen by pirates.”
Pellaeon vaguely recalled reading a report related to this incident, but the burden of bringing in a new Imperial state had caused it to be buried by more pressing priorities. “You believe that these Children of Vader may have behind the theft?”
“It is a possibility,” Tareth replied. “One that we should take into serious consideration. If these terrorists have two Star Destroyers at their disposal, there’s no telling what they might do with them. They might even attempt to usurp control from us.”
Flennic barked out a laugh. “Unlikely. Even if they were foolish enough to perform such an act, we would crush them swiftly with the might of our fleet.”
“Even so,” Tareth said thinly, “we must be prepared for any outcome. If we truly have no idea who these Children of Vader are, then we don’t know whose side they’re truly on.”
To this, none of the other Moffs had anything to say, lest they show their hand and reveal what part, if any, they had in all of this. Satisfied that he at least had a lead to go off of, Pellaeon nodded his gratitude towards Tareth before addressing the rest of the Council.
“In that case, I shall task Intelligence immediately with locating our missing Star Destroyers before the Children of Vader can use them. I will also send their findings to the New Republic so that we may hopefully lay this entire situation to rest.”
If any of the Moffs had any objections, they did not voice them. To do so at this point would only make themselves more of a target for Pellaeon’s suspicion.
After the meeting had adjourned, Pellaeon swiftly departed from the meeting chamber, intent on putting this whole mess behind him.
* * *
Hosnian Prime
“This is an outrage!” Senator Hamato Xiono slammed his fist on the table, anger contorting his face. “This attack happened on my homeworld—on our turf! Something must be done about this!”
“Where was this emotion a few days ago, Senator Xiono?” asked Senator Omas. “Because unless you’ve forgotten, New Alderaan is also part of our ‘turf,’ even if it is in the Outer Rim.”
Xiono scowled at his white-haired colleague. “Don’t turn this into something it isn’t, Omas! We should be focusing on responding to this barbaric attack! The Empire must be held responsible for—”
“We don’t know that this was the Empire,” Leia interjected, sitting at the head of the table where select members of the Senate had convened in the wake of the attack at the Madera Starros Theatre.
“How do you explain their love for Vader, then? You yourself said in your own report that they uttered the words ‘Long live the Empire!’”
“The actions and words of an extremist group are not always indicative of the truth,” Leia said pointedly. “Grand Admiral Pellaeon himself has informed me that he has conducted an investigation into the disappearance of two Star Destroyers that he believes might be connected to the attackers.”
Xiono sneered. “And you believe him?”
“Pellaeon may be many things, Senator, but deception is not exactly one of his strong suits.”
“This news is concerning,” said Senator Tai-Lin Garr. “If the attackers have Star Destroyers at their disposal, then they might be capable of even more destruction than what has happened here and on New Alderaan.”
“Intelligence is already performing their own investigation into the matter,” Leia assured him. “And I have placed the Defense Force on high alert. When and where the Children of Vader may strike next, we will be ready for it.”
At the far end of the table, Leia noticed Senator Casterfo shift uncomfortably. The young man readjusted himself in his seat as he addressed the Chief of State.
“What about these… messages that the terrorists have been broadcasting? Particularly the latest one that depicts you performing a rather… sensual dance?”
The other senators exchanged uncomfortable glances while Leia maintained her composure, meeting Casterfo’s gaze evenly. “The matter is being looked into as well.”
“Is there any truth to what they might be insinuating?” Casterfo went on. “That you are hiding something from us?”
The subtle accusation prompted the other senators to shift their gaze over to Leia, who did her best to keep her expression even. Last time, it had been Senator Sidian who had leveled similar allegations to her in response to the Children of Vader’s message. While Casterfo was also a member of the Centrist party, he was somewhat more respectable towards Leia than some of his colleagues, and he was not typically one to make such accusations, however subtle, to her face. Was Sidian manipulating him behind the scenes? Had she told him something that he had caused this change in behavior?
Of course, there was no way Sidian could know the real truth that the Children of Vader were potentially alluding to. While Casterfo may have respected the ideals of the Empire, he downright despised Darth Vader and his actions. If Sidian had told him that Leia was the daughter of Vader himself… no, she couldn’t have. He would have said it by now instead of trying to play Sith’s advocate.
As he had before, Tai-Lin Garr saved her from responding. “This is irrelevant to the matter at hand,” he started to say.
“Actually, I would say it’s very relevant,” Xiono said, an eyebrow raised. “What are you hiding from us, Princess Organa? What sort of truth are these terrorists threatening to expose?”
“This is not the time or place for this,” Omas snapped. “We need to focus on defending the Republic, not spreading rumors and gossip!”
Xiono scowled back at him. “Is it gossip when it is the crux of the present situation?”
Before the two senators’ bickering could break out into a full-blown argument, a guardsman stepped into the room.
“Senators,” the blue-uniformed man said urgently. “I apologize for the interruption, but the HoloNet has been hacked again.”
Leia felt the color drain from her face again as Xiono said, “Another broadcast, no doubt. I wonder what they have to say this time?”
All eyes fell on Leia, waiting for her response. Closing her eyes and mentally bracing herself, she let out a heavy sigh before speaking to the guardsman.
“Put it on the viewscreen.”
* * *
“Whatever you do, don’t watch the news.”
Xemer glanced at Captain Wallen Nix as the two of them walked through the streets of Republic City. “You know that when you say things like that, I’m going to do exactly the opposite of what you tell me.”
“I mean it this time,” Wallen said gruffly.
“You always mean it.”
It had been several hours since the attack on the Madera Starros Theatre. Unlike the attack on New Alderaan, there had been no sight of any cult members dressed up like Darth Vader, yet it was obvious who the culprits were. At least three bombs had went off, killing several dozen people and injuring hundreds. While security forces were still in the process of going through the wreckage and accounting for all the deceased, Wallen had gotten a call from Director Dif Scaur that gave him a lead he needed to investigate urgently.
Three members of the band known as Lola and the Huttslayers had been among the casualties, yet there were four member in total. Their lead singer, Lola, had not been present at the theater, and according to Scaur’s lead, may have had ties to the cult known as the Children of Vader. It hadn’t taken long to find out that the band had a room booked at a hotel named the Cozy Gizka; while Lola was sure to be long gone by now, especially if she was involved with the attacks, there still might have been some clues left behind.
“So why shouldn’t I watch the news?” Xemer asked after a moment.
“It’s bad for your health,” Wallen replied. “Rots your brain.”
“If we’re talking about TriNebulon, then yeah, I get what you’re saying. But I always thought the HoloNet was decent.”
Wallen snorted. “None of them are decent. They care less about information and more about entertainment. It’s all just a show for them.”
Xemer shrugged. “I barely watched it these days, anyway. I tend to just get my news from my job.”
Wallen smirked. “That’s the spirit.”
They turned a corner and immediately had to come a stop to prevent themselves from walking into the back of an Ottegan. Peeking around the tall alien, Wallen saw that a crowd had gathered in front of a massive viewscreen built into one of the skyscrapers that loomed over the rest of the city. Displayed on the screen was a broadcast similar to the ones Wallen had seen before from the Children of Vader.
As with the last one, the subject of the video was Princess Leia Organa—or someone who looked just like her. And as with the last one, she was dancing seductively against a black background. This time, however, she did not wear the distinctive and revealing outfit of a Huttese dancing-girl.
Instead, she wore nothing at all.
The Princess of Alderaan was completely exposed to the public, showing off every inch of her body. Many in the audience gasped and some covered the eyes of their children. Others were grumbling angrily under their breath, outraged by such a scandalous display. They were drowned out by a deep, mechanical voice that spoke over the video, blaring from speakers located throughout the city.
“WE GAVE YOU THE CHANCE TO EXPOSE THE TRUTH. YOU WASTED THAT CHANCE. YOU HAVE LEFT US WITH NO CHOICE.”
Wallen grabbed Xemer’s arm and pulled the Kel Dor along with him as they navigated their way through the thick crowd. No one paid them any mind, their eyes glued to the massive screen.
“YOUR CHIEF OF STATE HAS LIED TO YOU. FOR TWENTY-FOUR YEARS SHE HAS HIDDEN HER TRUE NATURE FROM YOU ALL.”
Wallen glanced back up at the screen and immediately regretted it. The scene had changed to show the faux-Leia in the embrace of a man who greatly resembled Luke Skywalker, kissing each other passionately as their naked bodies entwined with each other.
“NOT ONLY HAS SHE HIDDEN HER RELATIONSHIP TO THE GREAT JEDI MASTER LUKE SKYWALKER, BUT THEY HAVE BOTH CONCEALED THE IDENTITY OF THEIR TRUE FATHER.”
The scene changed again, and this time the faux-Leia stood proudly before her shocked audience. Thankfully, she was clothed this time… only that her outfit greatly resembled the mechanical suit worn by Darth Vader.
“LEIA ORGANA, PRINCESS OF ALDERAAN, HERO OF THE REBELLION, AND CHIEF OF STATE OF THE NEW REPUBLIC….”
A red lightsaber ignited in her hands as TIE fighters flew over her head.
“…IS THE DAUGHTER OF DARTH VADER!”
Wallen cursed under his breath as the crowd exploded into anger. A Besalisk raised his arms in outrage and nearly knocked over the two detectives. Ducking under him, Wallen and Xemer continued to push their way through the sea of increasingly angry people. By the time they finally made it out on the other side, people were throwing things at the viewscreen as they cursed Leia’s name.
Wallen looked over to Xemer with a grimace. “Like I said. Rots your brain.”
“This is bad,” Xemer muttered.
“Let the politicians sort it out. We’ve got our own problems to deal with.”
The two continued their way down the street, avoiding more civilians that were starting to converge on the rest of the crowd. They eventually made their way to the Cozy Gizka; the hotel was distinguished by a holographic sign depicting a gizka nestled up in a soft-looking bed. Hastily making their way inside, they walked over to the Balosar receptionist and showed her their credentials. She then gave them the passcard to the room that the Huttslayers had stayed at the night of the attack.
As they stepped into the room, the two detectives put on gloves for handling any pieces of evidence they came across. Glowrods in hand, they began to carefully make their way through the hotel room, exploring every nook and cranny. Thankfully, none of the cleaners seemed to have touched the room since it had been vacated, no doubt due to the nearby attacks. The two beds were unkempt, and a table had been knocked over. On the floor, Wallen noticed a piece of flimsiplast and he bent down to gingerly pick it up. Enscribed on it was a single word, written in High Galactic:
GEMINI.
Wallen frowned as he studied the card, contemplating what it could mean. He then flipped it over and saw that, on the other side, were a set of coordinates corresponding to the standard galactic grid.
“M-Ten,” he said aloud.
“What was that?” asked Xemer.
“These coordinates… they correspond to the Alderaan system.”
The Kel Dor lieutenant regarded the card in Wallen’s hands with curiosity. “Does it say anything else?”
“Just one word: Gemini.”
“Interesting. Well, it’s definitely something to put into evidence.”
Wallen frowned. “Actually, I’m starting to wonder if we were supposed to find this. As if whoever left it behind was hoping someone would come across it.”
“What makes you say that?”
“Call it a hunch. I tend to get those a lot. And they usually pay off.”
“Well, let’s see if Director Scaur feels the same way about your hunches.” Xemer paused before then saying, “Are there any other inhabited planets in the Alderaan system?”
“Just one,” Wallen muttered. “Delaya.”
The two detectives went quiet as they exchanged a look. Seconds later, they were rushing out of the hotel room, hurrying back to report their findings.
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