Chapter 43 Wedding Troubles (Part 1)

Yanibar, Wild Space...1000 ARR...

The barely habitable planet of Yanibar was a stopping point for traders these days but that was only in the last couple of centuries although it had been settled by Jedi and families of the members of the order thousands of years ago fleeing the Sith. They had been unfortunately forgotten by the rest of the galaxy and many of those forced to settle there by the crash of their ship had not survived. As the centuries and struggles to survive carried on and on the people began to hate the Jedi in particular for what they saw as their abandonment on this harsh world. They had been forced to use whatever skills and abilities they had to survive and since the force was with some of them they created a unique force culture of their own the Zeison Sha who were highly skilled in telekinesis and physical augmentation.

Several centuries ago the planet had been rediscovered and contact finally made, traders stopped there and a spaceport was built to encourage more. The Jedi had then discovered the lost colony but the Zeison Sha resisted all attempts to unify with the Jedi. They had adopted a mindset of fierce self determination and independence while helping those that needed it to survive, not to mention children where highly valued by them given the difficulty in survival which left families extremely close knit. So when outsiders came to Yanibar and some of their people ventured out into the galaxy they were absolutely disgusted at the Jedi for taking children away from their families. Combined with the hatred that still persisted towards the Jedi for what they perceived was their abandonment of the colonists, left the Zeison Sha and the other inhabitants of Yanibar with a great distrust if not outright hatred of the Jedi.

That teamed with their remote location had prevented them joining the Republic but not from being occupied by the Empire. Imperial troops were stationed on the planet and the planet had been used as a launching point for missions into Wild Space and the nearby Unknown Regions. The Zeison Sha had been driven underground by this given that the Empire suppressed any usage of the force. Inquisitors frequently came to the planet to hunt for anyone that had the force in them and a Dark Disciple was permanently stationed on the planet to wipe them out.

But their salvation was close at hand, not willing to allow the Empire to press deeper into Wild Space the Mandalorians had decided it was time to take the planet.

The Infinity arrived first under cloak, positioning itself so that when it finally did drop the invisibility shield it would be in the best firing position, the Silencer fired at the Imperial Star Destroyers positioned near the large space station that hung over the planet, destroying them in a single massive blast.

That was the signal for the rest of the fleet to jump in and as the Infinity charged against the remaining Imperial warships which were scattered. Null Ships using their large Null cannons to disable larger ships so the Infinity and other ships could pick them apart with turbolaser fire.

Haron on the bridge of the Infinity looked at the planet and wondered just why everyone hadn't left when they had the chance. But that was their home he reasoned and despite the harsh conditions they would of course be attached to this place especially after toiling for thousands of years to make something of it.

"Orbital control is established Mandalore." One of his aides told him and Haron nodded before giving his next order.

"Begin landing our ground forces near Sha Kalan, rout the garrison. Leave none alive." Haron ordered before leaving to join the assault. He hardly got to command in the field these days, most of the battles he had fought were in space and done so from a war room on the flagship so it would be a nice change not to mention make sure they all knew that he was not past leading them into battle...it would put off some challengers at least.

- x -

Surface of Yanibar...

Drop ships under the escort of Vipers and X-Wings headed towards the surface accompanied by U-Wing bombers, their escorts peeled off to fend off the Tie Fighters launched from the surface.

Haron disembarked half way, activating his pack with some help from the force to make the sharper turns as he came face to face with a Tie Fighter, he cast a confusion charm on the pilot who then lost control of his ship and spiralled down to the ground below. He did it again and again on each Tie Fighter he came across and sent them plummeting to the ground.

Seeing the walkers on the surface Haron turned and headed straight for the largest walker in the formation, it tried to fire at him but Haron easily avoided it and summoned the pilots from their seats in the cockpit, smashing them hard against the window. Haron then blasted the side with a powerful force push, sending it over onto the men below and then ignited the Darksaber and flew down, deflecting the shots back at the Stormtroopers while casting body bind spells on the walkers which froze their legs in place, letting him cut them off at the knees with ease before blasting them to the ground.

He cleared most of the landing zone before most of his people had even arrived. When they brought their full might to bare the Imperial forces were shattered like glass, Sha Kalan and the planet were theirs in less that two hours.

Haron stood in the temple of sorts that belonged to the Zeison Sha who now were able to return to it. The leader of their order, the Mentor approached in their distinctive armour. He bowed slightly which Haron returned.

"Know that my people have no intention of taking away your freedom." Haron said with sincerity. "We are content to leave you to your way but we are able to bring a number of advantages to your people."

"Such as?" The mentor said with suspicion.

"We have a device, a ship of ancient origin that we call the Lifebringer. We can use it to terraform Yanibar to make it more habitable and we can bring more technology to this planet to aid your people. But also the Zeison Sha would be free to attend the exchange our force sensitives have with others like the Nightsisters. To share techniques and knowledge to build ties. Our peoples both understand the value of family and dislike the Jedi intently for their practice of taking children from their families. We also value self determination and achieving your best. We are not so dissimilar." Haron said as he extended his hand to the Mentor.

The Mentor looked at it for a moment, seeming to think about what he had said and then taking it, shaking his hand leading to a cheer from the Mandalorians and the Zeison Sha as a new alliance was born.

- x -

Skye, Outer Rim Territories...

The planet of Skye in the Outer Rim was home to the S'kytri, a winged humanoid species. The Imperials had set up a puppet government on the planet under the force sensitive Majestrix Kharys, she executed anyone who came to the planet without her permission including a group of Corellian smugglers that had recent arrived on the planet. One of whom had managed to escape and reported to the Underworld Alliance who had reached out to the Rebellion for help.

To that end, Luke and Leia had been dispatched with a group of rebels to deal with the problem.

Kharys was not one to give up however and so with jetpacks on their backs Luke and Leia were engaging in a lightsaber duel with her in the sky.

"So, have you thought about the dress?" Luke asked as they danced around Kharys with their sabers flashing.

"I was just going to use my robes or get Markus to loan me some armour but I am not sure that sends the right message. A dress works best. Mother certainly wants a dress." Leia said with a sigh as this wedding was proving to be a major headache as there were so many problems and decisions to make. They still hadn't even decided on a place to hold it yet.

"Excuse me?!" Kharys said with anger at them being so dismissive of her but both Luke and Leia blasted her with the force and sent her into a nearby building before stabbing her with their lightsabers, ending her as a threat.

"Mother wants a white dress. I just want it to be simpler scheme than the more complicated ones the Naboo have." Leia said with a grimace at the elaborate makeup and dress designs their mother had been looking at.

"Best tell her then, or you might end up with one." Luke teased her.

Gerrard V, Core Worlds...

Gerrard V was a world that had tried once before to rise up against the Empire but had been forced into submission by orbital bombardments and now the survivors of that massacre were being robbed blind by the Imperial Governor who was sending his yachts and troops to pillage the city.

However the Rebellion was not going to let that happen, not only were they going to stop the pillaging but they were going to cover the evacuation of several transports full of people desperate to flee to worlds outside of the Empire's control.

Given the scale of the operation, Anakin and Meetra were using the Star Destroyer Avenger as their flagship.

Anakin looked as Red and Gold Squadron took down the Imperial Yachts and covered the fleeing transports, aided by Kasan Moor an Imperial pilot who had defected to their side and sabotaged the city's turbolaser grid.

"Has a venue been set?" Meetra asked Anakin who frowned as it hardly seem the right time to be chatting about his daughter's upcoming wedding however much he disliked his daughter getting married at all.

"We'd been talking about Theed." Anakin conceded. "But the Mandalorians are against it. So we decided Yavin 4. The Great Temple." He said not sure just why they had ended up there but it was the only world that they were able to agree on.

As the last of the yachts were downed and the transports leapt away the rebels returned to the Avenger and made the jump to Hyperspace.

Imperial Palace, Coruscant...

Palpatine was deep in meditation, trying to regain some of his foresight but failing miserably when word of the upcoming marriage reached him.

Markus Ordo and Leia Skywalker were to wed.

As pathetic as he found their supposed star-crossed love the fact that two such powerful bloodlines would be merging sent a chill down his spine. Anakin was powerful and his children had inherited that power and reports of Haron Ordo's prowess as a force user made him sound like he was on the same level roughly as Anakin and he had apparently passed that power down to his son too.

A child born of two such powerful bloodlines...he honestly was feeling incredibly unsettled.

So he would have his agents find this wedding and kill them both he thought with determination not to allow such a threat to his power to exist. He would blast whole worlds apart to prevent this and worried that if they did have a child, that child might be the one to bring about his destruction he thought with a deep sense of fear.

Vengeance, Imperial-class Star Destroyer...

The personal Star Destroyer of Dark Disciple Jerec was hanging in space as finally he had found the Jedi Master he had been searching for all this time...the one that held the key to his ascension to the throne of the galaxy he thought with smug certainty.

The Emperor thought he could hide his vulnerability from him but as a Miraluka Jerec could see in ways that most people even force sensitives could only dream of. He had seen the growing weakness in Palpatine and now it was abundantly clear to him that he could strike him down and take his place...but he needed more power to do that, enough to overwhelm the Sith Lord and those that would stay loyal to him. The key to that power was now at last at his feet.

Qu Rahn was restrained and kneeling at his feet, around him Jerec had his Dark Jedi servants who he had brought onboard with this scheme. Sariss, his former apprentice Ameesa Darys, Picaroon C. Boodle and Gorc, Loy Kommas, Luthik Uwyr and Yun.

Qu Rahn though was unimpressed by all this and said boldly.

"Why hesitate? Strike me down." Qu Rahn said maintaining his composure. Jerec, relishing the power he had in this moment especially when it would lead him to a prize unlike any other leant forward and smirked viciously before saying.

"In time Rahn, but first I need something from you." He said with almost breathless excitement. Trying to use the force to pull the secret from Rahn's mind but he resisted. Eventually a name did emerge but nothing else.

"Morgan Katarn. He hid the secret of the Valley's location for you." Jerec said with a smirk as he at last had something tangible. Licking his lips in anticipation. "Very intriguing."

Jerec chuckled in triumph before telling Rahn with satisfaction.

"I have no further use for you...Old Man." Jerec then turned on his heel and walked to the bridge window but in a desperate last bid to defend the Valley of the Jedi from Jerec's greedy claws Qu leapt to his feet and pulling the lightsaber off Yun's belt, igniting it to attack the Dark Jedi.

They all drew their weapons and fought with him, Qu Rahn knew already that he would not be leaving this room alive but he was determined to do something, anything to stop Jerec from getting his hands on such power. He traded saber blows with all of the Dark Jedi but Jerec caught him with the force and used it hold him in place so he could with glee decapitate him.

Unknown to Jerec though Master Yoda on Ossus kept his vision on those he had entrusted such sacred duties too and he had great concern at one such as Jerec having such power, Yoda focused on the force and a name and face became clear to him, so he channelled a vision to one that the could see would stop him.

In the small shack on Spira, Kyle slept in his bed with Jan spooning into him when he received the vision Yoda had sent him and then began to sweat before waking, bolting upright as Qu Rahn was beheaded.

"Kyle. What is it?" Jan asked, being woken suddenly by his motion. He turned to her and said with a deep sense of foreboding.

"We've got trouble."

Lothal, Outer Rim...

The crew of the Ghost was leading an assault on Lothal in the hopes of liberating the planet, they had only a small force and not much of a plan but given the strip mining and mass enforcing of slave labour from the populace of the planet to feed the Imperial factories they felt they had no choice but to try in the desperate hope of saving the planet.

Over the planet the small Rebel Fleet was struggling to aid those on the surface as they tried to fight the two Star Destroyers in orbit. No Mon Calamari cruisers had been available and no other vessels large enough to fight them head to head.

Seeing another corvette go down Hera gritted her teeth as she piloted the Ghost through the battle while Rebel soldiers manned the turrets. Kanan, Ezra, Zeb and Rex were all counting on them breaking this blockade she thought with gritted teeth but then she received unexpected reinforcements.

A group of Mandalorian ships left hyperspace just outside the combat zone and began racing to join the battle. A group of Crusader class corvettes and Gladius class ships began to harass the Imperial fighters and smaller ships while four larger ones began fighting the two star destroyers!

The largest was an Keldabe-class Battleship, as big as a Star Destroyer and just as well armed. It fired both drones and mass driver cannons at the large Imperial flagship while slugging it out with the large turbolaser batteries that it was equipped with.

The three smaller ships were Mirshko-class heavy cruisers moved together as a pack, attacking the remaining Star Destroyer on all sides, their powerful weapons tearing into the larger ship which lacked the ability to defend itself from so many angles especially as the heavy cruisers deployed their fighters to aid in harassing the large ship.

Hera was dumb founded as she had not been expecting the Mandalorians to take an interest in this battle. A transmission interrupted her disbelief and everything suddenly became very clear.

"Hey Hera, sorry for being late but I had to get some real help for this battle." Sabine's hologram said as it appeared over the console.

"Sabine, I'm glad you're here. That you're alright. It worried all of us when you left." Hera said with a smile for her younger friend. Especially as Sabine had brought the help that she needed to break through the blockade.

"Me too. I had a lot to make up for when I went home." Sabine thought as she had to make amends with her family before they would even let her in the door. Training in all of the things that she had done years ago to make sure that she could prove that she was Mandalorian. She wouldn't be rejoining the Rebellion as she knew it was running away again but she could still help them from time to time.

"I am sure, believe me with my father I can relate." Hera said with a weary smile, given her fractious relationship with her own father she could well imagine it had been hard for Sabine to reconnect with her family but the fact that was she was wearing her armour again was a good sign things had gone well.

"Right, better stop chatting. There's a battle to win here." Sabine said as the star destroyers went down, the blockade was broken and now they could send additional units to the ground.

- x -

Lothal City, Lothal...

Areas of the city were being blown away as the battle between the rebels and Imperials raged. Ryder Azadi commanded the local forces he could rally against the Empire led by Arihnda Pryce.

"Kanan, we need more help at the southern gate." Ryder said into the comm link but Kanan couldn't do that.

"We're still stuck dealing with these walkers." Kanan called back as he and Ezra were busy and Zeb who was manning the heavy gun emplacement called out.

"Incoming fighters!" He yelled, making all of them duck for cover as they were strafed by Tie fighters from above. Three of his people were shot down before his eyes and he gritted his teeth knowing that they deep trouble when help came from above.

"We just got a signal from General Syndulla, she's broken through the blockade." One of his people said and the familiar and desperately rewarding sight of X-Wings began to appear in the sky, the T-70s took no time in dealing with the Ties that were dominating the skies and then Y-Wings appeared to begin bombarding the entrenched Imperials and followed by surprising Mandalorian drop ships. The flying Mandalorians soon joined the fighting, shattering the Imperial lines and letting them surround and capture Pryce. She had tried to commit suicide but the Mandalorians had made sure that she could not take the easy way out.

Kanan and Ezra came back to command centre looking extremely tired but triumphant and Zeb climbed down from his gun, seeing the Ghost land and Hera disembark with Chopper. They ran over and greeted them before a Mandalorian shuttle landed and honestly shocked them when Sabine appeared as the boarding ramp lowered.

"Sabine." Ezra said running over and Sabine took off her helmet to greet him. He grabbed her in a hug and actually swung them around much to her surprise.

"Ezra. I'm sorry I've been away so long." Sabine told him with sadness but it was lightened by her own new sense of self. "But I've managed to patch up things with my family."

"I'm glad." Ezra said not happy at all that she had left but happy that she was happy.

The others looked on and smiled, wondering if they would ever go deeper than friendship. Time would tell they thought as they celebrated the liberation of Lothal.

Sur'kesh. Unknown Regions...

The mostly ocean world of Sur'kesh was a pleasant world to visit not least due to its tropical environment and the fact that the planet was a marvel of technology. The natives, the Salarians were amphibious and lived both above and below water having built incredibly complex and advanced cities that were a rival for any in the known galaxy.

They were a short lived species as their average lifespan was only forty years but they had some of the most developed brains of any species in the galaxy so they were naturally gifted scientists and excellent at non-linear thinking. Their metabolism also ran faster than most so they were extremely quick to react physically and mentally. They also did not leave their homeworld very often, seeing no reason to leave their home system when all they needed was close at hand. They had highly advanced spacecraft but did not use them often, only moving around their system. This attitude had also led to them becoming extremely self-reliant in terms of their technology. They had the most efficient power generation, recycling and other such things in the galaxy.

The Empire of course saw a new world to conquer and exploit, so they decided to do just that. The Salarians due to their self-imposed isolation did not have the best of defences but they were able to shield their entire planet in a deflector shield that they had constructed to protect it from solar storms and collisions with anything that got too close. Better still they were able to survive without difficulty beneath it as the Empire surrounded their planet and tried to find a way in.

The Salarians had tried to open a diplomatic dialogue but regardless of their lack of experience in interstellar diplomacy they were far from stupid, so knew letting any Imperials through would be a big mistake. They were devising new weapons for themselves largely using observations of the Imperials own attempts to break through.

But they didn't need to worry as their salvation had discovered this situation through their spy network and seeing the opportunity to find a new ally, the Rebellion had decided to take steps to save the Salarians.

The new Viscount-class Mon Calamari cruiser led the large Rebel Fleet that arrived in system, the Redeemer was commanded by Admiral Ackbar himself but in the conference room behind him was Satele Shan who was in the midst of her battle meditation, using her powers to increase the fear of the enemy and the courage of their people.

The size of the Rebel Fleet especially with the Redeemer at its head scared the Imperials but what will they had to fight that was left was sapped away, they looked at the fleet and saw their impending deaths at the hands of the Rebels. The Rebels themselves meanwhile felt a great surge of courage and determination to see this through, so they dove into the battle with the greatest ferocity that they had ever done so before. Some Imperial ships against orders retreated rather than fighting, the Rebel Fleet then pressed forward and began to attack the already scared and disorganised Imperial fleet, seeing his ships being torn apart the Imperial Commander called for a retreat.

Seeing the Imperial ships withdraw caused the Rebels to sneer at their cowardice while Satele abandoned her meditation and return to the bridge. She smiled to Ackbar who told her with gratitude as she had saved him what could been a hard battle.

"Your powers never fail to amaze me Master Shan." Ackbar said with genuine admiration, compared to many Jedi that he had met she seemed stronger than most, with some exceptions like Skywalker or Surik. He wondered if that could be from all the wars that she had fought in her life and pondered just how strong a Jedi Order in her era must have been.

"Power is not as important as what you choose to do with it." Satele said with a nod of her head and then added. "But I thank you for the compliment. Now we had best try and open a dialogue with the Salarians." Satele said with some muted excitement as she had not been a part of negotiations for an extremely long time but even more amazingly with a new species.

A signal was sent and it seemed that their interference had been noted by the Salarians who answered their call and it was in basic as they clearly had managed to learn their language by monitoring Imperial transmissions.

"Greetings, I am Minister Kallo Anoleis. Welcome to Sur'kesh, I hope that your brief battle with the Empire is a sign that you are not here for the same purpose as them." The Salarian Leader said and Satele bowed in respect before answering his question.

"Indeed Minister, I return the greeting and can assure you that we have no hostile intention towards your people. I am Jedi Knight Satele Shan, a human and this is the leader of this fleet Admiral Ackbar of Mon Calamari. I completely understand that you will have to be cautious in trusting us given your experience with the Empire but I am sure that we can prove our sincerity to you with time. There is a wide galactic community that you might like to become a part of and many opportunities for your people."

"Intriguing." The Minister said as he stroked his cheek, clearly interested in the idea of seeing more of the wider galaxy. Satele smiled carefully and told him.

"If you would be open to a formal alliance with us we would be glad to aid in your weapons development program and provide information on all of the different places and species that make up the intergalactic community." Satele said, hoping that they were willing to give them a chance given their experience with the Empire and the Minister was thankfully quick to answer them.

"We would be interested but no more. It would be foolish to rush into such things without truly analysing the situation but I will admit that it would be good for my people to learn more of the wider galaxy." The Minister said with a sort of smile and Satele took that as a good place to start their possible involvement into the Alliance.

Sulon Star, Sulon...

When he had finally come home, Kyle had not expected it to be like this he thought as he crossed his lightsaber with the oversized Gamorrean Gorc.

The oversized pig was a mean fighter he thought, sweating as the effort of blocking his overpowered strikes began to tell but at least he wasn't fighting alone, Kyle thought as he looked to his second partner for this mission Tyria Sarkin who Master Kagame had urged to join them given the importance of the Valley of the Jedi. It was just as well as the female human Jedi was making this fight much easier for him by dealing the smaller and more annoying Pic.

Kyle was still new to all this 'Jedi business' nevertheless had been told by Master Shan that he was a natural with a lightsaber and with both his own blue saber and Qu Rahn's green one in hand, proved it by slashing at one of Gorc's legs,while blocking with the other. Gorc cried out in pain as he lost one of his legs below the knee.

Kyle didn't even think twice before slicing at him at the neck and taking his head clean off.

Tyria was not as skilled at lightsaber combat as him but was not incapable either, wielding an purple bladed lightsaber and was remarkably quick and agile. Tyria was having to be fast on her feet to keep up with him but she was the more inventive and blasted him with the force while he was in mid-air and not able to right himself. He crashed hard into the wall and Tyria was able to close the distance between them and end him with a single stab of her purple lightsaber.

She picked up the orange bladed shoto lightsaber and clipped it to her belt as she often had a lot of undercover work to do with Wraith Squadron and it might prove useful to her. She looked over to Kyle and asked him.

"Is the map there?" She asked speaking of the now 'dead' droid 8t88 and was just in time to impale the droid's pet when it tried to eat the cranial unit where the information was stored. Kyle sighed at the near miss and told her.

"Good reflexes. Now best get out of here." He said, picking up the cranial unit and called out on his comm link. "Jan, its Kyle. We have the map and need a pick up."

"Got ya, the Crow is on the way." Jan told them before they ignited their lightsabers again as they sensed the approaching stormtroopers. Kyle smirked as he and Tyria faced them.

"Come on boys. Think it through." He said with a taunting smugness and it certainly angered them he noticed as they began shooting at them but with ease he and Tyria deflected their blaster fire and charged. They swung their blades around and cut a path through the enemy soldiers before they fought their way to the top hatch, climbing onto the top of the vessel where the Moldy Crow was waiting to pick them up.

"Fancy a ride?" Jan joked as she opened the hatch that allowed Kyle and Tyria to jump aboard. The Crow pulling away just as the other ship crashed and exploded, dodging the Tie Fighters that tried to intercept them and escaping.

- x -

Katarn Homestead, Sulon...An Hour Later...

While Kyle and Tyria had gotten some much needed rest, Jan had been working with Weegee, the Katarn family droid to repair the damaged 8t88 and retrieve the data that they needed.

"I think that should do it Weegee." Jan said with a smile as they had finally gotten a lead on just where this Valley of the Jedi was. She didn't really understand just what had everyone so wrapped up about it but it was important to Kyle and so here she was, especially to be here with him to deal with the last secrets of his father knowing how much his father's death still haunted him.

Kyle and Tyria both stood close by as star-map was projected from the ruined droid. It showed the star system and even named it, giving them both the planet and just where on the planet it was.

"Ruusan. The last battle of the New Sith Wars." Tyria said with a frown and given she was far more knowledgable about Jedi history than they were worried at the implications.

"Sounds ominous." Kyle added with his arms folded and Tyria told them with a more serious voice.

"That was the last time for nearly a thousand years where Jedi and Sith clashed, an army of each. All of them were wiped out by a Sith weapon known as a Thought Bomb that trapped all the spirits of the Jedi and Sith there. That collective power is what Jerec seeks, if he does manage to gather enough power there would be nothing we could do to stop him." Tyria told them to make sure they knew the gravity of the situation.

"Well then, we need to get to Ruusan." Jan said with a smile, completely certain of their own ability to deal with the threat.

Troska, Outer Rim...

The fuel refineries of Troska were not only the major export of their planet but also their only tradable resource. Ownership of the many refineries on the planet fell to the Kyber Royal Family who ruled the planet but the king and his son who were its sole members made a great deal of wealth from this especially when considering that the Imperial Fleet had turned Troska into a major fuelling depot for their increasingly shrinking hold in the Outer Rim.

This meant an increasing amount of labour to make the fuel necessary to meet demand and the money was not going into the pockets of the people, instead it was going straight into the coffers of the royal family.

The people were not willing to tolerate this for very long and the leader of the civilian dissident group had contacted the Mandalorians for assistance, and given that it was one of the last fuel depots for the Imperial Fleet in the Outer Rim they obliged the locals.

Markus Ordo was commanding the force sent to take/liberate Troska, standing on the bridge of The Wrath of Cassus, his newly built Orar-class Dreadnaught which had just used its powerful mass driver batteries to demolish the Imperial ships above Troska and now landing ships and fighters were making their way to the ground in order to destroy the Imperial garrison and the royal guard at the same time. He turned to his gunners to make their job somewhat easier.

"Target the royal palace." He ordered and the young man of Clan Disrel nodded.

"Locked on."

"By all means...fire." Markus ordered and the main mass driver batteries roared to life again, firing heavy ordinance at the royal palace complex on the surface. The palace complex was levelled in a single blast as the ordinance hit hard and exploded, shattering the palace.

Markus was however not really focusing on this mission, instead he was considering his approaching wedding. He was honestly more scared about that than facing Darth Vader and the Emperor on his own, a hard fight was one thing but this was his life, his future and Leia's future too. Both of them tied together and potentially even having children of their own some day. Honestly the future had never seemed more daunting and he just did not know what to do or say about it.

He was still wondering hours later when it was confirmed that all resistance had been crushed and the planet was theirs. He attended to establishing the new clan to rule there with the strict instruction that the wealth of the planet was to be invested in improving the living standards of the people but as he and his force left Troska he was still worried about his coming wedding.

Ralltiir, Core Worlds...

Mace Skywalker was holding his lightsaber aloft as he and Tash led a raid on the Imperial occupation forces led by Lord Tion. To prevent the bombardment of the planet they had launched a boarding operation against Tion's star destroyer the Tyrant.

"Begin pushing up the second level, holding fire control and the hanger is crucial to this mission." Mace said with nervousness as this was the first mission that he had led solo and more than that it was the first mission he had been on since his injury. Tash was accompanying him at his request because while the idea of handling this mission with one of his older siblings was daunting it would be worse if his father was here Mace thought not wanting to be in his family's shadow forever, but also not wanting to have to try and take this mission alone so Tash had come with him.

She was elegant as she moved he thought as he saw her fight, deflecting with a classic grace that he was struggling to keep his eyes off her.

They managed to eventually reach the munitions store and set the explosives before locking the door and destroying the mechanism so it couldn't be opened again. They fled down to the hanger bay before leaving just as the explosives detonated and tore the ship in half. Mace was sitting next to Tash as they fled the doomed ship in their own, he did notice however that one of the more experienced people on his team was not doing so well. She had been slow and reckless, too reckless and another of their party had often been forced to cover for her. He would need to think carefully before bringing her on another mission.

- x -

Club on Ralltiir...That Night...

Cassian Andor approached the club where the rest of the unit had said Vel had gone, he was really starting to get worried about her as she had been acting extremely unstable. On missions she was taking very dangerous risks and any of them could kill her and possibly the rest of the team, not only that but outside of missions she was drinking heavily and partying wildly. She would often be drunk and hungover even in briefings and it was starting to be noticed by the upper leadership, her competence was being questioned and if she didn't sort herself out...then she wouldn't be a part of the Alliance any more.

Cassian was the only person that cared enough to act, it was clear that Vel was not going to pull herself out of this downward and dangerous spiral. She needed to be confronted before she lost everything and it fell to him to make sure it sunk in.

He entered the club and it didn't take long to find her, she was on the dance floor and she was already drunk out of her mind while guys touched her all over, ready to take advantage of her the moment they could get her somewhere more private. That made Cassian see red and he stormed over the dance floor and as one guy stuck his tongue in her mouth he reached them and punched one of them in the face. He staggered back and the guy who had been tonguing Vel immediately let go, all of the hungry assholes backed off as he glared at them, all of them cowards who were all eager to take advantage of someone who couldn't protect themselves but way too scared to fight someone who could hurt them.

When the guy let her go Vel fell to the floor, her expression dazed and confused which made Cassian sure that they must have slipped her a drug of some kind which only made him more angry. He picked her up and carried her out of the club bridal style, Vel just rested her head on his shoulder and he ignored the looks that everyone gave him as he carried her back to the ship which thankfully had a medical droid that could look at her.

Vel lay on the medical bed as the droid examined her and the droid told him.

"She has been given a fairly high dose of a narcotic, I have given her a solution to neutralise it but for the moment we have to wait for her to wake up before anything else can be done." The droid told him and Cassian nodded and sat down next to the bed as Vel slept it off. Hours passed and he caught a little sleep but thankfully she slept longer and he was back with a pair of fresh cups of Caff when she finally woke up.

Vel didn't get up quickly, she moaned as her head felt like someone had been using it drum, her eyes squinted as the light was almost blinding and made her head hurt even worse. Her ears too were hyper sensitive and the slightest sound was extremely grating.

Cassian watched as she slowly regained her senses and sat up on the bed, bracing herself on unsteady arms, he watched carefully before forcing a cup of caff into her hands.

"What's this?" Vel asked with a strained and confused voice before Cassian told her sternly.

"Drink it, then we'll talk." He said and she grimaced at how loud his voice was and just drank the caff, slowly and carefully as she was so woozy she felt like she would drop the cup any moment. The moment she finished it, he took it and pressed the second into her hands and gave her a stern look which compelled her to drink it as well.

Although still looking sweaty and pale she seemed to have regained her full awareness of where she was and he gave her a drink of herbal tea which was good for helping relax you. She took it without complaint as she seemed to realise given where she was that something had happened, she seemed scared for a moment before asking Cassian what she knew she had too.

"What happened?" Her voice was soft and uneasy with the uncertainty as she could remember nothing of the previous night and even before that was kind of hazy. Cassian looked at her with calm resolve.

"You got drunk again, I pulled you out of there before some guys got you, I think they must have slipped you something because of how out of it you were. Vel, what were you thinking?" Cassian asked her. Vel was so unsettled at the possibility that she could have been assaulted and never even known, she just shuddered as feeling of revulsion ran through her.

"It...it..." Vel said not sure exactly how to describe why she had let herself fall this far. "I just need it to...make it go away."

"Make what go away? The grief? Because it looks to me that its still there. It's not just the drinking, you're risking your life on missions Vel, enough that it threatens all of the team. The higher ups are taking notice now Vel, this could cost you everything." He told her with desperation that she finally face whatever it was that she was running away from.

Vel's face fell at the mention of losing her last rock to cling too, the Alliance was all that she had. Mon's daughter and the rest of their family were in hiding due to the war so she had nothing else.

"Talk to me Vel." Cassian said with urgency given the situation. "What is it you need? You have to find some way to deal with this better."

"Maybe I want to live like this." Vel snapped at him, this was getting too personal and she felt the great gnawing pain inside her start to rear its head. "Just to not hurt any more."

"But you are hurting." Cassian reminded her with starkness. "You still lost Mon and Cinta, you keep trying to erase that but its never going to go away Vel."

That hit too cost to a nerve and Vel screamed in anger, bolting off the bed and throwing a punch at him but he dodged it and grabbed her arm and got her into a hold to minimise her ability to struggle but she was not one to give up and fought hard to break his grip but he refused to let go and soon the fight seemed to leave her as the walls finally came down. She started sobbing as her grief came to the surface, the pain of losing the people that she had loved the most taking full hold of her. Cassian just let her cry, even as she clung to him. Cassian just held her as she let it out, she had been trying to put this off for too long he thought, she needed to feel it if she was ever to find it in her to keep on living.

This carried on for quite a while as Vel just felt the pain that she had been trying to run away from all this time. Cassian was her rock to cling too in this and he was just relieved that at last she was actually letting her feelings out rather than burying them.

"I know Vel. I know." Cassian said as he just let her get it out. "You need to get some help, this won't go away on its own. You have a future ahead of you, the Alliance certainly needs you but you need to let yourself grieve." He told her and she finally seemed to run out of tears.

"I know, but I just don't know if I can face it alone." She said with misery at the idea of having to carry on her life without those that she loved. Cassian told her with a slight smile.

"You're not alone Vel. You have me, the rest of the squad. People who care about you and when the time is right the rest of your family will be able to come out of hiding, just take it one day at a time." Cassian said hoping to give her some motivation to try and heal herself.

Vel went quiet after that, her energy seemed to have left her but she knew he was right. Force what had she been doing to herself? She wondered with disgust at how she had been acting, she had seen so many people destroy themselves like this and she had always been so sure that she would never end up like that and here she was on the very bottom of the pit she thought with self-disgust.

She had to be better than this she thought with slow exhaustion as she knew that she needed to fix herself, she took a deep breath and managed to get to her feet, getting another caff and taking a deep drink of the very revitalizing drink and told him.

"I'll book myself in with the base shrink when we get back to Yavin." She told Cassian who was relieved to hear that and hoped it would be a start to her finally recovering from her misery.

Aargonar, Mid Rim...

Darth Vader watched with annoyance as the rebel base at Aargonar was levelled, he knew some of the rebel scum had managed to escape but it that hardly mattered as he had slaughtered the majority of them.

But as he stood on the bridge of the Executor he sensed a disturbance in the force, turning to look as a fleet of ships appeared. He thought for a moment that the rebels were trying a counter attack but sensing the complete xenophobia and sheer hatred that bordered on madness he could tell that this was not the Rebels...it was the Kalderans.

"All ships, target the incoming ships and fire." Darth Vader commanded and Piett at his side nodded and Vader could feel his panic at the idea of facing the Kalderans. The weakness disgusted him and it was one that was shared by many Imperials or even the galaxy at large, they were so savage that they had most of the galaxy terrified of them. So much so they were just running at the first sight of them, even to the extent that they would just leave everything and even loved ones behind if they weren't quick enough to follow.

His rage at the pathetic fools was rising with each raid and this was finally the thing that broke his patience.

"If any one leaves their station for any reason other than being dead and letting someone else take their place I will personally torture them...slowly." Vader broadcast to the entirety of Death Squadron.

That sent a chill through the crews on every Imperial ship, the legends of what Vader did to those unfortunate enough to find themselves in the interrogation cells with him were more than enough to give even the most brave person nightmares.

Enough that they feared him more than they were scared of the Kalderans so they threw themselves into the fight.

The Kalderans had agile fighters and corvettes along with a captured Star Destroyer, but they relied too much on the ability to move quickly and fear to intimidate the enemy, this time however the Imperials were standing their ground and the Executor turned to allow all of its starboard turbolaser batteries to bare on the enemy Star Destroyer.

This was what the Executor had been designed to do, kill starships even one as well shielded as a Star Destroyer. The fierce barrage of fire was unrelenting and Tie Bombers began to strafe the Kaldaran ship, ripping into it with great intensity.

Admiral Pellaeon was moving his Harrower-class heavy cruisers into the battle, swarms of Tie Fighters screamed from their landing bays while the turbolaser batteries did what they were designed to do by taking out the meddlesome corvettes which were decimating the Tie Fighters. Vader admired the older man for his ships were always well-disciplined and skilled, true examples of capable conduct.

Some Kaldaran ships did not take this lying down and actually began to ram into Imperial ships which given their size could withstand it even if they were damaged. They soon turned tail and ran but Vader was fed up and decided to make sure they no longer were a threat to him, the Empire or anyone else ever again.

"Recall our fighters and prepared a jump to hyperspace the moment we are prepared, set course for Kaldaran space." Vader said with a menacing cold voice that immediately stopped any potential argument.

It took nearly an hour for the fleet to get ready but they soon jumped to a small Kaldaran colony on the edge of their space. It was clearly ill-prepared for an attack with no ships to defend it but that worked fine for Vader, he turned to Piett and told him.

"Glass the planet, leave nothing alive." His voice was cold and menacing, Piett who was far too intimidated by him to even conceive of arguing with him or even speaking up. He swallowed with fear before saying quickly with a slight stammer.

"Yes...yes my lord."

Piett immediately had their ships begin to fire on the surface of the planet, their green turbolasers screaming towards the surface, focused primarily on the settlements but any other landmass would do if they couldn't find one. They just kept firing and firing until the surface of the planet had been reduced to a molten slag, it would not be habitable for centuries but Vader didn't care...what he had in mind was nothing short of the full scale annihilation of the Kaldarans, this world would be only the first he vowed to himself. He would wipe the Kaldarans from the face of the galaxy and everyone would know not to ever try and fight him ever again Vader thought with determination as he watched the bombardment continue, knowing it would be just the first step in a war of extermination.

Abridon, Outer Rim...

General Brenn Tantor had been dreading this day would come, from the day he had enlisted in the Imperial Military he had done exceptionally well and been sent up the ranks very quickly. He was highly regarded by the upper leadership of the Empire and had achieved many victories, proving his loyalty time and again.

But the Empire did not return that loyalty, he thought with great bitterness. Dellis, his younger brother had discovered that the Empire had killed their father in a massacre and then now with Dellis in the know had killed him too. He had only managed to alert him just before it happened and now he was forced to confront that the Empire he had always served was not only lying to him but had murdered the people that he cared for the most.

He sat in his quarters, his conscience had already been troubling long before this especially with all the innocents killed on planets like Endor where he had been responsible for the destruction of several Ewok villages and although the small creatures had put up a fight he slaughtered them with regrettable ease...now there was this he thought, leaning his head back against the cold hard wall and sighing with frustration.

Brenn knew what he had to do, it was an enormous leap and there was no guarantee of success but he had no other choice. It was only a matter of time before the Empire realised he knew the truth and that would lead to one of two things happening. One that he would be forced to prove his loyalty in some horrific manner or two and the most likely option would be that he would simply be killed just like Dellis. Lives meant nothing to the Emperor or any of the higher ups, he knew this and had always done but never had he imagined that it meant killing the innocent or other people for just learning something inconvenient.

Beri Tulon, now the colonel that had given him the chance to become an officer and who had taught him the strong code of ethics to hold himself too knocked and entered the room. He looked at him with a questioning look.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Beri asked him and Brenn nodded.

"After what happened, what other choice is there? No honourable soldier could really serve the Empire without turning their eyes away from the things they don't want to see." Brenn said with a bitter smile. Beri nodded, he had many of the same issues with the Empire and was just glad that a talented officer like Brenn had too and possessed the courage to make a move.

"The men are ready, they've served with you for years. They're with you." Beri said and Brenn nodded, he had inspired many of the men that served with him and Beri had some armour corps ready to join them, he had made secret contact with Tyr Taskeen, a Rebel General to make sure that they would be ready to receive them.

"Then let's get this done, the longer we wait the more chance Brashin has to realise what we intend." Brenn said and with a nod Beri and him left that room for what would be the last time either way.

Coming out of the structure they saw the large AT-AT and smaller AT-ST walkers Beri commanded, their crews ready to join the Rebellion with them and the two Stormtrooper units and the TR-MB sitting there. That would be something Brashin would miss Brenn thought with a smirk of triumph. The Mobile Base that hosted the Battlefield Holgraphic Control Interface which was an incredible asset that Brenn had used to pull off some impressive victories.

"Get ready to move out." Brenn told them and he climbed onboard the TR-MB and Beri took command of his AT-AT walker Annihilator 1 and they made their way out of the base, ignoring the calls from the command centre to explain their departure which grew increasingly frantic as they opened a good distance and they managed to arrive at the Rebel Base not too far away. The amount of weapons trained on them was intimidating but Beri had warned him that given their high rank it would take a while for the Rebellion to trust them. So they handed over their weapons and emerged from their vehicles, the short haired Rebel General Tyr Taskeen was standing there to greet them.

Brenn showed him the TR-MB and he nodded in approval.

"Not sure I can trust you yet but I can definitely see the advantages of a piece of equipment like this. Give a paint job since I hate that Imperial gray, but first let's see just what you can do." Tyr said and turned to Brenn who nodded and activated the display, showing the battlefield showing Tyr just how effective it would be and once he had the trust of the Rebel General, used the rebel forces to push the Empire off Abridon and let the Alliance know that it had a brand new top general.