Star Wars: Rebellion and Betrayal

Chapter 27

"I admire your fire, Governor Kerrim," Leneh finally said after a few more chuckles. "And I am inclined to agree with you. That is why I will be dispatching reinforcements to your aid. An Imperial-class Star Destroyer as well as two additional light cruisers will arrive by the next rotation. ISB Supervisor Ja-que Aga will brief you on my plan to establish a full blockade of Serenno."

"A full blockade!" Kasdeya shouted. "How am I supposed to—"

"Good day, Governor," Leneh interrupted before closing the comm channel.

That did not go as planned, Kasdeya thought as she stared at the dormant holoprojector. But then again, nothing had been going as planned for her. She hadn't planned to be drawn into another conflict after narrowly surviving the Clone War. And she sure hadn't planned to have her normally stable emotions upended like a rancor on roller skates. But that last one was definitely Rhodes' fault. The thought of him brought her gaze to the single shelf on the wall of her office. She got up and gingerly made her way over to it.

"Anything I might be able to do to help?" Lugos asked, his voice still a bit shaky.

Kasdeya ignored him and reached for the framed picture of her and the Jedi. She brushed her hand over the dusty frame and couldn't help but allow a slight smile.

Rhodes wore a poncho with his short hair, but that was all overshadowed by the beaming grin on his face. She was in a similar outfit with her hair pulled back into a loose ponytail. They were at a small shop somewhere in the outer rim. She never knew where they were as they hopped from planet to planet avoiding Count Dooku's bounty hunters. It was a time when things were somehow simpler. Even with a galaxy at war, the time she spent with him felt so straightforward. All they had to do was survive.

Now, surviving was just one of the many things that swarmed her brain.

Kasdeya held the photo close to her chest and she moved back to her desk. She placed the photo on the corner of the desk. While adjusting it, her fingers slid across a lump on the back of the frame. After feeling around for a few seconds, she flipped the frame around and noticed a small black device with a faint green light. She glanced at Lugos who had been watching curiously from the corner of the room. "Lugos, you trust me, right?"

"Of course, Your Excellency."

"Then what I am about to tell you shall never be spoken of again."

The burden of leadership often includes many different emotions stemming anywhere from anger and frustration to pride and fulfillment. Today, Abie didn't know what she was feeling but it was definitely closer to anger than anything else.

She sat hunched over in a small chair in the back of the command room.

"Something the matter, Commander?" Oster asked, peering down at Abie's face.

Abie let out an involuntary sigh. It wasn't that Oster annoyed her; it was just hard to have a new officer reporting to her. It had been months, but she still missed Nina. Abie looked up at Oster's concerned face. "Twitch and Rhodes are just... I can't believe they..." Abie clenched her eyes shut as she tried to gain her composure.

"It's ok, Commander. I'm sure they will make it back alright."

"I know they will make it back, and when they do there will be hell to pay." Abie grunted as she got up from her seat. She brushed past Oster and into the next hallway where she was illuminated by light from the base entrance.

The sunshine on Mercuris was deceivingly bright at times. From inside the base, it looked like the sun was blazing down on the small moon. Abie stepped out into the frigid air to see the Iron Stump soaring past the base, touching down in the adjacent landing field. She was waiting with arms crossed as she saw Rhodes and Twitch leading a small group of rebels.