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"So. Talk." Corran paced along the back wall of the cell. "You can't make a declaration like that and not explain it." He sat beside Alee on her bedslab. "I'm your partner."
"Ha. Says you. Partners trust each other. It only seems to be flowing one way in this venture, hero." Alee glared at him.
"You want trust." He paused. "Then I think you should know that General Cracken never sent me. I asked to tail you."
She took in his smug countenance and shook her head. "That's not trust. That's truth. But, thank you for telling me."
"I'm trying, Alee. Help me understand."
She stood and turned away. "Why can't you leave it be? You're as bad as Myco."
"You want to know why?" Indignation laced his words. "Because, as you accused me earlier, I'm a detective. It will always be part of who I am." He rose and ran his fingers through his hair. "And right now it's the part that is keeping me from a serious case of space dementia." He laid his hands on Alee's shoulders. She startled at his touch. "How do you do it, Alee? Without the Force. How do you live with this emptiness and not go crazy?"
She sighed. "I concentrate on the here and now. Focusing on the future at the expense of the moment is what got me into this mess in the first place." Alee turned and gave him a small smile. "The moment is now. And right now I am faced with a stubborn, opinionated, ex-CorSec detective cum hero who doesn't understand the word no."
Corran raised his eyebrows in mock innocence, then grinned. "Seeing as you understand me so well, we should even the odds, don't you think?" Alee laughed, clutched her ribs and sat down. Corran followed. "You okay?" She nodded. He assessed her for a moment then continued, "Seriously, Alee. Was I scanning wrong? Back in the throne room you made a decision to come clean."
Her eyes met his. "You sensed that?"
"Not through the Force. ' Body' is every detective's second language."
"Fine. You want my confession? Myco beat you to it. I am Alee-Nedra cy Nerac."
"You expect me to believe that you are some Jedi who supposedly died 43 years ago. If that were the case, you'd be close to 70." He paused. "How old are you?"
"73."
"Give me a break. You look mid-thirties at most. You fight younger that that."
Alee laid her hand on his arm. "That's because I've only lived 38 standard years."
Shock rippled through Corran's core. He searched his mind for an explanation. "But hibernation technology is so unstable. No one has ever survived that long in stasis. How did you do it?"
Alee cupped her elbow in her left palm and began tapping her teeth with her thumb. "What's the point of telling you? You'd never believe me. It's not logical."
Corran grabbed her hand and held it still. "Meet me half way, Alee. I'll set aside my cynicism and take your story at face value. But you have to tell it. Start from when you were younger, if you want."
She looked into his eyes. The moment stretched out. She nodded and looked away "Your girlfriend was right." She brushed Corran's jab away. "I was born on Tanaab, to a family of minor nobility. My father was very relieved when the Jedi came to take me away for training. He could never have come up with a dowry big enough to entice marriage to someone sensitive to the Force. My mother conspired to keep me home for longer than is usual in such cases. She instilled in me a deep pride in my heritage. The source of my arrogance, Qui..." Alee stopped mid-sentence.
"Qui-Gon always said?" Corran urged her softly. She looked down and nodded. "How old were you when you were taken away?"
She looked at him with misty eyes. "Three and a half."
What would my life have been like without my parents? He frowned. "You must have missed them very much."
"Not really." Then why the tears, Alee? "Tanaabians are very mistrustful of Jedi. I was treated as an outcast by all but my mother. And even without training, I could sense the fear in her. No. The Jedi became my family. The Temple my home." She brushed at her damp cheek and smiled. "I was so proud the day I became a Padawan."
"A what?" Keep on track, Horn.
She eyes darted, searching. "An apprentice. Once we reached a certain level of training, we would be taken by a Master and groomed one-on-one."
"Then you became a Master?"
"Oh, no. I would have, I suppose. But ... events transpired ..." She drifted into the past, but jerked back a second later. "I was ... am ... a Jedi Knight."
Padawan. Knight. Master. Ranks in a Force army. I scan that. "Ah. So what brought you here, exactly?"
"A passenger vessel." She looked at him sideways. He rolled his eyes.
"You're slippery as a Gand's dinner sometimes."
"Eel can be quite tasty if it's prepared right."
"They don't prepare it. They just eat it."
Alee curled her lip. "Oh." She fell silent.
"You're employing classic military strategy here. But this
decoy maneuver won't work." Got to get her talking again.
"Who is Qui-Gon?"
Alee rose and stepped away. He could see her tremble. She drew a deep breath. "Qui-Gon Jinn was a great Jedi Master." She faced him. She's crying. Corran stood and wiped her face with his sleeve. He whispered, "Your Master?"
She shook her head and closed her eyes. "He was to become my lifemate. He was almost finished training his Padawan. After that we would have.." she choked back a sob. "We were so close. So connected. The pain..."
It was Qui-Gon she was talking to this morning. What else did she say? Something about ... Obi-Wan! Excitement filled him, like a Trandoshan closing on its quarry.
He seized her shoulders and pinned her with a look. "How does Obi-Wan Kenobi fit into all this?"
Alee knocked his arms away. Her chest heaved. She hissed, "Sithspawn. I thought you were asleep, but you were listening. That's a bad habit you'd best be rid of, hero." She spun and stalked to the corner, back to the room.
Way to go, Horn. No wonder I never joined the Diplomatic Corps. He extended the bedslab and sat down, head in hands. A few minutes later her voice drifted back to him.
"Obi-Wan was Qui-Gon's Padawan." A smile tinged her voice. "Rash. Opinionated. Head-strong. You would have liked him."
"Thanks." Relief warmed his blood. "About how I like you."
She laughed and swivelled around. "When you're right, you're right. Obi-Wan and I always did grate on each other's nerves."
"But you respected one another."
"Yes. And we both loved the same man. In different ways."
"What was he like?" She shot Corran a questioning glance. "Qui-Gon, I mean."
Alee slipped across the cell and sat, knee brushing Corran's thigh. She gazed over his shoulder. "Tall. Hair to lose your fingers in. Eyes to drown in. He was full of compassion and wisdom. He was always at peace, in perfect harmony with the Living Force."
"I'm not tracking again. Living Force?"
Her face screwed up in puzzlement. "Well, yes. Just as the Force is divided into light and dark, the light side is divided into Living and Cosmic - one focuses on the moment and one on the future. Surely you learned this?"
"I suppose. We just didn't have those names to give them." He paused. "Qui-Gon sounds ... exemplary."
She snorted. "Hardly. His exclusive focus on the Living Force often brought him into conflict with the Jedi Council, which tended to a Cosmic focus. At times, he could be as stubborn as ... as ..."
"As you?" Corran teased.
"Thanks."
A comfortable silence draped over their shoulders. If I take all this as true ... she is scanning as sincere ... the implications are ...incredible.
"What about the time thing, Alee? That's the biggest hole in your tale."
Alee brushed her finger over a nick in her ear. "Funny you should mention ' hole'. I had visions of a black-hole phenomenon. They consumed me. Qui-Gon begged me to trust my instincts. Stay away. I didn't."
"Stubborn," Corran inserted.
"Right. When the Council sent me to investigate ... I walked into a trap. Fell into the Abomination, as it was called."
"Quaint."
Alee looked at him and narrowed one eye. "Do you want to hear this?"
Corran held up his hands. "Sorry."
She exhaled harshly. "The hole turned out to be a rip in time. I woke 32 years after I fell. There was no between. No stasis. Just the moment."
"You're telling me there is this hole floating around, sucking people into the future."
"Careful, hero. Your cynicism is leaking."
"Wouldn't yours be?" he countered.
She shrugged. "The hole was an astronomical freak that only happens every couple thousand years. Nothing for you to worry about."
I suppose it could happen. I'm not sure I believe it. But Alee needs me to, so ...
"What was it like? Waking in a different time?" Corran pressed.
"It was like floating in space with no tether. I awoke without my Force abilities ..."
"Ahh ..." The pieces are starting to fit.
"The Force was still there. This," she wave toward the cage, "is worse. It led me on a frustrating chase - all the way to Dagobah and Master Yoda."
"The Yoda? Luke's teacher?"
"Master Yoda," she corrected. Bitterness seeped into her tone, "He sent me away. I had lost my future and he just sent me away. So he could train Luke."
"That's why you hate him so much."
Her gaze jerked to his. "I don't hate him. I don't hate anyone. Hate leads to suffering. I would never turn from the light side for something so minor in the Cosmic scheme of things."
"But not minor to you. It was your future, after all."
"No, not to me," she replied softly. "But I will always have the moment."
Alee rose suddenly and stretched. "These bruises are reminding me of their existence. I need to rest." She looked pointedly at Corran.
"Oh. Sorry." He jumped up and waved for her to lay down. As she did, he said, "Thank you, Alee. I know this was hard for you."
He caught a wisp of a smile and then she turned away from him. He lay on his own bedslab and listened to the whisper hanging in the air.
"There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no ignorance, there is knowledge. There is no passion, there is serenity. There is no death, there is the Force."
The Jedi Code became a soothing chant, repeated until there was no sound in the cell except her breathing. It all scans true. What did she say to Cracken? Something about not risking the 'new' Jedi. She didn't know I was listening. She is 'old' Jedi. Amazing. Corran stared at the ceiling, thoughts in roiling turmoil.
Corran was pacing the cell again when Alee awoke.
"That's a good plan, hero. You can worry a trench into the ferrocrete and we can tunnel out of here," she intoned, dryly.
Love the sound of a little sarcasm in the morning. "Glad you're feeling better." Corran strode over to her. "And awake. Finally. We have to talk."
"That's my hero. All talk. No action. Were you a senator before CorSec?"
"Will you just shut up?"
"I thought you wanted to talk?" Alee sat up.
Corran put his hand over her mouth and gave her a fierce look. He slid onto the slab beside her. "We have to get out of here. Now more than ever. We have to get you to Luke and.."
"Never!" Alee shoved him hard. The unexpected move propelled him back. He slammed up against the wall at the same moment power surged through the bars.
Corran's body arched. Hair stood on end. Nerves sizzled. A raw scream tore from deep inside. The current flung him onto the floor. He lay there, twitching. Who threw me in the way of my X-wing's backwash. Those low-lifes are watching. They have to be. The mist above him slowly took shape. Alee's concerned face hovered in the air. She brushed his hair back. He sniffed. Something got singed. He groaned. That would be me, flyboy.
His voice rasped, "I think they cranked the voltage up."
Alee frowned. "No joking. I'm so sorry, Corran. How do you feel?"
He tried to smile. His eye twitched. "Better since you
forgot to call me ' hero'." She grimaced. He added, "I
feel like I was hit by a double salvo of ion cannons. Can't seem
to move."
She extended the bed and helped him onto it.
"How," Corran cleared his throat. "How long have
I been asleep?"
"Couple hours. Don't worry. You have lots of time to rest," Alee spoke from her cross-legged position on the floor by the bed.
"How do you know?" He rolled and faced her.
"If they're looking for my hologram, it will never be found. My father wouldn't allow any reminders of me to be kept. So if Myco doesn't believe our little conversation ..."
"You think we're being monitored?"
"You think we aren't?"
"Point taken." Corran added, "But if they do believe you ... our time could be very limited."
"No. I think Myco is finding our talks very illuminating."
"Not to mention, entertaining," added Corran.
Corran swung his legs over the edge and sat up. A good oil bath would do wonders about now. My joints are frozen.
He shooed her away with his hands. "I'd feel safer if you'd move back a little, out of reach. Then we can discuss your stubbornness over meeting Luke."
Alee popped to her feet. "Don't you ever give up? You're like a Hutt with a pile of credits just out of reach." She planted her hands on her hips. "Scan this, hero: I'm not, now or anytime soon, coming face to face with Luke Skywalker. So delete the idea from your minuscule databank and move on."
"Why?"
"Because." She did two furious laps around the center cage, then halted and glared at him. The way she looks, you think I was a ... Bantha tick. His eyes crinkled. She broke the silence. "I ... I don't belong. Don't you get it? I'm the past. Luke's the future." She cleared her throat. "Master Yoda forbade us ever meeting. He had his reasons." She turned away. Her shoulders sagged.
"But that was years ago. What difference could it make now? You could teach us all so much." She didn't move. "Sithspawn, woman. You're a walking Holocron. You speak of the Living and Cosmic Force, Padawans and Knights and this Jedi Council. Luke wouldn't reject your knowledge. He would embrace it. He hungers for any links to our Jedi heritage. You're ... you're keeping him in ignorance. Disrupting his serenity. Denying his search for peace." How do I break through this wall of hers? Stubborn doesn't begin to describe this Jedi.
Alee twirled and sank into a crouch. A spasm gripped her features and she clinched her ribs. She tapped her teeth and scrutinized him. I'm not sure I like her 'thinking mode'. She finally spoke, "No. I've had a lot of time to think about this. I know Master Yoda was right. Luke would embrace the old ways, maybe even duplicate them. In the end, he would only set the stage for the emergence of another Emperor. Another Vader. How can I be the bridge to that future?" Her eyes clouded over. "The new Jedi are making mistakes. But those mistakes are theirs. Not ours." Their gazes locked. "Please, Corran. Leave the past where it belongs. Concentrate on the here and now. Moment by moment you, Luke, the others, will forge a new future." A single tear escaped her lashes. "I can't stop you from forcing me to confront Luke. But, I'm asking..."
Corran shook his head and slid to his knees. He took her hands in hers. "I'm torn, Alee. I can see how strongly you believe in this possible future ... this vision. But, maybe you're the one not focusing on the moment here." Anguish rippled across her features. He continued. "I don't need the Force to sense how much this pains you. I'm not sure I believe you. But I respect you. I'd like you to meet Luke ... but I won't force you, Alee."
Relief washed out of her. "Thank you."
"You have been providing us with a very touching little melodrama," Myco said.
The two Jedi again stood before him in his throne room. Corran narrowed his eyes. I have a bad feeling about this. We need to blow this spaceport.
Myco continued, "However, I find I must drop the curtain on this play. I don't know how they buried your identity so deep, mystery Jedi, and I don't know why. While you are a wonderful actress, I do know your fabrications are so ludicrous, they are laughable." He leaned forward. "I am not laughing. The next act is about to begin, so we must wrap this one up. Whether you realize it or not, you have helped me a great deal. Thanks to you, the trap is about to be sprung on Luke Skywalker."
"Ha," interrupted Corran, "You don't know Luke if you think this setup is devious enough to catch him." He winced when the expected blow to his head landed.
"But you, Mr. Horn, have made it so much more devious. How can he resist checking out a situation that has destroyed, not one, but two Jedi?" He casually checked his nails as he delivered their sentence. "You will be tortured until you are beyond saving, Then my beloved ysalamiri will be removed out of range so your pain will be, how do you say, sensed by your Master." He smiled benignly. "Honorable soul that he is, Skywalker will wing to your rescue."
Blast. If it works ... I hope Luke senses the trap. He'd probably come anyway.
Alee spoke up, "Why bother to tell us? Why not just do it?"
Myco raised his hand to stop the imminent strike. He smiled at Alee. "I always like to pin an insect and see it squirm before I add it to my collection. And to show you I am not an unreasonable person, I will allow you a last meal before commencing with the ceremonies. Take them away." Myco dismissed them with a wave of his hand.
The hallway was deserted, except for the Jedi and their guards, two behind and before. Tension coiled in Corran's thighs. He clenced his fists. The weight of the ysalamiri branch dug into his wrists and pulled his shoulders back. Now is not a good time to worry about odds. Hope you have some Corellian in your veins, Alee. Corran tugged to the right. The branch swung wildly as Alee burst into a run. She catches on quick.
Corran launched himself. A shout from behind and the front guards turned. Too late. They were caught in the stomachs by the branch and knocked over. The rear guards opened fire. The Jedi wove from side to side, Corran slightly in front. The branch bounced between them. Fire blazed a groove in Corran's left arm. He gritted his teeth and kept going. Alee cried out. The branch became a dead weight. I'm pulling her. She must be hit bad. Ten paces from an intersection, a piercing scream filled the air. Corran thrust forward with a final spurt of energy. He flung himself around the corner, dragging Alee in his wake. They both tumbled to the floor. He craned his neck around. Alee was breathing hard.
"You're alive. Thought you were hit," he said, panting for air. "That scream."
"I didn't scream. They got my leg. I'll manage."
They could hear the stormtroopers advancing cautiously. Who screamed? Corran looked at the branch. The slender, furry ysalamiri was almost completely detached from the branch. It had been hit by several laser bolts. Alee followed his gaze.
"It's dying."
"I have a hunch. Let's help it." They struggled to stand. Over his shoulder, Corran asked, "Can you kick it off?"
Alee leaned against the wall and put her weight on her injured leg. She clenched her teeth and kicked at the creature. Three tries and the weakened animal fell to the floor. Corran closed his eyes and stomped.
The Force crashed over them with high tide velocity.
"Yes!" Corran cried in exaltation. He felt the cleansing wave sweep through him. The handcuffs burst open, freeing both Jedi. The branch fell.
Corran pivoted, picked up the branch, swung back and brought it crashing down on the blaster easing around the corner. It clattered to the floor. Before he could grab it, the weapon flew threw the air. The blaster flared to life in Alee's hands, catching two troopers as they stepped into the open. The third dove for cover. Corran heard rapidly retreating footsteps.
"There goes the element of surprise," he muttered. "We better scram."
Alee tossed him the blaster she held and reached for another with the Force. "I'm not leaving."
He turned and stared at her. A lone laser bolt zinged past his ear, making him duck. The other stormtrooper. I forgot. He returned fire and backed toward Alee.
"Are you crazy?" he asked. "We have to get out of here before we're overrun."
"They have our lightsabers. My cloak. I want them back." Alee turned and broke into a limping jog.
Corran scrambled to catch up. He grabbed her arm and spun her around. "And how are we supposed to find them? This isn't exactly a small building."
"It shouldn't be hard. Down!" Corran dropped. Alee shot at the guard as he slipped around the corner and watched him slump to the floor. She looked back at Corran. "Commander Egomaniac has a throne room. A trophy room will be close by."
Alee raised her eyebrows. Corran shook his head sadly. "I must be the one who's crazy. Fine. Let's go deprive Myco of a few trophies. But if they aren't there, we leave. Understand?"
"Naturally. After all, you're in charge."
Corran snorted.
"The prison level is two below ground, so we have to go up five," said Alee. She reached for the turbolift's control panel. Corran snatched her hand.
"The second this thing moves they know where we are."
"Then what do you suggest?"
He pointed to the access hatch above their heads.
She furrowed her brow. "Isn't this where we came in?"
"Right. But this time it's my idea."
She rolled her eyes. "Lead on, hero."
On the roof of the lift, Corran pointed out the ladder running up the circular shaft. He caught Alee's shudder. "Problem with heights?" he asked.
"Vertigo strikes me at the oddest times."
"And you live on Coruscant? Go. I'll be below you. It'll be fine."
"Right. If I fall, I can take you with me." Alee blew the air out of her lungs.
Ten minutes of climbing and Corran found himself lagging. His left arm burned. His legs felt like they'd gone from weightless in space to heavy gravity without warning. He tapped into the Force to keep going. Energy bubbled through his limbs. He picked up the pace. He knew Alee had been drawing on the Force from the start of the climb. She's using a lot of energy to deal with that injured leg. Have to watch it.
As if she could tell he'd been thinking of her, Alee spoke, "How did you do that thing with the handcuffs? That's a very difficult variation of levitation."
"No idea. It just happened."
"Ah. A black hole situation."
Corran was puzzled. "No. More like a ... a quasar experience."
Alee stopped climbing. Corran bumped his head on her heel. She peered down through the rungs. "A what?"
He shrugged. "Hey, I'm just making this up as I go." She stared at him until he continued, "Let's see. When the Force reconnected, I felt this incredible rush of power - a quasar - and my whole being shouted' Freedom!'. Then ... pop ... the cuffs flew off."
"You express your joy in unusual ways, Jedi. But who's complaining?" Alee chuckled and continued upwards. Jedi, not hero. I've been promoted. He followed, grinning.
"Now what. This is the throne room level. If that other creature is still there, we have a problem," Alee pointed out.
"Not only that. It will be heavily guarded, unless Myco has a whole storeroom of the things." He flinched at the thought. No way. They can't be that easy to come by. He continued, "The only logical thing is to enter from the level above."
"They'll probably expect that." Alee tapped her teeth.
"What choice do we have? Maybe Myco is arrogant and stupid."
"We can always hope."
They slipped onto the top floor unnoticed and took refuge behind the first door they came to. Corran scanned the room. Officer's quarters. The hall door was the only exit.
"Do we risk the hallway?" Alee asked. Corran tapped into the Force and stretched his senses. Six life forms. End of the hall, left around a corner. He looked into Alee's eyes. "Did you get them?"
She nodded. "Chances are, they guard the commander's access to the floor below."
"Six aren't bad odds."
She looked up at the ceiling. "Sneak attack?"
Corran groaned. "I may never use another access hatch as long as I live. I'd rather charge down the hall yelling like Tuskan Raiders."
"Subtlety is not your strong suit."
CorSec training won out. They advanced, one on each side of the hall, blasters at the ready. No running. No yelling.
Ten meters down the thirty meter hallway, a fuzziness attached itself to Corran and clung like a Dagobah leech. The Force was still in reach, but it wavered tentatively. He looked across to Alee. Her wide eyes told him all he needed to know. We're right above it. Got to see how far it extends. Corran counted off the paces. Eight meters, nine at most. That makes sense. The ceiling in the throne room was close to that high. He gave Alee a thumbs up. She gave him a relieved smile. They sped up.
Two meters from the corner they were spotted. Red flashed all around. Alee took cover in a doorway and returned fire. Corran was still out of their line of sight. One trooper went down, but Alee was pinned. Every time she risked a peek, lasers pelted the wall by her head. Corran pressed himself against the wall and crept ahead.
Shouts from the other end of the hall made Corran turn. Four stormtroopers were exiting the lift and heading their way. A muffled thud pricked his awareness. Something bumped his toe. He looked down. A thermal detonator blinked its deadly countdown. His stare met Alee's. Goodbye Mirax. Take care of the kid. Corran closed his eyes. He felt a nudge in the Force.
Alee shouted, "Down!"
Corran dove away from the corner and rolled. The explosion rained bits of plasteel down on their heads. A dust cloud enveloped them. He reached out with the Force and found Alee two pace left. He got to his knees and coughed.
"Thanks, I owe you one." He coughed again.
"Levitation's a handy skill. You should learn it some time."
"I have great hopes. I think you got them all. Let's go."
Red streaks from the four advancing troopers lit up the cloud. They crouched and ran around the corner. Corran stumbled over white armour and kept going. The dust was settling.
"Over here." Alee motioned him to a spiral staircase.
Corran clattered down the metal stairs. Alee followed. Now I could use a good Tuskan battle cry. Too bad I don't know any. He burst out of the stairwell, blaster ready ... and stopped. Alee bounced off him and spun left.
Her eyes darted around. "The trophy room," she breathed.
It was empty. The stairs rang out. Corran spun and hit the door controls. No lock. He blasted the panel, fusing the circuitry. "We only have a few minutes. Look fast."
The walls were filled with display cases. Insects. He really does collect insects. Pedestals dotted the room, showing off various museum pieces. He heard Alee's gasp.
"By the Force," she ground out, "not again."
Corran watched in amazement as she charged to the far end of the room, toward a display case exhibiting her Jedi cloak. Four paces from the case she flipped into the air and crashed feet first through the glass. She used the momentum to push herself away from the wall, flipped again and landed on her feet. He remained silent as she gently took the cloak down, shook out the glass and draped it over her shoulders.
As she was doing up the clasp, he asked, "Feel better?"
She turned with a broad smile. "Yes."
He raised his eyebrows. "Tell me the story behind that sometime, would you?"
Corran heard the door hissing, giving way as it was levered up. He looked around. "Where are the lightsabers?"
She pointed to the throne room wall. "Middle of that display case."
He strode over, but stopped two meters away. His senses were filled with the nothingness in front of him. He felt frozen in carbonite. I can't do it. Blast.
Alee joined him. "I'll go into it, Corran."
"Nobody is going anywhere," a sharp voice declared.
The two Jedi turned slowly to face Rilla. She aimed a blaster pistol at Corran's chest with outstretched arm. Her hand shook. I was so focused on the bubble, I didn't even hear her. Must be playing watchdog for her master.
"Drop the blasters before I make a hole in you," her voice quivered. Rilla cleared her throat and said more firmly, "Now."
"You've never dealt with Jedi before, have you?" Alee asked.
"I said now!" Rilla's voice rose.
Corran looked at Alee and shrugged. She nodded. They laid their blasters at their feet. Rilla motioned them to kick them her way. They did.
"You really don't want to do this, Rilla," Corran said. "Myco is crazy. You need to get out. Come with us."
Alee's mouth dropped open. Rilla's laugh teetered on tears.
"What a charming idea. You, me ... and your wife. Goodbye, Corran Horn," Rilla said as she pulled the trigger.
The pistol flew out of her hand and into Alee's. The laser bolt drilled into the ceiling above Corran's head. Rilla stared at her palm in disbelief.
"Corran, we don't have time for this vid-opera," Alee stated. "Or for picking up strays. What are you thinking?"
"Take a space walk, Alee. She's just a kid." He turned to her and pointed a finger. "Besides, who are you to talk about picking up strays. It's your hobby."
Rilla sobbed. They turned puzzled faces back to the trembling young woman. She stared at them with wild eyes. "You're both crazy." With that, she turned and fled back through the side door she'd entered. They heard a lock slide home.
Corran gave Alee a severe look. "You scared her."
Alee picked up both blaster rifles. She shoved a blaster and the pistol into Corran's hands and said through clenched teeth, "I saved you."
"Ha. Her hand was shaking so hard, she would've been lucky to hit the wall behind me," Corran declared.
They were jerked from their arguing by the stairwell door hissing. It raised ten centimeters. Corran dropped to the floor and peered under the door. Sithspawn.
"We going to have more company than we originally thought. Must be a squad, maybe more. Don't think we'll be leaving that way," he warned.
"They're herding us into the throne room."
"I really don't like other people being right," Corran said as he jumped to his feet, "but, I think you are."
Alee jerked her head toward the display case.
They stepped into the bubble together. Corran shivered as his senses were muffled once again. Alee's knees buckled. He steadied her. That leg injury. The Force is all that's been holding her up. He helped her over to the case. She leaned on it. Her face convulsed, then cleared. She looked at him and nodded. He smashed the glass with the butt of the blaster and retrieved the lightsabers. Nice of Myco to leave them attached to our belts. He handed Alee hers and quickly slipped his own around his waist.
Alee pointed farther down the display. "Holocron," she croaked. He handed it to her. It disappeared inside her tunic.
The door slid up another ten centimeters.
Corran took her arm and motioned to the throne room entrance. "Shall we?"
Alee stood tall. A twinkle appeared in her hazel eyes then
clouded over. She spoke haltingly, "How could we ... possibly
refuse ... such a ... kind invitation?"
