Capricia...




The large mansion stood in the middle of a the flat plains overseeing the grand expanse in all directions. A tree strategically placed by early landscapers had added a sense of the familial to a place otherwise isolated from the more sprawling, fast-paced cities.

A throwback from the technological centers that sprung up all over the three continents, it was easy for one to look upon the site and think, "old".


But such first impressions would have been flawed for the Caprician art to blend practical technology with aesthetic concerns was second to none. There was another level of hidden technological prowess that surged underneath the veneer.

Despite the "abandoned" look the mansion seemed to exhibit, it was very much alive.

And right now the clicking sounds of a person hasitly walking across a tiled floor was heard. Past the grand windows, each allowing only so much sunlight in and through the trickle of the indoor fountain found in the forward atrium.

He nearly burst through the double doors into the study and rushed across the thick, immaculate carpet to a singular individual.

"Visician." the man murmured in hushed tones, his eyes darting about as if someone would overhear his words.

"Janus." the older man, looked up from a book he was enjoying about the Rise and Fall of the Molinjar Uprisings about 1100 years ago. Staring at the younger, slender man, he wryly commanded gently. "Do sit down man. You look as if the Yuuzhan Vong are outside the doors."

"If it were only something that simple.." the younger man commented.

The Visician's eyebrows went up taking note of the casual way the younger man handled their near destruction and extinction at the hand of their late alien invaders.

"A node has been activated. Natabb District." the younger man gasped out as he found a seat.

"It happens." the Visician commented. "We've had two across the ocean also go off. With the destruction wrought to Capricia, the reconstruction will interefere with their purposes. The power output is brief and is unnoticeable."


The younger man wanted to blurt out but was unable too as a small glass of wine was put before him by a servitor that seemed to appear from nowhere.

He gulped it down to the amusement of the older man.

"It would be unnoticeable if it had gone off for a reason other than what it was designed for." he got out, placing the empty glass back on the servitor's tray.

The Visician, holding his own glass of wine contemplated. "You are saying it was detected?"

"By Vinda Corporation no less.." the man thought out loud with no little disgust.

"Now..now, Janus. We are the Commonwealth now. Vinda and Capricia. Hand in Hand."

"A Commonwealth certainly. But not the Commonwealth." the younger said flatly.

"Semantics. It is a good move for Capricia. It needs help."

"But there will be questions. Inquiries."

The Visician chuckled, "About what, Janus?"

Before the younger man could find an answer the Visician turned serious. "You are sure that they picked up the power output of a node? You're positive?" he asked sharply.

When Janus nodded, the Visician said something under his breath.

"A simulacrum. I wonder if it is he?"

"If it is a simulacrum, then we are looking at another Awakening. The last one was over .."

"..a thousand years ago. It seems too soon for another Awakening. Unless.." the Visician's lips began to tremble.

"Unless?" Janus prompted, growing fearful himself.

"Unless the Clannus Prime himself is here." The Visician's voice was barely above a whisper. The implications were very unsettling, especially after such a long period of time thinking in abstracts.

He began to gather himself, "Now, Janus, whether the Prime is here or not, what we do know is that there is evidence of a Simulacrum's presence. We need to learn more..."

"Discreetly," he added.


"Yes, Visician. I will attend to it." the younger man stood up and thanked the older man for his hospitality.

"Very well, Janus. Keep me apprised." was all the Visician said as the younger man left. He picked up his book and began reading...


"In the end, Molinjar died having destroyed the last of the Noble House. Had he lived, historians speculate that the shaping of the Clans would have taken a very radical turn. It is speculated that he might have even broken the isolationism and pushed the planet toward joining the galactic community called the Republic and by extension, the Empire."


The Visician stopped and smiled as he glanced up at Molinjar's old battle banner hanging over his fireplace in his home.


In Noble House..


He settled back into his chair and sipped his wine quietly contemplating present events and their relation to the future.

Somewhere in the Outer-rim





The YT-1300 Transport touched down with a jolt, forcing its occupant to brace herself upon the control console in front of her. Straightening herself for a moment , Natalya sighed heavily , more from relief than anything else.

A serious of high-pitched chirps caused her to smile faintly, it was a weary smile, but a smile nonetheless…

“…yes, Kobi, we’re here…”

After taking a moment to stretch her arms out , Natalya turned to face the small R2 unit which had since joined her in the cockpit…

..face…

If she thought about that for a moment , it seemed absurd, the unit in front of her had no face, a forward direction perhaps. The small spherical collection of moving parts and chipsets which responded to her commands was nothing more than that surely?…Fake?

Natalya glanced down at the expectant droid in front of her…

No. There certainly was more, this unit was curious, intelligent, and above all, it kept her from feeling lonely, and even on a few occasions managed to make her laugh…

She had been thankful for that.

It seemed life had been far too serious of late, or perhaps it had just been her…

For the past six months, they had travelled together, stopping off here and there, earning their way across the stars, as freelance haulers. Within the galactic Core initially, then the outer rim.
The freighter industry always needed new blood, the arteries of trade and commerce spread far and wide. No job too small , or big, she delivered, no questions asked. This had on occasion caused them problems, of course, but that was another story. All the while coming closer to their intended destination.
Anyone else in her position, with her background, her lineage, might have been tempted to take the easy route.

Natalya hadn’t, and she hadn’t on purpose, she’d wanted to make her own way, in her own time, she didn’t want to rely on anybody or anything. The urge to leave everything behind had overcome her, she had needed time, but they had still needed to earn a living.
Everything they had been doing had thusfar led them here, to this point, this place.

Natalya was nervous, it had been a long time. She did not know what to expect.

“…am I crazy Kobi?…”

The droid moved itself upwards as if to look upon her , or at least, seemed to, then let loose a low, cautious, almost forlorn sounding murmur…It wasn’t exactly the response Natalya was looking for.

“…lock her down for me Kobi…I’ve got to get ready…”

She patted the R2 unit on the head , causing a dull ring to sound within the cramped flight-deck, then walked past the droid and further into the innards of the ship.











Natalya picked her way through the busy starport, and the slow, steady stream of aliens, humans, spacers, and traders. Despite this place being somewhat of a backwater planet, and thus largely overlooked, by and large, from the denizens of the galactic core, it had its own thriving markets. If there was one single thing that united all of these peoples , the need for trade was surely it.

That last thought surprised her a little, it had been very Vinda-like…

She smiled inwardly.


It was dusk now, and the sun that had once hung high like a searing orb, was disappearing fast…along with the brilliant blue sky surrounding it. Being replaced instead by a fiery flood of red, orange and amber, which seemed to contrast with the remaining streaks of blue stretched across the sky, making them appear to glow.

Natalya walked alone, Kobi had been instructed to stay and look after the ship, she didn’t know the area , and had learned the hard way to be on her guard. She had changed her grey jump suit for a pair of close-fitting black trousers and a kind of cropped white T-shirt,( the heat had surprised her) . The gun strapped to her thigh loped alongside it with her footsteps.

Natalya continued walking , until she left the town, and the people behind, and as the distant sounds of the city were left behind, other sounds began to fill her ears. There was a scent of salt in the air, and in the not to far distance the sound of waves crashing against the shore.

It seemed to fit with her pace.

As she continued walking, the sound became greater and greater, until she reached the top of a small undulation, and her eyes were met with the sight of a vast ocean, as far as the eye could see. The last vestiges of the suns rays shimmering upon its surface.

Her eyes seemed to take a minute to adjust, she stopped, and looked around, taking in the breadth of the panorama. Before the ocean , the white sands of the beach kept the water at bay.

…its got to be here…

Natalya’s eyes settled upon what seemed to be a small homestead some way off, she held her hand up to shield her eyes from the glimmering water , it was bright , despite the sun almost setting.

She smiled.

With a renewed purpose in her stride, she set off towards the now almost silhouetted building.








It was now early evening and the small, white-haired old lady of about seventy years , moved slowly , yet adeptly through her small kitchen, feeling her way around, for she knew every nook and crevice by instinct, she needed to, for she was blind.

Her frail hands settled on a mug of home-brewed Caff. Not that cheap mass produced garbage that you found off-world, oh no, this was the real deal, hand grown, hand picked, and home-brewed, she knew her garden well, too.

“..oh no, we don’t like that cheap stuff do we , Gaia?…”

The comment was spoken aloud to herself, for she was alone. Talking to herself had become almost second nature now, her son had once joked that it was a sign of madness.
In fact, (she had maintained) , it was probably something which kept her sane..

She hadn’t lost her marbles…(at least not yet).

Just as she sat down, there was an alert, the doorbell, in fact.

“A visitor, at this time?… fancy that!…”

She felt for her small blaster she kept in her purse, the bulge was still there. Just knowing it was there was reassuring. Her son had brought it for her, worried at her living on her own. She scooped up her purse in her free hand, and hooked her arm through its straps leaving it to dangle freely, then put her cup down with her other hand and shuffled towards the door, muttering to herself as she went…

“…can never be to careful these days, Gaia…”

It was true, despite not ever having to use the gun, (crime here was not a major problem) One could never be to careful, after all , it could be one of those nasty intergalactic terrorists you keep hearing so much about these days on the holo-net…

The door slid aside slowly, and her senses where met with a barrage of scents, including one, which was unfamiliar.

It was a woman, she could tell that much.

“…Hello?…”


Natalya suddenly found herself looking upon an old woman , her slightly greying eyes seemingly finding her , rather than looking at her. Sensing something was amiss , Natalya spoke slightly louder than she normally would, and the old ladies eyes seemed to settle upon her.

“..Hello, I’m sorry to interrupt , I’m looking for Gaia –

Her sentence was cut short by the old lady, who smiled, with slightly yellowing teeth…

“…then found her you have yes?…I am Gaia, what can I do you for?…”

Before Natalya could answer the old lady had reached for her face , and had started to trace the contours , her touch was soft , but inquisitive. Natalya’s initial gut feeling was one of alarm , for she hadn’t expected the rather sudden movement, she had almost stepped back away from the lady until a moment of realisation hit her.

…I…I didn’t know..

The old lady coo’d to herself, as her hands swept across Natalya’s face…

For a split-second, a memory stirred within Natalya, the memory of her reaching up to touch the stranger’s face who had released her from the stasis booth on Mytus IV…Someone who had risked his life to save her…

…Kaneda…

A sudden outburst from the old lady brought Natalya to the present….

“…he wasn’t lying, was he Gaia?…she’s a lovely thing…and healthy too!, not like that other skinny young thing…”

Natalya’s face flushed red with the unexpected comment, she was embarrassed, and more than a little confused…

“…thank you, ah… my name is –

Once more the old lady interrupted her…

“…I know who you are, my dear, My Andersan told me all about you….”

Natalya’s ear’s seemed to prick up, and her face lightened at the mention of her friend, and one-time lover’s name…

“…yes…such a lovely young thing…he did well to catch you…“

The old lady’s voice seemed to fade off along with the sunset…

“..yes! thats right! Andersan, is he here?…”

The old lady seemed to freeze , as if hit by the chill of an arctic wind, and she stiffened , and shook her head slowly, her expression sad…

“…oh my dear Natalya,…

(she moved aside gingerly, gesturing inside the house with her left hand)

…you had better come in…”


…and, with the traces of confusion plainly evident upon her face, Natalya stepped inside.

Ession

Embassadorial Hotel - Diplomatic Suite




Watching quietly from the height of his room’s balcony, Achinta studied Ession’s main capital from a distance. It was late evening , and the lights of the city, its traffic, its buildings, and lamp-posts all sparkled and glowed within the enveloping blackness of the night.

It had been a long day, or at least , Mr Vinda had said so. Achinta knew the orbit of Ession around its binary star hadn’t changed , therefore the day had in actual fact been exactly the same in length, as the day before, or the day before that.

Nonetheless, he knew what his employer had meant.

The diplomatic meetings had been longer than expected, and the negotiations tougher than usual. The Essioni were being very cautious, as one would expect them to be. Deciding the fate of your homeworld, was no small, or insignificant matter.

Despite the vote in favour of joining the Corporate Commonwealth, the delegates, and representatives of Ession’s government had much they wished to discuss , mostly with regards to the key issues of sovereignty , and their place within the Commonwealth. In short where they stood.

It was still a sensitive time , and all knew it.

Including, Mr Vinda.

Achinta had been observing a subtle, but noticeable change in his demeanour, Vinda , looked weary. The endless talks , and meetings had seemed to drain him, and while this concerned the HRD , there was something else which perplexed him more.

Vinda was not sleeping, at least, not as much as he should be. Achinta had been keeping a careful, and ever observant eye on his employer, he had even asked members of staff to keep him informed of the old man’s seemingly irregular habits.

Vinda was being secretive, he was working on something, Achinta knew Vinda as much as he knew his own circuits, and he knew the Vinda-Corp figure-head was up to something. Just what it was, he had been unable to find out. Vinda had even kept it hidden from him.

This had not happened before, and the Android was not sure how to respond.

One thing he did know, was it was starting to affect his health, and despite Achinta’s many requests for him to see a medic, Vinda had declined.

Achinta was worried.


After countless checks and rechecks in the hotel’s security protocols , Achinta had started to sense the hotel staff and entourage were starting to tire of him. It was his job, true, but even he had to acknowledge he had been more obsessive about it than usual…

A thought flashed through his mind, and he rang through to reception.

”..reception, how can I help?…”

“..this is Achinta Vega, Mr Vinda’s Part—

(he was interrupted quickly, by the exasperated voice of the receptionist)

“..I know who you are Mr Vega, you rang through not five minutes ago…there is no cause for alarm or concern, everything is fine…”

“..did you check the doors were secured?…”

(there was a distinct , pause , as if the woman were biting her tongue…she then drew an audible large intake of air as she replied)

”…yes. Mr Vega. All the doors have been locked, and checked, the Security personnel are here and have all signed in , Mr Vinda has not been disturbed, there have been no reports of suspicious activities or persons…Please, stop ringing through to reception, everything has been checked and double checked…this is the eleventh time you’ve called down in the past hour…I don’t know what more to tell you!”

Her tone was almost a plea, the poor woman hadn’t been able to get a thing done all night…

Achinta acknowledged and signed off, begrudgingly. He had to agree , she had a point.

Maybe he had been a little overzealous , obsessive perhaps?

Achinta returned to staring out of the window once more, before turning around in a flurry of black to the long range holo-net communicator inside his room.

Activating it, he manually typed in the destination, and its intended recipient.

With a slight burst of static the holo-feed burst into life, its blue hue engulfed the darkened room, and the bodyguard himself. His eyes fell upon the familiar figure who rather sluggishly came into view…

It was then he remembered the time difference between each other’s worlds…

(and he apologised)

“…Scipio, its Achinta, I’m sorry , its late. I’ve woken you haven’t I?…”

He wanted to talk, or perhaps more precisely, he wanted to talk to her.

Capricia




"Let us turn to the task of the Consular Operations mandate." the Vinda Corporation Representative said. "From the wide lattitude given in the mandate, it is hard to determine just what their function is..."


"..and," another Representative to the right of the first continued, "..if we cannot determine the function of an organization, then it is hard to justify allocating funding for it."


Scipio Arien simply looked at the two representatives with a mixture of resentment and amusement. They had been in the meeting for nearly three hours. The New Commonwealth required sorely needed man-power. The responsibilities previously handled by the individual Caprician Clans were now the functions of various Commonwealth Departments. And for those departments to be filled with qualified individuals, it was necessary for the Clan structure of Capricia to be dissolved.

Herridian, Leantre, Zier and Scipio all knew the end of the Clan Structure was coming, it's deathknell felt during the Conquest.

Still, these auditor types didn't make the dissolving of her Clan any easier.

"Consular Operations dealt with problems of a more clandestine nature." Scipio answered quietly.

"As in spies?"

"Not quite. Con Ops does not maintain personnel on foreign worlds. They are trained for.." she smiled sweetly, "problem solving."

Inspiration hit her. "Sort of like your company 'Specialists'. Different terminology, but essentially the same idea."

"And you lead these people?"

"Well, I am...was.. leader of Scipio Clan whose function served as more or less a Ministry of State. Con Ops was a small division within which handled situations that could affect our 'State'."


"But I do not see where the funding for this ...organization came from.."


"That's because it did not come from the central government of the Regent."


"I am afraid I do not understand, Ms. Arien."

"Of course you don't. You are thinking like a company man. Each Clan had it's own revenue and each had it's own funding. What you are looking over is the budgeting for the Regent's Central Government.

You haven't even seen Scipio Clan's books, let alone Leantre's..."

The Representative looked up sharply and the other gave a weary sigh. "How many 'accounts' are there?"


"Roughly about twenty seven." Scipio answered with some perverted relish and one representative groaned.


"Thank you Ms. Arien. You've been... helpful." and Scipio breathed a sigh of relief just to get out of the meeting.

"Remind me to never set up a new government system again.." she murmured to Tyscio Zier as he too emerged from such a meeting.

"Can you believe this Vinda Corporation runs most business off a main account? How can they get anything done??" the white haired Fleet Leader griped.

"At this point," Scipio said rubbing her eyes, "Vinda Corp can go get itself lost in a black hole."

Zier laughed a bit. "You were in there a while. Care for a drink?"

Scipio yawned shaking her head, "This girl is headed for bed."

"Need to be bright eyed for the accountants tomorrow?" Tyscio teased.

The gesture Scipio gave back was not becoming of a woman of her upbringing. Still it had the desired effect as Zier turned around chuckling.



*


(BEEP)











(BEEP)














(BEEP... BEEP)











(PING)







Scipio opened an eye sleepily as a slight burst of static came forth, the holo-feed coming to life.


It began to cast a blue hue throughout her darkened room and she yawned.


Who ?


Her mind attempted to will her limbs to action and slowly she began to move to the holonet transmitter.

Having nothing on but a silk-yet-skimpy two piece on, she felt the cold of the air circulators.

Any thought of irritation left as soon as the form of the person contacting her solidified.


Achinta! and the adrenaline of her heart beating faster drove the sleepiness away somewhat.


“…Scipio, its Achinta, I’m sorry , its late. I’ve woken you haven’t I?…”


She smiled fondly at him. Ever the gentleman..


"Don't be silly, Achinta."


her tired eyes showed a spark of pleasure.


"..of course you've woken me. But talking to you is never an inconvenience, honey."


She moved a hand out and her fingers danced across the holonet controls that would allow Achinta's terminal to follow her movements.

She started to put on a sheer robe and began to move towards the kitchen to get some caffeine in her system.

As she did so, she called out, "I am actually glad you called. How fares your mission?"

Ession



Achinta’s eyes watched the holographic projection of Scipio with a kind of quiet intensity, though the smile that had formed in seeing the Caprician woman , seemed to diminish slightly as she asked him about his assignment on Ession.

There was a distinct pause as the HRD seemed to reflect for a moment on the strange behaviour of his employer.

Despite wanting to share it all with Scipio, he decided it was probably not best to do so over the holo-net…

The traces of a frown burrowed itself across Achinta’s brow…

“…its been…..not what I had expected…” (came the rather cryptic response)…

His eyes seemed to glaze over and drift from the holo-feed for a moment…

“…Mr Vinda has been under a lot of pressure lately…”

Achinta stopped, and looked back up at Scipio…

“..the actual talks are going well, and the Essioni have agreed in principle to join the Commonwealth…but…its not the talks that concerns me…”

His expression had grown serious…

“…but it would not be wise to talk about it over the holo-net…”

His eyes lowered for a brief moment, then rested fondly upon the figure of the Caprician Ambassador once more, prompting the Android to consciously change the subject .

"... I heard about the funding meetings...how did they go?..."

Another thought flashed through his mind just as quickly...

..and as if on cue, a small but playful smile started to spread across his lips, as he watched the Visage of Scipio dressed in almost nothing but her robe…

“…I should call at this time more often…” (he quipped mischievously)

Somewhere on the Outer Rim





‘NO!’


Natalya felt an overwhelming urge to shout aloud at the top of her voice, to scream with every ounce of energy she could muster, as if to defy the harsh reality that had suddenly been unwittingly thrust upon her…

…but all she could do was gasp…

…Andersan ….

….dead!?…. Natalya found the thought could barely register in her mind…

The blind woman’s words had cut her deeply, so deeply it was as if she had carved them into her using a razor…

I don’t believe it!…I …. I can’t believe it…

Natalya wanted to tell Gaia that she was wrong, that she was mistaken, that maybe she was senile. …But all she could do was sit there, stunned into dumb silence…

After what seemed like an eternity Natalya spoke, only marginally aware that her voice had started to crack…

“…How?…” She asked numbly…


As Gaia carefully and tactfully explained to Natalya everything she knew, her words seemed to merge into a sound that Natalya barely heard as a deep numbness engulfed her …

It seemed to shut off all feeling.

Gaia stopped , and finished. She looked up in Natalya ‘s direction as if sensing the young woman’s sorrow , and for a moment her blank , expressionless eyes seemed to hold a look of pride . In this moment the old woman seemed to defy her frailness, as a strange kind of strength seemed to emanate from within her. Her voice was clear and certain.

“…he died doing something he believed in, he died trying to save others….”

(She paused)

“…And you…”

Those last words hit home, and Natalya could feel the knot within her stomach tighten, felt the lump in her throat grow, and her eyes beginning to well up…

She fought against it…

Murdered by Kalatan!…

Gaia’s words, flashed and circled within her head, like a caged animal circling its prison in a vein attempt to find release…

Anger flashed through her entire being, if Kalatan had not already been dead, she would have surely upped and left at that moment to kill him. It was no comfort to learn he had died either… a part of her cursed him for being able to escape her wrath…

Her eyes grew cold and the hatred burned as these thoughts crashed through her…

…consider yourself lucky Aramaya!…

All too quickly, a horrid realisation permeated her thoughts, and she suddenly felt sick to her stomach…

..I sent him to Bonadan!…asked him to go and warn everybody…he went because of me!…

The last thought she didn’t want to realize, but the speed of her logic racing through her head gained a momentum with which she had no control over, and it lead to the inevitable, but dreaded conclusion…

…I killed him...

“…He’s dead because of me, …” Natalya muttered aloud dumbly… “I killed him…”

The feeling enveloping her now, was of guilt, it gnawed at her , it ached, and it was a raw pain, which physically made her wince…

“…don’t be so silly!…” Gaia spoke in reply , plainly. The rather blunt reproach caused Natalya to look directly at her…it also seemed to have the unexpected side effect of halting her thoughts, abruptly.

Maybe it was being blind, or perhaps a lifetime’s wisdom and knowledge, or perhaps both, but whatever the cause, it ensured that although Gaia could not see Natalya’s sorrow or the guilt written across her face, she could sense it.

The elderly woman shuffled beside her, and took Natalya’s hand within hers, it felt warm , and tough, but it was reassuring…

As was her voice.

“…Don’t ever think that my dear…what Andersan did he did by his own choice, and even if he had the chance to start over, and choose again… what do you think he would do?…”

This quandary provided a brief moment of clarity within Natalya’s thoughts, for she knew in her heart the answer to that…and it eased the guilt a little…

Gaia seemed to sense this, and smiled wisely…

There was no need for it to be answered out aloud, for they both knew the answer anyway.

As Natalya looked down upon the woman now sitting beside her, she felt her defences fail…the loss was eating her up inside, welling up and bubbling , it needed to escape…

“…I came back for him …I…”She started to speak, but something in the back of her throat obstructed her voice, and she suddenly became aware of how dry her mouth had become…
As the tears started to stream down across her cheeks, Gaia reached over and held Natalya tightly to console her, and Natalya did the same…

It had been a long time since she had cried on anyone’s shoulder, she felt herself go, and wept bitterly…

“I know my dear…” Came the old woman’s soft reply…












“Here you go…” Gaia’s hands carefully and deftly placed a cup of warm Caff into Natalya’s waiting hands. Despite the dryness of her mouth, and her nose still blocked from all the crying , it tasted good. In fact, it was the best she’d ever tasted…

It was oddly soothing…and for a brief moment she lost herself in the caramel clouds that swirled within the cup as she stirred her spoon mixing the milk and the beverage together…

Something obvious, crossed her mind…

“..how did you find out?…who told you?…” Her voice was weak, and curious sounding…

Gaia took a sip from her mug, and smiled faintly, and she looked off into the distance away from Natalya’s direction, as if picturing the day she herself had found out…

“..It was a young woman, she came with some men, by the way they walked I’d say they were in the army, or something like that…she told them to wait outside…” A frown creased her forehead…

“…Skinny young thing she was…I knew she wasn’t you, Andersan had described you to me …” She smiled again as she spoke, and Natalya smiled back, more because of an instinctive reaction than anything else…

“…oh!..Curse my mind!…what was her name!…” The frown on the old woman’s face had deepened further…she was cross with herself now…

“…Lana?…no…Tanya?…oh! What was it!…”

“…Yana.” Natalya spoke firmly, but disconnected. She surprised herself with both the forwardness of her response, and because she had no idea why she knew that name…

“..Yes…yes that was it!, Yana!, yes, Yana Okani…do you know her?…”

Natalya shook her head absently in reply, slightly puzzled as to why she knew the name in the first place, forgetting in the process about Gaia’s affliction…

“..no, I er …no I don’t…” She followed up quickly as she realised her mistake…

The frown although receded somewhat, still wrinkled the old lady’s face as she continued…

“…oh…well.. Apparently she’s looking for her children…two of them…poor love, but she’d come all the way here to tell me what had happened to my Andersan, she said she was there…” Her voice trailed off slightly as she remembered what took place the day Yana Okani had come to her door.

“...I hope she finds them…” (She added )

Natalya nodded , and although she had been listening, she was still trying to remember how she knew that name…
…and after failing, she decided to burn it to memory once more; this ‘Yana’ was obviously someone she needed to talk with.

“...I have something for you..” Gaia spoke abruptly, as if just remembering something, and as her words sank in, Natalya looked up to see her already shuffling off to the corner of her living room where they had sat.

Natalya’s brow furrowed as she watched Gaia rifle through several boxes stacked up on each other, getting cross with herself once again. As she took a sip of the brown liquid , Natalya’s head still throbbed; she felt it was telling her it didn’t want any more information to process. It had , had enough.

As the young woman rubbed her temple , she did not notice Gaia standing next to her until a metallic rectangular box, roughly about a foot in length, was thrust into her sight…

She looked up towards the old woman questioningly, and Gaia once more seemed to sense this, and gestured with a subtle movement of her hand (and the box it was holding), in reply.

Still frowning, Natalya placed her mug of Caff down beside her on a small table and gingerly took the box with both hands…

She felt a sudden, indescribable pull, an instinctive draw, to the box, or more precisely whatever lay inside of it. She felt her whole body become fluid, as if sensing the pull. Something stirred in her, ebbed through her. Suddenly her whole being seemed heightened, her senses, her touch, and her grief….

The metal was cold to the touch, but smooth, and as she opened it, her eyes settled upon a purple velveteen-esque interior, it was a case, and something else metallic glinted from in-between the velvet covering…slowly she pulled it away…

Her senses were alive, and her body was channelling a feeling which told her this was hers by birthright, a voice, no, voices from nowhere seemed to flow through her , but they were all saying the same thing, in unison…

Carefully lifting the object to eye level she grasped its handle and felt its smooth surface…

Gaia spoke as she heard Natalya lift the object…

“..Andersan brought it here for safekeeping one day, just before he went to Bonadan, told me he had found it, while he was searching for you…he told me it was for you, and to give it to you if anything should happen to him, he said it was important…he told me to tell you…
… it belonged to your mother…”

Gaia’s words were a revelation to Natalya, but they also felt right, the same force drawing her to the object she held in her hands, told her these words were true…
Natalya didn’t know what to say, she had not known about this, and suddenly her brain hurt again, with yet another tirade of questions…

…my mothers!?….

Her fingers ran across its hilt and felt their way around its small , almost delicate-like controls, a single button…and although she didn’t really know how…


She activated it.


The crackle and buzz of its bright piercing violet beam , seemed to make the old woman jump, she obviously had no idea what it was..

Natalya moved it from side to side slowly, and watched hypnotized by its glow, its beauty, its elegance…

It hummed loudly in response.


….my mother had a lightsaber!?…

Natalya’s head raced with yet more questions that this thought awakened…

“..are you ok dear?…” Came Gaia’s eventual inquiry…

Natalya , deactivated it , and turned to face her, with a tear slowly making its way down across her face …

“…I’ll be fine…”

Taking sip from her mug Gaia smiled…



“…let me show you my Caffa bean plants!…”

Capricia




“…its been…..not what I had expected…” came the rather cryptic response as Scipio poured herself some Caff.

Nice hot caff…, she thought happily as her attention went solely to the projection of Achinta.

“…Mr Vinda has been under a lot of pressure lately…”

The Caprician woman raised an eyebrow at the other’s hesitation. She knew the man was worried about Mr. Vinda and this set her ill at ease as well.

The transition from corporation and a political power (respectively) was taking a large toll on the people of both worlds.

“..the actual talks are going well, and the Essioni have agreed in principle to join the Commonwealth…but…its not the talks that concerns me…”

His expression had grown serious… or as serious as the HRD could be. The gravity in his voice was enough to bring Scipio up short.

“…but it would not be wise to talk about it over the holo-net…”

She nodded at the prudence of Achinta’s statement even though it bothered her. Like an itch she could not scratch…

And then the android seemed to warm a bit as if he had just noticed her… really noticed her.

Men!, she thought fondly with mock indignation.

"... I heard about the funding meetings...how did they go?..."

She unsuccessfully tried to suppress a groan. “Vinda Corp’s Accounting Personnel are leeches!” she exclaimed, the past few days meetings come to mind in a rush of thoughts.

“It’s as if nothing exists if it’s not…” and her voice and mannerism made a passable impression of the rather dour Vinda Accounting Employee. “..properly accounted for within the General Ledger.”

She was so wrapped up in her impersonation that she missed Achinta’s grin spread slowly across his face.

By the time she did notice it, she thought something was out of place as she unconsciously looked down following the hologram’s line of sight.

Achinta’s voice wrapped over her action, “…I should call at this time more often…” and she looked up sharply, her mock indignation flaring up once more though the mere fact that he had noticed her pleased her immensely.

“I should have said lechers… not leeches..” she quipped automatiically though without heat.

Self consciously she pinched her flat stomach detecting with an intuition only a woman could have that she was gaining weight (though such changers were not visible).

“The meetings will go on for a few more days before the blood-money hounds go after Herridian Clan’s books. I should be free then. How soon until your duties on Ession are complete? Will you be coming back or would you like me to go to the Corporate Sector? There’s a convoy headed out of Capricia at the end of the week…”


She wondered how this new Commonwealth was going to work. She knew that she would probably have to move to the Corporate Sector. Achinta could not simply walk away from his duties to Mr. Vinda. If there was any other person synonymous with Vinda Corp, it was Achinta.

Somebody will have to teach those corporate lackeys Caprician aesthetics and love of life.

Ession





Achinta couldn't help but let loose a sly smile at the Caprician woman's comments, but continued to listen intently to her frustration at the Vinda-Corp personnel sent to evaluate the Caprician's departments.

Nodding in agreement Achinta replied...

"...they can be ...persistent, yes... but then, it is their job to be so...but they shall weigh the circumstances carefully....Mr Vinda selected them personally for the task at hand..."

He paused momentarily, then continued..." it is no small thing rebuilding a devastated economy, and it cannot be rushed...luckily, Capricia , and its outlying systems have many natural resources with which to draw from, and with the correct system or systems in place, your people shall start to see the benefits quite soon...."

The HRD seemed to reflect upon this thought himself...

"..in fact , I believe, Mr Bayern is on Capricia now in preparation to oversee the new gas refinery being built above Kendra..." He added , informatively.

Achinta knew the going-ons at Vinda-Corp better than anybody else, except next to Mr Vinda, of course.

His voice changed sutbtly, as if picking up on Scipio's thoughts...

"..it'll take time , but we'll get there..." He stated, warmly.

His thoughts fell back to the situation on Ession reluctantly, and he frowned. Seeing Scipio had been a welcome distraction...

"...I do not know how much longer this summit will take..." The bodyguard trailed off slightly...

His eyes planted a warm gaze firmly upon Scipio and he smiled affectionatly...

"...I would like to see you..."

Achinta's attention was broken as a shrill sounding comms alert rang through...

"..Sorry, excuse me, one moment..." He turned away from the holo-feed quickly and answered his comm unit, still within earshot of Scipio waiting...




"...Yes, go ahead..."


"...Mr Vega, I'm sorry to disturb you , but, there is an Alien down here at reception who insists on speaking with Mr Vinda. Only he will not say what it is about, he appears to be very excitable , his basic is pretty poor. I can't make head nor tail from it, I can't even make out his name ..."

"...Mr Vinda gave strict instructions to not be disturbed..." Achinta stated flatly.

"...I know that sir, we have told him this repeatedly, but he won't listen, says its important. Keeps rambling on about it being life or death, says he has some important information. We've tried calming him down but he's become increasingly agitated... I was about to call the authorities.Sir, I think he's a loon...but the security team have subdued him"

The ridge across Achinta's brow furrowed deeper, as he paused to consider the situtation...

"...I'll be down...hold him until I come down..."

...Roger that.

As the voice on the other end signed off , Achinta turned his attention back to the holo-terminal, and the patient figure of Scipio...

"...Sorry for the interruption Scipio, but I am afraid I have to go, somethings come up..."

And as Scipio nodded in acknowledgement , Achinta smiled ruefully..

"...duty calls..."

Natabb City - Capricia

Caprician Archives




Kaneda cursed to himself quietly underneath his breath. He had been wandering about the vast Caprician repository of knowledge for most of the afternoon, and had not found any thing that would have caused the power surge that Vice-Admiral Omar had reported.

The Section agent was starting to get the feeling he was chasing his own shadow.


As he quietly and methodically walked through the Archive, the soles of his well-polished shoes tapped lightly upon the stone surface underneath. This had the effect of causing his footsteps to reverberate around him.
Despite his light footfalls , their sound contrasted sharply against the barely audible hum of the rows and rows of ancient computers quietly protecting generations of knowledge.

He glanced down at his wrist scanner, and breathed a small frustrated sigh.

It had failed to detect anything of consequence, but then, he wasn’t entirely sure what he was looking for.

Kaneda frowned lightly.

…perhaps it was just an anomaly …


Although his instincts told him otherwise, Kaneda was a creature of logic, and his time came at a premium, reluctantly , he knew it could be put to better use.

Taking a final glance around him, Kaneda turned around and started to retrace his steps.



Until something stopped him dead in his tracks.

Interlude


Capricia - 1100 years ago..




The man was in his forties, his hair turning from an early gray to silver as he stepped out of his personal transport. He knew he was surrounded as he noted Skarra Molinjar's soldiers, each divided into their own camp.


Divided by House loyalties.


The feudal system of Houses that had served Capricia for so many centuries was finally coming to an end.


But was this the end truly? Or merely another turn in the cycle of life before coming full circle?


There was a younger man awaiting him at the center. He couldn't tell if Molinjar was relieved that he hadn't come with armies or if the young man was disappointed that he wouldn't fight.


"You are?" the young man shot out taking nothing for granted and the older man had to smile.


Yes, Molinjar was the leader Capricia had needed for unification. Unfortunately, Molinjar's ambitions went much farther. Went beyond their planet.


There was talk from various traders that would come by of a coalition of worlds forming a government of sorts. A centralization of the major industrial planets and trade factions.


A Republic.


A noble idea. But one more suited for another time. For the galaxy still resided within a Dark Age.


The older man bowed elegantly. "I am Mr. Stettin, Visician of the Noble House."


The two words caught Molinjar's interest as his eyes widened. Even so unarmed, Noble House was a name to be reckoned... feared.


"So it does exist.." the younger man whispered.


The Visician bowed again. "Indeed."


"There were always stories... whispers in shadow of Noble House.... but no real proof. No one claims allegiance to it. It is not mentioned in any literature. And yet, it's influence is felt...."


"One cannot kill what one does not know about.." Stettin answered philosophically.


Molinjar's eyes narrowed. "You think to sway me? You think to stop me here so you can continue to manipulate behind the scenes. Pit house against house...??"


Stettin used the time the younger man was asking his questions to truly survey the banners of the houses arrayed against the mysterious Noble House.


Two days ago, Molinjar had broadcast across the entire planet for a meeting of his forces and those of Noble House. The challenge surprised many people but not those who worked for the Visician. They knew their day was coming.

Molinjar could not effectively lead if people were afraid of something omnipotent...

If Noble House proved a myth... then their not showing up would have signaled to the Caprician people that nothing would challenge Molinjar in his rise to power.

If Noble House proved real. Then there was a chance to defeat it and still remain unchallenged. But if Molinjar lost, then so was Noble House's precious mystique.

A bold plan. Something that the aligned houses could work together toward.



But Noble House was ready. Ready for what needed doing.


"I have no need to sway you, Molinjar. For there is nothing left to defend." the man said, sighing at once. He could see the confusion on the younger man's face and so he elaborated. "Noble House has been dissolved. There is no longer a need for it."


Molinjar's lips curled into a grim smile. "You'd like me to believe that, Noble House man. But once you have a taste of power..."


"Power is not our goal. The protection and safety of Capricia is!" the Visician interupted.

Molinjar was not used to being interrupted.

Stettin went on. "Now that you have united the Houses, the protection and safety fall to you."


Molinjar rubbed his chin in contemplation as Stettin continued. "Protector of Capricia. Clannus Prime. A title that you may take for yourself. It was once a title of respect. Of renown. You can make it so again."


The title sparked something in the younger man's eyes.


Yes, he would take that title.


"I am dissapointed in you, Visician." Molinjar had trouble with the unfamiliar title. "We make our own destiny. I expected Noble House to have more backbone than this...."


Now Stettin did allow a proud grin to play across his face. "An arrogance born by ruling unchallenged these centuries, I am afraid."


Molinjar saw the pride in Stettin and was at once jealous. He flickered a hand and Stettin slumped to the floor before the sound of the shot could be heard.


"Prepare to be challenged, Noble House man." Molinjar murmured and his soldiers began to cheer.


He motioned others to search the transport and men began to swarm all over the equipment.


"I don't bargain. I don't negotiate. I remove threats." he spoke to the body.



*


"Lord Molinjar!"


"What have you, Scipio?" the young leader turned to one of his trusted Lieutenants.

"He failed to remove all files. Bank Accounts... Property taxes..." Scipio looked up from his portable computer readout. "Sir! This Noble House is wealthy beyond wealth.. and we've got them!"


Molinjar's eyes moved to the body of Stettin. "He must have been nervous. Thinking he would impress us with his courage to face us." He took the portable computer readout and skimmed it some. It was hard for him to decypher but he could make out various districts and counties.


In one swift stroke, I could remove the whole damn thing!


With Noble House gone, I could rule unchallenged as the Clannus Prime!


"Scipio, prepare the men!"





**





Molinjar's forces used the information found in the transport to seize both monetary and capital assets held by the mysterious Noble House. Oh, nothing was ever mentioned of the Noble House at those locations but the strange icon that Stettin had worn were seen at various locations.

The people found there were put down mercilessly.


And the people cheered Molinjar for the fear of Noble House was no easy chain to discard. Not after centuries of shadow and whispers.


A rather large mansion was set ablaze... articles within indicating that it was the seat of power for the organization that had grown decadent. There was evidence that Stettin had lived there.


The fires of Noble House burned for a long time....


Molinjar began to make speeches of a unified Capricia... and of a destiny for a galactic Republic.




Unfortunately, he died a year after the destruction of Noble House and his followers abandoned the idea of a Republic. His Lieutenants, having been with Molinjar from the beginning, transformed their duties to that of government function. The first of the Clans were formed around a leader termed Clannus Prime (a name his Lieutenants knew Molinjar expected to take for himself as supreme leader) and a division between the rich and poor houses would start to define the dynamics of Caprician society that would govern the planet for the next thousand years.


Only history books would speculate on the "what if's" if Molinjar had lived. And soon, even Molinjar himself was forgotten.


Capricia remained united until the social divisions among Caprician society began to break down their social structure.


It is also speculated that Capricia would have undergone a change in government had the first Invasion not occurred. The Yuuzhan Vong destroyed the tenuious grip of the Clans. In the wake of their absence, a Civil War erupted that the Clans could not control and so the Clan government of a thousand years left as the social classes fought amongst themselves.

Five years later, the Clans would return to reclaim their government. The planet, already weakened from Civil War and with unrest prevalent were ready to welcome any change even if it meant a return to the old ways.

Reconstruction began to take place but history would not allow the Clans to retain power. The Invaders returned to enforce their Conquest of Capricia and even the Clans had to acknowledge that their power was broken.


History, it seemed, would allow the Clans no mercy. It's illusions of prosperity no matter what actions the Clan government took was just that... an illusion.


History had told the people that it was their will, their desire to write their own destiny, their adhering to self reliance that would make their people great.

Molinjar's philosophy lived on in history. He had defeated the grand monster.

And so, why could the Clans not prevail despite all?


Suffice to say it was not due to a lack of purpose, a lack of true and noble motive, nor due to a lack of will or good intent.



Suffice to say it was only due to one reason...





...it was because, quite frankly, History had lied.