Cloak and Shadows 5

My fingertips danced their way around the night table in search of the source of the beeping which was slowly breaking through my sleep. I activated the comm and brushed the hair from my eyes. It seemed as though my head had barely touched the pillow and already I was awake. I wasn’t happy.

“What!” I barked.

“Miss Gabriel?”

“Yes?”

“The Admiral has returned, he wishes to see you in his ready room.” The annoying voice said.

“I’ll be there in a moment.” And shut the comm off before he could say anything else. I rolled out of bed and stumbled to the ‘fresher to wash my face and clear the sleep from my eyes. I had been dreaming when the comm had gone off. All I could remember now was fragments. The desert, the man my uncle had called Qui Gon Jin and a dreadful sense of sorrow. I was grateful I couldn’t recall any details. When that man showed up in my dreams it was usually a sign of bad things not good. I cleaned my teeth, brushed my hair back and pulled it up into an untidy knot held in place by mismatched Zenji sticks. I threw on a loose dress and grabbed my data pad then made my way to the Admiral’s ready room.

Captain Niriz was just on his way out as I headed in. “Good morning Miss Gabriel.”

“I take it he is in one piece?” I asked, pausing at the door.

Niriz smiled. “It would appear so. Lord Vader was just here, asked me to tell you to wait until he returns.”

“Thanks.” I said as I walked into the ready room.

Thrawn sat back in a chair still wearing the Mandalorian armour, he was drinking mineral water. He looked tired but satisfied.

“How was it?” I asked as the door hissed closed behind me.

He gave me a smile. “Very interesting. Your uncle was right about Thyne and the information he gave me was most valuable. What he didn’t mention was Thayne’s appalling taste in art.”

I raised my eyebrows then. “Unlike you, that’s not really the first thing Zte’sa Vahlek tends to notice.”

Thrawn grinned. “He would have noticed this, trust me.”

“Are you planning to tell me what happened any time soon or will I have to pry it out of you?”

He gave me a short laugh. “I’ll tell you all, I promise, when the time is right.”

“I’ve heard that before.” I told him testily.

“I promise, tekari, when the time is right.” He said gently, he had that look on his face which said there is more going on than you know about so stop digging.

I sighed and gave up, switching the topic. “Need help getting out of that armour?”

“Already wishing to undress me? You have a one track mind, my dear.” Thrawn smirked.

“I am quite happy to let you struggle on your own.” I shrugged that I don’t care one shoulder shrug.

He looked at me for a moment then smiled. “Very well, you can assist me if you like.” He said getting up.

I was in the middle of helping him shrug off the body armour when the door slid open and Lord Vader walked in. He paused for a moment while Thrawn untangled his arms from the chest pieces and then handed the Admiral a datapad. In typical Vader style he then turned his back on us both and stood, with his arms folded across his chest, to stare out of the window.

I took the armour piece and set it on the table as Thrawn studied the information Lord Vader had given him. “Do you wish me to formulate a strategic plan for this?” He asked as he studied what ever was on the datapad.

“By all means.” Lord Vader replied, “It was your information that has given us this opportunity. I have some ideas but your input would be…welcome.” then he turned to look at me. “I need you to prepare the Sigiri for a long haul run.”

“Yes, my lord.” I said with a nod.

He looked back at Thrawn. “Your hand in this battle plan will please the Emperor and your elegant touch will be unmistakable but he will not wish it overtly known that you were instrumental in the planning of this. He has instructed me to request that you be onboard the Avenger for the briefing and planning. On the way there you can work on the details. I must return to the Executor but will rendezvous with you on board the Avenger before the briefing takes place. I take it you have no objections with Miss Gabriel piloting you?”

Thrawn gave me a slight glance. “Not at all, your assistant is a most efficient pilot and I am certain she will enjoy the chance to log more hours in the L-class shuttle.”

Both men stared at me but I said and did nothing. This was unusual, even for Lord Vader and while a shuttle could be piloted by one, usually a crew of minimum three ran it. A high ranking official travelling without a guard compliment was very irregular. I wasn’t happy with this situation but there was nothing to say about it. This was not a time to argue with Lord Vader about my likes or dislikes of his orders.

Lord Vader nodded. “We will be expected to join the Avenger in seven days from now; they are currently en route to the Derra system but the Emperor does not wish the Admonitor to be involved in the conflict. He prefers that you come alone.”

Thrawn nodded. “Yes, I expected as much.

“The hundred-and- eighty- first will be the fighter group you will be planning for. I have enclosed their information on the data pad and given the Sigiri’s capabilities you can make it to the Avenger in just under a week. This gives you plenty of time to study the pilot records and best determine how to plan for their abilities.” Lord Vader said. “Your return to the Unknown Regions will be delayed.”

Thrawn nodded. “I work for the Empire, Lord Vader. When the Emperor requests my presence I obey.” He said. “The Unknown Regions of space are not going anywhere. When do we depart?”

“As soon as you are ready and your shuttle is prepared.” Lord Vader said turning to look at me.

I nodded. “I’ll get right on it. Admiral, I take it I can requisition anything I need from your stores?”

He looked at me. “The quartermaster will see that you are given what you need within reason, of course.”

“Thank you.” I said. “Lord Vader, will there be anything else before you leave?”

“No. Just see that you keep the Admiral in one piece.” He admonished.

“Yes, of course, my lord.” I nodded. “So I will see you in about a week then?” I asked him silently.

“Yes.” He sent back then added. “Behave yourself, especially on board the Avenger. Be discrete and stay out of everyone’s way! I will hear of any problems.”

“Yes, my lord.” I said out loud and then, ignoring the one eyebrow question from Thrawn, I left to go and pack my stuff and ready the Sigiri.

The Quartermaster looked at the list I had given him and made a face but before he could say anything negative I told him if he had problems with the items I had requisitioned he could confirm them with the Admiral or Lord Vader. He pursed his lips and nodded.

“I will see what I can do but it will take at least an hour to get all these things together. I am also not certain about the food stores but will do the best I can. Do you wish to be apprised of substitutions?”

I nodded. “That would be very considerate of you.”

He sighed and nodded. “Very well, Miss Gabriel, will there be anything else?”

“No. I have to do some minor repairs but I will speak with the deck officer about the ship parts I might need, although if you have a spare set of coveralls or a flight suit that I can get dirty in I’d appreciate that, I wasn’t planning on playing mechanic this trip so I didn’t bring mine.”

“You are a certified mechanic as well?” he was surprised.

I grinned. “Yes. I am.”

He shook his head in disbelief. “Come with me, I’ll kit you out. I am not sure we have one that will fit you properly, you are a little on the small side for regulation Imperial clothing.”

I laughed as I walked beside him to the ship’s stores room, where he dug through his supplies until he found a fabric flight suit which was small enough that I would not swim in it. I thanked him and made my way back to the flight deck to get to work on the shuttle. I took a walk around the Sigiri. I never tired of looking at her, she was a pretty ship. I guess I was not alone because I had to shoo a very persistent maintenance droid away from her. The droids were usually assigned to hull scrubbing and minor repairs but I generally didn’t want their help. Once he left me alone I did a quick outside check and then went inside to check the engines.

The engines were located under the passenger compartment. There was a maintenance hatch located midship’s behind the exit ramp. There was enough room to move about and who ever had designed this ship and her engine room had done a bang up job. I went through the airlock and the EV suits to check that everything was in good shape and then I went to work on the engine. I was in the middle of checking the hyperdrive fluid levels when the supplies started to arrive. By the time everything was on board and stowed away, I had pretty much finished what I was doing and was satisfied that we would not blow up half way there.

I commed Thrawn to tell him the shuttle was ready when ever he was and then headed back to my quarters to shower and change for the trip. As usual, I took the long way up, along the stairs and gantries. I was almost out of the docking bay when I caught sight of Lord Vader sweeping in. I stood on the high gantry and watched as he stood with Thrawn talking to an alien the likes of which I had never seen before. He was small of stature and had grey skin. There was not an ounce of fat on him, bipedal and muscular, I knew without a doubt that this was a creature honed for the hunt. I stared at him until Lord Vader, sensing my presence looked up, the alien’s gaze followed. He wasn’t pretty and I suppressed the urge to shiver. Lord Vader sent me a wave of displeasure at my hesitation. I was wasting time, something he despised. I sighed and quickly left the hanger bay. The sooner I was ready to get on the go the soon this job would be done and I could get back to my regular chaotic life.

By the time I was ready, Lord Vader and the alien had gone from the hanger and Thrawn was speaking with his deck officer. I glanced at him and he gave me a slight nod of acknowledgement. I was anxious to get on the go. I dumped my belongings in the crew room, did a quick walk through the ship to make sure that everything which should be safely stowed away was. I was sitting in the cockpit going through my pre flight check when Thrawn joined me. His hand warm on my shoulder as he let me know he was there.

“You all set?” I asked putting the headset on.

He slid into the co-pilot’s seat and strapped in. “Yes. I take it you found everything you needed?”

I nodded and began departure procedure. The ship’s engines hummed and flight control gave me to the okay to go. The Sigiri slid out of the hanger, through the force field and into space. I was happy with the little tune up I had given her. She sounded a lot smoother than when I had flown her here.

Corellia danced beneath us and I smiled. We would have to get away from the gravity well of the planet before we could go into hyperspace but to see a planet whole and beautiful, hanging in the inkiness of space always took my breath away. I began to punch in the co ordinates and routes into the nav-computer to meet up with the Avenger in the Derra system. Once we were clear of the planet’s gravity the hyperdrive kicked in, stars elongated and we slid smoothly into the hyperspace lane.

Ten minutes after our jump into hyperspace Thrawn sighed as he looked up from the datapad he had been studying. “So, my dear, how long will the first jump take?”

“Seven hours.” I told him as I set the auto pilot.

He got up and patted my shoulder. “I have not had a chance to rest since my return from Corellia, will you be alright up here on your own?”

“Yes.” I told him. “When do you want me to wake you?”

“In six hours, unless there is a problem.”

I nodded, getting up. “Okay, what cabin did you take?”

He told me as we left the cockpit.

“Okay.” I said following him as far as the small galley. It was late morning now and I was hungry. I hadn’t had the chance to grab breakfast so now was as good a time as any. He stopped and looked at me as I set the kettle on the small heater.

“Maybe you’ll make some spiced coffee for me later?” He asked.

“If you’re lucky.”

“I could make it worth your while…” he teased.

It had the opposite effect it was supposed to. I sighed. “Why am I here?” I asked him suddenly. “You should have a proper pilot and a gaggle of stormtroopers watching after you. This is highly irregular.”

“A gaggle?”

I gave him a look, rubbed my forehead with my fingertips. I was tired and in no mood for games.

He gave me a slight smile “Lord Vader seems to think we work well together. The Emperor wants my involvement in the project kept quiet and both men know that I work better alone without an entourage. You are a good pilot and trust me, we are in no danger. Or would you rather be surrounded by the Emperor’s finest?”

I sighed. “Just wondering about this arrangement, it seems awfully convenient.”

“Are you complaining about being alone with me?”

I shook my head. “No, but it feels a bit like a set up or something.”

He grinned. “The Sigiri is not full of spy and surveillance equipment, no one is watching us flirt.”

“How would you know?”

“The reason you were assigned this shuttle is because she is not set up for that. She is used for milk runs with lesser dignitaries. She flies under the radar, so to speak.” He said. “My crew did an internal and external sweep after you and your uncle disembarked. She’s clean.”

I drew a deep breath and nodded. “If you say so.”

He frowned. “What’s bothering you?”

“I should not be your pilot and you should be travelling with a full crew. This is just not right on so many levels I cannot even begin to list them. Is this a game to you and Lord Vader? You think this is fun to keep putting me in a situation like this?”

“What situation is this like?” he asked coolly. I could hear the crossness in his voice now and knew that the conversation would start to go downhill, unless I got to the point. He was tired.

“Don’t you find this improper?”

“No.” he said then with a sigh added. “A’myshk’a, Vader knows what you are capable of, he trusts you to do your job and he knows that I will do mine. The job comes first for both of us. I know what you are thinking but that simply isn’t the case. I discovered something while I was on Corellia, a smuggler ship with a shipment of arms for the rebellion. No one and I mean no one but you, myself, Lord Vader and, I suspect, the Emperor knows of this information. Vader is making certain it stays that way. No matter how many precautions we take there are breeches in security, lately, far too many of these leaks for my tastes. We wished to make it difficult for the spies who seem so prevalent among us.” He paused, when I didn’t say anything he continued.

“The more people on board this shuttle the greater the chance this information that we have will be leaked, the greater the chance that someone will warn the rebels that we know. We will only get one shot at this. That is why it is just you and me. Vader knows just how good you are and he knows you have what it takes to get me there in one piece. He trusts that I will do my job and come up with a way to stop these people from delivering this arms shipment and what ever else they may have planned.” He stopped and looked at me for a moment. “Did you think this was some sort of punishment? That Vader has you here with me because he likes to watch you suffer? He could care less what relationship you and I have as long as we get the jobs we are assigned to do done.” He shook his head. “You need to start looking at the larger picture. You stopped being just his office girl a long time ago, when will you wake up and see this?”

It was my turn to sigh. “You both make my life so damned complicated!”

He came to me then, cupped my face in both his hands. “Complications keep it interesting.” He said. His eyes staring into mine, studying my expression trying to read my thoughts, trying to make his understood. I closed my eyes as I slid my arms around his waist and held him to me tightly. I didn’t speak, I didn’t look up and I didn’t let go. With my head against his chest, I could hear his heart beat. He kissed the top of my head as he wrapped his arms around me. I felt him relax as he sensed the tension I had been holding slowly unwind. He drew a deep breath and separated himself from me. I just rested my forehead against his chest.

“Not everything is one of the Emperor’s games and not everything that happens is about you, either.” He spoke gently. A curled finger lifted my chin upward so I looked him in the face. “Vader trusts you; you have an unbelievable position in his life which no one understands or dares to question. I think that you need to learn to trust his judgement. You would not be here if he did not think you were more than capable. If you can’t trust him, will you at least trust me?”

I just stared at him then, after a moment, nodded.

He smiled slightly. “I know you are tired, wound up and that the last few days have not been easy but try to relax a little. We have time to be together before we reach the Avenger and there is nothing else going on. No one except Vader knows our destination, you checked out the ship from stem to stern so there is nothing to worry about. When I’ve rested I’ll cook for you if you like and over dinner I’ll tell you about my time as Kast and what happened on Corellia.”

“Okay.” I said, accepting his peace offering. “You should go and rest, you look exhausted.”

He kissed me lightly on the lips, more an affectionate afterthought than a sign of passion and then went to his cabin. I sighed as I made myself a sandwich and poured a generous cup of tea then headed back up to the cockpit. I had a half finished book to read in my satchel and there was no place else I needed to be but as I tried to read I found I just couldn’t concentrate. No matter how much I wanted to believe everything Thrawn had told me a small part of me could not help but feel uneasy. I ate my sandwich absently, stared out into the eerie light of the hyperspace lane and tried to put my worries aside. He was right I was over tired and stressed, never a good combination. It had a tendency to make me jumpy and paranoid. I put my feet up on the consol and picked up my book again, determined to get beyond my own case of nerves.

I knew from my past experiences when flying longer hauls with Thrawn that we generally abandoned the traditional watch system in favour for what worked for us. We took turns on watch and mostly worked with as well as around each other. He could go for longer periods without sleep than I could but I found it easier to doze or take little naps, something he didn’t do. I enjoyed sitting in the cockpit reading, studying the star charts and ship’s database or just staring out into space but I fidgeted a lot. He would get annoyed with that and leave, often going to some quiet out of the way space to meditate or read. We travelled well together despite the differences.

I set up my own routines. I walked through the ship once an hour give or take, spent time with the engine, and mostly read a lot. No matter what people said, long haul space travel was dull for the most part. I was very happy with dull.

With Thrawn resting, the ship was very peaceful. Unlike my own ship, the lambda class shuttle’s engines were very quiet by comparison. The ride was smooth and easy. As I walked through the Sigiri, checking everything was in order I thought about my uncle’s question as to why I had not chosen a career as a pilot. Certainly I was never happier than when I was flying. It made me smile as I navigated my way through the ship under blue light which the Imperial Navy favoured over red.

Space was dark unless one travelled too close to a star. Having standard lighting was useful but for a pilot going from normal white light to the dark cockpit it was annoying. It took time for my eyes to adjust, okay, not much but enough to make a difference should something go wrong. I insisted that the ship go to dark when I flew. Thrawn didn’t mind, he had exceptionally good night vision anyway and the blue watch light didn’t bother him at all. I liked the quiet atmosphere it gave the ship. Somehow it made the trip seem less hectic and calmer. The Sigiri was easy to navigate around. It hadn’t taken me long to get to know her and be able to get about without worrying about bashing my feet, or knocking my knees into something.

The six hours Thrawn had wanted to rest passed by quickly and uneventfully. I had managed to nap, catching up a little on my sleep, as well as spend time studying the star charts for the system we were headed to. Ten minutes before he had asked me to wake him I got up and made spiced coffee.

Spiced coffee was a Tatooine drink, locally known as mek’kefa. I don’t know who had first created it although the myths often said it was the Sand people. I doubted this was actually true since the beans that made the coffee were not locally grown and expensive to come by. I suspected it was actually something the Hutts had brought with them. They had a liking for exotic things but since no one ever wanted to admit to liking something the Hutts liked a whole story had been woven up around the drink and like most things that made their way to Tatooine the recipe had been adapted to the planet over the years.

I liked my spiced coffee the way my uncle made it, so after much wheedling and pleading he had finally; under pain of death should I ever tell anyone else, given me his recipe. I was pretty certain he was teasing about the pain of death threat but sometimes one could never tell with him. You could get premixed, ready to go spiced coffee but I always found it tasted awful so I always made it from scratch. I had dark roasted beans that were finely ground to a powder then added the spices and the honey. The specially designed carafe allowed the mixture to boil without over flowing, you had to watch it and nurse it a bit and it took longer than using one of the automatic machines that could be found around but it was worth it. I liked the procedure, there was a sort of peace in it, and I suppose it reminded me of home. The scent of the spices mixed with the dark roasted grounds always reminded me of sun, warmth and my uncle’s kitchen.

Thrawn had not enjoyed the drink the first time he had tried it. I had expected this, it was an acquired tasted. The drink, which was usually served in small glasses without handles, was thick and strong and there were always grounds at the bottom of the glass. The first taste on the tongue is very bitter, but the aftertaste of the honey is delicious and it is easy to become addicted to it. I had not expected him to come around because he wasn’t overly fond of things that were bitter so when he developed a taste for it I was surprised. I smiled as I poured a glass for him. Sometimes I would wake him up with a cup in the mornings if I had gotten up first when we had been living together.

He had chosen the state room down at the end of the short corridor. It was quiet and relatively spacious. I wandered down the darkened hall humming to myself. The scent of the drink I carried wafting through the air. There was a specific way of holding the glass so that one didn’t burn one’s fingers, but it was a tenuous grip to say the least. I hit the door button and stepped through into the room. The door hissed shut behind me and the room was almost pitch black. For a second I stood to get my bearings and let my eyes adjust to the darkness. I knew where he was, I didn’t need to see him, I could sense him through the force. I stepped towards the bed, smiling in anticipation of his reaction.

He had told me once that the open affection between us was a rare and precious thing, that he treasured it deeply. The Chiss were not generally known for their ability to be affectionate. He had said that I allowed him this. I had not thought that I would have anything to give back but he had remarked that this could not be further from the truth. I could still hear his voice telling me in the quiet of the night that I was as much as gift to him as he was to me and that while maybe I complicated his life, he would not have it any other way. The memory of that night and what had followed after he has said this to me caused me to blush, if there had been time I would have been grateful for the dark but instead at that moment something, someone grabbed my arms from behind, the glass in my hand fell to the floor and smashed, as I began to yell a powerful hand clamped over my mouth and the second hand that held me moved to clamp around my throat. I could not move. I flinched when the room was suddenly flooded with light and blinked the sudden tears away as my eyes watered in protest. The hand at my mouth moved to hold me from struggling. I twisted my head around to see who it was that was holding me, trying to choke the life out of me and then I yelped in fright.