Thread: Star Wars: A New Dawn (TheCorsair, Xanaphia)

Thirty years ago. Twenty three years ago. Lord Vader was most... effective. The phrase stung as he spoke it, spoke in praise of the man who cut down Scarlet, loyal agent of the empire and loyal wife of the Emperor. Her mother, a woman she hardly had a chance to know. Her father knew the hatred she carried for the man, and he knew that hatred had made her strong. Taught her how to use that hatred , to harness it and use it against her enemies. The enemies of the empire. Vader was a paranoid coward who seized an opportunity to eliminate his rival within the Empire, she declared. Her father did not respond directly, but smiled. He instead went on to detail her mission, the mission that would see her elevation to Sith. A chance to find evidence of Vaders betrayal, and finally avenge her mother. She did not hide the smile that lit up her face. You honor me, father, with this assignment. I will not fail you, nor my mothers memory. Leia smoothed her hair back as she exited the interrogation room, leaving only a shaken, pale Bail behind her. Her eyes remained closed until orange fire crackled and burnt off, meeting her brothers hypnotic gaze. Well? Two droids were sent down to the planets surface. Sent to seek out some Quentin Hall. Another rebel agent, no doubt, She filled in, avoiding her brothers eyes. Which instead lead her attention down his arms, well built from years of saber practice. Shaking her head of the intrusive thought, she pushed past him, Ill be taking a unit of Storm troopers planet side to find them. Wait, shouldnt we report this to fath er, Lord Vader? Luke questioned, grabbing his sister by the shoulder. There was that strength again, in his grip, This is his home planet, after all. He might have some insights on where to begin searching. Yes, the very planet where he was enslaved and lost his mother. I am sure hed be thrilled to return, Leia snarled, annoyed by the way his touch had her blood pumping. If you want him to think you arent capable of this mission, send for him. But I can handle myself. I am ready, Luke insisted, his body brushing against hers We will both go down there, with a unit of storm trooper apiece. Cover more ground that way. She bit her lip to avoid shuddering, and nodded. Lets move out, then. Mara Jade landed at the Mos Eisley space port, which, she soon discovered, was a rather generous name for it. That this trash heap of a planet produced anything of worth was a shock. Clearly the only people who came here were the smugglers and gangsters who needed a pit stop between moving their product to more profitable worlds, and the sad people who were born here and never had the means to leave. Oh, and possibly a Jedi, looking to hide and cower rather than face up to the treachery they had wrought towards the empire. Or, as Mara hoped, evidence that Vader was making a move against her father. All she needed, all she ever wanted out of this life was an excuse to kill him, to have her mothers vengeance. Surveying the desolate landscape, looking for some of where to begin looking, she found it, in an unexpected way. Was thatan escape pod? Off in the horizon? What in the world? It would have been impossible to ignore the imperial scuffle happening just above the planet, and while she doubted it had anything to do with her mission, nothing could be discounted in the moment. By the time she reached the crash site, all that was left was the ruined husk of the vehicle, and two sets of tracks, leading to the west. Tread tracks and ones that could have been made by a bipedal lifeform, if not for the near perfect uniformity of the strides. Two droids landed, and no one else. No corpses, unless the droids were carrying them. She pulled out her macrobinoculars, scanning in the direction the tracks lead. A R3-S3 astromech and another she couldnt identify at this distance, with matte silver plating and human proportions. They didnt seem to be carrying anything, but were making their way toward something with determination. Well, it was as good a place to begin her investigation as any.