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Retribution 2001 short story by Louis Turfrey Thirty-seven years
after Episode IV – A New Hope The pain shot through her like no other pain she
had ever encountered. Even the loss of her eyes had been a less agonizing
experience. She could feel the fibrous tissue of the bio-implants crawling
their way into her brain and nothing she could call upon in the Force was
helping her. How she remained awake throughout it all was a question she
could not answer, but in the end it all but ate away at her will to live. “She is
still awake?” Aaron De’Athe watched coldly as his sister writhed and fought
against the bonds that anchored her to the table. The implant on her hand had
attached itself with very little problem. However, the eye implants were
still finding it difficult to embed themselves and were
having to create their own versions of the optic nerve. “Yes. She
is very strong. Any other human would have died long ago. I find it
fascinating that the Jedi are able to survive when others would have died. What
is it that you have that other humans lack?” The Yuuzhan Vong shaper looked
inquisitively at Aaron, who stared coldly back. “You will
never know Grethak Nor. Only the Force is able to
impart that knowledge, and you Vong are not able to access it, are you?” The shapers face clouded for a moment and Aaron
briefly caught the fire of an emotion, but it was gone as quickly as it had
surfaced. He smiled. Even the Vong could penetrate the Force if they were
angry enough. “When will
she be ready?” The shaper examined his instrumentation; seeming to
loath it’s very touch on his skin. “Two hours,
three at most.” Aaron nodded and looked back at his sister as her
struggles started to weaken again. “Good. Give
her a days rest then bring her to the command ship. Then I can begin her
retraining.” She looked in the mirror at the two orbs, glowing in
her eye sockets. Strangely, they seemed less alien than she had thought they
would. Her head ached as she concentrated closely upon her face. Small scars,
already fading, showed where the microscopic tendrils had forced their way
into her skull. The thought made her dizzy, and she sat down heavily on her
sleeping cot. How have they done it? How have they given me sight
again? There was
a light knock at the door and her Force sense reached out. She opened the
door with her mind. The Force came easier to her now. Her brother stood there
waiting. “Sister,
how are you feeling?” She nearly leapt off the cot to tear his heart out, but
managed to control her emotions long enough to answer. “What do
you think?” He smiled, and she knew that he had picked up on her
emotional outburst. “Don’t be
embarrassed by your lack of control sister. The implants have short-circuited
certain areas of your brain in order to function correctly. Your behavioural
centres have been modified somewhat.” He walked into the large guest room and
grabbed her by the face examining her scars. Before she could fight him off
he had let go. “Excellent. Your
healing is complete. You will soon be able to join me for your new training.”
He smiled coldly at her and reached around behind himself, presenting her
with her lightsabre. “Firstly though,
I think another sort of lesson is in order.” She reacted with instinct, bringing her blade to herself,
igniting it and slicing it down in a wicked arc. It never hit its target.
Pain shot from her implanted hand, straight up her arm and into her brain.
She dropped the blade and it deactivated, hanging silently in the air. Aaron
retrieved it as she gasped for breath on her cot. “What have
you done to me?” She managed to force the words from her lips. The dark Jedi
bent down and looked her straight in the eye. “Whenever
you access the light side of the Force, you will feel the same pain that you
have just experienced. Eventually it will beat you down, making you my
willing apprentice. Until that time, you will learn from me by force if
necessary. Welcome to the dark side little sister.” Nias Derril watched closely on the small monitor of
his data pad as the Galactic Alliance shuttle entered the hanger of the
Victory Star Destroyer. He winced as it glided within inches of the X-Wing
that had been moved to the side of the bay. He'd seen that type of shuttle
before, during Imperial times. He pressed the record button, capturing the
ongoing images in the pad. Something scratched his neck. "Easy
Zee bee, I don't want you blowing my head off." The small spider like
service droid warbled its electronic response and withdrew its manipulator
arm slightly. There was a click, a pinch and then the electronic slave collar
was resting in his lap. "Good
work Zee bee, that's part one completed." He felt a surge of adrenalin
at the thought that he was going to get payback for some of what the Ki-Ki
had done to him. He turned and shifted within the maintenance tunnel, moving
to where a small astromech unit that was working on a new installation. "How's
that installation going Arfive?" The astromech warbled a quiet response and Nias read
it upon his pad. "Good.
Activate it when it has been completed and rig it into the internal com
systems. I want them to act as a conduit for the transmissions." The small droid closed up the inner casing and
started to connect up the box. Nias turned back to the monitor, just in time
to see a black-cloaked figure exiting from the shuttle. He zoomed in on to
the display and gasped as he saw the lightsabre hanging from the figures
belt. He caught movement from the left side of the screen and was astounded
to see Commander Brotus approaching the figure. They smiled and greeted one
another. A second figure emerged from behind the first. Slightly taller, and
with a slimmer figure. Nias changed to the second camera and saw the slim
figure of a woman. She also had a lightsabre. He zoomed in on her face, but
was unable to see anything due to the darkness of the hood. Nias noticed
Brotus move towards her holding out his hand, and started to split the view
on his pad to show different angles. She responded by moving towards him and
holding out hers. Nias had to do a double take. In place of her hand was what
looked like a six-fingered talon. Within the docking bay Commander Brotus stepped in
closer to Trude. She did not move away when he moved to push back her hood
and so he folded it back upon her shoulders. He gasped in awe at her face.
Where there had once been two closed and empty eye sockets, there now resided
a pair of glowing balls of light. Closer examination proved that they were
eyes of some sort, but like none he had ever seen before. Only light scars
showed where they had been grafted.
"Incredible, their medical knowledge is astounding. From what
creature are they?" Aaron moved around, his dark eyes sparkling with his
own pleasure. "I am
told that the creature is a hybrid of humanoid DNA and that of a Vong species
called the Drac-Tekla. The creature is spider-like
and is grown entirely for its eyes. They offer three-dimensional
stereographic vision, but can zoom to microscopic or macroscopic levels. They
also allow the user to see in several wavelengths. Trude, why not show him
the other advantage." Trude De'Athe nodded, moving slightly away from both
men she concentrated on a storage crate, not less than ten metres away. The
metal on the side of the crate started to blacken and scorch. Within seconds
it had started to glow, and within a minute had become white hot. Brotus
started to look slightly nervous and coughed to get Aaron’s attention. "That
crate contains energy munitions. I would rather that it didn't explode."
Aaron nodded and placed a restraining arm on Trudes
shoulder. She broke her concentration and the crate started to blacken again,
solidifying within another minute.
"Fascinating." Brotus turned to Trude. "How do you feel
my dear?" Trude paused for a second and then looked straight
back at Brotus. "I
feel pain Commander. Much pain and much anger." Her voice was
emotionless but Brotus knew that was merely a front. She would make an excellent weapon. Nias grinned from ear to ear when he noticed who it
was, but then he realised the truth of the situation and the grief struck him
like a knife. How could Jedi side with the Ki-Ki? He would have very little
time to complete his plans with two Jedi onboard. Especially if they were now
working with Brotus. His thoughts were filled with confusion as he ran
through the checklist on his datapad, why would the Jedi work with the enemy?
He needed to know more. "Zee
Bee, reattach the collar, but alter the unlock code to my DNA pattern.
Disable and remove the explosives as well." The little droid warbled a
response and started its job. Within seconds Nias had the deactivated
detonator in his hands. The detonite charge came a
minute later. "Good, now lets brew some home made fun." Brotus watched as Derril approached. The man made
him angry. He was supposed to be a man of note in the Setnin Sector. A
skilled operator who could repair almost anything was not supposed to have
problems repairing an Imperial Victory Class Star Destroyer. He had removed
him from that project when Cathum had arrived. However, he had still been
useful in converting this old Republic MC 90 cruiser to his needs. He turned
to his colleagues.
"Mister Derril here is another example of what the Setnin Sector
used to stand for, disorganised crime and lawlessness." Trude looked around towards Nias as he approached
and looked him straight in the eye. He kept his composure, barely, and felt a
tickle in the corner of his mind. "Wait for me". The thought popped
in there unbidden. He was startled and dropped his datapad. "Fool,
what if you had erased the service reports!" Brotus let his irritation
rise to the surface. Nias seemed unperturbed; Brotus reflected that it was
probably due to the drug the man was taking. When he had found out that the
man was addicted to spice, he had almost shouted with joy. He'd kept the man
under his control by reducing the dosage he was allowed. However, of late
that had not been as effective, and the dosage had been lowered little by
little as the weeks went by. When the dosage had become ineffective, the
slave collar had been attached. Brotus fingered the control on his belt, maybe he should teach the man a lesson in pain
control. Nias interrupted his thoughts.
"Commander, we are now at ninety eight percent
efficiency. That’s thirty percent up on the highest previous average
for this ship." He nodded towards Trude. "Miss De'Athe, good to see
you again." Brotus stared at him and he could feel the attention
of the other Jedi as well. He continued to fill his mind with the repair
schedules and handed over the datapad. Brotus took it and examined the
statistics. "There
is a five percent drain on the shields, what is causing it?" Nias was ready with his rehearsed answer. "A
phase inverter is out of alignment. I have expressed the need for a new one,
but high command refused. Apparently they are making modifications to the
flag ship." Brotus frowned at this news. Command of the fleet should
have been his and his alone, not split between a bodyguard and an old man. He
placed the pad on to the communications panel. "Very
well. You may attend to the ionic fields in the landing bay. I will arrange
for a light evac suit to be given to you." Nias nodded and moved off. Brotus turned to the
hooded figure beside him. "Was
he telling the truth?" Aaron De'Athe removed his hood and there was a frown
on his face.
"Difficult to say, his head was too full of repair schedules and
diagrams. I would have to conclude he is. At least for the moment." Brotus nodded and turned to one of his warriors. "Make
sure Mister Derrill is given an evac
suite, but limit it's oxygen supply to one hour at a
time. I don't want him wandering anywhere." Trude De'Athe sank down in her assigned quarters and
dropped the mental shield that she had hidden behind for the last few days.
The hand had stopped hurting days ago, but the eyes still offered a high
level of pain. A tear ran down her cheek at what they had done to here, what
she had been forced to go through. Whatever the creature was that had donated
its eyes, it had been Force sensitive and receptive
to the dark side. Day by day she found that the light side was falling
further and further away. If she could only stop the pain she would be able
to concentrate, push it away. She tried again to maintain some form of
control and was soon back inside her mental cocoon.
She reflected coldly to herself that she would deal with De'Athe when the
time came. The problem was, she didn't know which
one to blame. She headed back to the bridge. Nias made the final adjustments to the ionic shield
emitters and signalled for the little droid to test them. The ZB 12 unit
walked up to the shield and placed a tentacled arm
gently through the gap. There was a fizzle but the droid was unhurt. He
tested the air pressure in the bay. Seventy percent of normal. It would do.
He quickly snapped the air supply in his suit to external filtering. The
small tank had been drained to nearly fifty percent before he had entered. He
needed more time than that allowed. He buzzed his communicator. "Derrill here. There’s been a short in the emitter. I can
only get seventy percent pressure. I think it's a fluctuation in the gravity
plates but I need to get at the main generator to make sure. It's located
under that shuttle. Can someone come and move it?" He needed the shuttle
moved over by about five metres so that he could turn the X-wing around.
There was a brief pause then he heard Brotus. "Miss
De'Athe will be with you shortly. Meanwhile stay where you are." A few minutes later Trude walked into the landing
bay. However, instead of getting into the shuttle she extended her altered
hand in its direction. Nias watched as he signalled for the R5 unit to board
the X-wing. The shuttle rose by a metre off the floor and started moving to
the side. It then dropped gently to the ground. Nias snapped open his
faceplate.
"Trude. Would you mind telling me what’s going on?” Trude looked vacantly at him for a moment then moved
towards him. "What
do you mean?" Her voice was cold and hard. "I
mean, what are you doing working with Brotus? He's an insane criminal." She smiled at him and he recognised the warmth that
had once resided in her face. "I
don't work for or with him. I chose to join Aaron to save somebody else’s
life. Now I must find a means of escape." She moved closer to Nias,
lifting him up bodily off the floor with her altered hand. "Soon Nias.
The dark side is closing and I have very little time left." She set him
down. Both Brotus and Aaron watched the exchange from the
security cameras on the communications console. "What
do you sense Aaron?" The dark Jedi concentrated for a moment and his face
turned stony.
"Deception. On the part of my sister and Derrill."
He turned towards Brotus. "Shame, I invested a lot of time and money
into those alterations. You may do with her as you wish." Brotus nodded, turned to the nearest officer and fed
him orders. Nias was explaining his plan to Trude when a claxon
sounded and red lights started up around the bay. Nias looked towards Trude,
snapping his faceplate back on, activating the suit mike. "The
pressure will drop to about thirty percent normal, but the shield won't give
out completely. I've rigged it to hold. You'll have to get to the co-pilots
position on the X-wing. Think you can do it?" She nodded and sprinted
towards the fighter. Nias tried to keep up, but she was in her seat well
before he struggled up the ladder. He pulled the lever to close the canopy
and heard the familiar voice of R5. He read the screen. "Good,
bring her around and prepare the cannon. Lock S-Foils into attack
position." He watched as the fighter slowly rotated. Blake's old ship
had been modified considerably since her creation and he struggled to
recognise all of the new controls. "Shields. Any ideas?" "Ask
R5." Nias nearly kicked himself for forgetting the little droids primary
function. "R5
bring the shields up double front and ram the ionic shield." The warble that came back to him told him that the
droid was not very happy with the plan. "Don't
worry, I've lowered the ionics
to minimum potency. They barely hold in the atmosphere." The droid warbled its assent and the ship shot
forwards. From the bridge Brotus looked on the scene in the
docking bay. Aaron noticed the full anger on his face. "He's
just outlived his usefulness." He picked up the slave remote form his
chair and activated the stud. The X-Wing shot up and away from the cruiser as the
primary bridge expanded outwards into space, creating a ball of fire that lit
up the nearby space for kilometres around. Nias shielded his eyes, and
allowed himself a moment of glee.
"That'll take care of him." Trude concentrated for a moment and felt a familiar
mind. "No.
You missed. Aaron De'Athe and Brotus stood where the bridge had
once been, surrounded by a ball of dark crackling energy. The Commander fumed
once more as he realised that he had been outwitted by a starship mechanic.
He looked towards the area where the pad had been placed and could see the
bulkhead of the deck below the command centre. Aaron looked at him, disdain
on his face. "It feels bad
doesn't it? Letting somebody escape?" Brotus nodded, unable to trust his feelings on the matter.
Aaron had assured him that the escape was necessary, but he was not
convinced. "Don’t
worry. I'll keep my end of the bargain." Aaron nodded back and took out a small covered
package from his tunic. He unwrapped it and a small
spider-like creature uncurled itself onto his hand. He stroked it and it started
to emit light. Very soon, they had the picture of the inside of the X-wing.
They both looked on as the streaks of hyperspace engulfed the X-Wing. Then
the transmission was gone.
"Excellent. The plan is in
place." Retribution 2001 short story by Louis Turfrey Thirty-seven years
after Episode IV – A New Hope Histories – Following on directly from The
Prodigal, and
preceding the events of the Chancai Invasion, this Louis Turfrey tale shows how strongly Aaron De’Athe holds sway over his younger
sister Trude. But it also shows the
deviousness of Nias Derril and the determination of Trude to do the
right thing. One of the final stories
of 2001, this leads right into the Chancai Invasion and continues Louis
storyline involving the Setnin struggle against not only the Ki-Ki but the forces of the dark
side.
Cast of Characters
Nias Derril Trude
De’Athe Aaron
De’Athe Commander
Brotus Grethak Nor
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