Cloak and Shadows 3

The just over four hours of sleep afforded me before I received my wakeup call were full of vague and restless dreams. I showered and dressed, then stumbled along behind my young escort to the ready room to meet Thrawn.

“Good morning, my dear. I trust you slept well?” he said cheerfully as I entered the room.

I looked up at him crossly. “Not really.”

He smiled. “I thought you might want to eat breakfast first.” He said, his hand on the small of my back leading me to the table set of two.

I wasn’t awake enough to argue with him; instead I sat down and watched as he poured me a cup of what smelled like very strong stimcaf. He added cream and sugar and pushed the cup in front of me, then sat down across from me. He didn’t try to engage me in any sort of conversation until I had taken a gulp of my drink, he knew me just too well.

I sipped from my cup and stared at him blearily, watching as he buttered the Corellian scones he often enjoyed. It seemed so odd, so out of context to be sitting across from him, as we had so many times before, eating breakfast as though nothing had changed. He handed me a scone and I took it.

“I require your assistance in finishing the Mandalorian armour to pass as Kast. I seem to recall you are fairly skilled at that sort of thing. I have seen you work on your ship so I know what you are capable of. As you so often say, it is all in the details.” He said, switching to his native language because we alone.

I nodded. “Okay. Then what?”

“Do you not have work of your own to do?”

“Probably, I still need a terminal and secure access though.” I conceded grumpily.

“That is already being arranged, my dear.” He said, refilling my empty cup.

“How long will I be here?”

“Until Lord Vader joins us.”

“Which will be?”

“When the job at hand is done.”

I sighed and looked up at him. “You know,” I said. “You really annoy the sandjiggers out of me.”

He smiled. “Yes. I do know.” He said and then with a sly grin added. “And now you can tell me that in my own language.”

We finished breakfast in silence and then in the quiet of the other room we sat down and began the work to make the Mandalorian armour look the way it should. I was surprised at the fact no one else seemed to know about this project and asked about that while I was trying to paint the decal on the left side of the breast plate that Kast wore.

“This project is one which, due to its nature, I wish to be kept quiet. While the outcome will greatly benefit the Empire in general and Vader specifically it is an unconventional project.” He said. “Besides, I prefer not to have too much attention turned on my affairs.”

I arched my right eyebrow and gave him a look.

“Sorry, bad choice of words.” He smiled.

I finished the decal and sat back. “You owe me some information.” I said.

“Ah yes, you desire to know about the Tze’yusha’Jin.” He said.

I blinked at him and waited for a better answer.

Thrawn sat back and looked at me carefully. “Have you ever given any thought as to why your uncle has not wished you to know the exact nature of who he is, what he does?”

“Of course.” I said as I started to chip some paint off the armour with my finger nail.

“Then why do you push?”

“What could be so bad that he doesn’t want me to know? I don’t understand all this secrecy.”

“Is it not enough that he simply does not wish you to know?” he countered.

“What is Tze’yusha’Jin?” I asked ignoring the implications of what he was asking.

His expression stayed neutral but there was a brief flash of disappointment in his eyes. He sighed. “Tze’yusha’Jin is a title.”

“I know that!”

“Then you know what it means.”

I nodded. “But what I don’t know is why everyone is scared of it.”

“Why are people scared of the Dantassi?” he asked.

I frowned. “Well, they have a pretty fierce reputation.” I said.

“But you know more than the average person, what do you think of this now, are you still scared of them as you once were?”

I shook my head. “No.”

“Vahlek Akosh is not the only member of the Tze’yusha’Jin that you know.” He said slowly.

“Oh?” I said halting what I was doing and giving him my full attention.

“What if I were to tell you that Kirja’navaar’inkjerii also held that title.”

I didn’t know how to react to that. It was just about the last thing I expected to hear. After a very long silence I asked. “Would he and Zte'sa Vahlek know each other?”

He nodded slowly. “Most likely, although as to how well, that I could not say.”

I sighed, remembering the way my uncle had looked at my bone mask, the wistfulness in his voice when he had spoken about the Dantassi. It also perhaps answered how it was he understood Cheunh. Now his reaction made more sense but it also stirred up more questions.

“Sj’iu tekari, the Tze’yusha’Jin is a brotherhood that is both secretive and elite. While the title means ‘He who hunts’ it describes nothing. These men, and it is exclusively men, are hand picked, difficult to get to know and about as dangerous as they come. They are chosen for various reasons, skills and strengths. How and why they are chosen I could not tell you. I am not privy to that information.” He said thoughtfully. “I suppose the best way to describe them in a very general way is to liken them to a hybrid of assassins, hunters and trackers, but again none of these things describes what they are and do with any degree of accuracy.”

I sighed. “But people fear them, why?”

“Because they are very good at what ever it is they are asked to do. The reputation they have comes from the damage left in their wake, well, the damage that is visible. Make no mistake the Tze’yusha’Jin are deadly, but they also protect and they act as finders.” He shook his head. “I lack the words to tell you what you want to know.”

“I guess I wanted to know why everyone is so scared of him when I don’t think he’s scary. What it is about my uncle that terrifies them when his name and that title are mentioned in the same sentence.”

“They do not fear the man so much as they fear the reputation.” He said. “Kirja’navaar’inkjerii is also greatly feared and respected but you are not scared of him because you know him, just as you know your uncle.”

“I don’t get it. Everyone who knows my uncle as Tze’yusha’Jin comments on the attachment he has to me, how is it that Navaari has a family?” I asked. “I got the impression that these Tze’yusha’Jin didn’t like attachments.”

Thrawn raised an eyebrow. “Some people believe the Dantassi are cannibals. Is this true?”

“No.” I snorted.

“The more a fearful myth is perpetuated the larger the fear behind the myth becomes.” Thrawn said. “Perhaps to the outside world Tze’yusha’Jin Akosh has led a quiet life of solitude, without attachments and family, but you know that is not true, don’t you?” Thrawn asked. “He befriended your father long before you came into the picture, then your family and then you. He is just as much a family man as Kirja’navaar’inkjerii. People believe what they are led to believe and like the Dantassi themselves, the Tze’yusha’Jin like to allow the myth of fear to shroud their truths.” He said. “Do not ask me what those truths are, tekari, I do not know and I do not ask.”

“Zte’sa Vahlek told me he didn’t want me to know about it because he was selfish.”

Thrawn nodded. “You adore him and you look up to him. He doesn’t want to lose that and that is what he fears, should you actually find out what he has done. I am quite certain of all the people you know in your life he is amongst the deadliest but he does not wish you to know this side of him. What would you do if you found out some terrible dark secret? Remember how you felt after your vision in the Jedi Council chamber. There are some things that should be left alone, some secrets that should be allowed to remain secret.”

“I still don’t get it.”

He smiled. “No, I know you don’t. It is, as he said, a selfish reason on his part but he doesn’t want to lose you. He doesn’t want to lose your love for him and you do love him. It is so plainly written on your face when you are in his presence that even the most stupid of creatures in this galaxy could see it.”

I frowned.

He sighed. “Trust me on this. That despite what men say and how most men act, losing the admiration and love of someone they care for is painful and they don’t wish to experience this.” He smiled a little wistfully. “Men, in general, both enjoy and need the flattery of young women contrary to what they will tell you. I suppose that one could say it is this adoration of daughters, sisters, wives and so on that keep men from becoming utterly stone hearted and colder than the ice on my home world. You are a part of your uncle that reminds him of what is good in this galaxy. No wonder he balks at losing that.” He said.

What he said made a sort of sense to me and some where deep down I knew that he was right. I didn’t understand it completely but I nodded to show him I accepted his explanation.

“But he's deadly, my uncle?” I asked after a long pause.

Thrawn nodded. “He earned that title, so yes he is. But my dear,” he added with a look, “So are you.”

“As is Navaari.” I continued ignoring his comment about me.

He nodded.

“Is he evil?”

He frowned, steepling his fingers together in thought. “Define evil.” The discussion was becoming circular.

“Why is this all so complicated?” I asked ignoring his question because my definition of evil began with the Emperor and that wasn’t something I was going to utter, no matter what language I was speaking, out loud on an Imperial war ship.

He smiled. “Life wouldn’t be interesting if it was simple.” he said reaching over to stroke my face. “And you have a tendency to make it very complicated. You think far too much about the most curious things.”

I sat glumly with my head in my hands. “When you said sharing information this isn’t what I had in mind.”

That made him laugh. “Would you have told me that story about Fett without the fruit of this information being dangled before you?”

“No.” I said, although I wasn’t so sure about it. While I had never been sworn to secrecy I knew that Boba Fett wanted the incident at Jabba’s kept quiet.

“There you go.” He said smugly.

“You tricked me.” I said crossly.

“Just a little, after all you did learn something new.” He reminded me.

“Why?”

He smiled. “Because, as you so aptly put it, you piqued my curiosity and I wanted to know if I had competition from this Bounty Hunter or not. You appear quite enamoured with him when you speak of him.”

I just shook my head and rolled my eyes. He was teasing, at least I that's what I thought. Sometimes with Thrawn it was hard to tell.

“How is the armour coming along?” he asked changing the subject.

“I’m done. It’s as close to the images I have seen of Kast as possible.” I said.

“I am sure it will be more than suitable for what I have in mind.” He said.

“I’d ask what that is but you won’t tell me will you?”

He smirked and was about to answer when his comm beeped.

“Yes Captain?” Thrawn asked.

“Sir, The Hopskip has just left the planet’s atmosphere and will be within range in a few moments. You said you wished to be alerted so you could prepare yourself.”

“Yes, Captain. Thank you; you know what needs to be done. I will be waiting for your signal.” Thrawn replied standing up.

“Aye aye, Admiral. Niriz out.”

Thrawn looked at me and smiled. “Let the games begin. Help me get dressed. That little trick with the joiner straps is fiddly.”

I chuckled, gathering up the armour as he picked up the helmet and followed him.

“What amuses you?”

“I was wondering when you would get around to asking me to help you undress.”

He turned and looked at me, arching his eyebrow. “I am not asking you to undress me.”

“Oh, so you are going to wear the armour over that uniform?”

If he had had discernable pupils I am certain he would have rolled his eyes. “I see your point.” He said with a slight twitch at the corners of his mouth. “Well, my dear it wouldn’t be the first time and I am sure it won’t be the last.”

I nodded. “One can only hope.” I muttered under my breath.

The transition from Admiral Thrawn to Jodo Kast was fun to watch. It was not the first time I had ever seen him do this, assume a role and become someone else. When I told him he had missed his calling as an actor he had just laughed, replying that he preferred to stay out of the public eye. It occurred to me then that both the roles he had taken on, involved the wearing of masks.

I left him to his guise and his games and made my way back to my quarters. He had assured me that I would find full terminal access provided for me and I could do my work from there. I smiled when I saw that not only did I have a computer terminal to work from but he had also provided me with everything I needed to make my spiced coffee, there were serious advantages to having someone know me really well. I sat and got to work, because there was little else for me to do and Lord Vader would be snarky if I didn’t keep up with his schedule.