Diplomatic Relations (Pt 9) (revised)

Redding was absolutely focused on his screen, watching the feed from the security cameras. Jayem leaned in over his shoulder.

“Have they arrived yet?”

Redding shook his head. “Any minute now, I think.”

“How long ‘til they get back?’

“Thirty minutes, if everything goes according to plan.”

“Good. I think I’ll get some air.” Jayem straightened and left the room.

Redding frowned, but the monitors quickly reclaimed his attention. That is, until he heard the front door open and slam, then the roar of a speederbike. Redding’s head snapped up, and he was out of his seat so fast the chair tipped over. He sprinted to the window just in time to see Jayem disappear down the street. Redding slammed his fist against the wall and called his squadmate eight kinds of idiot. But there was nothing he could do. Fighting back his frustration, he returned to his computers and watched Zack get cleared through the front gate.

~

Zack handed the guard on duty his ID card. Watching out of the tinted windows, Dara was impressed by how comfortable and natural he looked. He wasn’t overly nonchalant, and neither was he jumpy and nervous. He seemed to be having a casual conversation with the guard and was careful to keep his face turned away when two other guards brought Marna in and led him to the speeder.

Dog leaned over and opened the door of the speeder. Dara also turned her head away so that Marna couldn’t react immediately. He would recognize her, he might not recognize Dog. She watched in the reflection of the window as Marna climbed in, looking haggard and a little dejected. Then her gut clenched as the two guards climbed in after him and sat opposite. That was not in the plan.

Dog glanced casually at Dara, then returned to staring out the window. Dara knew that any drastic action now would be noticed. They would have to wait until they cleared outer security. Marna chose that moment to raise his head and look around the speeder. His eyes widened when he saw Dara. Fortunately, he had enough presence of mind not to react. He looked from her to Dog, whom he did not recognize immediately, and confusion creased his forehead. Dara surreptitiously lowered one eyelid to reassure him, then rubbed her eye a second later, in case one of the guards had seen.

Zack did not say a word when he got back in the speeder. That told Dara that he had seen the guards and knew not to celebrate just yet. Dog and Dara exchanged a meaningful glance as Zack drove the speeder out of the transfer area. Marna was trying to hide his confusion, and the other two guards just looked bored.

Dara felt a drop of sweat trickle down the back of her neck. The two guards weren’t supposed to be here. It wouldn’t take much for them to guess that something was not right and raise the alarm. Only her previous undercover experience kept her face calm and unworried, and she was sure the same went for Dog. She kept her breathing even and managed to match the bored expressions on the guards’ faces.

Then the guard on Marna’s left glanced at Dara, then seemed to really see her. A wrinkle formed between his eyebrows. “I don’t think I’ve seen you before,” he said.
“How long—”

With the precision of two squadmates that had worked together for years, Dara and Dog drew their blasters and fired simultaneously. The wave of blue from the stun beams washed over the two guards and they slumped in their seats. Marna’s eyes widened with shock.

Zack’s head swiveled around and he gaped.

“Turn around, Zack,” Dara ordered. “We still have to get out of here. Stick to the plan.”

“Zack’s here?” Marna asked incredulously. He still hadn’t absorbed the idea of being rescued.

“Yes, sir,” Zack said. “And we’re on our way to meet Josh.”

Three minutes later, they had cleared outer security. No one so much as glanced twice at Zack’s ID badge or into the speeder. The guards all wore the same bland expression that spoke of utter boredom. But it was after they drove through the gates that the next difficult part began: they had to make a military speeder disappear before the State realized that Marna hadn’t arrived for his court date.

“Zack, did you disable the speeder’s homing beacon yet?” Dara demanded as she snapped binders on her unconscious guard.

“Working on it,” Zack called, his voice now tight with frustration.

“I’ll help him,” Dog said, finishing with his guard and clambering into the front seat.

“Dara—“ Marna began.

She smiled reassuringly at him. “You saved us, we’re saving you. Turnabout’s fair play.”

“Got it,” Dog called triumphantly.

“Excellent,” Dara said. “Are we being followed?’

“Negative.”

“Daramis,” Marna tried again.

“Relax,” she said calmly. “We’ve done this sort of thing before.”

“How?” was all he could say.

“Actually,” she admitted, “it wasn’t that hard. The State is all talk and no security systems. Redding found a way to feed false orders to the computers, we got our hands on an ID card, and your people had uniforms. Then we bribed a speeder from some mechanics, and here we are.”

Marna shook his head in disbelief. “You embarrass us. We did not know this kind of thing could be done.”

“And we didn’t know the State planned to blow us to smithereens,” she replied cheerfully. “Shall we call it even?”

“We’re clear,” Dog reported. “Major?”

Dara looked down at the guards lying on the floor of the speeder. They were a problem. Sooner or later they would wake up; they couldn’t be killed; it was far too risky for them to be taken prisoner. She shrugged, then said, “Let’s get to the rendezvous. No need to let Josh worry any more than he would anyway.”

~

As Zack had predicted, the Old Square was deserted. The few shops were boarded up and no one was there. Josh and Stella had parked the speeder in a small alcove between two stores, neatly out of the way. They were waiting when Zack pulled up next to them. Dog opened the door and got out first, scanning the area before motioning for Marna to join him.

Astonishment flashed across Josh’s face, quickly smothered with excitement and relief, and Dara knew that he had still had lingering doubts about their chances of success. She allowed herself a small smile as she jumped out of the speeder. Josh clapped Marna on the shoulder while shaking his hand. No words were exchanged, but there were volumes in that simple gesture.

“Get Marna in the speeder,” Dog said, interrupting the reunion. “We don’t want him out in the open more than necessary.”

Josh immediately guided Marna into the speeder. Zack jumped out to stand next to Dara and Dog.

“Do we ditch the speeder?” he wanted to know. “Or do we take it back?”

“Neither,” Dog answered. “It’s now our getaway vehicle.”

“What?” Zack’s confusion was plain.

“You need a distraction to get Marna out of town, right?”

Zack nodded, still puzzled.

“Well, we’re going to make one.” Dog sauntered towards the waiting speeder, whistling.

“Dog, wait,” Dara said. She caught up with him and held a whispered conference. Dog listened, nodded, and then an eager, enthusiastic gleam appeared in his eyes. Zack looked quizzically at Dara, who merely shrugged and got in the speeder after Dog. Zack followed.

“Get in the front seat,” Dara told the young Fringe driver. “We don’t want to risk the guards seeing you.” She was relieved when he obeyed without a word of protest.

The two guards were lying on the floor of the speeder still, face down, binders keeping their hands behind their backs. One of the them groaned and shifted. Dog crouched next to him, holding the guard’s blaster loosely in his hands. The guard blinked slowly and tried to lift his head. Dog shoved his head back down, forcing him to strain to see Dog out of the corner of his eye. His face was filled with terror and his breath quickened.

He was a guard, Dara reminded herself, not a soldier. He would have neither experience nor training for this sort of situation. That made Dog’s part a lot easier, and she hoped he wouldn’t overdo it. She settled into a seat, just within the guard’s line of sight, and scowled.

The guard grunted again, as if trying to speak.

“Shut up,” Dog growled. “She already wants to kill you,” he jerked his head at Dara, “don’t make it worse.”

The terrified guard followed the gesture, saw Dara’s expression, and paled. He pressed his lips tightly together in a silent attempt to let Dog know he wouldn’t say a word.

Zack stared over his shoulder at Dog in shock. “You can’t—”

Dara made a sharp, chopping motion with her hand and Zack turned back around, swallowing the rest of his protest. Dog shot him a withering glare, then looked back at the guard.

“I’ll be honest with you,” he said, “my boss isn’t happy. You got in our way. You weren’t supposed to be there. Two guards for prisoner transfer, not four. And yet, you and your friend jump on in. Now she’s thinking, you did it on purpose, trying to stop us, wanting to be heroes.” He glanced nervously over his shoulder and lowered his voice. “She doesn’t like heroes.”

All blood had drained from the guard’s face, leaving him ashen and sweating. He shook his head, frantically trying to deny what Dog said. Dara resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Dog was really laying it on thick.

“I think I can convince her not to kill you. At least, I’ll try,” he amended in a whisper. “But I’ll be risking my own neck.”

Gratitude filled the poor guard’s face as he dared to hope. Dog suppressed a scornful look and moved over next to Dara. The speeder was large enough that he actually took two steps, far enough that a hushed conversation wouldn’t be overheard by the guards.

“How am I doing?” Dog asked quietly.

Dara raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms. “I don’t like heroes?” she asked, equally softly.

Dog gestured vaguely. “I’m improvising.”

“I noticed,” she replied dryly. “Then maybe I should improvise too,” she threw back, making her voice sound angry. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the guard cringe as he heard the tone, but not the words.

“I always knew there was a thespian in you,” Dog replied, straight-faced.

Dara flicked her hand toward him in an exasperated gesture. “Fine,” she said, raising her voice, “Do what you will, then.”

Dog flashed her a quick smile and whispered back, “I always do.”

He returned to where the guard lay, noting the gratitude on his face.

“Thank you!” the guard said with intense feeling.

“Quiet,” Dog snapped. “Or she’ll change her mind.”

The guard shut his mouth abruptly.

“But there’s still a problem,” Dog continued. “We can’t take you with us. There’s a hundred of us heading west tomorrow morning and we can’t be bothered with you two. But we can’t just let you go free, either.” He frowned in concentration, then appeared to make up his mind. “So here’s what’s going to happen. We’ll dump you here, out of the way, unhurt,” he said with reluctance, and the guard sighed with relief. “You promise not to make a fuss and get yourselves into trouble, and we won’t have to track you down again.” He brought his face very close to the guard’s. “Understand?” he asked flatly.

The guard nodded quickly, wide-eyed.

“All right, then.” Dog stood and looked at Dara. “Let’s get them out of here.”

Dara shook her head with mock-irritation, but joined him in dragging the second to the door. She jumped out, checked for witnesses, then waved Dog out. They hauled the still-unconscious guard out first, then Dog pulled the other guard to his feet and helped him out of the speeder.

There was a narrow, shadowed alley between two of the buildings, and some convenient crates lay about a dozen paces in. Dara clamped her hand around the standing guard’s shoulder and firmly guided him into the alley. Dog half-carried, half-dragged the second guard and dumped him behind the boxes, then glanced meaningfully at Dara’s prisoner, resting his hand on his blaster. Dara let go, and the guard hurried over and sat next to his friend on the ground.

“Remember: no heroics,” Dog said firmly. He glanced at the other guard, who was just beginning to stir. “Make sure he knows our agreement,” he added warningly.
The first guard hastily nodded. His color was returning, and he didn’t look half as frightened as he had earlier. Dara was certain he was beginning to entertain thoughts of being a hero. She hid a smirk and nudged Dog. “Let’s get out of here.”

“Right behind you.”

They left their captives without a backward glance. Dara looked over at the second speeder where Josh was eyeing them with a nervous expression. She gave him a reassuring smile and a thumbs up. He did not look reassured. Dara shrugged.

“What happens if they’re discovered?” Zack worried when the pilots were back in the speeder. “Or if they get away?”

Dog shrugged. “They think there’s a hundred people—a legion of soldiers, when those two are finished telling the story—vacating the capitol tomorrow morning. They won’t think to look for a single speeder leaving in less than an hour.”

“Please tell me Josh isn’t taking Marna west,” Dara remarked casually.

“Nope,” Dog replied. “I checked with Zack. They’re going east.”

Dara nodded, satisfied.

“Where to now?” Zack asked.

“Back to the safe house,” Dara said. “Park in the garage, out of sight of the street.

The two speeders meandered slowly back to the safe house, taking different routes. Josh parked outside right away, but Zack had to drive past the house three times before the street was empty of passerby who might notice the military speeder and wonder. He maneuvered smoothly into the garage and the door shut behind them. Zack, Dog, and Dara walked into the house, wearing satisfied expressions on their faces.

“Mission accomplished,” Dog announced proudly to Redding, who waited for them in the kitchen.

Then Dara noticed the dismal look on Redding’s face and how he refused to meet Dara’s eyes.

“Redding,” she said, her smile vanishing, “what happened?”

He squared his shoulders and met her eyes. “Jayem.”

“Did he blow something up?” Dara demanded.

“I don’t know. He’s gone.”

Dara stopped dead still. “What?”

“He left. About forty minutes ago.”

“Why? Where did he go?” she asked furiously.

“I don’t know,” Redding insisted. “He asked when you would be back, and the next thing I knew, he was out the door and driving down the street on one of the speederbikes they brought.”

Her expression was black and angry. “He left. Without a word.”

Redding nodded. “I would have stopped him.”

Dara didn’t reply. She stalked past, trailing fury and muttering darkly under her breath. Redding and Dog exchanged a look, then followed.

~

Fifteen minutes crawled by, and even they seemed to avoid Dara. She was now in a foul mood, growling about the lack of comlinks and Jayem’s unauthorized absence. Her pilots gave her plenty of room to pace and knew better than to ask questions. Dog posted himself at the front window as a lookout, while Redding helped Josh box up computer equipment.

“He’s coming!” Dog yelled across the house.

Dara stopped in mid-stride. She stood perfectly still for a moment, shut her eyes, and breathed deeply. When she opened her eyes, she had reined in her emotions until they no longer radiated from her like heat. Calmly, she went to the entrance hall and waited for Jayem, the other occupants of the house clustering behind her.

Dara’s face was a study in carefully controlled rage as Jayem strolled into the house. “Where have you been?” she bit out, each word articulated precisely.

He grinned. “The spaceport,” he answered.

Dara met his eyes levelly, but did not speak. Her lips pressed tightly together as the silence stretched. Jayem fidgeted, suddenly uncomfortable. Dog and Redding glanced at each other and edged a step or so away, just as every member of the Fringe left suddenly remembered tasks to be done in other rooms of the house.

“You left the safe house.” Her voice was soft and even, without even a tremor of anger to reveal her thoughts. “Alone. Without telling anyone.”

Jayem swallowed and managed, “Yes, ma’am.” He had a thousand things to say in his defense, but Dara was every inch his superior officer at that moment, and military protocol stilled his tongue.

Dara’s eyes flashed then, the first hint of the fierce emotion she was trying to clear from her judgment. “Of all the irresponsible, dangerous, ridiculous, idiotic things to do—” She broke off suddenly and took a deep, calming breath. “Why?” she demanded.

“I found our X-wings,” Jayem said, almost defensively.

Dara stopped short, any further words of chastisement abruptly dying. She glared fiercely at him for a full twenty seconds without saying anything. Jayem shifted his weight, unsure of what to expect. Finally, Dara heaved a sigh. “Consider yourself officially reprimanded,” she said wearily, “and never, ever do that again.”

He grinned. “Yes, ma’am!” he said enthusiastically, and for a moment, Dara actually believed him.

“Where are they?”

“In a hangar on the far west side of the spaceport,” he reported. “Just waiting for us to come and collect them.”

Dara’s eyes took on a faraway gleam, the gleam that meant she was planning something. Her squad waited. Then her gaze focused and she smiled slowly. “Listen up,” she said. “Here’s what we do.”

(to be concluded...)

Diplomatic Relations (Pt 8)

Yesterday

The dawn came hot and early. All traces of the storm that had drenched Stawl for the past few days were burned away under the bright sun. The members of the Fringe woke with the first rays of light. Their activity woke the pilots, who had learned to grab what sleep they could when they could, and who were not incredibly pleased about being woken hours before the start of the mission.

Never a fan of mornings, Dara set about her preparations silently, then disappeared into the kitchen to speak quietly with Josh. Jayem was also quiet, but he glared malevolently at everyone who came near, as if daring them to speak with him. Redding and Dog, after their initial grumbling, were a little more amiable and gave Jayem a wide berth, though Dog made more than one comment about how many hours there were still before they could leave.

In the kitchen, Dara leaned against the counter, her back to the window and the glaring sun. Josh, the only other person in the room, sat at the table a few feet away. He looked worried and pensive. Dara nibbled a corner of her pastry and watched him for a minute before speaking.

“It’ll be okay, Josh.”

He looked up, slightly startled, as if he had forgotten she was standing there. “What if the mechanics won’t give you the speeder?”

She shrugged. “Then we take it.”

“What if you’re stopped? What if the ID card is denied? What if you’re followed?”

Dara held up a hand to cut off the stream of what-ifs. “Then we’ll adapt,” she said calmly. “That’s our job. What you should worry about is what happens after we come back. Marna will be a fugitive. You’ll probably be looking at another Lock Down.”

Josh nodded. “Marna is going to be a non-person without identity papers. He won’t be able to stay here. We’ve had plans for getting him out, but we always thought they would be needed when a warrant came out for his arrest. We have a place for him outside the city, but we’ll need some time to get him there.”

“So, you’ll need a distraction.”

“It would help.”

Dara looked thoughtful. “I think we can come up with something. It won’t be very long, though. Get everything ready to go before we get back.”

Josh nodded gratefully. “We’ll be ready.”

In the living room, Jayem sat on the couch, glowering at everyone who walked by. Zack and Stella were the only ones who dared to enter the living room. Stella smiled at Jayem; Zack ignored him and walked over to the window.

“The rain’s gone,” he commented to Stella. “Sun’s out. That’s a good sign.”

Jayem snorted derisively. “Oh, please,” he said scornfully. “Don’t tell me you believe that meteorological patterns will have any sort of bearing on our mission.”

Zack shot him a withering glance and did not answer, but refused to leave.

The morning wore on. There were a dozen tasks to be finished, and even more when Josh announced they would be abandoning the safe house and everything needed to be ready to go before, and he said it resolutely avoiding the word “if,” Marna returned. There was an excited buzz of activity that followed, prompting a smile from Dara.

Dog’s mood improved every minute that passed, brining them closer to departure. Even Jayem’s fierce glower subsided, though he still spoke to no one. Eventually, he looked more thoughtful than anything. Redding ensconced himself in the computer room, and began to perfect the orders that he would be feeding to the Stawlian Capitol Detention Center computers. Dara made sure she had the copies of all the files the pilots would need to clear Raven and prove the State’s duplicity.

Two hours before they were supposed to leave, Redding, Dara, Josh, Dog, and Zack were all in the computer room. Jayem was off by himself, deep in thought and refusing to tell anyone what he was contemplating. Stella was organizing the packing of the speeders that would carry most of the contents of the safe house away before midday, leaving the others to go over the last minute details of the plan.

Zack was fidgety, just like a green pilot on his first mission. “Hey, Red, did you get the orders ready?”

Redding spared him a withering glare before continuing his work.

“What?” Zack asked, spreading his hands. “What did I say?”

Dara laughed. “He hates to be called Red,” she shared in a stage whisper. “He’s also offended that you would think he hasn’t done his job.”

“Oh.” Zack flushed, embarrassed. “Sorry.”

Redding nodded his forgiveness without taking his eyes from the computer screen.

“We have less than two hours before we leave,” Dara said. “Is everyone clear on where they need to be and what they’ll be doing?”

“I’m getting the military speeder from the mechanics,” Dog said. “Then I bring it to the cross street two blocks from here—”

“—where Dara and I will be waiting to join you,” Zack said. “We go to the Detention Center and get Marna. Then we go to the Old Square—”

“—to meet with Stella and myself,” Josh continued. “We return to the safe house to get the computer equipment—”

“—where I’ve been sitting, making sure nothing goes wrong,” Redding said. “We all meet, then Stella, Zack, Marna, and Josh leave the city—”

“—and then we finally get to go home!” Dog finished gleefully. The expression on his face plainly showed that he was more than done with Stawl and ready to leave.

Dara smiled proudly. “Just so,” she said. “Josh, do your people know what do when we leave?”

“Jayse and Donnal are taking the speeders, twenty minutes apart, to the new safe houses. Lyem is staying here to take Stella, Zack, Marna, myself, and the rest of the computer equipment out of town, on the chance that Zack is recognized.”

“And Redding showed you how to monitor security communications to find out if that happens?”

“Redding showed us all kinds of useful tricks,” Zack said happily. “We should be able to find out anything we want, wreak havoc with their systems and not get caught.”

Redding smirked, and Dara nodded approvingly.

“Everything in place, Redding?” she asked.

“Yes, ma’am,” he reported. “The speeder will be at the mechanic’s in an hour, I changed Marna’s departure to fit our timetable, and the rest of the orders are ready to go.”

“Good work.”

“I’m going to go check on the packing,” Josh said and left the room with Zack on his heels.

“Can I have a word, Dara?” Dog asked.

“Certainly. But only one.” She smiled, and they withdrew to a corner. “What’s on your mind?”

“We were talking last night—Jayem, Redding, and me—and we were wondering… what about our X-wings? And yes,” he said swiftly, seeing the teasing remark beginning to form, “I realize that was more than one word.”

Dara grinned unrepentantly, then sobered. “The State had them impounded. I’ve spoken with Marna and Josh about it, and their best guess is the spaceport, but that is only a guess. They’re certainly guarded, though.”

“Then…?” Dog spread his hands in an unspoken question.

“We won’t have time to look for them, Dog,” she said apologetically. “We’ll be cutting it close as it is. We’ll ship out with Raven and the diplomatic team, and let the New Republic try to get our starfighters back. I don’t like it either,” she said in response to the sour look on her comrade’s face. “But we don’t have much choice. Our movements are limited, even if we weren’t mounting a rescue operation.”

Despite his disgruntled expression, Dog nodded his understanding and rejoined Redding to pass along Dara’s answer.

The last thirty minutes dragged by even slower than the previous hours had. Everyone succumbed to eyeing their chronos every two minutes. All preparations were complete and there was little left to do but wait. Dara, Zack, and Dog were wearing the all-black outfits worn by the guards, to be supplemented by the official jackets that would complete the disguise when the moment came. Redding had all security camera feeds up to monitor their progress. Stella and Josh had prepped the other speeder and were ready to leave for the Old Square.

Finally, Dara gathered everyone in the entrance hall with five minutes left. Excited tension practically hummed in the air, and she saw a level of enthusiasm in the members of the Fringe that had not been there before. She looked around. “You all know what to do?” The handful of people around her all nodded eagerly. Dara grinned, a nasty feral grin that promised bad things for anyone who would dare get in her way. “Then let’s go.”

Her words brought about an instant flurry of activity. Redding and Lyem hurried back to the computer room; Jayse and Donnal went to the speeders, along with Josh and Stella; Dog headed out the front door on his way to the mechanic’s; and Dara and Zack followed him a minute later, appearing to be leaving for a leisurely stroll. Everyone was excited and nervous.

It took Dog fifteen minutes to walk to the shop. He was easily able to bribe the mechanics to let him borrow the speeder, promising to return it within two hours. He told them it was to win a bet with a long time rival. The mechanics couldn’t understand why it had been sent for maintenance in the first place and were happy to make some extra money, so they asked no questions.

Dog brought the speeder to the cross street where Zack and Dara waited, wearing the black uniforms of the Stawlian Guard, but with their jackets, and Dog’s, draped over their arms. Zack took the driver’s seat and Dog slid into the back with Dara. They all shrugged into their jackets and made the twenty minute trip in apprehensive silence.

The detention facility looked menacing with its sharp angles and hard surfaces. There was no landscaping, only harsh metal and duracrete. Zack swallowed hard; Dara noticed and laughed sympathetically.

“Just stick to the plan, Zack, and we’ll be out before it can bite you.”

Zack nodded and brought the speeder to a smooth stop before the guard stationed at the entrance. He managed to keep his expression neutral, almost bored, as he handed over his ID card and waited for clearance. The guard glanced idly in the back of the speeder, nodding to Dara and Dog, but did not comment. He returned the ID badge and waved them through. Zack nearly melted into his seat from relief.

“We’re not through yet,” Dara said quietly. “Keep it together.”

At that, Zack straightened. He guided the speeder to the building where the prisoner transfers were made. Then, taking a deep breath to steel himself, he got out of the speeder and walked to the guard on duty.

They had reached the point of the mission where nothing they could do would get them to Marna. They had to trust to Redding’s falsified orders, hope that the system hadn’t already corrupted them, and wait for the State to bring Marna to them. Dara and Dog let their hands rest on their weapons, just in case a hasty exit would be necessary, and waited.



(to be continued...)