Castle Organa, Alderaan
4 Standard Months Before the Battle of Yavin
- - -
Bail Organa, Viceroy of Alderaan, felt as though he was the waking dead as he wandered into his office. It was comfortable, and well appointed-The style of the interior hadn't changed in thousands of years. High vaulted ceilings, a broad ornate table, large, high backed chair. He sank into this last one, heaving a great sigh as his shoulders sank.
"Good evening, Your Highness."
Bail snapped up, alert, already reaching for his holdout blaster... But he relaxed as he beheld the elegant form of a friend. She was in traditional Alderaanian robes, reds and dark blues in contrast to House Organa's white, light blue and gold. She was still a handsome woman even with the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes and the gray streaks in her hair. She strode up, and Bail found the energy to rise to take her hand and kiss it.
"My Lady Lara Thul, what brings you to me at this late hour?" He asked.
Lara chuckled, nodding in respect to him.
"You already know the answer to that, Your Highness," she said. Bail groaned.
"Please. Enough of that, Lara. It's just us," he said.
Lara shook her head.
"This was easier when we were kids playing in the woods," she said.
"Please, Lara?" Bail asked, "for me?"
Lara sighed heavily, but there was a nostalgic smile on her face.
"Bail, then," she said. They both sat down, opposite sides of the large desk. A droid quickly provided some tea. Lara sipped hers, and beamed at her viceroy and old friend.
"Cassius Tea. My favorite," she said.
"I never forgot," Bail replied. Lara smiled over her cup at him, as he sipped the brew. She let him savor it for a while, before she broke the spell.
"I take it things aren't going well?" She asked.
"As head of the Defense Force, shouldn't you know?" Bail asked wryly. Lara shrugged.
"To claim to know more than my Viceroy would be akin to treason."
Bail nodded slowly.
"You could say that," he stated. He tapped his droid's shoulder, and it made an odd electronic whirr, "now we can talk privately."
"My Rist Shadows have been keeping an eye out for bugs, but it's better to be safe than sorry," Lara agreed. Bail set his hands on the table, and looked his old friend in the eyes.
"The Empire is onto us," he said, "and they're preparing for something big. They've transferred over a million servicemen from their standard postings, and enacted drafts on numerous Outer Rim worlds. Along with the financial tracing I've managed to find, well..."
"Do you think they mean to conquer Alderaan?" Lara asked, aghast. "A million troops would be necessary to start-"
"Occupation? It's certainly possible," Bail admitted. He frowned deeply. "We've been able to hold off martial law for almost two decades. The Emperor may be pushing the issue now. Whatever Palpatine's planning, it's going to be huge. And Alderaan may pay the price."
"Do you have a plan, Bail?" Lara asked. Bail sighed, and rubbed his temples.
"I've been doing everything I can to unite all the fledgling resistance groups into a proper Alliance. Leia's been helping too," he said, "we've been making good progress. Still, they're all so fractious. So stubborn. Unable to see the larger picture. I've been doing all I can but..." He smirked a little, "there's only so much greasing of wheels I can do."
"So show some muscle," Lara suggested, "some backbone. Nobody really listened to Amidala, Force rest her soul, until she reclaimed her world from the Trade Federation."
"Too much force, and we fracture it further," Bail warned, "and I won't become a tyrant just to oust another."
"I'm not suggesting that, Bail," Lara said quickly, "but the Rebellion's going to need strength to succeed anyway. Using it to shepherd, where necessary? Might not be a bad idea."
"So far, the Mon Calamari are taking a lot of heat," Bail sighed, "I can't let them take it all though. Do you have a suggestion?"
Lara smiled, and nodded.
"It occurs to me that, we haven't had the Alderaanian Civil Defense Fleet out on exercises in quite a while," Lara said carefully, "the majority of our War Frigates were placed in locked down stasis at Delaya's Orbital Storage Yards. After all, since Alderaan does not have an Imperial Base on it, we must rely on our own civil fleet for aid in case of a disaster."
Bail was silent.
"How many ships could we man? And how quickly?" He asked.
Lara shrugged her shoulders.
"Perhaps fifty? Maybe more? If we enacted the mandatory civil defense training clause in the Constitution."
"Breha may take some convincing," Bail admitted, "but she'll agree. Still, that many ships being reactivated-It may as well be signaling our intentions to Palpatine."
Lara shrugged.
"Palpatine's been making all this noise about 'terrorists and insurrectionists'. May as well use it against him. Say we're taking steps to deal with internal security."
Bail leaned back in his chair, considering all the possibilities.
"He'll send Imperial observers and trainers to 'assist'," Bail stated.
Lara smirked darkly.
"And the moment we have to? They'll each have a Rist Assassin's vibroblade through their backs," she stated.
Bail slowly nodded.
"Do what you have to," he said, "just make sure they can escape if the worst comes to pass."
"Escape?" Lara demanded.
"We won't win back our freedom with only fifty ships, Lara," Bail said gently, "you know it, I know it. They have to survive, link up with the rest of the Rebellion. Not throw their lives away uselessly."
Lara thought it over in silence, then nodded.
"I'll put Elana in charge of it," she decided, "it would be good to encourage all heads of the Houses to send their heirs offworld for a while. This may be the perfect excuse."
"No sense in letting the Empire have hostages," Bail agreed. Lara smiled sadly, looking down at her tea cup.
"If necessary... We will die so they can live," she said.
"That's what a parent must be willing to do for their child," Bail replied softly.
Lara saw the light on the jamming droid go off-The jamming system had stopped. She changed the subject with the ease of a master of the art.
"Do you ever regret it, Bail?" She asked, "marrying Breha, instead of...?"
She trailed off. Bail shifted, silent and contemplative.
"... Any answer I could give you would just make you feel terrible," he said, "and I did promise your brother I would never make you cry."
Lara smiled sadly, and rose.
"Too late," she said softly. Bail gave her a sad smile back, "but I'm glad you can trust me with our planet's security."
"Breha made the decision," Bail said, "she saw the same things I did in you."
"Well... Hopefully not all the same things," Lara chuckled, "good night, Your Highness."
"Good night, Lady Thul."
- - -
Lady Elana Thul was most put out. Which was not an unusual state of affairs for the young heiress to House Thul. She was a firebrand, more interested in racing swoop bikes and shooting blasters than in traditional Alderaanian Lady-like past times. She'd been hell on her parents...
Until her father had died in a tragic accident. His ship had been hijacked by pirates, and the Imperial troopers had attempted to rescue him. Sadly, the pirates had executed everyone, and then themselves, rather than be captured.
She still remembered the polite tone of the Imperial officer who brought the news, and the Stormtrooper who personally apologized to her and her mother for his failure.
His mother had represented frippery and obedience and tyranny to her most of her life... Yet seeing the elegant woman thank the Trooper for his attempt, and how she held herself together to lead their house...
It had inspired Elana. She'd seen her mother's strength, and she'd worked to support it from then on.
Elana excelled in school. She took her mother's lessons on warfare, history, and diplomacy seriously. She still trained in combat though: That, strangely enough, her mother had no issue with after her father's death.
They were much closer... But it was an imperfect relationship. Being summoned at 3 in the morning was certainly not endearing in any way. It wasn't until 5 that her mother finally appeared, and Elana opened her mouth to give her mother such a verbal flaying!
But the hours of impatient waiting evaporated away at the expression Lady Thul wore.
"Mother?" She asked. Lara walked to her desk, and arranged some datapads before she turned to smile upon her eldest daughter.
"Elana," Lara said, "last we spoke, you said you wished to enter the Imperial Academy?"
Taken aback, Elana nodded.
"I... Yes Mother," she said, "I can enroll in the ROTC while still studying-"
Lara smiled.
"How would you like to get some real life experience first? An internship, if you will?"
Lara blinked.
"I... What kind of internship?"
"I'm putting you in charge of the Civil Defense Fleet," she said, "we're reactivating several War Frigates and I want you to personally handle it. As fleet commander."
Lara gaped.
"M-Mother?!" She gasped, "I... Are you sure?! There must be someone better qualified-!"
"I will have Earnhart guide you as your chief advisor," Lara said, "you've always gotten along well with our Master of Arms."
"Y-Yes, but-It's just so-so sudden!" Elana protested.
Lara stood up, walked to her daughter, and rested her hands on her shoulders. She smiled warmly. They looked so much alike, Elana reflected. Mocha colored skin, lucious dark brown hair, dark honey eyes and high cheek bones. They resembled Elana's namesake, the head of the household during the Alderaanian Civil War thousands of years ago: Tall, proud, and beautiful.
"I have every confidence you can do this, Elana," Lara said, "and I trust that you will not fail me?"
Elana slowly shook her head.
"No Mother. Of-Of course I won't!"
"Good," Lara said, "listen to your chief petty officers, no one knows better than they. Use a firm hand, but know when to be kind. And don't overburden yourself. Delegate. You can't do everything yourself."
Elana nodded, the advice familiar.
"Yes Mother."
"And finally..." Lara trailed off, then resumed, "preserve yourselves. At all costs. No matter what happens to Alderaan, keep yourselves alive. We're counting on you."
Elana frowned deeply.
"Mother what do you-?"
"You'll know," Lara murmured, "but keep it quiet."
Elana's eyes widened... But she nodded.
"Yes Mother..."
She had a lot of work to do...
- - -
Four Months Later...
Elana had done as her mother had asked. She'd organized the Civil Defense Fleet herself. She'd gone around to basically every House on Alderaan, High and Low, and asked for volunteers. In many cases, personally. Then, she'd gone about getting acquainted with the ships.
The War Frigates were elegant, reliable, fast, and well armed. They were well protected, too: Exceptional small warships, even if many of them were thirty years old by this point. Elana had gotten the fleet upgrades within budget. Their Imperial trainers had actually been quite helpful.
Lieutenant Marcus Quinn, the head of the Imperial trainers and specialists, was from Alderaan himself. He soon became invaluable, helping Elana stay organized. Which was the only way she wasn't tearing her hair out over this.
Training conflicts. Logistics issues. Master At Arms threatening duels over insults. And those were some of the easier issues. And she had to find a way to sort it all out, while still planning their exercises.
Still... Four months of hard work, and she was standing on the bridge of her flagship: The Wrath of Torhu, named for the Alderaanian Spirit of Destruction. Earnhart, her House's trusted Man At Arms, was browbeating some junior officers behind her into behaving. Lieutenant Quinn was at her side, as he had always been. And the starfield ahead of them was filled with numerous other War Frigates, all flying in a broken formation.
"Delaya orbit achieved, my Lady," Quinn stated, relaying the information from an ensign. Elana nodded back.
"Status of the fleet?"
They went to the holo planning table, and the tactical display came online. Far below was the third plant of the Alderaan system: Delaya, which had most of Alderaan's heavy industry and technology bases. They'd maintained a good environment despite this, and relations between the two worlds were excellent. The other War Frigates that had been launched were arranged around them, like a cloud of silver fish among the stars. Elana frowned deeply.
"The Cloudshape is falling behind, find out why," she said. Quinn nodded, made the call... A moment later, he shook his head as he held a finger to his headset.
"The chief engineer got the power ratios wrong again," Quinn sighed. Elana groaned.
"Why did we let an art major train for that job?" She sighed. Quinn chuckled.
"Now now. He's doing better than last time," Quinn pointed out, "he hasn't blown out the power systems... So far."
Elana looked over at Quinn with a wan smile.
"You must miss your Imperial fleet, Quinn," she said, "all its efficiency, none of this bumbling about from disaster to disaster..."
Quinn tilted his head.
"My Lady, your Civil Defense Fleet is barely four months old," he said, "I wouldn't say it's a disaster. Merely a work in progress. Quite honestly, there are some Imperial crews who wouldn't do half as well as this fleet... And officers who would never measure up to your efforts."
"I do screw up a lot," Elana sighed, "remember the ion cannon test firing incident?"
"Vividly," Quinn observed, "but no one was killed, you reprimanded the proper people, and no lasting harm was done." He gave her a grim smile. "Trust me, on some Imperial gunnery crews, that would be regarded as a good day."
Elana smiled back at the lieutenant. Unlike many other Imperial officers Elana had met in the past, he was pleasant and eager to help. Sure he was stiff and a bit of a neat freak, and maybe just a bit socially awkward... But he didn't consider any of their jobs beneath him. He didn't even mind pitching in, getting his hands dirty. Sure, she delegated a lot, but sometimes you just had to get in there and do things yourself. Elana believed in this firmly, and Quinn thankfully did so too.
That and he was rather handsome. Elana focused on the holoplotter, ignoring those treacherous thoughts.
If her mother got word of any hint of infatuation between herself and some handsome young officer, she'd never hear the end of it!
"My Lady, Comscan's getting a massive energy surge near Alderaan orbit!" An officer reported. Elana frowned.
"Show me!"
The holoplotter switched to a view of Alderaan, its single moon, and... Elana's jaw dropped.
"That... What the fierfek is that?!" She cried. Quinn frowned deeply.
"The energy signature suggests it's artificial," he said, and an uncomfortable look came over his face, "and the design... It's Imperial technology, but... On this scale...?"
"Hail them! I want to know what they're doing here!" Elana ordered. The communications officer tried several hails, then looked up at Elana and shook his head.
"No response... But with all the EM interference that thing is giving off, they might not register anything we're transmitting."
"Full power to the transceiver array, all frequencies, put me on," Elana ordered. She stepped in front of the holoscanner, and cleared her throat.
"You're on, My Lady," the comms officer said.
"This is Lady Elana Thul of the Alderaanian Civil Defense Fleet," she stated, loud and clear, "identify yourself and state your intentions!"
Silence was the only response. Elana frowned.
"Set course for the object, all ahead full!" She ordered. "All ships, follow us! We're getting their attention no matter what!"
"I could try some... Secure Imperial frequencies, my Lady," Quinn suggested. Earnhart frowned suspiciously.
"What kind of secure frequencies?" The gruff Master At Arms asked. Quinn shook his head.
"I am in the dark as much as you are about this," he said, "but perhaps using Imperial channels will get us some answers."
Elana nodded.
"Do it," she ordered. Marcus went to the comms station, working with the young ensign. Earnhart walked up alongside Elana, tromping in his heavy armor. Regardless of the time of day or occasion, he always wore his heavy combat armor. Elana remembered drawing on it frequently as a child, giggling and running away when she was caught. Earnhart never got really mad though-He just made her clean it all off by hand.
But she'd loved those quiet times, where she could just listen to him talk about his experiences as a mercenary in the Clone Wars. The battles he had seen.
"Sure we want to get that thing's attention, My Lady?" Earnhart asked softly.
"I don't trust its intentions, Earnhart," she murmured back, "it may be bigger... But that doesn't give it the right to be here."
"Seems likely they think that's the case," Earnhart observed.
The huge object soon came into view in the viewports. From the angle they were approaching at, the massive vessel seemed poised over the green and blue marble that was Alderaan. It was a beautiful sight, and yet... Ominous.
Quinn held his fingers to his headpiece, a frown on his face.
"The Imperial channels aren't giving me anything," he said, "for all its noise, it's running silent-"
The Commscan ensign yelped in disbelief.
"My Lady! Energy spike!" She cried, "like nothing I've ever seen-!"
Elana turned back to the viewports. She gaped as she saw the massive object fire a green energy beam right at Alderaan. The beam struck the planet's surface... A fiery energy wave radiated outwards in an instant... And the crust of the world erupted.
She held her arm up to cover her eyes from the brightness of the explosion... Then lowered her arm. Her jaw fell. Her eyes were wide.
Some of the bridge crew screamed. Others began sobbing. So many were gaping in shock and horror.
Even Quinn, ever efficient, was staring in disbelief. He slowly looked down at the readings on his datapad, and then back at Elana.
"My... My Lady," he managed, "Alderaan... It's..." He couldn't continue, looking away. He sucked in a deep breath, and forced himself.
"... All readings indicate... Corroborated with the other ships... It has been destroyed," he managed tightly.
Elana felt frozen, like she was made of ice. Her mouth began to move, but it sounded so far away.
"Any sign of survivors...? Any... Any at all?"
"None," Quinn said.
Elana felt Earnhart's hand on his shoulder. Quinn's eyes widened, and he got over to Elana.
"My Lady... My Lady! They're deploying fighters, and Star Destroyers," he said, "they're heading right for us!"
"The Fornaak and the Sanctuary are powering up weapons!" The Commscan ensign managed to get out, though her eyes were red with tears.
The words of her mother came to her, in a terrible instant. She sucked in a deep breath.
"This is Wrath of Torhu to all ships, repeat," she said, "this is Fleet Command to all ships. Prepare for hyperspace jump. Repeat, prepare for jump! That's an order! Retreat to hyperspace rendezvous point Aurek! Now!"
"Before that though," Earnhart said, holding a vibroblade up to Quinn's throat, "maybe we take care of any potential traitors?!"
"Earnhart!" Elana cried. Earnhart glared at Quinn.
"Well... Seein' how the Imperials just destroyed Alderaan," he sneered.
Quinn looked back at Elana, and then at the viewport. He sucked in a deep breath. He reached up a gloved hand... And removed his insignia bars. He dropped them on the deck, and they clattered loudly.
"I feel," Quinn stated, "that my service with the Imperial Navy is at an end. Besides... Those ships will have orders to destroy us to prevent any message the Empire doesn't want getting out. I would prefer to die another way."
It was all so surreal. Like a bad dream... But she wouldn't wake up. She couldn't.
"... Earnhart, let him go," Elana said.
"But-"
"I said, let him go!" She ordered. "We'll deal with possible Imperial spies later! Right now, we have bigger things to worry about! Engineering! I want hyper, now!"
"Working on it, my Lady," the chief reported, "we're almost there..."
A cloud of TIE Fighters descended on them-Like vultures, seeking out a last feast. Elana gripped the edge of the holoplotter table tightly, counting down. She saw another War Frigate jump to hyper nearby, and then another, and another...
The cloud approached, closer... Closer...
"Hyperdrive is ready, My Lady!" Quinn shouted.
"JUMP!" Elana shouted back.
For a moment, the ship's hyperdrive only sputtered... It seemed like they had been caught... Then the stars streaked to infinity, and they were in hyperspace. She heard more sobs, and some sighs of relief. She let them pass, her own eyes focused on the holoplotter.
"I did as you asked, Mother," Elana murmured, "I kept us alive..."
For how long? Lady Elana Thul didn't know.
But she did know that the Empire would not sit long in triumph. Not if she had anything to say about it...
- - -
This kind of got away from me, but if you have ideas, or you'd like to continue or expand upon it, go ahead!
4 Standard Months Before the Battle of Yavin
- - -
Bail Organa, Viceroy of Alderaan, felt as though he was the waking dead as he wandered into his office. It was comfortable, and well appointed-The style of the interior hadn't changed in thousands of years. High vaulted ceilings, a broad ornate table, large, high backed chair. He sank into this last one, heaving a great sigh as his shoulders sank.
"Good evening, Your Highness."
Bail snapped up, alert, already reaching for his holdout blaster... But he relaxed as he beheld the elegant form of a friend. She was in traditional Alderaanian robes, reds and dark blues in contrast to House Organa's white, light blue and gold. She was still a handsome woman even with the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes and the gray streaks in her hair. She strode up, and Bail found the energy to rise to take her hand and kiss it.
"My Lady Lara Thul, what brings you to me at this late hour?" He asked.
Lara chuckled, nodding in respect to him.
"You already know the answer to that, Your Highness," she said. Bail groaned.
"Please. Enough of that, Lara. It's just us," he said.
Lara shook her head.
"This was easier when we were kids playing in the woods," she said.
"Please, Lara?" Bail asked, "for me?"
Lara sighed heavily, but there was a nostalgic smile on her face.
"Bail, then," she said. They both sat down, opposite sides of the large desk. A droid quickly provided some tea. Lara sipped hers, and beamed at her viceroy and old friend.
"Cassius Tea. My favorite," she said.
"I never forgot," Bail replied. Lara smiled over her cup at him, as he sipped the brew. She let him savor it for a while, before she broke the spell.
"I take it things aren't going well?" She asked.
"As head of the Defense Force, shouldn't you know?" Bail asked wryly. Lara shrugged.
"To claim to know more than my Viceroy would be akin to treason."
Bail nodded slowly.
"You could say that," he stated. He tapped his droid's shoulder, and it made an odd electronic whirr, "now we can talk privately."
"My Rist Shadows have been keeping an eye out for bugs, but it's better to be safe than sorry," Lara agreed. Bail set his hands on the table, and looked his old friend in the eyes.
"The Empire is onto us," he said, "and they're preparing for something big. They've transferred over a million servicemen from their standard postings, and enacted drafts on numerous Outer Rim worlds. Along with the financial tracing I've managed to find, well..."
"Do you think they mean to conquer Alderaan?" Lara asked, aghast. "A million troops would be necessary to start-"
"Occupation? It's certainly possible," Bail admitted. He frowned deeply. "We've been able to hold off martial law for almost two decades. The Emperor may be pushing the issue now. Whatever Palpatine's planning, it's going to be huge. And Alderaan may pay the price."
"Do you have a plan, Bail?" Lara asked. Bail sighed, and rubbed his temples.
"I've been doing everything I can to unite all the fledgling resistance groups into a proper Alliance. Leia's been helping too," he said, "we've been making good progress. Still, they're all so fractious. So stubborn. Unable to see the larger picture. I've been doing all I can but..." He smirked a little, "there's only so much greasing of wheels I can do."
"So show some muscle," Lara suggested, "some backbone. Nobody really listened to Amidala, Force rest her soul, until she reclaimed her world from the Trade Federation."
"Too much force, and we fracture it further," Bail warned, "and I won't become a tyrant just to oust another."
"I'm not suggesting that, Bail," Lara said quickly, "but the Rebellion's going to need strength to succeed anyway. Using it to shepherd, where necessary? Might not be a bad idea."
"So far, the Mon Calamari are taking a lot of heat," Bail sighed, "I can't let them take it all though. Do you have a suggestion?"
Lara smiled, and nodded.
"It occurs to me that, we haven't had the Alderaanian Civil Defense Fleet out on exercises in quite a while," Lara said carefully, "the majority of our War Frigates were placed in locked down stasis at Delaya's Orbital Storage Yards. After all, since Alderaan does not have an Imperial Base on it, we must rely on our own civil fleet for aid in case of a disaster."
Bail was silent.
"How many ships could we man? And how quickly?" He asked.
Lara shrugged her shoulders.
"Perhaps fifty? Maybe more? If we enacted the mandatory civil defense training clause in the Constitution."
"Breha may take some convincing," Bail admitted, "but she'll agree. Still, that many ships being reactivated-It may as well be signaling our intentions to Palpatine."
Lara shrugged.
"Palpatine's been making all this noise about 'terrorists and insurrectionists'. May as well use it against him. Say we're taking steps to deal with internal security."
Bail leaned back in his chair, considering all the possibilities.
"He'll send Imperial observers and trainers to 'assist'," Bail stated.
Lara smirked darkly.
"And the moment we have to? They'll each have a Rist Assassin's vibroblade through their backs," she stated.
Bail slowly nodded.
"Do what you have to," he said, "just make sure they can escape if the worst comes to pass."
"Escape?" Lara demanded.
"We won't win back our freedom with only fifty ships, Lara," Bail said gently, "you know it, I know it. They have to survive, link up with the rest of the Rebellion. Not throw their lives away uselessly."
Lara thought it over in silence, then nodded.
"I'll put Elana in charge of it," she decided, "it would be good to encourage all heads of the Houses to send their heirs offworld for a while. This may be the perfect excuse."
"No sense in letting the Empire have hostages," Bail agreed. Lara smiled sadly, looking down at her tea cup.
"If necessary... We will die so they can live," she said.
"That's what a parent must be willing to do for their child," Bail replied softly.
Lara saw the light on the jamming droid go off-The jamming system had stopped. She changed the subject with the ease of a master of the art.
"Do you ever regret it, Bail?" She asked, "marrying Breha, instead of...?"
She trailed off. Bail shifted, silent and contemplative.
"... Any answer I could give you would just make you feel terrible," he said, "and I did promise your brother I would never make you cry."
Lara smiled sadly, and rose.
"Too late," she said softly. Bail gave her a sad smile back, "but I'm glad you can trust me with our planet's security."
"Breha made the decision," Bail said, "she saw the same things I did in you."
"Well... Hopefully not all the same things," Lara chuckled, "good night, Your Highness."
"Good night, Lady Thul."
- - -
Lady Elana Thul was most put out. Which was not an unusual state of affairs for the young heiress to House Thul. She was a firebrand, more interested in racing swoop bikes and shooting blasters than in traditional Alderaanian Lady-like past times. She'd been hell on her parents...
Until her father had died in a tragic accident. His ship had been hijacked by pirates, and the Imperial troopers had attempted to rescue him. Sadly, the pirates had executed everyone, and then themselves, rather than be captured.
She still remembered the polite tone of the Imperial officer who brought the news, and the Stormtrooper who personally apologized to her and her mother for his failure.
His mother had represented frippery and obedience and tyranny to her most of her life... Yet seeing the elegant woman thank the Trooper for his attempt, and how she held herself together to lead their house...
It had inspired Elana. She'd seen her mother's strength, and she'd worked to support it from then on.
Elana excelled in school. She took her mother's lessons on warfare, history, and diplomacy seriously. She still trained in combat though: That, strangely enough, her mother had no issue with after her father's death.
They were much closer... But it was an imperfect relationship. Being summoned at 3 in the morning was certainly not endearing in any way. It wasn't until 5 that her mother finally appeared, and Elana opened her mouth to give her mother such a verbal flaying!
But the hours of impatient waiting evaporated away at the expression Lady Thul wore.
"Mother?" She asked. Lara walked to her desk, and arranged some datapads before she turned to smile upon her eldest daughter.
"Elana," Lara said, "last we spoke, you said you wished to enter the Imperial Academy?"
Taken aback, Elana nodded.
"I... Yes Mother," she said, "I can enroll in the ROTC while still studying-"
Lara smiled.
"How would you like to get some real life experience first? An internship, if you will?"
Lara blinked.
"I... What kind of internship?"
"I'm putting you in charge of the Civil Defense Fleet," she said, "we're reactivating several War Frigates and I want you to personally handle it. As fleet commander."
Lara gaped.
"M-Mother?!" She gasped, "I... Are you sure?! There must be someone better qualified-!"
"I will have Earnhart guide you as your chief advisor," Lara said, "you've always gotten along well with our Master of Arms."
"Y-Yes, but-It's just so-so sudden!" Elana protested.
Lara stood up, walked to her daughter, and rested her hands on her shoulders. She smiled warmly. They looked so much alike, Elana reflected. Mocha colored skin, lucious dark brown hair, dark honey eyes and high cheek bones. They resembled Elana's namesake, the head of the household during the Alderaanian Civil War thousands of years ago: Tall, proud, and beautiful.
"I have every confidence you can do this, Elana," Lara said, "and I trust that you will not fail me?"
Elana slowly shook her head.
"No Mother. Of-Of course I won't!"
"Good," Lara said, "listen to your chief petty officers, no one knows better than they. Use a firm hand, but know when to be kind. And don't overburden yourself. Delegate. You can't do everything yourself."
Elana nodded, the advice familiar.
"Yes Mother."
"And finally..." Lara trailed off, then resumed, "preserve yourselves. At all costs. No matter what happens to Alderaan, keep yourselves alive. We're counting on you."
Elana frowned deeply.
"Mother what do you-?"
"You'll know," Lara murmured, "but keep it quiet."
Elana's eyes widened... But she nodded.
"Yes Mother..."
She had a lot of work to do...
- - -
Four Months Later...
Elana had done as her mother had asked. She'd organized the Civil Defense Fleet herself. She'd gone around to basically every House on Alderaan, High and Low, and asked for volunteers. In many cases, personally. Then, she'd gone about getting acquainted with the ships.
The War Frigates were elegant, reliable, fast, and well armed. They were well protected, too: Exceptional small warships, even if many of them were thirty years old by this point. Elana had gotten the fleet upgrades within budget. Their Imperial trainers had actually been quite helpful.
Lieutenant Marcus Quinn, the head of the Imperial trainers and specialists, was from Alderaan himself. He soon became invaluable, helping Elana stay organized. Which was the only way she wasn't tearing her hair out over this.
Training conflicts. Logistics issues. Master At Arms threatening duels over insults. And those were some of the easier issues. And she had to find a way to sort it all out, while still planning their exercises.
Still... Four months of hard work, and she was standing on the bridge of her flagship: The Wrath of Torhu, named for the Alderaanian Spirit of Destruction. Earnhart, her House's trusted Man At Arms, was browbeating some junior officers behind her into behaving. Lieutenant Quinn was at her side, as he had always been. And the starfield ahead of them was filled with numerous other War Frigates, all flying in a broken formation.
"Delaya orbit achieved, my Lady," Quinn stated, relaying the information from an ensign. Elana nodded back.
"Status of the fleet?"
They went to the holo planning table, and the tactical display came online. Far below was the third plant of the Alderaan system: Delaya, which had most of Alderaan's heavy industry and technology bases. They'd maintained a good environment despite this, and relations between the two worlds were excellent. The other War Frigates that had been launched were arranged around them, like a cloud of silver fish among the stars. Elana frowned deeply.
"The Cloudshape is falling behind, find out why," she said. Quinn nodded, made the call... A moment later, he shook his head as he held a finger to his headset.
"The chief engineer got the power ratios wrong again," Quinn sighed. Elana groaned.
"Why did we let an art major train for that job?" She sighed. Quinn chuckled.
"Now now. He's doing better than last time," Quinn pointed out, "he hasn't blown out the power systems... So far."
Elana looked over at Quinn with a wan smile.
"You must miss your Imperial fleet, Quinn," she said, "all its efficiency, none of this bumbling about from disaster to disaster..."
Quinn tilted his head.
"My Lady, your Civil Defense Fleet is barely four months old," he said, "I wouldn't say it's a disaster. Merely a work in progress. Quite honestly, there are some Imperial crews who wouldn't do half as well as this fleet... And officers who would never measure up to your efforts."
"I do screw up a lot," Elana sighed, "remember the ion cannon test firing incident?"
"Vividly," Quinn observed, "but no one was killed, you reprimanded the proper people, and no lasting harm was done." He gave her a grim smile. "Trust me, on some Imperial gunnery crews, that would be regarded as a good day."
Elana smiled back at the lieutenant. Unlike many other Imperial officers Elana had met in the past, he was pleasant and eager to help. Sure he was stiff and a bit of a neat freak, and maybe just a bit socially awkward... But he didn't consider any of their jobs beneath him. He didn't even mind pitching in, getting his hands dirty. Sure, she delegated a lot, but sometimes you just had to get in there and do things yourself. Elana believed in this firmly, and Quinn thankfully did so too.
That and he was rather handsome. Elana focused on the holoplotter, ignoring those treacherous thoughts.
If her mother got word of any hint of infatuation between herself and some handsome young officer, she'd never hear the end of it!
"My Lady, Comscan's getting a massive energy surge near Alderaan orbit!" An officer reported. Elana frowned.
"Show me!"
The holoplotter switched to a view of Alderaan, its single moon, and... Elana's jaw dropped.
"That... What the fierfek is that?!" She cried. Quinn frowned deeply.
"The energy signature suggests it's artificial," he said, and an uncomfortable look came over his face, "and the design... It's Imperial technology, but... On this scale...?"
"Hail them! I want to know what they're doing here!" Elana ordered. The communications officer tried several hails, then looked up at Elana and shook his head.
"No response... But with all the EM interference that thing is giving off, they might not register anything we're transmitting."
"Full power to the transceiver array, all frequencies, put me on," Elana ordered. She stepped in front of the holoscanner, and cleared her throat.
"You're on, My Lady," the comms officer said.
"This is Lady Elana Thul of the Alderaanian Civil Defense Fleet," she stated, loud and clear, "identify yourself and state your intentions!"
Silence was the only response. Elana frowned.
"Set course for the object, all ahead full!" She ordered. "All ships, follow us! We're getting their attention no matter what!"
"I could try some... Secure Imperial frequencies, my Lady," Quinn suggested. Earnhart frowned suspiciously.
"What kind of secure frequencies?" The gruff Master At Arms asked. Quinn shook his head.
"I am in the dark as much as you are about this," he said, "but perhaps using Imperial channels will get us some answers."
Elana nodded.
"Do it," she ordered. Marcus went to the comms station, working with the young ensign. Earnhart walked up alongside Elana, tromping in his heavy armor. Regardless of the time of day or occasion, he always wore his heavy combat armor. Elana remembered drawing on it frequently as a child, giggling and running away when she was caught. Earnhart never got really mad though-He just made her clean it all off by hand.
But she'd loved those quiet times, where she could just listen to him talk about his experiences as a mercenary in the Clone Wars. The battles he had seen.
"Sure we want to get that thing's attention, My Lady?" Earnhart asked softly.
"I don't trust its intentions, Earnhart," she murmured back, "it may be bigger... But that doesn't give it the right to be here."
"Seems likely they think that's the case," Earnhart observed.
The huge object soon came into view in the viewports. From the angle they were approaching at, the massive vessel seemed poised over the green and blue marble that was Alderaan. It was a beautiful sight, and yet... Ominous.
Quinn held his fingers to his headpiece, a frown on his face.
"The Imperial channels aren't giving me anything," he said, "for all its noise, it's running silent-"
The Commscan ensign yelped in disbelief.
"My Lady! Energy spike!" She cried, "like nothing I've ever seen-!"
Elana turned back to the viewports. She gaped as she saw the massive object fire a green energy beam right at Alderaan. The beam struck the planet's surface... A fiery energy wave radiated outwards in an instant... And the crust of the world erupted.
She held her arm up to cover her eyes from the brightness of the explosion... Then lowered her arm. Her jaw fell. Her eyes were wide.
Some of the bridge crew screamed. Others began sobbing. So many were gaping in shock and horror.
Even Quinn, ever efficient, was staring in disbelief. He slowly looked down at the readings on his datapad, and then back at Elana.
"My... My Lady," he managed, "Alderaan... It's..." He couldn't continue, looking away. He sucked in a deep breath, and forced himself.
"... All readings indicate... Corroborated with the other ships... It has been destroyed," he managed tightly.
Elana felt frozen, like she was made of ice. Her mouth began to move, but it sounded so far away.
"Any sign of survivors...? Any... Any at all?"
"None," Quinn said.
Elana felt Earnhart's hand on his shoulder. Quinn's eyes widened, and he got over to Elana.
"My Lady... My Lady! They're deploying fighters, and Star Destroyers," he said, "they're heading right for us!"
"The Fornaak and the Sanctuary are powering up weapons!" The Commscan ensign managed to get out, though her eyes were red with tears.
The words of her mother came to her, in a terrible instant. She sucked in a deep breath.
"This is Wrath of Torhu to all ships, repeat," she said, "this is Fleet Command to all ships. Prepare for hyperspace jump. Repeat, prepare for jump! That's an order! Retreat to hyperspace rendezvous point Aurek! Now!"
"Before that though," Earnhart said, holding a vibroblade up to Quinn's throat, "maybe we take care of any potential traitors?!"
"Earnhart!" Elana cried. Earnhart glared at Quinn.
"Well... Seein' how the Imperials just destroyed Alderaan," he sneered.
Quinn looked back at Elana, and then at the viewport. He sucked in a deep breath. He reached up a gloved hand... And removed his insignia bars. He dropped them on the deck, and they clattered loudly.
"I feel," Quinn stated, "that my service with the Imperial Navy is at an end. Besides... Those ships will have orders to destroy us to prevent any message the Empire doesn't want getting out. I would prefer to die another way."
It was all so surreal. Like a bad dream... But she wouldn't wake up. She couldn't.
"... Earnhart, let him go," Elana said.
"But-"
"I said, let him go!" She ordered. "We'll deal with possible Imperial spies later! Right now, we have bigger things to worry about! Engineering! I want hyper, now!"
"Working on it, my Lady," the chief reported, "we're almost there..."
A cloud of TIE Fighters descended on them-Like vultures, seeking out a last feast. Elana gripped the edge of the holoplotter table tightly, counting down. She saw another War Frigate jump to hyper nearby, and then another, and another...
The cloud approached, closer... Closer...
"Hyperdrive is ready, My Lady!" Quinn shouted.
"JUMP!" Elana shouted back.
For a moment, the ship's hyperdrive only sputtered... It seemed like they had been caught... Then the stars streaked to infinity, and they were in hyperspace. She heard more sobs, and some sighs of relief. She let them pass, her own eyes focused on the holoplotter.
"I did as you asked, Mother," Elana murmured, "I kept us alive..."
For how long? Lady Elana Thul didn't know.
But she did know that the Empire would not sit long in triumph. Not if she had anything to say about it...
- - -
This kind of got away from me, but if you have ideas, or you'd like to continue or expand upon it, go ahead!
