This isn't the life I planned, Royce thought to himself, looking pensively at his reflection in the glass of water before him, his face cartoonishly distorted in the contours of the glass. He frowned, admonishing himself for thinking he'd ever had a "plan" for his life. All he'd ever wanted to do was write; to put his passion to the page and share it with his readers (and, of course, a certain someone to be determined). He'd lived comfortably on his work for many years and become something of a celebrity on Commenor, but it was his on-again, off-again manic moods to which he owed his fame as a Senator and, now, as a writer-turned-rebel or, as the Empire would say, a traitor.
Royce preferred "reformer," but he was under no delusion that what he was engaged in wasn't an act of treason. What had possessed him to throw away his once-prestigious life of luxury in favor of the spartan confines of some cold and lonely space station? The glass in front of him might once have contained fine wine or brandy. Now it was stale, recycled water. Why? He asked himself this question now and then, in pensive moments like these. But he admonished himself each time for doing so. As the founder of the Ruusan Reformation League and the leader of its several hundreds of members—most of whom he himself had induced to join—he had no right to feel sorry for himself. This was a necessary fight, he knew; it was his fight, and he knew precisely why he was in it and why the rest of them were, too.
Still, self-doubt was ever-present in him; a distant thunder in the back of his mind. Letting down the people he'd asked to fight with him, and who'd put their trust in him completely, scared Royce more than death. And he was scared of death. He'd had moments of despair, of course, as so many writers do, when he'd wished his life away. His novels, too, were full of despair but, in the end, they were profoundly hopeful—as Royce himself was. He'd opened his heart to many in his life; to his readers, to various women at various times and places, to the occasional cause célèbre. But he knew that the "good" he thought he was doing as an Imperial Senator was nothing compared to the misery the Empire brought into the galaxy on a day-to-day basis. His brandy tasted bittersweet to him, knowing his Imperial salary had paid for it.
Sooner or later, he realized that he, with his celebrity, could do something about the Empire, however small that something might be. He had to do something about it.
He shook his head, returning himself to the moment. His distorted features in his glass of water vanished, and he now looked through the glass at the documents on the table before him—the latest intelligence the Ruusan League had managed to steal or buy, and recommendations from General Varos on where to hit the Empire. Royce cleared his throat. "No," he shook his head again, "The Cronese are as aloof as they come. We'd have no popular support in the Cronese Mandate. Trying to start a rebellion there would be a fool's errand." He despaired at how often he'd spoken those words lately; Royce knew that the Ruusan League's anti-Imperial sentiments were somewhat ahead of the galaxy-at-large, but he remained hopeful that sooner than later the people would catch up.
"I know we've talked about this before," he added, tentatively, "But what about Naboo? The Gungans are already fighting the Empire, Darryl. They could use our help..." Royce Tomson Leader of the Ruusan Reformation League Former Senator of Commenor (17 BBY—13 BBY) Four-Time Bestselling Author
"We have talked about this," Varos said, patiently. He was a professional, and would never let his exasperation show. But he had a feeling Tomson could tell. Part of him hoped so. "The Gungans need our help like they need a case of Findris flu. The war there is on a manageable scale; the Gungans can actually win. All of that ends the moment we set foot on Naboo—the Empire will send in legions of troops, and there could be even more death on Naboo than there is already. It's probably the Gungans' greatest advantage that the Empire underestimates them. No, we leave them be," Varos sighed, "We have to."
He'd like to help the Gungans too, of course. But Varos had learned in the Clone Wars that a General needed to make cold calculations about life and death to ensure the success of the mission. Varos had worked with limited resources in the past, as a Brigadier General of the Ketarisian planetary defense force. He knew, more than most, that you can't do everything, can't be everywhere.
And can't save everyone.
Varos took a deep breath. He cleared his mind, then his throat. "So, no Cronese Mandate either. That takes us back to the Imperial fleet movements along the Shaltin Tunnels." Darryl Varos Ambassador of the Derso System Ruusan Reformation League Former Brigadier General, Ketarisian Planetary Defense Force (as "Jeffen Varos")
"You know I don't like that intel," Royce reminded him, "I know Kory swears by it, but it's two weeks old, for one thing. And on the Shaltin Tunnels I still think it's more likely to be some of the CSA's old Victory-class ships. It's easy enough to mistake them for Imperial." Not that we have the luxury of reliable intel, he thought. The Empire was ubiquitous, its tentacles reaching across the entire galaxy. Those tentacles were slippery, though; it was surprisingly hard to find a good place to hit the Empire. Hard to decide on one, at any rate; the Ruusan League, as poorly-equipped as it was in comparison to the Empire, had no room for error.
He didn't disagree with Varos about Naboo. Tomson knew the General was right, but didn't like it anymore than he did. His instinct was to help those who were being subjugated by the Empire, but he also knew that you can't win a game of dejarik playing only defense. No, the Empire had chosen its own battles for too long—the Ruusan League needed to hit it where it wouldn't see it coming...
Royce looked through the documents on the table before him, then frowned. "What's this?" he asked, "An Imperial walker showcase on Carida?" Royce Tomson Leader of the Ruusan Reformation League Former Senator of Commenor (17 BBY—13 BBY) Four-Time Bestselling Author
"Yes, I'm invited to it," Varos sat back in his chair as he explained, "The major defense companies coming together to show off their latest walker designs to Imperial buyers. Whichever one the Empire chooses will almost certainly be the basis for the next-generation walkers the Empire's going to put on the battlefield in two or three years time."
"But it's not the event itself that interests me," he said, leaning in once more.
"Kuat will be there, and Rothana and so on. But the dark horse is a company out of the Lorrd system. Rumor has it they're working overtime to develop a series of walker designs for the Carida event. Sophisticated, high-technology stuff, too. We can't hit Kuat and we can't hit Rothana—they're too well-defended. But this company is based on Kol Huro. If we can do some damage to their manufacturing plants there..." He trailed off, letting Tomson come to the conclusion himself.
Darryl Varos Ambassador of the Derso System Ruusan Reformation League Former Brigadier General, Ketarisian Planetary Defense Force (as "Jeffen Varos")
Message edited by Ambassador_Varos - Saturday, 02 Feb 2013, 11:17 PM
"... we could scuttle the deal for them on Carida," Royce said, nodding, "And keep an advanced walker design out of Imperial hands." He looked away at nothing in particular, seeing the possibilities and thinking through them out loud; "Even if we don't destroy the plants, any delay in production and the Empire will go with the cheaper Kuat or Rothana designs instead—cheaper, and presumably inferior."
Tomson understood how the Empire thought about these things; during his time as a senator, he'd been a junior member of the defense committee and saw the bidding process up close. The process was so gamed by patronage and even outright bribery that it was unlikely a small, Rim-based company would get the contract in the first place, unless its designs were as sophisticated as they were rumored to be. Ultimately, the Empire cared more about quantity than quality—the TIE fighter was proof of that—but every once and awhile it was also known to pay a bit extra for some novel death-dealing technology.
"Kol Huro," Royce mused, "Essentially an industrial world, isn't it? Squabbled over in the Clone Wars. It can't possibly be undefended...?" Varos would understand the question that was implicit here; what exactly do we know about Kol Huro?
Royce Tomson Leader of the Ruusan Reformation League Former Senator of Commenor (17 BBY—13 BBY) Four-Time Bestselling Author
Varos suppressed a wince when Tomson said the Republic and the Separatists had "squabbled" over Kol Huro—in fact, it had been a hard-fought battle for the Separatists. Only occasionally was he reminded that he and Tomson came from very different backgrounds; Tomson literally 'wrote the book' on the Clone Wars from the Republic's perspective. Varos, meanwhile, had fought for the Separatist cause. Both men had served, they had that in common—but having served in opposing armies, they had their differences, too.
Varos tended to see the Empire as the same as the Republic. Tomson insisted the Empire was something else—a more monstrous version of the Republic. Varos accepted this view for the sake of unity; the Separatists were gone, the Republic was gone. The Empire was the common enemy, and that's all that mattered.
Still, their differences were became apparent every now and then. But Varos, a professional, was willing to set that aside.
He cleared his throat. "Indeed not," Varos said, looking through his own files. He seemed to find the one he was looking for and nodded, "The local Moff says it's a 'crucial resource planet,' and a small Imperial fleet has been observed there. We can send in Kory or Finn to update us on the force composition, but I'd bet the Empire has more ships there than we can handle—unless we draw some of them away."
He let the notion sink in for a moment before he went on: "The planet Kelm is the sector capital—30 billion people, a major trading world, the seat of Imperial power. It's also not far from Kol Huro. If we can put together a convincing feint, it may draw Imperial ships away from Kol Huro long enough for us to do our damage there and leave."
"It's a gamble." Varos added after a pause, "But it's looking like our best option at the moment."
Darryl Varos Ambassador of the Derso System Ruusan Reformation League Former Brigadier General, Ketarisian Planetary Defense Force (as "Jeffen Varos")
"Agreed," Royce nodded. "So, we send Kory to the Kol Huro system. He takes a look at the defenses and, what do you think, meets up with the rest of the 1st on Kelm? The 1st could be helpful there with whatever diversion you and Treslar come up with. Can you talk to Treslar?" he asked, pushing his chair out as he stood from the table, "I want to talk to Finn about verifying that Shaltin Tunnel intel. Never hurts to have a Plan B, right?"
He needed Finn for another reason, too--to run security for a mission he hadn't mentioned to Varos. The Ruusan League was running low on funds, and Royce's fortune was being spread thin. He knew it wouldn't last forever, and that the League needed another benefactor. Tomson was the front man for the League and a wanted fugitive, which is why Varos usually approached potential benefactors. But he didn't want Varos to know the financial predicament the League was in—the General had enough on his mind as it was.
That, and Tomson was beginning to feel useless. He had a feeling that Varos thought so, too. True, he paid the bills, wrote the pamphlets, and gave the speeches—at the risk of life and limb, yes—but there was only so much danger he could put good men like Finn and Kory in without putting himself in the same amount of danger, or at least proving to them that he was willing to. "I'll never ask anything of you I'm not willing to do myself," he'd told them, and he meant it.
So, Jaemus it was. Hopefully, the Baronness Magrath would be receptive to his entreaty.
But first thing was first—Kol Huro. He waited to hear out any concerns that Varos might have before they adjourned.
Royce Tomson Leader of the Ruusan Reformation League Former Senator of Commenor (17 BBY—13 BBY) Four-Time Bestselling Author
"Yes, Sir," Darryl said, also standing from his chair and gathering his files together on the table. "And I'll talk to Treslar," he confirmed, "The Captain is a fine strategist—he proved as much at Mon Calamari. I'm sure he can help us devise a plan we can put into action." He hesitated for a moment, not being sure whether to salute Tomson or not. Saluting his superior was standard fare in Darryl's line of work, and surely the former Senator and founder of the Ruusan League was his superior. But he'd seen Tomson discourage Kory and Finn from saluting him, saying he preferred them to be on equal footing.
Still, old habits were hard to break. But Darryl held back, finished gathering his paperwork and nodded to Tomson. "Senator," he said, turned, and made for the door. He had Kol Huro on his mind as he stepped out of the meeting room and into the antiseptic white corridor of the space station. Darryl Varos Ambassador of the Derso System Ruusan Reformation League Former Brigadier General, Ketarisian Planetary Defense Force (as "Jeffen Varos")
