What the Eye Doesn’t See…11

We disembarked to be met by a small group of men, Thrawn standing in the middle. The corners of his mouth twitched in a smile when he saw me but it was so brief I could have imagined it.

“Welcome on board the Admonitor, Miss Gabriel.” He said stepping forward. “It is nice to see you again.” He gave me a polite smile but there was an unmistakable twinkle in his eyes. Sandjiggers flittered in my belly and I had to take a deep breath to quell them. He still took my breath away but I didn’t want the entire ship to know this. I smiled back just as politely and he then glanced over my shoulder to my uncle.

“Thank you Admiral. Have you met Tze’yusha’Jin Vahlek Akosh.” I stepped back and watched as the two of the most important men in my life met each other face to face.

They sized each other up and shook hands. I couldn’t read either of their expressions. There was a moment of silence and then Thrawn spoke.

“Welcome aboard, Tze’yusha’Jin Akosh. I trust your journey was a pleasant one?” He asked.

My uncle smiled as he glanced at me. “Well, it was certainly interesting.” He said.

Thrawn glanced briefly at me, raised an eyebrow slightly and then asked my uncle. “You have the requested item?”

Uncle Vahlek nodded and indicated the large carry bag he was holding.

“Excellent, if you’ll both follow me.” He said and turned on his heel and walked out of the hanger bay, the men who had been at his side all saluted as he passed.

The Admonitor was an Imperial class Star Destroyer, formerly known as Imperator class. I was familiar with her design and layout but after living on board the Executor for so long the Admonitor seemed tiny by comparison.

We followed Thrawn to a briefing room where we were met by the man I assumed was Captain Niriz and two young officers who remained nameless and were dismissed once we arrived. After the introductions were done my uncle handed Thrawn the large bag and waited while the Admiral opened it and looked inside without taking anything out.

Thrawn nodded. “Let’s see how it fits, shall we?” he said and with the bag in hand he left the room, pausing for a moment to tell us to make ourselves comfortable.

“Please, sit. Help yourselves to refreshments.” He said gesturing to the array of beverages that sat on the table.

My uncle nodded and I just sat on the nearest chair. Captain Niriz watched us both with the air of a man deeply suspicious of people he didn’t know. The silence in the room was thick. No one wanted to break it and I wasn’t about to start making small talk with the Captain who seemed to regard me with a particular distrust or worse, resentment. My uncle ignored this and poured himself a cup of tea as though he were sitting at home and then without asking poured one for me as well.

I took my time to study the Captain that Thrawn had described so carefully to me in his letters. He was a native of Corellia and came from a proud military family that served to the best of their ability. Dagon Niriz, according to the Thrawn, was no exception. He had been sorely tested and in Thrawn’s eyes had passed with flying colours. If the Captain actually understood this, though, well that was another thing altogether.

He was a slight man of average height. He had cropped blond hair and dark green eyes. He was almost handsome in a very hard sort of way, with high cheekbones and a long, aristocratic nose. Only his lips which were fuller, lacking the thinness which most gaunt faces tended towards, lent his face a softness that would have been missing otherwise. Here was a man who worried too much, thought too much and although he had reached the rank of captain, he remained uncertain in the circle that Thrawn cast.

The Admiral had written of Niriz’s slow but steady transformation from a man who mistrusted his commanding officer greatly to a man who would give his unwavering loyalty for the same commanding officer. Thrawn, as he did with so many people, had won Niriz over with his quiet brilliance and utter patience. But while Niriz may have trusted Thrawn, he wasn’t about to include either my uncle or me in that circle. My uncle he did not know at all and like many less secure men he sensed the hidden danger my uncle represented. Me, well… he knew my face well enough from the Imperial Court, from the very public exile and I was reasonably certain from the HoloNet gossip columns. I was one of those young ladies and I was not welcome on board his ship, regardless of who I worked for and what I actually did for the Empire. He didn’t know the exact nature of my relationship with his Admiral and more to the point he wasn’t sure he wanted to know. I watched him as he watched me but I didn’t smile or say anything. There wasn’t any point.

We waited for about ten minutes when the door to the second room opened and everyone looked up. My first thought was ‘What the heck was Boba Fett doing here?’, then I realised the armour was all wrong, and that the man in the Mandalorian armour was taller than Fett. I stood up. Captain Niriz remained in his stiff ‘at ease’ position, and my uncle chuckled softly.

Thrawn removed the helmet and smiled. “Tze’yusha’Jin Akosh, you are as good as Lord Vader said. The fit is perfect.”

My uncle inclined his head and took a sip of his tea.

“Well, Miss Gabriel, what do you think?” he turned to me.

I got up and looked him in the eyes, wondering what game he was playing. I walked around him, looking carefully at him. Mandalorian armour was difficult to find, especially a complete set.

“Who are you trying to be?” I asked after a long silence. “If you want to impersonate Fett, you need to do a bit of work on that armour.”

Thrawn gave me that smile which said ‘Clever girl’. “Close, Miss Gabriel.” He nodded.

“Ah…” I nodded, suddenly making the connection. “You wish to imitate the one who imitates Fett, Jodo Kast.”

“Your thoughts?” he asked me again.

Captain Niriz made a snorting sound and I glanced at him but before I could say anything Thrawn stepped in.

“Be at peace Captain, Miss Gabriel is the one person in this room who quite likely knows more about this topic than any of us here, with maybe the exception of Tze’yusha’Jin Akosh.” He returned his gaze to me.

I sighed and circled him again, taking in the details and recalling all I had learned about both Kast and Fett. I smiled when I figured out what it was that was bothering me about how Thrawn was wearing this mando armour.

I went to make some adjustments to the armour when Niriz stepped forward, his hand on his side arm.

Thrawn made a placating gesture with his hand and then with a conspirator’s glance to me said. “At ease, Captain, if Miss Gabriel wished to do me any bodily harm she has had plenty opportunities before this. I do not think that killing me is on her agenda.” He was teasing me more than he was putting his nervous captain at ease.

I gave him a look. “You should watch what you say, just because your man here has a happy trigger finger doesn’t mean I can’t still hurt you before he gets off a shot.” I said in Cheunh. Thrawn grinned and much to my and Thrawn’s great surprise my uncle chuckled then quickly stifled it.

I shot him a look. He just shrugged. “If you two want to be alone I can leave and drag the captain with me.” He told me in Huttese.

Thrawn glanced at my uncle, then back at me and smiled. “That will not be necessary at this time, Tze’yusha’Jin Akosh.” He told my uncle in the same language. Captain Niriz just watched all of this the way spectators at a pega-ball match watch the game. I had to bite my tongue to keep from giggling.

My uncle looked at me, both eyebrows raised. He had not expected Thrawn to understand let alone speak Huttese. I just gave him an ‘I’m innocent and know nothing’ look and shrugged.

“Guess we should stick to Basic.” I said. I went back to the task at hand. “May I, Admiral?” I asked before touching the armour he wore. I glanced at my uncle again, I had not known he could understand Cheunh and I wondered if he could speak it as well. I would have to ask him about that if I got the chance.

“Be my guest, my dear.” He said standing still with his arms raised. He watched what I did with great interest as did my uncle, only captain Niriz remained guarded and watched me rather than my hands. I began to make the appropriate adjustments. When I was done I patted the chest plate and looked up at Thrawn who smiled.

“What did she do exactly?” the Captain asked Thrawn, completely ignoring me.

“She changed how the joiner straps lie. Fett doesn’t attach them the standard way,” I said, “And made some minor adjustments here and there.” I wasn’t about to give all the secrets away.

“How do you know how he wears his armour, Miss?” Niriz asked. He sounded both sceptical and irritated at the same time.

I gave him one of those smiles that said none of your damned business and replied. “Because I undressed him once.” As I expected, this remark caused all the male eyebrows in the room to shoot up.

I looked at Thrawn again. “At a glance you pretty much have the basic look down pat. There are a couple of other little details but unless someone really knows Fett well or Jodo Kast for that matter, they won’t matter.”

“Would you notice them?” Thrawn asked.

I shrugged. “Honestly, not right away, no. Although I suspect they would bug at my subconscious. But since you are not impersonating Fett I don’t think that matters much. ” I told him. “But you should know that Fett wears spats to cover the tops of his boots, stops junk from falling inside the footwear. Kast wears a distinctive chest emblem that is not the same as the one Fett wears.”

“Anything else?”

“Kast doesn’t wear Wookiee scalp hair braids, Fett does, here.” I tapped the left shoulder.

Thrawn nodded. I suspect he knew everything I was telling him already but just wanted to hear if I knew anything else he did not.

“As you are so up on the details Miss Gabriel, you can work on them with me later.” He said dismissing me with the tone of his voice.

“If you insist.” I gave him a small grin and sat down beside my uncle.

“Tze’yusha’Jin Akosh I am very pleased with the work you have done. I understand that you have requested transport to the nearest planet?”

My uncle nodded.

“We should be in the Corellian sector in a few hours and I would be happy to arrange transportation for you to Corellia if that is acceptable.” Thrawn said. “Payment has already been arranged as per your request.”

My uncle nodded. “That would be fine, thank you.”

“I am afraid the pilot will be different as Lord Vader has requested Miss Gabriel remain on board the Admonitor until we can rendezvous with the Executor.” Thrawn continued. “If you both have nothing else planned we would enjoy your company at the dinner table. We dine in an hour from now. In the mean time, guest quarters have been made ready for you both.”

“Dinner sounds delightful.” My uncle said.

Thrawn smiled. “Good, Captain if you would be so kind as to show Tze’yusha’Jin Akosh to the quarters provided. There are some details about her work that I must discuss with Miss Gabriel in private.”

“Yes sir.” The captain said but he didn’t seem too pleased with the situation at hand.

My uncle got up, shook hands with Thrawn and with a sly wink to me he left in the captain’s wake.

“You have done your homework, my dear.” Thrawn said as he began to shuck off the armour he wore. Without thinking about it I got up and assisted him as if it were the most natural thing in the world to do.

“You knew that already, I sent you information on these bounty hunters ages ago.” I was cross. “What are you up to?” I asked, stepping back and handing him the bits of armour that could be removed.

He just smiled. “Hold that thought.” He said and he vanished into the other room, only to return a few moments later dressed in his own uniform, the Mandalorian suit of armour tucked back in the bag.

I sat at the table with my head resting on my hand. I was suddenly tired. “So?”

Thrawn sat across from me and poured himself tea from the thermos carafe. “Just a little side trip, call it pest control. Nothing serous.” He said.

“You’re impersonating a bounty hunter who impersonates one of the galaxy’s most renowned bounty hunters and that’s nothing serious?” I made a face. “And just what am I doing here? You knew everything I told you today.”

Thrawn arched an eye brow. “Not everything.” He said. “That trick with the armour is curiously clever.”

I nodded. “Fett told me it was something his father taught him.”

“So how exactly did you come to know this bit of privileged information?”

“I told you. I helped undress him.”

“And that’s all you will say on this matter?”

I told him coyly. “A girl has to have some secrets. But it was not what you all thought.”

Thrawn smiled. “Well, you dropped the information in such a leading why, how was a room full of men supposed to react? Or was it that you wished a certain reaction from me?”

‘Everyone reacted exactly as I wanted them to, especially you.’ I thought. I resisted the urge I had to stick my tongue out at him and gave him a shrug instead. “So why am I here?” I asked him again.

“Because Lord Vader suggested it might be good for you.”

“Now why don’t I believe that?” I sighed.

He pulled out a data pad from his pocket. “He sent this for you.”

I reached out to take it from his hand and shivered at the gentle brush of his pinkie finger against the back of my hand. For a moment our eyes locked. The world paused and I forgot to breathe. The flush of heat that seemed to burn through me, making my cheeks blush was minor compared to the sensations flooding my insides. It would seem we were back to subtle playing games of seduction. I sent just a bit of the sensations that spun through me back to him and smiled sweetly when his eyes widened in surprise. Two could play this game only I didn’t even need to touch him to send shivers down his spine. The colour of his eyes darkened ever so slightly and he arched an eyebrow giving me a slight ‘okay you win this round’ nod and I withdrew my hand from his with the datapad. He had not forgotten what I had done to him on Myrkr. Neither had I.

I looked at the information and sighed. “This is Lord Vader’s way of punishing me, isn’t it?” I said coolly. “I have been given orders to remain on board until further notice. Good job I brought extra clothes. I’ll need a secure terminal to work from.”

Thrawn just nodded then sat back, folding his arms across his chest to watch me carefully.

“I suppose this dinner is a dress up affair?” I asked.

“Yes. Think of it as your chance to convince my ship’s captain you are not some mad assassin.”

“No,” I replied sarcastically, “that would be my uncle.”

“Ah yes, the Tze’yusha’Jin title does give it a way.” He said getting up.

“You know exactly what he is, don’t you.” I said with an air of resignation. Standing and picking up my bags.

“Obviously I understand more than you about the title he bears, perhaps we can trade information later?” he said.

“If your over protective captain doesn’t have me shot first. I am surprised he didn’t post guards at the door.”

“Well, actually he did, one anyway, and the young man will be showing you to your quarters.”

I had time to shoot him a dirty look before he had opened the door and nodded to the young man who waited silently.

“I shall have an escort come for you in forty five minutes, Miss Gabriel.” He said.

“Very well, Admiral.”

“I hope that you will find dinner a pleasant affair. We have an excellent chef on board.” He said politely with a nod.

“I’m sure it will be as long as there is no Corellian spiced cake involved.” I retorted and turned to leave, the young man having to trot to catch up with me.