Moments of Truth/Part 22

"We'll be at Vondarc in about five minutes," Tirien announced to the hold.

Narasi looked up from where she sat on the deck, playing sabacc with Zaella and Jirdo. The arduous process of getting back to a major hyperlane from Guudria, and then taking back lanes to the Seventy-Second, had given them enough time to exhaust sparring (both hand-to-hand and with the sparring sticks Zaella and Narasi had taken from Guudria), discussions about their impending arrival on the Crescentia and how their two charges should behave, updates on the galaxy's changing military and political situation over the last nine years (a chunk of which was as much a revelation to Zaella as to Jirdo), and even meditation. After the first two days of travel, Tirien allowed them to begin sharing skills, though he confessed privately to Narasi that it was partly out of fear that Zaella would go stir-crazy and murder Jirdo otherwise.

Jirdo knew as much about Force healing as Tirien did, and though Zaella was opposed to learning anything from him, Narasi took in his perspective. Tirien taught them all how to recognize a smuggler's scrambler, which he had on his own comlink, and the theory underlying most explosive disarming and disposal, though he declined Zaella's request to make good on his Circumtore boast and teach her how to rig a grenade from spare parts. Narasi, still conscious of having left her master with a couple nasty facial bruises in the tomb, worked with them all on how to counter a stronger opponent. Zaella admitted that most of her skills were either not very Jedi or somewhat awkward to be taught in mixed company, but the Sith apprentices on Ryloth had played sabacc, and Zaella was a crafty and merciless player.

Both Zaella and Jirdo tensed at Tirien's announcement; Jirdo betrayed his feelings in the Force, and though Zaella was better-controlled, Narasi knew the tics to watch for in her friend's lekku. Folding her hand, Narasi followed her master back to the cockpit, and Jirdo and Zaella followed. Gizmo, who had mastered fetching yesterday, hopped in pursuit.

Sliding into the co-pilot's seat, Narasi felt Zaella behind her even before the Twi'lek leaned against the back of her seat and asked, "How big's the fleet?"

"A battle group, but not the biggest in the Republic," Narasi answered.

"Fleets are usually reserved for major enemy forces," Tirien added. "There's no point smashing Darshkére with overwhelming force—or Lakalt, before him—if that leaves us short against the Empire or Aresh."

"Is the Ardent Guardian in the fleet, too?" Jirdo asked.

"No, we keep the praxeum ships split up—insurance against catastrophe."

Jirdo nodded, though when Narasi glanced back she saw he looked wistful. "Hoping to see old friends?"

His answering smile was sad. "I don't know that we'd be friends anymore."

"Stand by to cut in sublights," Tirien said, and Narasi turned back. "Three…two…one…"

Hyperspace shattered into a million distant stars as Vondarc swelled before them. The new sensor readout display projected a three-dimensional image of the system in a corner, but most of it was dedicated to Vondarc. As she watched, though, Narasi noticed the absence of the fleet. "Master, the battle group's not here."

He made a face. "They may have moved against Darshkére in our absence."

"We missed the fight?!"

"I think we've had quite enough fighting on our end, don't you?" He plugged his beacon transceiver into the communications system and said, "Give me a sector-wide broadcast."

Narasi typed in the commands, and Tirien broadcast on the beacon frequency, "Crescentia, this is Tirien Kal-Di, do you read me? Seventy-Second Republic Battle Group, any Jedi, do you read?"

With no response, Tirien grimaced. "Give me…a quadrant and a half's range."

Narasi expanded the broadcast field and Tirien repeated his message, but to no avail. Zaella said, "Call down to Vondarc. Maybe they can give us directions."

Though she thought it worth the effort, as Narasi reached for the console, Tirien touched her wrist with two fingers to stop her. "I don't like this. Sullust and Eriadu are both within range."

"Maybe…maybe they're still chasing Darshkére west?" Narasi ventured, but Tirien shook his head.

"They wouldn't have let themselves get that far away from reinforcements, Admiral Whoork's smarter than that," Tirien said. Adjusting the beacon himself, he said, "Emergency Code Nine Thirteen. This is Tirien Kal-Di; any Jedi on any frequency, respond."

The silence grew and grew in the cockpit, and Narasi squirmed, disquieted by the look on her master's face. Gizmo nuzzled her leg and she patted him, but he didn't croak. Zaella leaned down closer to her, and Jirdo asked, "Tirien?"

"Give me four quadrants, Narasi."

She broadened the field and shifted the sensor display to a galactic map. Four quadrants would get them to Milagro; if nothing else, Mali Darakhan would pick up. Tirien repeated, "Emergency Code Nine Thirteen. Any Jedi, please respond, this is Tirien Kal-Di."

Narasi's heart skipped a beat during the ensuing pause, but then the map disappeared, resolving itself into a holocron of Raven Kaivalt. He stared at them with wide eyes. "Tirien! Narasi!  You're alive!"

"We were on a couple missions," Narasi said, grinning in relief. "We, uh…got a little sidetracked on our way back. Sorry if we scared you."

But Tirien held up a hand. "Raven, we're at Vondarc, but we can't reach the Seventy-Second. What's their status?"

The holo was small enough that Narasi couldn't read minute changes in expression, but she still thought something changed in Raven's face; his face set in that stunned expression so long that Narasi wondered if it had frozen. Then he asked, "You just got to Vondarc?"

"Yes…" Tirien said, shifting the galactic map into a second holo projection; Narasi hadn't even known the new system could do that. "What are you doing on Pelagon? I thought you were on Milagro with Mali."

"Tirien…how long have you been gone?"

"Over a month, in total. Raven, what happened?"

Raven swallowed. "The Seventy-Second went after Darshkére. He only left a token force at Sullust; he massed his fleet at Eriadu instead.  They went there to finish him off six days ago."

"And?"

"Gasald," Raven whispered. "Tirien, she…she came out of nowhere. Nobody was expecting it, she brought her whole war fleet down the Hydian and trapped the Seventy-Second between them.  They coordinated so well, we think she and Darshkére must have joined forces.  We're still patching together stories from survivors."

"Survivors?"

In the second it took Raven to answer, the Force laid it all out for Narasi in painful, perfect clarity.

Six days ago, a terrible wound in the Force had stricken Tirien and Narasi, but not Zaella or Jirdo. Vedya Gasald had come to Darshkére's aid. I had thought this pitiful creature and his better companions were Vedya's tribute to me, but now I see they were not the prey, but the trap.

It is not what it seems.

"Tirien…Gasald brought her interdictor ships with her. It was a massacre.  The Seventy-Second, the Crescentia…they're all gone."