Chapter 5: The Liberator
In a desperate attempt, Rey quickly said, “That's really unnecessary. My cousin and I will be alright making our way from here.”
The Imperial Admiral waved at this with an unfazed expression, “Nonsense, how could we leave such lovely young ladies stranded.” With a more serious tone, he added, “Plus, being party to the capture of a corrupt New Republic Marshal will cause you great difficulty with the local officials.” Looking into the Jedi’s eyes once more with a face full of kindness, he finished, “We’ll escort you out of this system to ensure nothing goes arye.”
Midnight 7 slapped his blaster and added in a heroic tone, “Don't worry, those New Republic bastards won't dare mess with you while you're with us.”
Primidian laughed at this despite the pale expressions of the people he was rescuing. With a forward wave, he called, “Indeed. Now, let's hurry. Once the investigators arrive, they’ll be sure to shut down this port for at least a week. Getting tangled in such bureaucratic nonsense would be most distasteful. ”
This realization gave Rey a jolt. If the port really was closed, even with her identity and New Republic support, she would be late for her meeting with the New Republic Ambassadors. Without a doubt, this Admiral was on his way to Coruscant, though his intentions in inviting her were still far from clear. In normal people, being able to detect goodwill or hostility was simple via the Force, but this man revealed nothing. They also had to get out of here before rumors from the ship spread outwards. With little choice, she bowed again, “Then my cousin and I thank you.”
Fama seemed prepared to blurt something but was silenced by a nudge to her side. Jay similarly glanced at them with a complicated gaze but grew distracted as the guards began to help him with his partner. Primidian nodded politely to the group, then strolled away while speaking into his communicator, “Security Detail, come take a corrupt Marshal and his men into custody. Crimes are theft, extortion, bribery, assault, and attacking an Officer.”
The response was too muffled to hear from a distance, but the man appeared pleased. Fama took the newly created distance to tug on the cloak of her teacher and whisper, “Is this really okay.”
Rey herself wasn't sure of this, but they had to make the best out of a difficult situation. She nodded with a forced smile, “Of course, just stay by me.” With a glance towards the black-armored guards, she made it clear to the child that it was not a good time to openly discuss such a thing.
Unlike so many other stormtroopers she had met, Midnight 7 was happy to add his viewpoint to their conversation: “Yah, don't worry, girly. We don't bite.”
His compatriot and guard leader shoved him and snapped in that feminine yet frightening voice, “Seven, can't you just shut up and follow orders.” Turning back to Rey, she added, “This bantha-brain, and I will show you to your quarters.”
Rey nodded, looking sincere, “Thank you.”
The Jedi, Padawan, two ex-imperial, and four guards made their way over to a small shuttle. It appeared the Admiral was busy with paperwork on his arm, and as he stood a mist, the unconscious New Republic men. Jay looked over to a guard as he sat down and asked, “Is it okay to leave the Admiral alone.”
One of the troopers that had helped carry Didi let out a gruff laugh while the others chuckled; the guard elaborated, “Kid, the Admiral can protect himself. If he wasn't worried about you a lot, he wouldn't have even bothered to call us.”
Midnight 7 added in an excited tone, “Yah, we might be his guard, but in the end, we're just a glorified clean-up crew.”
Rey was startled to find these elite soldiers had so much praise for their commander, though it aligned well based on the New Republic data files. Of all the remaining six Admirals, Primidian had to be the most mysterious. Almost no digital records existed regarding this man, and his origins and background were greatly unknown. His only history began when the second Death Star was destroyed. His fleet emerged from the depths of Unknown Space and obliterated a growing alliance of pirates overnight. After this, they began patrolling the Core Worlds while delivering aid and supplies. When approached by the Rebel Alliance, they remained largely unphased and continued as they were showing no hostility to the new regime. Primidian had floated around many political circles but never revealed his cards or true intentions.
The fleet was the same when the First Order rose despite receiving heavy scrutiny for not joining the front lines on behalf of either party. The notorious Spearpoint Fleet, or rather the Pirates Bane Fleet, as many called it, seemed untouchable and continued as it always had. Only when the Final Order fell did they and their leader take a firm political stance and ally with the other remaining Admirals. The alliance of six Admirals created their own faction based in the core worlds where support for the old Empire, or Great Empire as they called it, was strongest. Of the Admirals, he was only ranked third despite being the most respected because his fleet was archaic and contained models that were 60 years old. Rumors said the fleet was leftover from the old Clone Wars and, compared to the modern heavy weaponry of Star Destroyers, were like paper boats.
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The only other thing that was known for sure about this Primidian was that he supposedly was very close with Emperor Palpatine, and some even said that of anyone left alive, he knew the Great Emperor best. However, a popular rumor had it that he held a deep fascination for the Force and relics pertaining to it. The combination of these things made him an icon to the Sith-obsessed zealots in the core worlds.
Considering all this information, Rey had to decide if she was willing to try and flee with her Padawan or obediently board this Admiral’s vessel. Before she could fully make up her mind, an energy field blocked off the ship's exit, which began to close. Her expression must have betrayed her as the female stormtrooper called, “Don't worry, just a modification for transporting pirates. Can't take any chances with those short of ruffians.”
Fama was white as a ghost, though Rey put an arm around her and responded, “Indeed, it just started us.”
As the engines ignited, Rey could only resign herself to the upcoming voyage and hope nothing went awry. She put up her hood once more to hide her face as her Padawan did the same. With the ship in the air, Midnight 7 took off his helmet with gusto, revealing a tanned human face with black hair. He let out a breath and complained, “Man, those helmets are stuffy.”
The other three guards did the same, attaching the helmets to holsters on the walls, revealing three more humans. The female voice that they had come to know had black skin with short-cut black hair that was almost camouflaged with her armor. The gruff-sounding man was bald and had ashen skin but the start of a beard and rosy cheeks. The last troop was a thin woman with very white skin and a quiet complexion.
Jay looked surprised by this and asked, “You're allowed to take off your helmets.”
The gruff voice man chuckled while the other three smiled knowingly; he then answered, “Kid, the Admiral's fleet is a lot different from the First Order. The boss values practicality over petty gimmicks and trying to look cool.”
The dark-skinned woman, who appeared in her early thirties, rolled her eyes, “ That's during standby. If you fool around during missions, you'll end up with janitorial duties for the month.”
The team glanced at Midnight 7, who growled back, “It was one time, and I had Java Fever.” He then looked to Jay, “The Integration Councilors will make everything clear.”
Jay looked rather excited as many grand rumors about the Spearpoint Fleet fluttered around in his head. With a hopeful expression, he touched Didi’s hair, who was lying down on the seat beside him. At this point, the pale woman who had been eyeing Rey spoke up in a reserved voice, “You sure you're an actress.”
Rey felt her heart rate quicken while Fama went a bit rigid. She responded with as much calmest as she could muster, “I sure hope so; if not, this would be a terribly awkward situation, wouldn't it.”
Into her words, she channeled her will to go unnoticed via the Force; it wasn't as direct as a mind trick but more a mental suggestion. The gruff man took the bait and laughed, “What are you talking about? Five, the Admiral could spot a Jedi a parsec away.” He paused and rubbed his chin before adding, “Though you do look just like the wanted posters.”
The dark-skinned woman looked Rey up and down, as did the other, then stated, “My money’s on real, too calm to be an actress.”
In response, the gruff man nodded, “Indeed. She has a good poker face, but the kid is easy to read.”
With a glance, Rey noticed just how pale her greenish-yellow skin Padawn had gone; the realization that she may have fallen into a trap caused her to almost shiver. Plastering a playful look on her face, she responded, “Stop scaring the girl with nonsense.”
Midnight 7 chuckled while the others looked skeptical; he spoke in a relaxed tone, addressing Fama with his eyes, “Don't worry, kiddo, if the boss says you're actresses, you actresses.”
Both the student and teacher were surprised by this commentary, though they stayed light on their feet and responded with a dismissal, “I don't know why he would think otherwise.”
Despite the confidence in her tone in the pit of her stomach, Rey felt nauseous. Her body was preparing for the conflict she knew would come while her mind was trying to remain calm and collected. If these four guards could see through her identity, then the Admiral had for sure. Inside her mind, she was cursing over leaving her spare holo-mask with BB-8 on the Millennium Falcon. Her last undercover mission, which should have been secret, in and out, had gone wrong, leading to her transport and supplies being destroyed. This, coupled with the acceleration of galactic negotiations, left her with no choice but to turn to the grey market for transportation to Curisant. But now, there was nothing else to do but wait.
Rey was drawn away from her inner thoughts by Jay letting out an awe-filled gasp. Midnight 7 smiled at the window behind her head and added, “A beauty of a ship, The Liberator.”