Hapes, Thursday Fandom time
Previous.
Tenel Ka and Lowbacca had no idea what they were being set up for. To them, they were just headed to Gallinore for a short trip, and Jaina's little trick of calling Kyp her new master meant that they had no real issue with him coming along. Or if they did, they hid it well.
In truth, Jaina was the only one who knew what they were really doing. When she'd asked for Kyp's help in capturing one of the imprisoned Hapan pilots, a conveniently released, now-newly late enemy of Ta Chume, he'd agreed, probably more out of interest than anything else. He didn't know what she'd really been planning. They kept their prisoner stowed in the hold of the ship, and when they arrived at Gallinore, she set her friends dealing with busy work while she assessed the situation and finally reported her plan back to Kyp.
At the end of her explanation, she caught something in his eyes that she took as a challenge. "You asked me to be your apprentice," she said. "This is where it starts."
"So this is your price," Kyp said. "You have a high opinion of your value."
Yeah, she did. And? "I'm the last of the Solos. That's got to be worth something. Do you want me or not?"
He seemed to be really considering it. They'd discussed his offer but he had left it up to her, and now that she had made her decision, his answer was less than immediate. "You know we could never speak of this," he warned.
Jaina made a face. "Who would I tell? Uncle Luke?" The fact was, no one would be with her on this. Kyp was the only one who would be willing to beak a few rules and risk just a little more for their goal. If she had to let him think he was in control, fine. She knew better.
"All right then," Kyp finally agreed. "Let's get this done."
*****
It meant mind-wiping more than a few people to cover their tracks. Jaina hadn't had the knowledge to do that before, but this was as much training from Kyp as anything else. It meant mind-wiping Lowie to make him forget he'd had to cover for Jaina at all. It meant hours spent in the hidden lab of a Hapan scientist whose methods had led him to operate in government-enforced isolation while he removed a Yuuzhan Vong coral chip from the pirate, along with blood and tissue samples and did tests to see whether the Vong implant could be modified. Kyp hadn't been able to watch as the prate was tested into a near-death state, but Jaina wasn't too concerned for the life of a criminal when a little bit of torture might defeat the Vong. The way she saw it, the man was finally doing something useful with himself. It meant then mind-wiping the pirate so he wouldn't remember a thing before turning him loose.
It meant that once Jaina returned to Hapes, Ta Chume was so pleased with her plan that she allowed her more scientists.
Of course, for whatever reason, she was becoming more and more wary of Ta'a Chume and felt the need to leave as quickly as possible. Jaina had her reasons for wanting all of this. Ta'a Chume took too much of an interest for her to feel entirely comfortable.
She was in such a hurry to leave that she almost ran right into Tenel Ka, who reached out to steady her and said, "I often leave my grandmother's presence at such a pace."
Jaina started to smile, then knew just from that rare attempt at humor by Tenel Ka that she was in for it.
"You have visited Ta'a Chume frequently," said Tenel Ka, proving her right.
"She invited me to stay at the palace," Jaina shrugged. "I can't exactly ignore her."
"Fact. But the time you spend with her exceeds the demands of propriety."
"I haven't been keeping a log. Is this a problem for you?"
"You are a Jedi," Tenel Ka said, ignoring her. "You should be able to sense that nothing good can come from my grandmother's hand."
"She's concerned about Hapes," said Jaina, and added, "Someone should be."
"I don't know anyone who is not. If the battle comes to Hapes, we will fight."
"And lose! The Yuuzhan Vong can't be fought with traditional Jedi methods," Jaina protested. "Their warriors and their living weapons are beyond the Force. To deal with them, we need to understand them. We have to beat them at their own game."
This answer didn't seem to please Tenel Ka. Then again, not much seemed to. "Be careful, my friend. There is danger in making too diligent an attempt to understand the enemy. It's impossible to study something too long without being changed by it."
"If I start feeling the urge to tattoo my face, I'll let you know," said Jaina wryly.
"That is not what I meant. My concern is for things far more-"
"That was a joke," she interrupted. "And as for changes, my feeling is that by the time this war is over, none of us will be the same, even the Jedi. Maybe especially the Jedi."
For a long moment, Tenel Ka was silent, not exactly looking at her. "You may be right," she agreed, a bit sadly.
*****
While working on the eternal frustration she was calling the Trickster these days, Jag found her once again. She was ready for a rebuke, so she started with a preemptive, "Yes, I took one of your pilots. But Kyp is back and in reasonable working order. If you have any complaints, take them up with him."
When Jaina jerked her thumb towards Lowbacca, he stood and folded his arms as if challenging Jag to do so. She had him trained so well.
Disappointingly, Jag barely paid attention. "I came with a message from your mother. Your father's been injured," he said, and didn't wait for her to react before going on. "I went to the refugee camp to speak with him and found him fending off what looked like Hapan royal guards. Your mother made the decision to leave Hapes."
"Where did they go?"
"She said they would rejoin Luke Skywalker, and that you would know the location."
Yeah, she did. They'd be back on Eclipse with everyone else. "Makes sense. How badly was my father hurt?"
"Mostly bruises, and a hairline skull fracture. Apparently he doesn't recall most of what happened. The medical droid at the scene said that he would recover."
"My mother must have been surprised," Jaina said. "She always said Dad's skull was thicker than a Star Destroyer's hull."
Jag almost- almost- smiled. "She intimated something along that line."
Jaina wasn't sure whether or not she was sorry to se her parents go. It was probably better all around that they did. "Knowing my father, this might have started with some sort of misunderstanding. I'll talk to Ta'a Chume about it."
"Perhaps you should reconsider that," Jag said carefully.
She was getting really tired of everyone assuming they knew best for her. Sticking her fists on her hips, she asked, "Oh? And why's that?"
"I don't trust the former queen mother," he said bluntly. "Frankly, I'm rather surprised that you do."
Jaina didn't have time to respond, due to the sharp clatter of something on the above walkway. When they looked up, they saw Tenel Ka standing there for a moment before stalking off.
"That was unforgivably tactless of me," said Jag, frowning.
"I wouldn't worry about it," Jaina told him. "People who eavesdrop deserve whatever they hear."
"Perhaps, but I should speak to her."
With a nod, he turned to follow the princess, and Jaina let him go, glad to have some peace in which to work again.
*****
The good thing about what she was doing was that with enough help, it was going quickly. The bad thing was, she was gaining naysayers, and one of them was Kyp. He was in the docking bay when she came back to check on the latest test, glaring at her as she talked to one of the techs.
"They're gathering data," she explained finally. "Important data."
"How many pilots have you sent up?" Kyp demanded. "How many returned?"
"Most likely a higher percentage than those from your command," she said coolly.
"People die in war," he said. "I accept that, and so do the pilots who fly with me. But I never deliberately threw their lives away. How good is your tracking data?"
"Getting better," Jaina said, not exactly fighting him on what he was accusing her of.
"So you had a good idea of how many skips were patrolling that sector. And yet you sent up two men."
"We don't have have enough of the implants yet, or the delivery weapons, to justify sending up more. You would have made the same decision. "
"Which brings us to the next issue. These pilots apparently think I ordered this mission."
Yeah, well, payback was a bitch. "You used my name and influence when it suited you. I'm here to learn from the master."
He grabbed her by the shoulder to pull her aside. "You said you were here to learn," he said in a low voice. 'Listen carefully, and see you if you can wrap your mind around this: from now on, anything you do will be cleared through me. You will not assume that my actions, past or present, justify yours."
Jaina rolled her eyes. "Oh, please. Next thing I know you'll be telling me, 'Do as I say, not as I do.'"
"That's the general idea."
She stared. "You're serious."
"As a thermal detonator. Start filling me in."
Jaina did, and by the time she'd told him all the fun technical stuff she was working on and who'd discovered what and what it all did, he actually seemed sort of impressed. He stared at her for a moment, then let out a long, slow whistle. "It's good. I'm in."
She grinned, happy to have him back on her side. "Lead on, Master Durron."
*****
Jaina hadn't been able to find Lowbacca until she went up to the upper walkway of the Trickster's docking bay, where he was hanging on the rail. He was from Kashyyyk, he found high places to be when he was upset. And this was her fault. She climbed the stairs, leaning on the rail and asking, "How many did you lose?"
The answer made her wince. Unable to find out everything about the Trickster and the Vong ships and how it all fit together, she'd asked Lowie to bring in Wookiee techs to come work with her. Well, 'asked' wasn't the right word. She'd called in on the life debt he'd taken over from Chewbacca in order to get him to do it, and then sent them up as test pilots. "If I'd known the Wookiee ships were going to meet with that much resistance, I would have sent an escort."
He didn't need to say a word. His expression said it all.
"I know where Harrar's priestship is, and the little fleet connected to his yammosk. I don't know the location of every Sith-spawned hunk of rock in this galaxy. Yet," she said, and softened a bit. "What we're doing is worthwhile. Important. I'm sorry that some of your friends died, but we've got to move forward. The Yuuzhan Vong shapers are fast. They'll figure out what we know and then they'll do something else. Our window is very small. Are you with me?"
After a moment, he climbed off the rail. Of course he was.
The anger of the person joining them announced his presence, and Jaina rolled her eyes. "That would be Kyp," she muttered.
Sure enough, Kyp was storming in, climbing the stairs. Lowbacca immediately tried to put himself between him and Jaina, but Kyp seized him with a psychic blast that sent him staggering. Then he grabbed Jaina with that same energy, whipping her around to face him. "You've been holding out on me again," he accused. "You've been sending up pilots, Hapan pilots, in ships that give off the Trickster's signal. That's first cousin to a suicide mission!"
"We need more time," Jaina told him calmly. "We're close to finding a way to lure the Vong into a trap. In the meanwhile, this little diversion is keeping them busy. They're finding my ship all over the quadrant."
"There's a fine line between dedication and fanaticism. I think you passed it a few kilometers back."
"That's rich, coming from you!" she retorted. "The Vong are off chasing ghost ships, rather than focusing their energy on attacking Hapes. Fighter pilots know the risk, and they know they're saving thousands of noncombatants."
"Results are not enough," Kyp said. "Not for you."
She could read the meaning behind that, and stared at him in disbelief. "I heard what you didn't say. You said 'Not for you.' What you thought was, Not for Darth Vader's granddaughter. You don't even know."
"You're my responsibility now."
She didn't get Kyp, she really didn't. He seemed to go between wanting to be some sort of surrogate father figure and teacher to wanting to be her friend and partner in crime to hitting on her, and she was getting tired of it. "I wish Uncle Luke could hear this," she laughed. "Paralysis and inactivity, not the dark side, will overcome the Jedi. Haven't you said that a hundred times?"
"When is another pilot due to go up?"
"She's powering up now," Jaina shrugged.
Kyp turned as if he was going to go, but the second he had his back turned, Jaina'd drawn her lightsaber.
He stilled at the sound, and turned around slowly, his hands up. "I don't want to fight you."
"You'd change your mind if the stakes were high enough," Jaina said, and oh look, there was her lightsaber at his throat.
"Don't be ridiculous. You wouldn't kill me if you could!"
Funny how he thought that. She'd killed for less lately. "The idea isn't without a certain appeal, but it's not what I had in mind," she said. "If I win, you fly the rest of this battle under my command. If you win, I'm yours. No more holding out, no more games. I'll keep the channels open, act like a real apprentice."
He considered this, and either he was reallyunhappy with her actions, or he really wanted her for his student. "Done."
His lightsaber was in his hand before she knew it, but she was ready for him, flipping out of his way before he could even attempt a blow. She'd had a lot of practice at this sort of thing lately, and it was really starting to show. She could block his moves, and even if she didn't land any herself, she was putting up enough of a fight. Good. She had experience fighting people that Kyp never would. She was able to use her setting to her advantage; if he got too close, she could vault down the stairs and force him to come after her. She was in control here.
At least for a while. As the fight went on, it started to become clear that Kyp had been acting tentatively with her so far. As he stepped up his game, she came to the realization that this wasn't going her way, but she couldn't lose this one. She wasn't willing to hold up her agreement if if meant she couldn't continue her work. "I'm not going to let you stop this next flight," she warned.
He slashed high, and she spun away to meet his blade, and then he stepped back. "Who said I wanted to stop the mission? I want to fly it."
She really didn't get him. "You do?"
"If the mission is so important, I'll go myself."
"Forget it," Jaina said. "The Jedi are too few and too valuable to risk."
"I know. And that's precisely while I need to go." Seeing she wasn't dropping her guard, he went on, "Let's just say I'm taking my responsibilities seriously. I don't want my apprentice to make some of the mistakes I made."
Just for that, she brought her lightsaber down, forcing him to block. "What apprentice? You haven't beaten me yet."
"I will," he grinned. "And we both know it. We also know how difficult expectations can be. You've got to live up to your famous parents, which in some ways is even more difficult than living down a monumental failure."
"You can't compare our situations,"Jaina said.
"We both lost brothers."
"And maybe hitting the Yuuzhan Vong hard will give some meaning to my brothers' deaths."
"I tried to avenge my brother," Kyp reminded her, "and I ended up killing him. Your mother thinks Jacen's still alive. What if she's right."
Jaina stopped, too stunned and angry to do anything. It still hurt too much to have anyone even try to get her hopes up like that, and she wasn't falling for it, especially not the insinuation that she could kill Jacen doing this. And Kyp seemed to be preparing for the attack she wanted to unleash on him for that.
Instead, Jaina switched off her lightsaber. "You want the mission? Take it. But you'd better survive it. We're not finished here. Not by a long shot."
She spun on her heel and headed for the exit, wanting to get out of here and away from what he'd said, but she hadn't gotten that far when she had Jag trying to catch up with her. Again. She stopped, waited for him to say something, and for a moment he looked completely speechless. "I came to thank you for your help," he said finally.
"What are you talking about?" Jaina asked impatiently.
He started walking with her, saying, "Word has gotten back that you've been recruiting Hapan pilots, getting them back into the skies. I don't have enough scouts to cover this area. Every set of eyes helps. And when the time comes to fight, there will be more pilots prepared and aware."
All right, that helped a lot. It was nice to know at least one person didn't think she was throwing people's lives away just because she could. She was trying to help. "We all do what we can."
"You and your family have given more than most," Jag went on. "Forgive me, but I heard what Kyp said to you. I know how difficult these times can be. I, too, lost two siblings in battle."
Jaina wasn't at the point yet where she could hear something like that and not get her hackles up. It was all still too fresh. "What are you saying? That my loss is no greater than anyone else's? Anakin and Jacen are no more important than any other casualty?"
He realized his mistake, and tried to recover from it. "That's not what I intended to portray."
She let her rage die down, too tired to deal with it right now. Kyp might have hit her harder than she was willing to admit. "Forget it," she said wearily. "So why did you come? You're not usually one for small talk."
There was another pause, and he said, "You have a natural gift for leadership. People will follow you, whether you want them to or not. Rank is not important to someone like you."
Jaina watched him carefully, wondering what he was getting at. "This is all very interesting, but where's it going?"
"I just wanted to express an opinion," he said, looking uncomfortable. "The rank you were born with suits you very well. Anything more would be redundant."
She only heard what she wanted to hear, and despite the fact this could well be a compliment, she decided to take offense instead. "I see," she said coldly. "Coming from the son of Baron Fel- a jumped-up Corellian dirt farmer- that's worth about as much as Ithorian currency."
Jag didn't seem to understand what he'd said wrong. "Why must you take offense at every turn?"
"Why must you answer questions that no one bothered to ask?" she asked, and decided she needed to be done. She just had to go and get away from this and that was why she just turned to flee.
Kyp not only survived the mission, but the next time they all went up, transmitting the Trickster's signal onto attacking Vong ships during and watching them blow each other up, he was even her friend again. Which was fine with her. She could continue to use him as she needed, then. Ta'a Chume even had a party thrown to celebrate the victory- and with it, Jaina's work. The way Jaina figured, this only gave her more to work with. She'd take it.
[Guess who somehow managed to lose TWO POSTS somehow despite saving them? Do you know how long it takes to spellcheck something with these names in it? Anyway, blah blah NFB yadda yadda, dialogue from Dark Journey by Elaine Cunningham.]
Tenel Ka and Lowbacca had no idea what they were being set up for. To them, they were just headed to Gallinore for a short trip, and Jaina's little trick of calling Kyp her new master meant that they had no real issue with him coming along. Or if they did, they hid it well.
In truth, Jaina was the only one who knew what they were really doing. When she'd asked for Kyp's help in capturing one of the imprisoned Hapan pilots, a conveniently released, now-newly late enemy of Ta Chume, he'd agreed, probably more out of interest than anything else. He didn't know what she'd really been planning. They kept their prisoner stowed in the hold of the ship, and when they arrived at Gallinore, she set her friends dealing with busy work while she assessed the situation and finally reported her plan back to Kyp.
At the end of her explanation, she caught something in his eyes that she took as a challenge. "You asked me to be your apprentice," she said. "This is where it starts."
"So this is your price," Kyp said. "You have a high opinion of your value."
Yeah, she did. And? "I'm the last of the Solos. That's got to be worth something. Do you want me or not?"
He seemed to be really considering it. They'd discussed his offer but he had left it up to her, and now that she had made her decision, his answer was less than immediate. "You know we could never speak of this," he warned.
Jaina made a face. "Who would I tell? Uncle Luke?" The fact was, no one would be with her on this. Kyp was the only one who would be willing to beak a few rules and risk just a little more for their goal. If she had to let him think he was in control, fine. She knew better.
"All right then," Kyp finally agreed. "Let's get this done."
*****
It meant mind-wiping more than a few people to cover their tracks. Jaina hadn't had the knowledge to do that before, but this was as much training from Kyp as anything else. It meant mind-wiping Lowie to make him forget he'd had to cover for Jaina at all. It meant hours spent in the hidden lab of a Hapan scientist whose methods had led him to operate in government-enforced isolation while he removed a Yuuzhan Vong coral chip from the pirate, along with blood and tissue samples and did tests to see whether the Vong implant could be modified. Kyp hadn't been able to watch as the prate was tested into a near-death state, but Jaina wasn't too concerned for the life of a criminal when a little bit of torture might defeat the Vong. The way she saw it, the man was finally doing something useful with himself. It meant then mind-wiping the pirate so he wouldn't remember a thing before turning him loose.
It meant that once Jaina returned to Hapes, Ta Chume was so pleased with her plan that she allowed her more scientists.
Of course, for whatever reason, she was becoming more and more wary of Ta'a Chume and felt the need to leave as quickly as possible. Jaina had her reasons for wanting all of this. Ta'a Chume took too much of an interest for her to feel entirely comfortable.
She was in such a hurry to leave that she almost ran right into Tenel Ka, who reached out to steady her and said, "I often leave my grandmother's presence at such a pace."
Jaina started to smile, then knew just from that rare attempt at humor by Tenel Ka that she was in for it.
"You have visited Ta'a Chume frequently," said Tenel Ka, proving her right.
"She invited me to stay at the palace," Jaina shrugged. "I can't exactly ignore her."
"Fact. But the time you spend with her exceeds the demands of propriety."
"I haven't been keeping a log. Is this a problem for you?"
"You are a Jedi," Tenel Ka said, ignoring her. "You should be able to sense that nothing good can come from my grandmother's hand."
"She's concerned about Hapes," said Jaina, and added, "Someone should be."
"I don't know anyone who is not. If the battle comes to Hapes, we will fight."
"And lose! The Yuuzhan Vong can't be fought with traditional Jedi methods," Jaina protested. "Their warriors and their living weapons are beyond the Force. To deal with them, we need to understand them. We have to beat them at their own game."
This answer didn't seem to please Tenel Ka. Then again, not much seemed to. "Be careful, my friend. There is danger in making too diligent an attempt to understand the enemy. It's impossible to study something too long without being changed by it."
"If I start feeling the urge to tattoo my face, I'll let you know," said Jaina wryly.
"That is not what I meant. My concern is for things far more-"
"That was a joke," she interrupted. "And as for changes, my feeling is that by the time this war is over, none of us will be the same, even the Jedi. Maybe especially the Jedi."
For a long moment, Tenel Ka was silent, not exactly looking at her. "You may be right," she agreed, a bit sadly.
*****
While working on the eternal frustration she was calling the Trickster these days, Jag found her once again. She was ready for a rebuke, so she started with a preemptive, "Yes, I took one of your pilots. But Kyp is back and in reasonable working order. If you have any complaints, take them up with him."
When Jaina jerked her thumb towards Lowbacca, he stood and folded his arms as if challenging Jag to do so. She had him trained so well.
Disappointingly, Jag barely paid attention. "I came with a message from your mother. Your father's been injured," he said, and didn't wait for her to react before going on. "I went to the refugee camp to speak with him and found him fending off what looked like Hapan royal guards. Your mother made the decision to leave Hapes."
"Where did they go?"
"She said they would rejoin Luke Skywalker, and that you would know the location."
Yeah, she did. They'd be back on Eclipse with everyone else. "Makes sense. How badly was my father hurt?"
"Mostly bruises, and a hairline skull fracture. Apparently he doesn't recall most of what happened. The medical droid at the scene said that he would recover."
"My mother must have been surprised," Jaina said. "She always said Dad's skull was thicker than a Star Destroyer's hull."
Jag almost- almost- smiled. "She intimated something along that line."
Jaina wasn't sure whether or not she was sorry to se her parents go. It was probably better all around that they did. "Knowing my father, this might have started with some sort of misunderstanding. I'll talk to Ta'a Chume about it."
"Perhaps you should reconsider that," Jag said carefully.
She was getting really tired of everyone assuming they knew best for her. Sticking her fists on her hips, she asked, "Oh? And why's that?"
"I don't trust the former queen mother," he said bluntly. "Frankly, I'm rather surprised that you do."
Jaina didn't have time to respond, due to the sharp clatter of something on the above walkway. When they looked up, they saw Tenel Ka standing there for a moment before stalking off.
"That was unforgivably tactless of me," said Jag, frowning.
"I wouldn't worry about it," Jaina told him. "People who eavesdrop deserve whatever they hear."
"Perhaps, but I should speak to her."
With a nod, he turned to follow the princess, and Jaina let him go, glad to have some peace in which to work again.
*****
The good thing about what she was doing was that with enough help, it was going quickly. The bad thing was, she was gaining naysayers, and one of them was Kyp. He was in the docking bay when she came back to check on the latest test, glaring at her as she talked to one of the techs.
"They're gathering data," she explained finally. "Important data."
"How many pilots have you sent up?" Kyp demanded. "How many returned?"
"Most likely a higher percentage than those from your command," she said coolly.
"People die in war," he said. "I accept that, and so do the pilots who fly with me. But I never deliberately threw their lives away. How good is your tracking data?"
"Getting better," Jaina said, not exactly fighting him on what he was accusing her of.
"So you had a good idea of how many skips were patrolling that sector. And yet you sent up two men."
"We don't have have enough of the implants yet, or the delivery weapons, to justify sending up more. You would have made the same decision. "
"Which brings us to the next issue. These pilots apparently think I ordered this mission."
Yeah, well, payback was a bitch. "You used my name and influence when it suited you. I'm here to learn from the master."
He grabbed her by the shoulder to pull her aside. "You said you were here to learn," he said in a low voice. 'Listen carefully, and see you if you can wrap your mind around this: from now on, anything you do will be cleared through me. You will not assume that my actions, past or present, justify yours."
Jaina rolled her eyes. "Oh, please. Next thing I know you'll be telling me, 'Do as I say, not as I do.'"
"That's the general idea."
She stared. "You're serious."
"As a thermal detonator. Start filling me in."
Jaina did, and by the time she'd told him all the fun technical stuff she was working on and who'd discovered what and what it all did, he actually seemed sort of impressed. He stared at her for a moment, then let out a long, slow whistle. "It's good. I'm in."
She grinned, happy to have him back on her side. "Lead on, Master Durron."
*****
Jaina hadn't been able to find Lowbacca until she went up to the upper walkway of the Trickster's docking bay, where he was hanging on the rail. He was from Kashyyyk, he found high places to be when he was upset. And this was her fault. She climbed the stairs, leaning on the rail and asking, "How many did you lose?"
The answer made her wince. Unable to find out everything about the Trickster and the Vong ships and how it all fit together, she'd asked Lowie to bring in Wookiee techs to come work with her. Well, 'asked' wasn't the right word. She'd called in on the life debt he'd taken over from Chewbacca in order to get him to do it, and then sent them up as test pilots. "If I'd known the Wookiee ships were going to meet with that much resistance, I would have sent an escort."
He didn't need to say a word. His expression said it all.
"I know where Harrar's priestship is, and the little fleet connected to his yammosk. I don't know the location of every Sith-spawned hunk of rock in this galaxy. Yet," she said, and softened a bit. "What we're doing is worthwhile. Important. I'm sorry that some of your friends died, but we've got to move forward. The Yuuzhan Vong shapers are fast. They'll figure out what we know and then they'll do something else. Our window is very small. Are you with me?"
After a moment, he climbed off the rail. Of course he was.
The anger of the person joining them announced his presence, and Jaina rolled her eyes. "That would be Kyp," she muttered.
Sure enough, Kyp was storming in, climbing the stairs. Lowbacca immediately tried to put himself between him and Jaina, but Kyp seized him with a psychic blast that sent him staggering. Then he grabbed Jaina with that same energy, whipping her around to face him. "You've been holding out on me again," he accused. "You've been sending up pilots, Hapan pilots, in ships that give off the Trickster's signal. That's first cousin to a suicide mission!"
"We need more time," Jaina told him calmly. "We're close to finding a way to lure the Vong into a trap. In the meanwhile, this little diversion is keeping them busy. They're finding my ship all over the quadrant."
"There's a fine line between dedication and fanaticism. I think you passed it a few kilometers back."
"That's rich, coming from you!" she retorted. "The Vong are off chasing ghost ships, rather than focusing their energy on attacking Hapes. Fighter pilots know the risk, and they know they're saving thousands of noncombatants."
"Results are not enough," Kyp said. "Not for you."
She could read the meaning behind that, and stared at him in disbelief. "I heard what you didn't say. You said 'Not for you.' What you thought was, Not for Darth Vader's granddaughter. You don't even know."
"You're my responsibility now."
She didn't get Kyp, she really didn't. He seemed to go between wanting to be some sort of surrogate father figure and teacher to wanting to be her friend and partner in crime to hitting on her, and she was getting tired of it. "I wish Uncle Luke could hear this," she laughed. "Paralysis and inactivity, not the dark side, will overcome the Jedi. Haven't you said that a hundred times?"
"When is another pilot due to go up?"
"She's powering up now," Jaina shrugged.
Kyp turned as if he was going to go, but the second he had his back turned, Jaina'd drawn her lightsaber.
He stilled at the sound, and turned around slowly, his hands up. "I don't want to fight you."
"You'd change your mind if the stakes were high enough," Jaina said, and oh look, there was her lightsaber at his throat.
"Don't be ridiculous. You wouldn't kill me if you could!"
Funny how he thought that. She'd killed for less lately. "The idea isn't without a certain appeal, but it's not what I had in mind," she said. "If I win, you fly the rest of this battle under my command. If you win, I'm yours. No more holding out, no more games. I'll keep the channels open, act like a real apprentice."
He considered this, and either he was reallyunhappy with her actions, or he really wanted her for his student. "Done."
His lightsaber was in his hand before she knew it, but she was ready for him, flipping out of his way before he could even attempt a blow. She'd had a lot of practice at this sort of thing lately, and it was really starting to show. She could block his moves, and even if she didn't land any herself, she was putting up enough of a fight. Good. She had experience fighting people that Kyp never would. She was able to use her setting to her advantage; if he got too close, she could vault down the stairs and force him to come after her. She was in control here.
At least for a while. As the fight went on, it started to become clear that Kyp had been acting tentatively with her so far. As he stepped up his game, she came to the realization that this wasn't going her way, but she couldn't lose this one. She wasn't willing to hold up her agreement if if meant she couldn't continue her work. "I'm not going to let you stop this next flight," she warned.
He slashed high, and she spun away to meet his blade, and then he stepped back. "Who said I wanted to stop the mission? I want to fly it."
She really didn't get him. "You do?"
"If the mission is so important, I'll go myself."
"Forget it," Jaina said. "The Jedi are too few and too valuable to risk."
"I know. And that's precisely while I need to go." Seeing she wasn't dropping her guard, he went on, "Let's just say I'm taking my responsibilities seriously. I don't want my apprentice to make some of the mistakes I made."
Just for that, she brought her lightsaber down, forcing him to block. "What apprentice? You haven't beaten me yet."
"I will," he grinned. "And we both know it. We also know how difficult expectations can be. You've got to live up to your famous parents, which in some ways is even more difficult than living down a monumental failure."
"You can't compare our situations,"Jaina said.
"We both lost brothers."
"And maybe hitting the Yuuzhan Vong hard will give some meaning to my brothers' deaths."
"I tried to avenge my brother," Kyp reminded her, "and I ended up killing him. Your mother thinks Jacen's still alive. What if she's right."
Jaina stopped, too stunned and angry to do anything. It still hurt too much to have anyone even try to get her hopes up like that, and she wasn't falling for it, especially not the insinuation that she could kill Jacen doing this. And Kyp seemed to be preparing for the attack she wanted to unleash on him for that.
Instead, Jaina switched off her lightsaber. "You want the mission? Take it. But you'd better survive it. We're not finished here. Not by a long shot."
She spun on her heel and headed for the exit, wanting to get out of here and away from what he'd said, but she hadn't gotten that far when she had Jag trying to catch up with her. Again. She stopped, waited for him to say something, and for a moment he looked completely speechless. "I came to thank you for your help," he said finally.
"What are you talking about?" Jaina asked impatiently.
He started walking with her, saying, "Word has gotten back that you've been recruiting Hapan pilots, getting them back into the skies. I don't have enough scouts to cover this area. Every set of eyes helps. And when the time comes to fight, there will be more pilots prepared and aware."
All right, that helped a lot. It was nice to know at least one person didn't think she was throwing people's lives away just because she could. She was trying to help. "We all do what we can."
"You and your family have given more than most," Jag went on. "Forgive me, but I heard what Kyp said to you. I know how difficult these times can be. I, too, lost two siblings in battle."
Jaina wasn't at the point yet where she could hear something like that and not get her hackles up. It was all still too fresh. "What are you saying? That my loss is no greater than anyone else's? Anakin and Jacen are no more important than any other casualty?"
He realized his mistake, and tried to recover from it. "That's not what I intended to portray."
She let her rage die down, too tired to deal with it right now. Kyp might have hit her harder than she was willing to admit. "Forget it," she said wearily. "So why did you come? You're not usually one for small talk."
There was another pause, and he said, "You have a natural gift for leadership. People will follow you, whether you want them to or not. Rank is not important to someone like you."
Jaina watched him carefully, wondering what he was getting at. "This is all very interesting, but where's it going?"
"I just wanted to express an opinion," he said, looking uncomfortable. "The rank you were born with suits you very well. Anything more would be redundant."
She only heard what she wanted to hear, and despite the fact this could well be a compliment, she decided to take offense instead. "I see," she said coldly. "Coming from the son of Baron Fel- a jumped-up Corellian dirt farmer- that's worth about as much as Ithorian currency."
Jag didn't seem to understand what he'd said wrong. "Why must you take offense at every turn?"
"Why must you answer questions that no one bothered to ask?" she asked, and decided she needed to be done. She just had to go and get away from this and that was why she just turned to flee.
Kyp not only survived the mission, but the next time they all went up, transmitting the Trickster's signal onto attacking Vong ships during and watching them blow each other up, he was even her friend again. Which was fine with her. She could continue to use him as she needed, then. Ta'a Chume even had a party thrown to celebrate the victory- and with it, Jaina's work. The way Jaina figured, this only gave her more to work with. She'd take it.
[Guess who somehow managed to lose TWO POSTS somehow despite saving them? Do you know how long it takes to spellcheck something with these names in it? Anyway, blah blah NFB yadda yadda, dialogue from Dark Journey by Elaine Cunningham.]