In Command (#1 Post-Order 66 Series)

In Command - Part 9

Zea looked around and lowered her voice confidentially. Senna leaned in, hoping that would encourage her. "Brak hasn't told me much, but it sounds like operations on Ilum will tie into that large new project we mentioned at our last dinner. He's started to coordinate operations on both worlds and might be up for an interplanetary coordinator position soon." Zea's eyes were alight with excitement at the thought of her husband's imminent promotion. Senna felt like she was going to vomit, but she smiled back.

"A new promotion so soon? Brak must be very skilled in his work. I hope he gets it."

"Me too," Zea sighed, leaning against Senna. It was all Senna could do to keep a smile plastered on her face as she felt her legs wobbling underneath her as they reached the shop entrance.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Rex heard the front door hiss shut, marking Senna's return from the market. "How'd it go?" he called out from his room. When he didn't receive a response, the hairs on the back of his neck stood up slightly. Something's wrong. Reaching for his blaster, he crept to the door of the room and peeked around the corner. He could see her standing in the kitchen, her back turned to him, the groceries and supplies carelessly dropped on the floor next to her. She had her hands braced on the countertop, her head drooping below her shoulders, and she was quivering slightly. Rex crept to her side, gently reaching out a hand to grasp her shoulder. "Senna?"

She slowly turned her head to look at him. Her expression was pained and she was chewing her lip furiously.

"Are you alright? What happened?" he asked, holstering his blaster.

"No...no I'm fine. We have to find out what's going on with this super weapon, Rex. They're doing something on Ilum."

"Ilum? Isn't that where you-"

"Yes. It's where we get our kyber crystals. It's a Jedi holy site. I don't know what they're doing there, but it can't be good. There aren't many other things that would be of interest to the Empire on that planet."

He squeezed her shoulder. "We'll figure it out. We've got the conference next week. Do you have all the equipment you need for that?"

She nodded, reaching down to grab the bag she'd dropped at her feet. "Yeah, these power couplers and signal modulators should do the trick. A few minor adjustments and we should be able to tap into everything they're saying while we're there."

"Good. By the way, Organa contacted me. The courier will be by in a bit to grab the disks. It'll be a quick turn and he'll be out of here again."

"He? Anyone we know?"

Rex smiled. "He's an old friend of mine."

"Trustworthy?"

"I'd trust him with my life."

There was a soft knock at the front door, and a grin crept onto Rex's face. "That'll be him." He turned and walked into the entryway, Senna trailing behind. When Rex opened up the door, Senna was surprised to see a droid standing outside. The droid was taller than ones she was used to and unlike any prototype she'd ever seen with a blinking panel on its face and a scomp tool where its right hand might have been. The droid strode inside, and Senna moved to examine it.

"What kind of droid is this? I've never seen one like it. He's incredible! His motion is so fluid, his stabilizers must be top of the line," she said, examining the droid's leg joints.

"Well, thank you ma'am," the droid chuckled with a voice that was a little too familiar.

Senna leapt backwards in confusion as the droid lifted his face panel, revealing a human face strikingly similar to Rex's in structure, but incredibly pale with dark circles under his eyes. "You...you're a clone!" she exclaimed in surprise.