================================== Star Wars: The TIE Fighter (Part 1) Walter Slaven DISCLAIMER: the following story contains graphic scenes of consensual sex between adults of various planetary origins. Prologue: The following story takes place in the STAR WARS universe, but is told from a unique and different perspective, that of a veteran Imperial TIE fighter pilot, Captain Vel Tallig. I have tried to remain true to the events, personnages, places, ship- types, weapons systems and technologies portrayed in the original three Star Wars movies and in the Lucasarts computer games X-wing, TIE fighter and their add-ons. This story began at a point in time prior to the events portrayed in the original Star Wars film: Episode IV:A new Hope. Enjoy. WalterS Part One- Battle on the Frontier This X-wing pilot was good. Real good. I was hanging onto his tail, but he wasn't giving me a shot. He jinked and jerked wildly and unpredictably from side to side and up and down as I diverted nearly all power to my TIE fighter's engines just to try to stay with him. It wasn't easy at that. My craft was shaking and bouncing like a bucket of spare parts rolling down a ladder and I was worried that at any moment one of the large port or starboard solar panels would come apart. Although I couldn't get a lock on the X-wing, I fired off a laser blast now and then to let the guy know I was still here, and so that he would keep his shields up, thereby diverting power he could use to run away from me. The X- wing is the top of the line Rebel fighter. It's bigger, faster, and packs a more powerful punch than my TIE fighter. It also has shields. The TIE doesn't. If the X-wing got far enough away so that he could maneuver, he could turn and, with those nasty quad lasers, blast me into space junk. So, as I hung onto this guy while we raced through space, it occurred to me that I had one very nasty cat by the tail and I had better not let go. The X-wing jerked violently left and I only barely stayed with him. I glanced at my situation display hoping that one of my wingmen in Gamma squadron might be able to help me. No luck. I had chased this X-wing too far for them to provide support and, anyway, most of them had similar troubles of their own. Through my headset I could hear Gamma 4 asking Gamma 3 where in the hell these X-wings came from. It was a good question. When we were briefed aboard our mothership, the Imperial frigate GUSTAV, we were told this would be just another routine patrol out on the frontier- the outer reaches of the Empire. At the most we would encounter smugglers or bounty hunters and the like in old Z-95 Headhunter fighters or modified corvettes. That's what was usually out here. The Rebels and their X-wings weren't here. I'd have to have a chat with Commander Selena, the Operations Officer, when I got back. If I got back. The X-wing was beginning to pull away! He had obviously diverted some power from his shields to his engines. All of my indicators were beyond redline, the ship was vibrating and the roar of the engines was almost overpowering. I managed to coax a little more speed out of my TIE as I tried to match the X-wing's maneuvers, but I knew the ship couldn't take much more of this. This was a helluva fix. If I hung onto the X-wing, my ship could fall apart around me. If I broke off the engagement, well.... that would be letting go of the cat's tail and I had no idea whether this cat would keep running or turn, and I didn't want to find out. Suddenly, the X-wing jerked sharply up. This move caught me by surprise and I nearly raced past him. I yanked back hard on the maneuvering jets to stay with him just as he jerked his craft down again. I saw a chance. Not waiting for a laser lock I shifted the dual lasers to rapid single fire, squeezed the trigger and held it. The X-wing flew right across my path. The first two laser hits took his shields down. The second two blew the X-wing apart, the debris clattering against my ship's hull as I flew through it. I started to breathe again. I slowed, and turned back toward the rest of the squadron. "Gamma Two, this is Gamma Leader," I called to my wingman, Lieutenant Acer. I could see his TIE approaching. He had finally been able to break away and come to my assistance. "Any more X- Wings?" "No, sir," he replied. "Those we didn't get hyperspaced out of here." "We lose anybody?" I asked. We started the patrol with a flight of six TIE's, two of which were flown by new pilots. "Yes, sir. Gamma Five and Six," Acer replied. I could tell he was angry. Those were the new pilots. There was none of the usual cold Imperial resolve in his voice. The new pilots were no match for experienced Rebel pilots in X-wings. Had we suspected that X-wings were out here, those new pilots would have stayed behind until they had received more training and had a chance to get more experience. That isn't exactly Imperial policy, but it's the way we do things in my squadron. "Let's form up, Lieutenant," I told him. "We're heading back to the GUSTAV." "Yes, sir." Soon, Gamma 3 and Gamma 4 joined us and we altered course to intercept GUSTAV's projected flight path. When we got within sensor range I notified the ship of our encounter with the X-wings and downloaded my gun camera recordings and sensor data to GUSTAV. By the time we landed in her hangar bay, Commander Selena and her Operations people would have pretty thoroughly analyzed the mission. I was only sorry that I wouldn't be able to see the looks on the faces of Selena and the ship's Commanding Officer, Commander Cibock, when they learned there were X-wings out here. I could see all those intel types scratching their heads. The GUSTAV was within visual now. An older FOGGER class frigate, she always struck me as looking somewhat awkward, like a goose stuck out in space. She was a tired ship, small by current standards, whose systems were a patchwork of ill-fitting upgrades that had been slapped together over the years to keep her in service. She should have been decommissioned years ago but, because of the rebellion, the Empire needed her and others like her to patrol the frontiers and backwaters of the galaxy while the larger, more modern and prestigious Imperial Star Destroyers took on the Rebel Alliance and received regular accolades from the Emperor. We had been on our own out here. Until now. "GUSTAV, this is Captain Tallig of Gamma squadron requesting landing sequence." "Affirmative, Gamma One," came the reply from the flight officer. "Engaging tractor beam." I relaxed my grip on the controls as I felt the GUSTAV's tractor beam take hold of my TIE and guide her into the hangar bay. The operator on duty was good, and set my ship down gently into its assigned stall. Usually you get someone who bounces the ship around a few times before it skids to a halt. I was glad that this was not one of those times. I went throught the post-flight shutdown checklist quickly. When you've done it as often as I have, it becomes second nature- like killing X-wings. I glanced out of the cockpit and I saw her standing across the hangar bay, staring at my ship, waiting for me. Commander J'Una Selena, GUSTAV's Operations Officer, was one of the tallest females I had ever known, half a head taller than me. I'm sure I've encountered humanoid females who are taller, but I've never fucked any of them. A native of the Bardin system J'Una had shoulder length black hair, ebony skin and a fine figure by anyone's standards.She was also an exceptionally capable officer who knew her business. This time, though, she had come up short and I was pissed. As I climbed out of the bottom hatch of the TIE and dropped to the deck, I could see J'Una walking toward me. "Nice to see you back safely, Captain Tellig," she said with a smile, flashing those brilliant white teeth. "That was a fine bit of flying you did against that X-wing," she added. But I was in no mood for congratulations. I had lost two pilots whose names I didn't even know yet. "Thank you, Commander," I said coldly, looking up into her fire red eyes. "Now, just where the hell did those X-wings come from?" My question, and the tone in which it was asked, bordered on the insubordinate. I've known Imperial officers who have been reprimanded, arrested and worse for questioning a superior. But J'Una seemed unperturbed. She looked at me for a moment and smiled. "Captain," she said as we resumed walking toward the hangar bay door, "we don't have a clue." Her candor caught me by surprise. Though our relationship was a close one, and we had screwed more times than I could remember, I never expected a senior officer in the Imperial Navy to admit to something like that. I glanced around quickly to make sure no one was within earshot. Even on an old spacebucket like the GUSTAV out in the middle of nowhere the Imperial High Command had its eyes and ears, and you never knew who might be listening, or for what purpose. J'Una and I exited the hangar deck and turned right, heading aft along the ship's main passageway. I saw my wingman, Lieutenant Acer, and the other pilots heading forward toward the pilot's lounge. I smiled at them, flashed a thumbs-up signal and told them I'd join them later. "No idea at all?" I asked J'Una after Acer and the others had passed. "Not yet," she said, shaking her head. "Those X-wings have hyperdrive, so they could have come from just about anywhere. They could be a long range recon, they could be a raid, they could have been trying to meet with smugglers or weapons dealers, or they could have been scouting the sector for a location for a new base." "A base way out here?" I asked incredulously. "Sure, why not," she responded, smiling again. I loved that smile. It could light up a black hole. "There's been a lot of action lately in some of the inner sectors," she continued. "We've pressed the Alliance hard- smashed some convoys, broken up a spy ring, intercepted a weapons transfer. It could be they want to relocate out here in the galactic wilderness to regroup for a while. There are several systems in this sector that would suit them just fine for that purpose." "What does Commander Cibock think?" I asked, referring to GUSTAV's Commanding Officer. "I don't know," J'Una answered. "He's communicating with Sector Flag Headquarters right now. He was as surprised as I was." Once again that candor. Sometimes I wondered how J'Una had made it this far in the Imperial Navy. The answer in part was, of course, sex. Although J'Una was one of the most intelligent and capable officers I had ever served with, she was female and a Bardin. There were few females and even fewer Bardins serving in positions of responsibility in the Imperial Navy. J'Una was ambitious and knew what she wanted. If it meant fucking some Admiral or staff officer to get it, she wouldn't hesitate. And how she could fuck! "If the Alliance plans to relocate a base to this sector," I said as we continued walking aft, "it's going to get real busy around here." "Busier than a couple of squadrons of TIE fighters on an obsolete frigate can handle," she replied, actually looking concerned. I chuckled. "Commander Selena," I said feigning sincerity,"are you worried about me?" Her eyes narrowed and she seemed to look right through me. "You're not worth it, Captain," she said. Then she smiled again. We were approaching the main doors to the ship's Operations Center. This was the ship's nerve center. Intelligence was gathered and deciphered here, the communications network was here, sector scans were maintained here and all flight missions were controlled from here. Next to the bridge it was the most important area on the ship. I assumed that that was where we were going so I started to turn toward the doors. J'Una had other ideas. She grabbed my arm and pulled me along with her as we continued aft past the Operations Center. I glanced at her but she looked straight ahead. I grinned. As Operations Officer her quarters were right behind the Operations Center. This was to ensure that the Operations Officer would be available regardless of the hour. We turned a corner and walked to the door of J'Una's quarters. She punched in her access code (nearly everything on an Imperial ship has an access code) and the door slid silently open. "Why don't you come in for a drink or something," she said. "You need to relax after your flight." "Sure," I said, playing along. I stepped inside, expecting us to sit down and unwind before jumping into her bed. Wrong again. The door had barely closed behind us when J'Una grabbed the front of my flight suit and slammed me against the bulkhead, her lips grinding against mine, her long tongue snaking into my mouth almost as far as my tonsils. She bore into me and I could feel her hands fumbling with the snaps on my flight suit, opening me up. Her hands peeled away my shorts and dived in, grabbing my cock which was rapidly assuming its full proportions. She pulled her mouth away and looked down at me, lust smoldering in those red eyes. She licked the tip of my nose, my chin and my neck. Growling deep in her throat she sank to her knees and bent her head down to lick my cock. Her tongue was exquisite . J'Una massaged my balls with one hand while she jerked my cock with the other. She was strong and her grip was powerful. Her tongue bathed the head of my cock as her hands continued to work on me. I leaned back against the bulkhead as my senses were overwhelmed. My knees felt weak but I managed to keep from collapsing as J'Una licked and sucked my dick. She released my cock and my balls and her hands snaked behind me to grab my ass. She pulled me against her face as her mouth swallowed my cock. I looked down at the top of her head as she began pistoning back and forth with her mouth on my cock. The sensation was indescribable. She had an iron grip on my ass and my cock felt as though it were caught in some intergalactic vortex. J'Una increased the pistoning action with her mouth and deep-throated me on every downstroke. My hips began gyrating and I grabbed her head as I fucked her face. She was very, very good. She moved one of her hands between my asscheeks and stabbed a finger into my anus. My body stiffened and my dick got even harder. She worked her finger into my asshole as her head increased its piston-like movement on my cock. She grabbed my throbbing cock with one hand as she pulled her mouth away with a wet slurping sound. Her hand continued the frenzied pistoning motion begun by her mouth and she looked up at me and smiled and ran her tongue sensuously around her lips. "How do you like it so far, Captain," she said in a low, sultry voice. Almost unable to speak, I merely grunted and nodded affirmatively. Her hand kept pistoning up and down on my cock and I knew I was getting close. Clear fluid began oozing from my cock. The head swelled into a blunt battering ram as J'Una's fingers raced up and down the shaft, pounding the velvety, loose skin in a masturbation frenzy. With her other hand she reached beneath the base of my cock and squeezed my balls. She knew I was getting close, too, and she wanted it. Her tongue reached out toward the head of my cock, licking the juice that had leaked out. "Here it comes," I said, warning her. I grunted and pulled J'Una's face to my cock as it surged to maximum tension and exploded. J'Una's open lips closed around my large prickhead as the first blast of hot cum hit the back of her throat. My hips drove my cock into her mouth as my sperm flowed into her. I could see my cum oozing out of the corners of her mouth like white lava as she swallowed quickly. Her hand wrapped loosely around my throbbing pole, moving slightly, urging me to empty my balls into her. Finally, I was finished. J'Una released my cock and it slid wetly out of her mouth. She stood up and wiped the cum off her chin with the back of her hand. Her eyes bore into mine as she began unbuttoning her tunic. She pulled it open revealing those fantastic breasts of hers with their large nipples rising proudly from the ebony towers. She tossed the jacket aside and bent down to pull off her boots and trousers. When she stood up again she was gloriously naked, her black skin gleaming, her turgid nipples reflecting her arousal. She looked down at my now deflated penis and chuckled. "I hope you're not finished, Vel," she said, "because I'm not." With that she turned, showing me her exquisite ass, and walked slowly and sensuously across the room to her bedroom. J'Una's quarters were more lavish than most, commensurate with her rank and status. She had a large sitting room, an office, a bedroom with an actual bed as opposed to a bunk and a full bath. She paused in the doorway to her bedroom and looked over her shoulder back at me. She was an incredibly sexy sight. I quickly peeled off my jacket, flight suit and boots, and walked naked toward J'Una, my reviving erection pointing the way. She turned around to face me. I walked up to her and put my arms around her and kissed her deeply, my cock pressing against her stomach, her tits flattening against my chest. She locked her arms around me and pulled me backward with her, almost lifting me off the deck. We crashed down onto her bed together. J'Una wrapped her lovely long legs around me, reached in between our bodies with one hand and grabbed my now fully revived cock. She jerked it a couple of times then aimed it at her pussy and pulled me inside. I had been there many times before, but each time felt different and each time felt better. Her cunt was hot and grabbed me like a fist. J'Una once told me that Bardin females had a unique muscle structure in their cunts which allowed them to squeeze and manipulate a cock as though they were using their hands. I believed her. I began pounding my cock into her and, on each downstroke I could feel her cunt muscles going to work on me. As I fucked her I raised myself up so that I could bend my head down and suck on her nipples. I took one into my mouth and licked it and bit it gently. That drove her crazy. She cupped her hands underneath her breasts and pointed them at me like twin missile launchers. "Do them," she said, almost pleading. "Do them hard." I knew what she wanted. Shifting my weight over to one arm I continued sucking and biting one tit as my free hand found the other. I squeezed and twisted it roughly, knowing she loved that. She moaned and thrust her cunt up at me even harder. I kept pounding away and mashing her tits, trying to bring her off. I didn't have long to wait. J'Una's moaning got louder and her thrashing about more intense. She grabbed my arms with her hands, her fingers digging into my flesh. Her head was thrown back, her whole body tensed and her legs damn near squeezed the life out of me. I guess Bardin men are bigger and stronger and better able to handle it. As it was, I kept pumping away and hung on for dear life as J'Una shuddered violently and came. She relaxed her legs but not her cunt which gripped me even tighter than before. I blasted my cum into her like a laser cannon. I kept thrusting as I came, shot after shot pouring into her until it overflowed and oozed out of her cunt around my cock and ran down the insides of her thighs. I collapsed into her arms and we held each other in a sweaty embrace. An hour or so later, having fucked a couple more times, showered (where we fucked again) and put on clean uniforms, J'Una and I were in a conference room adjacent to the Operations Center with the ship's Captain, Commander Cibock, and several other officers including Major Maarek, commander of the two companies of Imperial Storm troopers attached to GUSTAV. I didn't like Maarek much. He epitomized many of the things I felt were wrong with the Empire and its military: blind, almost fanatical loyalty, ruthlessness, brutal aggression, absolute faith in one's superiority and a dangerous contempt for the opposition. You couldn't argue with his record, though. He had so many combat medals he couldn't wear them all. He had been wounded in battle several times and was personally decorated by the Emperor for capturing a rebel strongpoint during the battle of Cobol 7 a few years back. I don't think I had ever even been on the same planet with the Emperor. Commander Cibock was relating to us the substance of his communications with Sector Flag Headquarters. It seemed that they, too, were surprised by the sudden appearance of Rebel X-wings in this sector. I'm sure that they didn't admit it outright, though. People on admirals' staffs never admit to anything if they can help it. Cibock was sitting in front of a large view panel upon which was a 3D holographic presentation of sector CT-38, the sector we were currently patrolling. I don't know why it was called CT-38, since there were no systems in the sector that bore that name, and the sector itself was in quadrant Epsilon 12. I'm sure there was a logical connection somewhere, but it escaped me. "Sector Flag Headquarters were not anticipating any increased Rebel activity in this sector," Cibock said. That was Imperialese for 'we got caught napping.' "Most of the Rebel activity is currently concentrated in the Beta and Gamma quadrants," he continued. "None of our intelligence sources reported any indications of a major Rebel move out here. The Rebels ambushed an Imperial weapons convoy a while back. I suggested that maybe they're going to set up a base out here and use those weapons to raid some of our remote installations and outposts, or to incite some of the less reliable systems to revolt." "Do they think that's a possibility, sir?" J'Una asked. "No, Commander. They don't." Cibock said reluctantly. "They do not believe that the Rebels would make a major move out here. It's too far from their main sources of supply and recruiting. They also don't see anything to be gained by the Rebels in moving out here." "And, of course, they have access to a much greater source of intelligence than we do here," Maarek offered arrogantly. Once again the blind acceptance of whatever higher authority said. "This sector is too far removed to be an effective base for launching raids," he continued. "And if there are any systems whose loyalty is uncertain, they will be crushed." The cold ruthlessness with which he said this last sent shivers down my spine. This guy enjoyed killing, and he really didn't care who it was he killed. As long as he and his storm troopers could slaughter indiscriminately he was content. J'Una, however, was unimpressed. She shot Maarek a long, cold look and said, "I believe, Major, that it will be difficult to 'crush' a system with two companies of storm troopers." Maarek was taken clearly taken aback. He didn't take well to being questioned by anybody, especially a Bardin female whom he detested anyway. Good for you, J'Una, I thought. But be careful. This guy has friends. Commander Cibock decided not to allow this exchange to get out of hand. "I agree, Major," he said smoothly, "that disloyal systems should be dealt with appropriately." Maarek folded his arms and sat back smugly. "But we have no such orders. There is no evidence of any wavering loyalty among the systems out here, and Commander Selena is quite right when she says that two companies of storm troopers, however motivated and trained, would be insufficient for system pacification." 'System pacification' was Imperialese for 'using overwhelming force to take a planet by storm, exterminate or imprison the Empire's critics and subject the entire population to brutal military rule.' It was not pretty and I was glad that it wasn't a part of my job description. I was just a starfighter pilot and those that I killed had a fighting chance. At least, that's how I justified it to myself. "So we are not receiving any reinforcements?" Maarek asked, clearly disappointed. "No," Cibock answered. "Sector Flag Headquarters does not believe that there is a genuine Rebel threat. At least not yet. We do have orders, however, to increase our patrols. They believe the Rebels might have been trying to meet with an arms supplier from beyond the Empire. If that's the case they want us to intercept a transport to see what the Rebels are up to." He turned to me. "Captain Tallig, "he said,"I want you and the other squadron commanders to develop a stepped-up patrol scheme." "Yes, sir," I responded. "I want a constant rotation," he continued. "One flight on station, one coming back and one leaving." That was a tall order. "Commander," I said cautiously. Cibock had always seemed like a decent man, but he was the captain of an Imperial starship and I didn't want to push him too hard. You never knew how these guys would react. "We have two squadrons of Tie Fighters onboard, Beta and Gamma, minus the two craft that were lost earlier. We also have Alpha squadron's Tie Bombers. To operate the kind of plan you want we would need to use the Tie Bombers in a patrol mode, something for which they are not well suited." Cibock rubbed his chin for a moment, then nodded. "I see your point, Captain," he said. "I realize that the Tie Bomber is slower and better suited for delivering heavy weapons against enemy capital ships and installations, but I think it's imperative that we get the maximum patrol coverage possible. Use the Tie Bombers to augment the patrols." "One more thing, sir," I said not willing to shut up. J'Una shot me a warning glance. "If a flight of Tie Bombers, unsupported, runs into a group of X-wings, they'll be slaughtered." I was aware that everyone was looking at me as though I had pissed on the Emperor's portrait. Cibock stared at me for a long moment. "I understand, Captain," he said quietly. "You have your orders. Make it so." "Yes, sir," I said quickly. "When do you want these patrols to start?" "Tomorrow," he said. "In the meantime I will move the GUSTAV to a location on the far side of the sector. If there are any covert weapons convoys coming through," and his tone indicated that he clearly believed there were none, "we might be in a better position to intercept. Also, there are a couple of systems with uninhabited planets. They would make a good place for a base." He stood up. Immediately everyone else hopped to their feet. "We go into hyperspace in one hour," he said. "That is all." He strode quickly from the room, followed by Major Maarek. J'Una walked over to me, grinning. "One of these days, Captain," she said, "you're going to get your ass tossed into the brig." "Maybe so," I shot back. "But if you keep slamming Maarek in public, you'll get yours shot off." She shrugged. "I don't worry about men like him," she said casually. "They usually talk big, but won't do anything unless they can't be held responsible and they have all the odds on their side. They're basically cowards, and they're usually lousy in bed, too." She added this last with a mischievous grin. I looked at her skeptically. J'Una was always full of surprises and I was never completely sure when to take her seriously. So, I went for it. "You mean you and Maarek...." I said as the room cleared out. "Why, Captain," she said indignantly, "I said nothing of the sort." And she strode past me and out of the room. I shook my head and followed her into the Operations Center. We had a lot of work to do to work out the patrol scheme that Commander Cibock had ordered. The next few days were a blur. I was flying two and three patrols a day, and the hangar bays, briefing rooms and the Operations Center were constantly abuzz with activity. Weapons systems were manned around the clock, and the ship was placed in a higher alert status. Everyone onboard suddenly seemed taut, alert, poised for action. Only a short time ago we had been relaxing (if one can ever use that word describing life aboard an Imperial starship) in relative obscurity. Now, we were uncertain about what, if anything, we would encounter and we knew that for the time being we were alone out here and that trouble could strike swiftly and without warning. -- Star Wars: The TIE Fighter (part 2) Walter Slaven The problem was, though, that we encountered nothing. Nothing at all. No Rebels, no pirates, no smugglers, no bounty hunters, no merchants, no nothing. Patrols went out regularly, briefings were held two, sometimes three, times a day, intelligence reports were gathered and analysed and analysed again. There was a lot of activity, but not much else. I saw little of J'Una during this time. She was very busy and spent nearly all of her time in the Operations Center. She and her people were responsible for the entire evolution: planning and scheduling all patrol flights, vectoring the starfighters to their assigned patrol points, scanning for enemy or unidentified craft, maintaining communications with Sector Flag Headquarters, and analysing intelligence reports. The pace was gruelling and the fact that we had thus far come up empty was even more exasperating. At briefings and in the few conversations we were able to have I slowly realized that J'Una and Commander Cibock were convinced that the Rebels were up to something big in this sector. Why they felt that way, or what they expected to happen, I wasn't quite sure. Neither elaborated due, I'm sure, to the fact that it was contrary to what higher authority had decreed. What I was sure of, however, was that my squadron and I had been flying our asses off for four days, we had found nothing, I was tired and I hadn't been laid since J'Una and I had had our suck and fuck session right after the X-wing episode. I was also becoming concerned about the toll that this pace was taking on our fighters. For the most part, Imperial starfighters are mass produced on the cheap. That is to say that they are sturdy, competent craft, but not extravagant. The TIE fighter was an older design that had been retained in service longer than anticipated due to the duration and ferocity of the war with the Rebels. This exacerbated the TIE's already stringent maintenance requirements. The twin ion engines, the power plant of all Imperial starfighters, were very temperamental, requiring constant care and frequent adjustments. Although the TIE is unshielded it possesses a sophisticated electronics suite which, in the hands of an experienced pilot, can give the TIE an edge over the X-wing. These electronics were so vulnerable to being bounced, shaken or rattled (frequent occurrences in combat) that they required full time maintenance technicians and robots who did nothing else but fix them after each flight. As the intervals between flights got shorter, the maintenance was less complete. Yesterday one of the pilots in Beta squadron became stranded in space when his engines failed entirely due to an electronics malfunction. He had to be towed in. I wanted to ground all of my TIE fighters to have their electronics checked, but was told to keep flying. "GUSTAV, this is Gamma One returning from patrol. Request landing sequence." We were completing yet another uneventful patrol. This time, however, my engines felt rough and uneven. "Roger, Gamma One," replied the flight officer. "Standby for tractor beam." "GUSTAV, have some engine diagnostic equipment standing by. I may be having a problem with the engines and I want them checked out." "We'll notify the duty maintenance officer," the flight officer responded. The maintenance crews had been working feverishly around the clock to keep our starfighters flying. Although maintenance robots did a lot of the work the crews were beginning to exhibit signs of fatigue. Nevertheless they retained about them an air of competence and reliability that always made a starfighter pilot feel that his craft was in the best possible condition. Today's tractor beam operator must have been tired, also. He bounced my TIE twice before setting it down heavily into its stall. Maintenance personnel and tech robots swarmed over the starfighter as I climbed out. "You reported a problem with the engines, captain?" asked the maintenance officer, making notes on a computerized maintenance card. She was Ensign Marina Haarkov. She had been onboard GUSTAV only a short time, but had quickly established herself as a competent leader and a capable technician. She had beautiful blonde hair which draped over her shoulders, and deep blue eyes that you could drown in. She carried herself in a self-assured, professional manner that was due, in part I'm sure, to the fact that her father was Admiral Haarkov, a very successful and senior fleet commander. She exuded confidence and professionalism. She was also incredibly sexy. Though we had spoken often, it was always duty related, and always in the hangar or repair bays. "Yes, ensign," I said, pulling off my helmet. "The engines felt rough during acceleration and at high speeds. Additionally, I noticed some fluctuations in the power distribution system." My tone was one of professional detachment, but I was looking into her eyes and smiling as I spoke. Ensign Haarkov returned the smile. "Alright, captain," she said briskly. "We'll run some diagnostics on the engines and the power distribution system and we'll fix your problem." My smile became a grin. "Ensign," I said,"I'd love for you to fix my problem." "And what problem might that be, captain?" she asked innocently. I shifted my gaze downward to the front of my flight suit. Her eyes followed mine. Just standing there talking to her had made my dick hard and it was pushing out against the fabric of my flight suit. She looked at my crotch for a long moment. I was unsure how she would react, but I was horny and decided to take a chance. Marina looked up at me, her eyes twinkling, her lips slightly parted. "I see your problem, captain," she said, grinning. "I'll come by your quarters later to help you with it." With that she abruptly turned away and began supervising the maintenance team that was working on my TIE fighter. I watched for a few moments, then walked off the hangar deck. A few minutes later I entered the access code to my quarters, the door slid open and I walked in. My quarters were not as extravagant as, say, J'Una's, but they were comfortable. As a squadron commander I rated private quarters, so no roommate. I stripped off my boots, flight suit, shorts and shirt and tossed the whole wad onto a chair. I rarely upheld Imperial standards of cleanliness and neatness. I padded naked into the bathroom, programmed the computer to give me a nice long hot shower, and stepped into the stall. The hot water felt good and I began to relax and forget how much flying I had been doing and how tired I was. In my relaxed state my mind wandered and I began thinking about the Empire, the Rebellion, the war, and my role in all this. My home planet of Kuan had endured years of chaos and civil war until the Empire came in and took charge. In a very short time the strife and destruction ended, and an orderly, prosperous society emerged. At the time the price for this welcomed change didn't seem very high. As time went on, the arrangement resulted in Kuan becoming a cog in the Imperial machine, living under a military governor, surrendering self-government. The Kuani people were very well taken care of, however, and in return provided badly needed material and manpower resources for the Empire's ongoing war with the Rebellion. I and many young Kuanis like me, joined the Imperial starfleet not only to serve, but also to get off the planet and see something of the galaxy. During my years of service I not only saw a lot of the galaxy, I fought my way across it, participating in some of the largest and most brutal battles of the war. The Rebels were fierce, dedicated, extremely capable, and loyal to an idea that was greater than themselves, or the Empire for that matter. Whereas most Imperial starfleet members were fighting because of loyalty to, or fear of, the Emperor, or because they were conscripted, the Rebels were fighting for a cause. That's why no matter how many battles were won- and we won most of them- no matter how many planets we crushed and subjugated, the Rebellion was always there, challenging us at every turn. All of which led to a question I had recently been asking myself more and more: are we fighting to free the galaxy from chaos, or to bring order in the form of tyranny? I wasn't sure I was liking the answer. My reverie was interrupted when the water automatically shut off. I had been in the shower longer than I'd planned. Stepping out of the shower, I towelled myself off and pulled on a black robe with the Imperial logo on the back and my name and service ID on the front left pocket. Everything in the Imperial navy was coded. As I walked back into the sitting room my door chime sounded. "Enter," I called. The door slid open and there was Marina smiling, eyes twinkling. The door closed behind her as she looked at me and said, "Well, Captain, you certainly are a helluva lot better looking than a power converter." "I'm certainly glad of that," I replied chuckling. "By the way, how's my ship?" "All fixed," she said as she unzipped her jumpsuit. "The ion exchanger in the engines needed an adjustment and I replaced your power distribution control module. You're all set." She stepped out of the jumpsuit and stood naked before me. Her blonde hair flowed over her shoulders and almost to her breasts, which jutted out firmly. Her waist had a gentle, supple curve to it, her cunt was amply covered by fine blonde pubic hair and her legs were long and shapely. "So," she said looking down at my crotch, "how's your problem?" "Still there," I said as I opened my robe. My cock was full, throbbing and erect. She walked over to me and grabbed my cock with one hand, fisting it. The other hand snaked around my neck, pulling my head down to kiss her lips. She thrust her tongue into my mouth as her grip tightened on my cock. Finally, she came up for air. "I think I can help you with your problem," Marina said looking down at my cock in her hand. She pushed me back until I sat down on a couch, then dropped to her knees between my legs. Her lips closed over the head of my cock and I could feel her tongue swirling around the tip. She jerked the base of my cock with one hand and fondled my balls with the other. She moved down my cock and I could feel her tongue slide wetly along the shaft. She nuzzled my balls against her face, kissing and licking them. She took my balls into her mouth and sucked gently on them. She ran her hands along the insides of my thighs, sending shivers of pleasure up and down my entire body. She released my cock from the constraints of her hands and it forcefully flipped upwards against her chin, and then bounced up to the side of her face. Pulling back, she kissed the tip of my cock once, drawing in a string of clear cum, and then she fastened her lips around the taut head and sucked in hard, literally pulling her lips down the long shaft. Bit by bit, she was drawn down toward my pubic hair. She let her gaze rise up over my hard stomach, my chest, and then all the way up to my face. Her eyes locked onto mine as her suction pulled her lips all the way into the bristly hair at the base of my cock. Her nose was pressed against my pubic hair and I could feel the head of my cock push all the way to the back of her throat. She brought up one hand to cup and fondle my balls, and her finger tips prodded rhythmically at the root of my cock, in the area between my balls and my asshole. My entire cock throbbed and danced in the hot cavern of her mouth, and the tip of her tongue curled up and massaged the tube-like ridge along the bottom of my cock. I was getting close to cumming but she didn't seem to care. I guess she had enough faith that I'd be able to fuck her even after she blew me. Marina clamped down harder, and then started to snap her neck forwards and back, so that she was truly fucking my cock with her mouth. Each time she pulled back to the head, I felt her tongue slurp in a circle around the crown, and poke lightly into the pisshole. Then back down to the base again, with an increasingly rapid tempo. My hard cock was fucking deep into her mouth, she juggled my balls in her palm as she toyed with my asshole. She was sweating with exertion, moaning and rocking on her heels. I could smell her cunt juices flowing in her excitement. She sped up her pistoning even more, so that her hair flipped around her cheeks and onto my thighs. She anticipated my orgasm and drew back her head a few inches from my cock, and brought both of her hands up to jack the shaft. My cock, covered with saliva and precum, was throbbing. I threw my head back and felt myself let go. As her hands furiously jerked my shaft, the first jet of my cum shot out from the tip of my cock, splattering over her outstretched tongue. She closed her mouth to swallow my cum, and the next two spurts landed on her nose and chin. She craned forward and rubbed her face into my throbbing, spurting cock. Her face was covered with cum and saliva. She looked at me and smiled as she proceeded to lick my cock clean. I eased Marina off my cock and pulled her up to me so that her tits dangled above my face. I took one nipple in my mouth and began sucking voraciously. Marina moaned and tried to stuff more of her tit into my mouth. I pulled her close, my mouth working ceaselessly on her tits as my spent cock began to revive itself. She moved against me, her cunt rubbing up and down on my stomach, her ass pushing against my cock. Marina grabbed my hair and tilted my face up to hers. She leaned down and kissed me, hard. I could taste myself on her tongue. She pushed my head back to her tits and I eagerly plunged in between her mounds, licking and biting her flesh. She reached back behind herself to grasp my cock, jerking it to full erection. My cock throbbed in her hand. Satisfied that I had regained enough hardness, Marina moved back and eased herself down onto my penis, sliding down to the base in one easy stroke. She shuddered, then smiled down at me. "You feel good in me," she whispered as she pinched her nipples. Her cunt was like a furnace and I could feel her juices flowing out of her onto my balls as she slowly started to move on my cock. I grasped her hips and started to move with her. She was a gorgeous sight. Her face and chest were flushed with excitement, head thrown back, nipples jutting out from her tits, her eyes half closed. "Fuck me," she moaned. "Fuck me." I was beginning to do just that when I heard my access code being entered outside my door. Besides ship security (who had everybody's) the only person who had my code was J'Una. Sure enough. The door slid open, she walked in, saw us and stopped dead, the door closing behind her. Marina, noticing from my suddenly inert state that something had changed, opened her eyes and gaped when she saw J'Una. She quickly jumped off of me, sitting hard on the couch, covering her breasts with her arms. "Commander Selena," Marina babbled, clearly upset and fearful of J'Una's response, "I'm so sorry. It's all my fault......" Her voice trailed off. But J'Una just stood there, looking at us, and smiled that smile of hers. "Well," she said to Marina, "how good was it?" Marina relaxed and grinned sheepishly. "It was getting pretty good, Commander." J'Una walked over to us, bent down and kissed Marina on the lips. "I think for now you can call me J'Una," she said softly. She kissed Marina again, deeply, and her hand moved down Marina's shoulder to softly cup her breast. Marina moaned into J'Una's mouth and she leaned forward, thrusting more of her tit into J'Una's massaging palm. Marina threw her arms about the tall Bardin as the two continued their kiss. As I sat watching these two very different but very beautiful females I felt my erection, which had deflated somewhat due to J'Una's surprise appearance, return to full vigor. I was ready for some serious fucking, but decided to let J'Una and Marina move things along in their own way. At last J'Una broke free from their kiss. She straightened and began unbuttoning her tunic, lust smoldering in her red eyes. She looked down at my erection, then flashed a grin at me. "Don't worry, Captain," she said sarcastically, "you'll get yours." I smiled, slowly stroking my cock. "I'll be here." J'Una finished unbuttoning her tunic and pulled it off. Marina gasped at the sight of J'Una's firm black breasts with their magnificent nipples. She reached out and cupped J'Una's tits in her hands, palming the nipples. "You are so beautiful," Marina muttered. She kissed J'Una's belly and then ran her tongue up to the valley between her breasts. J'Una sighed as Marina began kissing and biting the nipples. Marina's hands were fumbling with J'Una's trousers, pulling them down. Laughing, J'Una pulled away long enough to remove her boots and finish pulling off her trousers. She stood before Marina, who nearly dived at her. Marina grabbed J'Una and pushed her down onto the couch. She ran her tongue over the outer folds of J'Una's pussy as her fingers peeled open the cuntlips. J'Una moaned as Marina's tongue snaked inside, licking her clit. J'Una draped her legs over Marina's back and stretched out sensuously while the blonde maintenance officer buried her face in J'Una's cunt, licking and sucking intently. I sat mesmerized by the sight before me. J'Una moaned and began thrashing about on the couch in response to Marina's insistent tonguing of her juicing cunt. Marina slid her hands up J'Una's torso and grabbed her breasts, pinching the nipples. J'Una looked at me through heavily lidded eyes. "God, Vel," she said. "She's too good. Too good." The last came out in a sigh as she humped her pussy against Marina's face. I could see Marina's tongue snake its way in and out of J'Una's gleaming snatch. Marina bored in, slurping and licking with increased vigor while she worked J'Una's tits over thoroughly with her fingers. J'Una started bouncing around on the couch and I could tell she was close to cumming. "Oh, yeah," she moaned. "Eat me, baby. Eat me." She placed her hands on the back of Marina's head and pushed her face deeper into her cunt. Marina needed no encouragement. She licked and sucked J'Una's clit noisily, obviously enjoying it. J'Una arched her back, thrusting her cunt forward and, moaning and shuddering, climaxed against Marina's mouth. Her muscles went rigid, her eyes closed and she cried out in her passion. Then she sank back down against the couch, spent. Marina looked up at J'Una, her face covered with J'Una's cuntjuice, and smiled as she kissed her belly. J'Una looked over at me and my erection and said, "Get over here and fuck me. NOW!" Eager to comply, I slipped between J'Una's legs. Marina, having moved to one side, grasped my cock and guided it into J'Una. She kissed my nipples as I rammed my cock home deep into J'Una's cunt. Marina moved up J'Una's body, kissing her belly, her breasts, then her lips. J'Una snaked a hand between Marina's legs and shoved two fingers into Marina's pussy. Marina gasped and began moving against her hand. I was thrusting hard and fast, excited by the vision of these two females kissing and licking each other's faces while J'Una's fingers dove deeper into Marina's gaping pussy. J'Una's Bardin cunt muscles were working overtime, grasping and squeezing my cock almost painfully. But it was the kind of pain you'd die for. I had one hand on Marina's ass, the other squeezing J'Una's tit. Both females were squirming, and they moaned into each other's mouth. J'Una looked up at me and could see that I was close. Quickly, she grabbed the base of my cock and pulled me out of her cunt. "Come up here," she said, pulling on my cock. I climbed up on the couch and straddled J'Una and Marina as they went to work on my throbbing penis. J'Una licked the shaft while Marina took the head into her mouth and sucked noisily. Then they both licked and sucked at the base of my cock, working their way up until their tongues met at the tip. My cock quivered as it was engulfed first by one mouth, then another. J'Una massaged my balls, feeding them into Marina's mouth. "Fuck her tits," J'Una said to me. "I want to see you fuck her tits." Marina stretched out on the couch and I straddled her chest, my cock diving into her substantial cleavage. She pushed her tits together, enfolding my cock in her warmth. I started thrusting like a madman, my cock taking on an existence of its own. J'Una bent down and licked and sucked my cock each time it poked out from between Marina's breasts. I exploded. My cum shot forth with geyser-like force, the first spurt splattering against Marina's neck and chin. J'Una leaned forward and caught the second bolt with her lips and tongue, swallowing fast. I continued to cum, coating the side of J'Una's face, and Marina's tits, with my semen. J'Una grabbed my cock and lowered her lips over the tip, sucking me dry. Finally, I was spent and collapsed onto the couch next to Marina. J'Una, however, wasn't finished and proceeded to lick my cum off of Marina's face and tits. Marina smiled and looked at me. "How's your problem now, Captain?" she asked, grinning. "Just fine, Ensign," I replied. J'Una looked up from Marina's tit. "What problem?" she asked. Marina and I both laughed, and she reached out and stroked my cock. J'Una smiled and returned to Marina's tit. I stretched myself out, relaxing and enjoying the feel of Marina's hand slowly stroking my cock. My erection had just about completely returned when all hell broke loose. The ship's alarms sounded, the clanging claxon noise jolting us out of our reverie as red lights began flashing. "Red alert! Red alert," came the voice over the ship's announcing system. "Rebel fighters attacking! All personnel to battle stations. Pilots to your ships! Red alert!" Holy shit! I jumped from the couch and into my shorts. I grabbed my flight gear from the corner and charged out of my quarters as J'Una and Marina scrambled for their clothes. I ran down the passageway in my shorts, my flight suit, boots and helmet under my arm. All over the ship crewmembers were hurrying to their stations. The claxon sounded its incessant gong, reverberating throughout the ship. "Red alert! Red alert! Rebel fighters attacking!" As I approached the hangar deck I saw my wingman, Lieutenant Dromo Acer, already suited up, giving instructions to some of the other pilots. I stopped, almost out of breath, and began to put my clothes on. Dromo walked over to me. "Bad timing, eh?" he asked with a grin. "You could say that," I gasped. "What's going on?" "I was in the Operations Center when it all started," he said earnestly. "Rebel fighters showed up out of nowhere, just like last time." "X-wings?" I asked as I zipped up the flight suit and began putting on my boots. "Yes, sir," he replied. "Y-wings, too. They jumped some TIE bombers that were on patrol and wiped most of them out." "Y-wings, too?" I asked. The Y-wing was the main attack fighter used by the Rebels. Slower and less maneuverable than the X-wing it was heavily armored, well shielded and packed a formidable punch. Their presence meant a direct attack on GUSTAV. Dromo nodded as the hangar deck began filling with noise from TIEs winding up. I laced my boots, grabbed my helmet and dashed off toward my TIE. Dromo ran off to his. I pulled myself up through the hatch, closed it, strapped myself in, put on the helmet and connected the comm link. I performed these motions quickly and efficiently, as they were second-nature. I dispensed with the rest of the check-list and fired up the retros. Normally a large crane, suspended from overhead conveyors, lifts a TIE from its stall, moves it to the launching bay, lowers it through the open launching bay doors in the bottom of the ship, then releases the TIE into space. There wasn't time for this. I used the small retro rockets to lift the TIE out of its stall, then threaded my way across the crowded hangar deck and out through the landing bay, out the "in" door, sending maintenance personnel scurrying. Unorthodox, but quick. Dromo was right behind me. Once clear of GUSTAV I engaged the twin ion engines and the craft shot forward into space. I established communications with GUSTAV and activated my target display. "Gamma One, this is GUSTAV." J'Una's voice, clear, crisp and professional, came over the commlink. She had assumed direct control over the battle from the Operations Center. I assumed that Commander Cibock was there, also. I chuckled briefly to myself as I imagined J'Una, naked, running down the passageway. What a sight that would have been! "There is a formation of enemy fighters at three-five-two mark three-seven," J'Una continued. "Move to intercept." "Roger, Gustav," I replied. "I have them." On my forward sensor display, which was above and to the left of the main console, I could see a group of green dots representing Rebel ships (Imperials were red) moving toward GUSTAV. "Gamma One to all fighters," I called. "Form on me and move to attack position." I wasn't sure how many TIEs had launched and I wanted to assemble as large a strike force as I could. There were a lot of green dots out there. "Gamma One, we've verified X-wing and Y-wing fighters," J'Una told me. "Concentrate on the Y-wings." "Roger, Gustav." While the X-wing was certainly the deadlier threat to the TIE fighter, it was the Y-wing with its lethal load of missiles, proton torpedoes and ion cannon, that was a very real and deadly threat to GUSTAV. Because the TIE fighter is unshielded normal Imperial tactics call for a swarm of TIEs to overwhelm Rebel fighters with numbers. This time, however, we were the ones being "swarmed." We were rapidly closing to intercept the Rebel fighters and I could now make out two distinct formations: the Y-wing attack craft escorted by X-wings. As luck would have it, bad luck, the X- wings were between us and the Y-wings. A couple of TIE bombers, remnants of the ambushed patrol, scurried past us, headed for GUSTAV. "Attack formation Delta," I called causing the TIEs to close up into a tight wedge formation. Through my port viewfinder I could see Dromo, behind and to the left of my ship. He was very close. -- Star Wars: The TIE Fighter (Part 3) Walter Slaven We accelerated to maximum speed, charged up the lasers and plunged ahead. I planned to streak through the X-wings and attack the Y-wings, doing as much damage as possible before the X-wings could intervene. We were almost upon the X-wings before they turned to face us. Why they were so slow to react I'll never know, but I was thankful for it. We shot right through them, a tight formation of TIEs, not pausing to engage. I think this surprised the Rebels. By the time they figured out what we were doing we had passed through them and were headed for the now undefended Y-wings. I could see GUSTAV off in the distance. The Y-wings were getting close to attack range. "Get behind one, take your shot and move out before an X-wing can lock onto you," I called to the formation. "Commence attack." Then we were on them, our formation dissolving as TIEs peeled off after the Y-wings. I chose a Y-wing near the front of the formation and slipped in behind him, activating the speed matching device. This is a great piece of electronic gadgetry. It directs the onboard computer system to match speeds with a targeted ship. This allows you to get behind an enemy and blast away at him without worrying about overrunning him. This technology, as yet unavailable to the Rebels, gives the unshielded TIE a tremendous advantage. I set my lasers on dual fire mode and began blasting. The Y- wing is heavily shielded so I set about taking those down. The Y- wing twisted and turned violently in an effort to shake me. I hung onto his tail and proceeded to systematically cut his ship into pieces. Through my commlink I heard Dromo claiming a kill. There were plenty more Y-wings, however, and they were still closing on GUSTAV. Worse yet, the X-wings had finally rejoined the fray. This made hanging onto a Y-wing extremely dangerous because it made you a sitting duck for an X-wing. Nevertheless we pressed home our attack, destroying several more Y-wings. In rapid succession, however, three of our TIEs were flamed by X-wings and life suddenly became very difficult. I had managed to get a lock on an X-wing and was about to start shooting when I noticed that a Y-wing had broken away from the fight and was making an attack run on GUSTAV. My sensors showed that his proton torpedo launchers were activated. I took one last shot at the X-wing (I missed) and then broke off to go after the Y-wing. The Y-wing was between me and GUSTAV, heading away from me, and I was hoping I could catch him before he got within range to fire. GUSTAV began returning fire with her heavy, turreted lasers and I found myself worrying I'd get blasted by my own people. I was closing on the Y-wing when I saw two blue streaks leave the Rebel craft, headed toward GUSTAV. The Y-wing had launched proton torpedoes. Damn! I wasn't in position to try to intercept them, either. "Incoming!" I shouted over the commlink. "GUSTAV, this is Gamma One. Incoming torpedoes!" GUSTAV's gunners managed to shoot down the first proton torpedo, but they missed the second one. I saw it slam into the shielding on the port side and explode with gut wrenching impact. I could see the entire ship shudder. The Y-wing continued to close, attacking GUSTAV with cannon and laser fire. He got a few rounds off before my dual lasers blew the back of his ship apart. I made a quick pass to check the damage. The old frigate had been hurt, but not fatally. Another hit like that, though, ..... I didn't dwell on that thought. I flew underneath GUSTAV and intercepted another Y-wing, destroying this one before he had a chance to launch. I flew through his debris and took a shot head-on at an X-wing that had vainly tried to intercept me. He fired back, slamming my unshielded hull with a laser blast. The impact almost ripped me out of my seat as the ship shook violently and careened out of control. Smoke from fried electronics began filling the cockpit as I fought the controls, the ship turning end over end. Idiot! I told myself. You never attack an X-wing head on in an unshielded fighter! Now I knew why. Finally, I regained control of my TIE and checked the damage. Actually, it wasn't too bad. A couple of sensor systems were out, and the hull on the port side was caved in, but the engines and weapons systems were intact. I ventilated the cockpit and turned to rejoin the battle. GUSTAV was still there, fortunately. Commander Cibock had maneuvered the ship to turn the undamaged starboard side toward the direction of the attack. I saw an X-wing disintegrate when hit by GUSTAV's lasers. She still had a lot of fight in her. I worried briefly about J'Una and Marina, but set those thoughts aside. An X-wing was chasing one of our TIEs and I throttled up to full power to intercept him. The TIE was twisting and turning like a pro and I suddenly realized that it was Dromo. "Gamma Two, this is Gamma One," I called to him. "Hang on, Dromo. I'll be there." "Glad you're still with us, Captain," he replied cavalierly. The X-wing fired, but missed. Finally, I was in range. I swooped down on the X-wing from above. He never knew I was there. I set the lasers on rapid fire and pressed the trigger, holding it as I closed the range. My lasers blasted away his shields, then ripped through his port wings and blew apart the engine mounts. The X-wing vaporized before me. "Thanks for the help," Dromo said, obviously relieved. "No problem," I replied. "Form up and let's have at them again. GUSTAV is still in trouble." "Yes, sir. I'm with you." With Dromo on my wing again I flew past GUSTAV and headed toward the next group of attacking Rebel fighters, dodging GUSTAV's fire as well as that of the enemy. We barrelled into the Rebels from the side, quickly killing two Y-wings and breaking up their formation. "GUSTAV, we need some help out here," I called. Even TIE bombers would be of some use, I thought. Anything. "Roger, Gamma One." I heaved a sigh of relief when I heard J'Una's voice. "We are trying to launch a few more craft, but the hangar bays have been damaged. Continue your attack." Although I wasn't too sanguine about our chances, I had to agree with her decisions. She knew we were badly outnumbered and had suffered losses, yet she was hurling us at the enemy again in an effort to buy time. Not that she had a lot of options just then. I started to respond but just then my missile warning alarm started squawking, telling me that an X-wing had launched a missile that had locked onto me. Shit. If a TIE is hit by a concussion missile, the TIE is gone. Period. Space junk. There are two ways to combat a missile: try to outrun it, or turn on it, target it and hope you can shoot it down. Because of the damage my ship had suffered I didn't think it wise to run, though that would have been my preferred option. Flying headlong at a missile isn't my idea of sound tactics, but that's what I did. I jerked the TIE around in a violent left turn, steadied on the heading my sensors told me the missile was coming from, and flew right at it, lasers blasting, fingers crossed. The missile had approached to within a few hundred meters when my lasers finally hit it. It exploded in a bright flash, lighting up the cockpit and blinding me for a moment. I shook it off and made a hard right turn, intending to go look for the Rebel son of a bitch who'd fired that missile. Instead, the Rebels were leaving! The were all streaking away to hyperspace out of here. We had put up a terrific fight and, now that GUSTAV had finally been able to launch a few more fighters, the Rebels had had enough. I chose not to pursue. "GUSTAV, the enemy fighters are retiring," I reported. "Good work, Gamma One," J'Una replied. "Return to base." "Acknowledged, GUSTAV," I said and then ordered what was left of my attack group to head back toward our ship. Enroute to GUSTAV it occurred to me that there had been an awful lot of Rebel fighters in that attack force; more than would be on a remote patrol. Which could only mean that at least one Rebel capital ship was in the area. If that were so, my logic went, it meant that the Rebels were, indeed, making a major move out here. Why they would do that, I hadn't a clue. I'm a starfighter pilot, not a staff officer and I'm not privy to a lot of high-class intelligence reports. But I do have a very accurate gut, and it was telling me that we had only seen the beginning of a major fireworks show in this sector. And maybe that's just what the Rebels wanted. A show. We were approaching GUSTAV and I switched to the flight control frequency. "GUSTAV, this is Gamma One requesting landing sequence." "Negative, Gamma One," replied the flight officer. "You can land, but the tractor beam is out, and the hangar bays are still a mess. We can take you, but you have to come in on retros." He paused. "Carefully." I sighed. "Retros it is, GUSTAV," and disengaged the engines. The ship coasted in toward the landing bay and I activated the retros. I entered the hangar deck and saw the damage that one proton torpedo had wrought. The main lighting was out, and the emergency lights cast an eerie glare through the smoke that seemed to fill the bays. Severed cables dangled from the overhead, several small fires were still burning, pieces of shattered TIEs and maintenance equipment were strewn about. And, of course, there were bodies. Many bodies. Maintenance personnel were busy clearing away enough of the debris so we could land. I tried not to think about Marina. I cut the retros and glided in to my stall, setting the TIE down gently. I climbed down and looked about the hangar deck. Nearby I saw Marina Haarkov, supervising a damage control party that was putting out a fire. Another sigh of relief escaped my lips. So she was OK, too, I thought. This time. J'Una met me as I exited the hangar deck, a look of concern on her face. "Sorry to bring you in under these conditions," she said,"but we needed to bring all the fighters in at once. We'll be going to hyperspace as soon as repairs allow." "Hyperspace?" I asked, surprised. "Yes," said J'Una. "There's a Rebel capital ship, a Calamari light cruiser, in the area. We just received the report from Sector Flag Headquarters. We think that's where those fighters came from." "Nice of them to give us advanced warning," I said sarcastically. J'Una ignored me. "The GUSTAV is no match for a Calamari, even without any damage at all," she continued. "We've been ordered back to Mofta IV for repairs and to join a strike force that will be assembling there." "Strike force?" I asked. "Of course," said J'Una patiently. "Higher authority has come to the brilliant conclusion that the Rebels are, indeed, making a major move out here." Sarcasm dripped from her voice. "So," she continued,"a major strike force will be assembled at Mofta IV with the objective of countering the Rebel move." She smiled. "But there's nothing out here," I said, exasperated, " for us or the Rebels. Why send a major portion of our fleet to fight out here?" "A Rebel cruiser is already out here," J'Una replied. "With more undoubtedly to follow. That's reason enough, I suppose. If the Rebels are making a major play in this area, they have a reason for it, and we'll try to thwart it and push them back." She looked down at me, her red eyes intense. "J'Una," I said, suddenly engulfed by a sinking feeling in my stomach, "has it occurred to you or anyone else that the reason the Rebels are out here is so that we will come out here, too? And not just with an old broken down frigate that can barely survive a few Y-wings, but with a major part of the Imperial fleet?" J'Una looked at me for a long moment, and I could tell there were things she wanted to say, but couldn't. "We have our orders, Captain," she said coldly. The conversation was over. An hour later GUSTAV went into hyperspace, destination: Mofta IV, Imperial Headquarters for the Epsilon quadrant. Part Two: Mofta IV...... and Beyond GUSTAV arrived at Mofta IV, the Imperial base in the Epsilon quadrant, after an uneventful three day journey. The repair crews had put the time to good use, however. Most of the damage had been at least temporarily repaired, wreckage had been cleared away and, except for some empty seats in the dining areas, there was little outward evidence that the ship had been in a fight. As good as the repair crews were, however, some of the damage was beyond their capa- bility and required the ship to spend some time in a space repair dock. I spent much of the time with my wingman, Lieutenant Dromo Acer, and the squadron, overseeing the repairs to our TIEs. We had lost several craft, and their pilots, in the scrape with the Rebels, and most of the rest had been shot up to one degree or another. The entire electronics package in my ship had to be replaced. Nevertheless, by the time we reached Mofta IV and Commander Cibock skillfully maneuvered GUSTAV into space dock, all of the remaining TIEs in Gamma Squadron were operational. As soon as the docking clamps were fastened and GUSTAV was secure in her berth, we were nearly overwhelmed by repair personnel coming aboard. Shortly thereafter we were informed that Vice Admiral Thrawn, one of the senior fleet commanders, had recently arrived at Mofta IV aboard his flagship, star destroyer VANGUARD, and was coming aboard. I was on GUSTAV's bridge with J'Una and Commander Cibock when we received the news. Cibock didn't look too happy. We all knew of Thrawn's reputation for being unforgiving and we assumed that, because GUSTAV had had to retire from the action at CT-38 that we would be held accountable for what was ess- entially an intelligence failure. The fact that we had put up a terrific fight against a numerically and qualitatively superior foe would matter little. Cibock sighed, then turned to J'Una. "Well, Commander," he said, "I'd best go greet the admiral. Assemble the senior officers in the conference room in the event that Admiral Thrawn wants to talk to them." "Yes, sir," she responded. She directed the Officer of the Deck to summon the senior officers to the conference room over the ship's intercom, then left the bridge. I walked with her. "Why do you think Thrawn's coming aboard?" I asked. "I'm not sure, she said as we headed aft, then down two decks. "Could be he just wants to check the damage and see how much repair work we really need. I've only met him a couple of times, but I know people who have worked for him. He can be a real bastard if he thinks somebody screwed up, or if he thinks you're not as loyal to the Emperor as you should be. I'm told that he's a real fanatical follower of the Emperor's, and," she paused dramatically, fire red eyes flashing, "he's trying to get promoted to Grand Admiral." "Grand Admiral," I repeated, impressed. "Can't go much higher than that. So what's stopping him?" "Other admirals, of course," J'Una said. "Thrawn isn't human. He was the first non-human to make admiral and a lot of people didn't like that. So, there's a number of admirals who are, so I hear, politicking to deny him any more promotions." "Because he's not human. Is that it?" I asked. I admit that I am very ignorant in the ways of politics among admirals. And I would rather keep it that way. I have little use for admirals. They usually find new and innovative ways to get the rest of us killed. But this story about Thrawn was interesting. "That's right," J'Una responded, a little bitterly. "We non-humans, especially female ones, aren't always accepted in high places. Promotion doesn't come easy. Good assignments don't come easy. I'm no admirer of Admiral Thrawn, but he would have been a Grand Admiral already if he was human." "Think so?" I asked. "Oh, yes," she said emphatically. I knew that pre- judice against non-humans was a real sore spot with her so I treaded lightly. "He has the best record of service against the Rebels," she continued, " But he's not human and other admirals are jealous." "Like who? Marina's father?" J'Una nodded. "Admiral Haarkov's one. Zaarin's another. I had to fuck one of Zaarin's aides to get this assignment. Zaarin didn't think a female Bardin would be able to handle this job." I could tell that J'Una was about to get angry so I decided to steer the conversation in another direction. "Thrawn's probably here," I said, "to blame us for the fact that, for whatever reason, the Rebels de- cided to make a major move out there. He'll tell us how we need to have more faith in the Emperor, as though that will compensate for flying TIEs against X-wings." J'Una looked at me and tried not to grin. She failed. "Why, Captain Tallig," she said with a smile, "are you questioning our Emperor?" If that had come from anyone else in authority I'd get a little nervous. This statement usually precedes charges of disloyalty and other such nonsense. But I knew that J'Una was being sarcastic. She knew that I was unhappy with what was going on and she was giving me the opportunity to say so, to her, thereby trying to keep me out of trouble. Not only was she a great fuck and a fine officer, she was also a good friend. "No, Commander," I said somberly. "I'm not question- ing the Emperor. It's just that I'm tired of sending good pilots out in inferior ships and watching them die. Every- one knows that the X-wing is far superior to the TIE fighter. They've been working on this new TIE inter- ceptor forever and we still don't have them in the fleet. I hear that the interceptor, while an improvement over the TIE, still doesn't match the X-wing. It isn't shielded. But, I'd gladly take an interceptor." "I don't know when they'll be available, Vel," she said. "But I'll bet the first ones go to the star destroyers in the inner sectors." "I know. I know," I said ruefully. "Because we're not one of the glamor ships we have to take on a major Rebel offensive in inferior starfighters." "You seem to have survived quite nicely, Captain," she said with a smile. We rounded a corner and were approaching the conference room where the other senior officers had gathered, awaiting Admiral Thrawn and Commander Cibock. J'Una shot me a look which told me that our converation was over, at least for now. We entered the room and took our seats. I engaged in some small talk with one of the supply officers, teasing him about the food. It's hard for people who don't live this life to understand that when you're stuck on a ship in space for months at a time the quality of the food becomes a critical morale issue. Fortunately the food on GUSTAV was not a problem. I'd been on ships where it was. I heard a commotion in the passageway outside and then Major Maarek, our esteemed storm- trooper commander, strode into the room bellowing, "Attention on Deck!" We sprang to our feet as Vice Admiral Thrawn, Commander Cibock and the admiral's aide entered the room. Vice Admiral Thrawn didn't just enter the room, he took command of it. He was tall and power- fully built with a broad chest covered with numerous ribbons and other decorations, and massive shoulders atop which were his admiral's epaulettes. He had pale blue skin, belying his non-human origins, eyes that were ruby red (as opposed to J'Una's which were more fire red) and thick black hair which seemed slick and oily. He exuded power, authority, confidence. He also struck me as someone you didn't want to mess with. We all stood rigidly at attention as the admiral strode to the front of the room, turned and slowly looked us over. I felt a chill go through me as the admiral's eyes momentarily met mine. "Please be seated," Thrawn said after running his gaze over each of us. I sat down, feeling the tension present in the room. I thought it odd that we were probably more afraid of our own admiral than we had been of the Rebel fighters we battled with just a few short days ago. "Commander Cibock," Thrawn began, nodding to GUSTAV's Commanding Officer, "officers of the Imperial Frigate GUSTAV, it is a pleasure for me to be aboard this fine vessel today." There was an aubible sigh of relief from some of the officers present. I wasn't quite ready to relax just yet. Maybe Admiral Thrawn was the type who liked to open with pleasantries, then shoot a laser blast up your ass. You never knew with admirals. I stole a glance at J'Una, who seemed to not share my concerns. "I am pleased to see," the admiral continued, "that the damage to your ship is not so severe as my staff first reported. Nevertheless I join you in mourning the loss of your shipmates. We will be able to provide you with some replacements, but not enough, I'm afraid." He paused for a moment. He had clasped his hands behind his back, and was pacing back and forth as he spoke. "Your battle with the Rebels in sector CT-38 was very important to us. Although you sustained damage and the loss of a number of fighters, which we will try to replace, you outfought a superior enemy and, more importantly, exposed a major Rebel effort in that area. I understand, Commander Cibock, that you and your Operations Officer tried to forewarn the rest of us about this." He turned to Cibock, who stood up to answer. "Yes, Admiral," he said confidently. "Commander Selena and I," he said nodding toward J'Una, "sent several messages with our observations and recommendations, but they were not followed. I assumed that Sector Flag Headquarters had more information than we did." He sat back down. "That officer," Thrawn said coldly, "has been re- lieved." There was a chilling silence following that pronouncement. I'm sure that everyone in that room was wondering just what "relieved" actually meant in this case. I preferred not to dwell upon it. Vice Admiral Thrawn paused a moment, then cracked what I guessed passed for a smile. Al- though the corners of his mouth moved up, there was no smile in his eyes. "Your conduct of that battle is most commendable," he continued. I was finally beginning to relax. Maybe this guy wasn't so bad after all. For an admiral. "You showed courage, adaptability, initiative and loyalty. We will be in great need of those qualities in the days and weeks ahead if we are to thwart the Rebel advances in this quadrant. In particular," he said looking toward J'Una and myself, "I would like to acknowledge Commander Selena for the tactical expertise she demonstrated during her direction of the battle, and Captain Tallig for the courage and in- novation he displayed while leading an inferior number of our TIE fighters against the Rebels. You are both to be commended." And he actually bowed toward us as polite applause emanated from our fellow officers. "Now," he said and the applause abruptly ceased. The pat-on-the-back had been delivered. Time to get down to business. "Where do we go from here?" he asked rhetorically. Obviously, he already had the answers. "It is clear to us that the Rebel Alliance intends to make a major effort in this quadrant, particularly sector CT-38 and its neighbors. Even though these areas are remote, we believe that the Rebels intend to stir up the local pop- ulace, attack and sieze resources and interfere with commerce beyond the Empire's borders." He paused and his demeanor turned even more cold and threatening. His red eyes narrowed and seemed to glow. "We will not permit the Rebel traitors to spread their infection to other sectors and systems. The Emperor has decreed that we will stamp them out!" Standing in the corner, Major Maarek broke out in enthusiastic applause which was politely picked up by most of the officers present. Ignoring it, Thrawn continued. "To that end," he said, "a large strike force, of which my flagship VANGUARD is but the precursor, will be assembled here with the objective of sweeping the area clear of the Rebel scum before they can get established. Once repaired, GUSTAV will play an active role in this operation. The knowledge that you have gained through your long patrols in this area will, I'm sure, prove most valuable." A major strike force? out here? I still didn't get it. With the war raging as it was, why send a major portion of the fleet out here? I guessed that Thrawn probably knew something I didn't. Which was why he was an admiral. "With regard to weaponry," he said, changing the subject abruptly, "I want to assure you that we are doing everything we can to speed development of new starfighters and other systems. We are current- ly developing a new, mobile battle station which, when completed, will greatly assist us in our efforts. I'm afraid I can't discuss that in any more detail, but I can tell you that our new TIE Interceptor is in the testing stage and should be out to the fleet soon. In the meantime, we have designed a modification to the TIE Fighter which will allow you to carry a limited number of concussion missiles. That should help you in future battles, Captain Tallig." He nodded in my direction. A few missiles, eh? I'll take them. Any- thing for that extra edge. "While you are here," the admiral continued, "technicians will modify your TIEs accordingly. I also want to encourage you to make use of the base's facilities on the surface. It's quite a primi- tive planet, I'm afraid, but there are some recreational diversions you might enjoy. The base commander has been instructed to assist you. Repairs should be complete, I'm told, in four or five days. After that it's back out to space. So, make use of this time. It may be a while before you have this opp- ortunity again." With that he turned and walked out of the room. Major Maarek shouted "Attention on deck!" again and we all jumped up, but the admiral and his aid were gone. Commander Cibock hastened after them to see the admiral off. J'Una and I looked at each other for a moment. "Well," I said with a leer, "Looks like we'll have a few days to ourselves." "Maybe you will," she said looking askance. "I'm going to have a lot of work to do." My vision of having three or four days alone with J'Una away from the ship suddenly vaporized. "Work?" I said lamely. "You heard the admiral. He wants us to enjoy ourselves here." "Who do you think has to plan our next mission?" she said haughtily. "Who do you think has to analyze re- ports and attend all those briefings? Who do you think has to work with the admiral's staff to figure out what GUSTAV is going to be doing when she leaves here? Certainly not you pilots!" "OK, OK," I said. Over the period of my relationship with J'Una I had learned when to admit defeat. "Are you sure?"I asked. She softened. "Yes, I'm sure, Vel. You know I'd love to, but my responsibility is here. Besides," she said , her eyes twinkling, black skin gleaming, "I want to get to know the admiral's aid. See ya." With that she left the conference room, striding purposefully down the passageway. I just stood there, staring after her like a complete idiot. -- Star Wars: The TIE Fighter (Part 4) Walter Slaven I wanted to get angry, but I couldn't. I knew that J'Una had strong feelings for me, but her career and her sense of duty were stronger. Sometimes there were conflicts and I won. This was not one of those times. What the hell, I thought. May as well take ad- vantage of the situation anyway. I figured I'd grab Dromo, go down to the surface and see if we could get into any trouble. I went down to the hangar deck to check on the modifications to the TIEs, and to see if I could find Dromo. I found him standing in front of one of our TIEs going over a set of schematics with Marina Haarkov. They lift- ed their attention from the plans as I approached. "Well hello, Captain," Marina said pleasantly. "How was the big meeting with the Admiral?" "Most enlightening, Ensign," I said feigning importance. I turned to Dromo. "They're going to modify the TIEs to carry a few missiles." Dromo nodded, indicating the work that had already begun on some of the ships. "And," I said, "we're going to take a few days and go down to the base." "What about Commander Selena?" he asked. "Won't you be going with her?" Dromo was well aware of my relationship with J'Una. He also knew that if I was going with her, I wouldn't be stand- ing in that hangar talking to him. "Commander Selena has other duties to attend to," I said trying to sound detached. Who was I kid- ding? Marina Haarkov had fucked me and J'Una at the same time, so I wasn't fooling her, either. "You coming?" I said to Dromo my voice betraying some impatience. "Sure," he said with a grin. "I'll go. Meet you at the shuttle bay." He turned and walked toward the hangar bay doors. Marina had been silent throughout this little ex- change. She was standing beside the TIE with the schematics in her hand, her face and hands smudged with grease, her coveralls were soiled and her blonde hair was disheveled. I had an idea. "Would you like to join us?" I asked. "Why, Captain," she said coyly, "whatever for?" "Well," I said grinning. "I may have another problem that you can help me with." She laughed, recalling the "problem" that I'd had. We had been flying stepped up patrol missions non- stop for four days, I hadn't been laid, and I had a raging hardon. She helped me with my "problem." "In that case," she said with a smile, "I'd be happy to. The base repair personnel have already relieved us of most of the jobs, so we're free to go. Let me get cleaned up, pack a few things and I'll meet you at the shuttle." I felt my cock stirring as she turned and walked away. Maybe Dromo and I wouldn't have to look far to find trouble. Two hours later a shuttle deposited us at the base on Mofta IV. Mofta IV is one of the few planets in this sector capable of supporting an Imperial base like this one. Mofta IV used to be one large dry, uninhabited desert. Now it's an inhabited desert. Although there were no native inhabitants, several small towns could be observed surrounding the perimeter of the base, which was several hundred square kilometers in size. These towns were the inevitable camp followers and hangers on that arise to provide any military establishment with things that it needs but can't easily get. Admiral Thrawn was as good as his word, apparently. The base commander had ensured that sufficient officers' quarters were available for GUSTAV crewmembers. Dromo and I shared a suite. Marina had a room to herself. Imperial propriety, you know. Dromo and I unpacked while we talked about what we wanted to do with our few days off. "I hear that the towns outside the gates have some pretty wild entertainment," Dromo said as he stuffed some clothes into a drawer. "Lieutenant Trogo down in supply says they've got females from several quadrants who just love visitors." He smiled, and grabbed his crotch. "And my 'visitor' could use some Imperial hospitality." I laughed. "Be careful where you 'visit'," I said chuckling. "Don't forget Ceraeus where you 'visited' a lady whose husband damn near chopped your 'visitor' off." Dromo winced at the memory. He had barely escaped that encounter. He didn't learn much from it, either. Dromo was several years younger than I, tall, muscular, good looking. He came from a wealthy and connected family on Coruscant, the Imperial capital. A fine pilot and dependable wingman, he was nevertheless young, brash, impulsive, and tended to think with his cock more than the rest of us. Dromo personified one of my theories of human behavior: "When the little head gets hard, the big head goes soft." Still, he was my wingman and it's always good to have a happy wingman. "OK, OK, big brother," Dromo said sarcastically. "I don't need a lecture. I just need to get laid." "Just try not to get yourself killed while we're here," I said. "I'm going to need you once we get back into combat." Dromo was about to say something further when we heard a knock at the door. "Hey, boys! Are you ready?" It was Marina's voice. I opened the door and Marina walked in. She had changed her clothes and was wearing a silk wraparound that hid little. Her blonde hair was draped over her shoulders, her breasts were prominently outlined, her blue eyes sparkled. To put it mildly, she was stunning and knew it. "You guys aren't even ready yet!" she said scornfully, looking from me to Dromo. I was clad only in utility shorts and a loose shirt, Dromo in shorts only, his muscular torso bare. Marina's eyes lingered on Dromo. After a long moment, she turned to me, smiling coyly. "Why, Captain," she said feigning innocence, "it would appear that your wingman has a problem." "Problem? What problem?" said Dromo, clueless. I looked at the front of Dromo's shorts. Sure enough. The sight of Marina had had its effect. His cock was stirring, creating a prominent bulge. "You're right, Ensign," I said, acting serious, "It would appear that the lieutenant does have a problem." "What problem!?" Dromo exclaimed in exasperation. Marina walked up to him, reached down and grabbed his stiffening cock through his shorts. "This problem," she said huskily, flicking her tongue over his nipples. "Oh," Dromo said, finally catching on. "That problem." Sometimes even the most oversexed of us is slow on the uptake. Marina reached inside Dromo's shorts and grabbed his cock with both hands, jerking it up and down. Dromo's cock was quite large and had grown into a full erection. He reached down and pushed the shorts off of his hips, letting them slide down to his feet. He stepped out of them and backed against a table as Marina kept jerking his penis. I was starting to enjoy this, and my cock had gotten hard, bulging out against my shorts. Marina glanced at my protruding erection and smiled at me. "Looks like you have the same problem, Captain," she said as she bent down and licked the tip of Dromo's cock. "I guess I do, Ensign," I said. I quickly stripped off my shirt, shucked off my shorts and walked over to where Marina was now eagerly sucking Dromo's cock. Marina straightened up, Dromo's cock sliding out of her mouth with a soft plop. She very deftly unwound her wrap from her body, letting it pool around her feet, revealing her nakedness. Her magnificent breasts stood out proudly, her nipples already erect with excitement. Her lips were slightly parted and her eyes narrowed in lust as she grabbed our cocks. Dromo and I stood on either side of Marina as she worked our cocks with her hands. She turned to Dromo and kissed him deeply, then did the same to me, our tongues battling. I fondled her breasts with one hand while I squeezed her ass with the other. Dromo reached a hand between her legs and shoved two fingers into her cunt. Marina moaned. I could smell her wetness on Dromo's fingers. Marina squirmed against our ministrations, her hands working on our cocks. She released my throbbing erection and turned to Dromo, grabbing his dick with both hands. "Fuck me," she said. "I've got to have this thing in me. NOW." Dromo didn't need to be told twice. He picked Marina up and laid her on her back on the table, her legs draping over the edge. He got between her legs, grabbed her hips and pulled her to him as Marina grasped his cock and guided him inside her. Dromo slid in to the hilt, causing Marina to gasp in pleasure. Dromo started pounding away, his big cock sliding wetly in and out of Marina's pussy. He put his hands under her knees and raised her legs so that they draped over his shoulders. Marina gyrated her ass to meet his thrusts. Dromo looked over at me, a big smile on his face. "She's got a great pussy, Vel," he said between thrusts. "She really knows how to squeeze a cock." "Glad you're enjoying it," I said. "Anything for a happy wing- man." I was slowly stroking my cock as I watched Dromo piston his cock into Marina's sopping cunt. Marina reached up and pinched his nipples as she thrashed about on the table. Her breasts were flushed a deep red, and her nipples appeared to be as hard as my cock. Dromo's balls slapped noisily against her ass. I decided that I had been watching this arousing scene long enough. Cock in hand I approached the table. Marina smiled at me and reached out to grasp my dick with her hand, pumping it slowly. She pulled me closer, then took my cock into her mouth, slurping noisily. I could feel her run her tongue around the head as I began to thrust into her mouth. Dromo's thrusts were becoming harder and more insistent, causing Marina's entire body to shudder under the impact. As a result her mouth was vibrating around my cock as she sucked voraciously while her hands fondled and squeezed my balls. It felt terrific. I grabbed her head and began thrusting my turgid cock harder into her mouth, keeping time with Dromo's powerful hammering into her cunt. Marina was in cock heaven. She was moaning deeply and thrash- ing about. She lowered her legs from Dromo's shoulders to wrap them about his waist and draw him even deeper inside her. At the same time she thrust her mouth forward onto my cock, burying her nose in my pubic hair. She was too much! Marina's mouth continued to work hungrily on my cock, as Dromo continued his methodical thrusting into her cunt. Her hands squeezed my balls as she sucked me nearly to the back of her throat. My dick was rock hard and I could feel the explosion churning in my balls. I wasn't the only one close to cumming. Dromo's thrusts had taken on an increased urgency as Marina moaned around my pulsating erection. Dromo gave one final, mighty heave, his fingers dug into Marina's thighs and he bellowed his ecstacy as he pumped his sperm deep into Marina's cunt. Marina shuddered in her own orgasm and her hands and mouth gripped me ever more tightly. Dromo disengaged himself from Marina and staggered back, his cock glistening, cum oozing from Marina's pussy. I slammed my cock harder into Marina's mouth. She moaned and grabbed my hips, pulling me harder into her face. The climax churning within my balls broke free and travelled up the length of my penis to explode outward with gut wrenching force. My cum shot deep into her throat, gagging her, overwhelming her. I was cumming like I hadn't cum in a long time. Marina's mouth and throat tried valiantly to swallow my sperm, but couldn't keep up. Cum filled her mouth and flowed out around my cock and ran down the corners of her mouth. My turgid penis kept bucking and jerking wildly, pumping more and more semen into Marina's mouth. She seemed to hunger for it and attempted to suck it all down. Finally, she pulled my cock out of her overflowing mouth. I sprayed her face and tits with the rest of my cum. I was finally spent and, knees weakened by my orgasm, I collapsed into a chair, my deflating cock hanging limply between my legs. Marina smiled and sat up on the table. Her face and breasts glistened with cum. She looked longingly at Dromo's fat dick then said to me, "I think we've fixed the Lieutenant's problem, Captain." I grinned back at her. "It would appear so, Ensign," I replied. Marina got on all fours on the table and turned so that her ass and cunt pointed directly at me. She reached behind her and spread her pussy lips with her hands. "Now," she said lustily, "how about your problem, Captain?" My rapidly reviving erection preceded me as I moved across the room toward her. For the next couple of days we did just about everything. The three of us sucked and fucked for hours at a time in our suite, in Marina's room, in the pool, behind a bar. Marina couldn't seem to get enough and Dromo and I were only too happy to accomodate her. We nearly drowned her in our cum, but she always seemed to want more. Once, while taking Dromo's dick up her ass and mine in her cunt, she nearly passed out from ec- stacy. Dromo was a walking erection the whole time. We went to the nearby towns and he chased after virtually every female we encountered. One evening, after he'd been forcibly ejected from a gambling establishment, he hit it off with a four-armed female stripper from Acros2. She proved to be absolutely incredible sexually and did things I'd never dreamed of, including jacking off Dromo and I, herself, and Marina at the same time! Unbelievable. So, for a couple of days, the three of us completely lost ourselves in sensual, and sexual, pleasure. We became totally absorbed in fucking, eating (food), drinking, gambling and just having fun. Not exactly the stereotype of Imperial warriors, but I've never been accused of that, anyway. It was a bit unusual for someone like Marina, however, the daughter of an admiral. Nevertheless she was probably the horniest of the three of us. She was really taken with Dromo's sexy physique and huge cock and impaled herself on him every chance she had. As much fun as all of this was, what was more important was that, for a short time at least, we forgot. We forgot the war, the Rebels, GUSTAV, Admiral Thrawn, combat, the Emperor, storm troopers, everything. Time nearly stood still as we lost ourselves in ourselves and the three of us, each of whom had sacrificed so much, for our ship, our shipmates, the Navy and the Empire which it served, took a little back. Reality, however, usually finds a way to intrude upon such revelry. I was awakened from a stupor before dawn on the third (fourth?) day by the incessant buzzing of my comm link. All Imperial Navy personnel carry these so that you're never too far out of touch. I struggled to semi-consciousness suddenly aware of the female stretched out across my legs. I wriggled free of her, grasped the communicator and pressed the "receive" button. The buzzing stopped (thankfully) and a voice said, "All personnel return to GUSTAV immediately. This is a general recall. All personnel return to GUSTAV immediately....." I shut it off. In the next room I could hear Marina and Dromo begin to stir. Their comm links had awakened them, also. I slapped the female on the ass, told her it was time to go and staggered into the shower. Duty calls, I told myself, ignoring the erection that the sight of that ass had stirred up. An hour later Dromo, Marina and I were aboard a very crowded shuttle heading back to the space repair dock where GUSTAV was berthed. As we exited the shuttle a young crewman approached me. "Captain Tallig," he said earnestly, "senior officer briefing in twenty minutes, sir." "OK," I said reluctantly. "Tell Commander Selena I'll be along as soon as I get into a uniform." "Yes, sir," he said and hurried off. I headed toward my quarters, moving a little slowly. The ship was abuzz with activity. People were hurrying about and I noticed that the base repair personnel were all leaving. We're getting underway early, I thought.probably not good news. I got to my quarters and tossed my bag into a corner. I found a Clean uniform and changed into it. I was now awake enough to feel Like shit. Hopefully this wouldn't be a long briefing and I could come back here and take a nap. In the briefing room J'Una was standing in front of the other Officers who had already assembled. She smiled thinly at me as I entered and took a seat near the back. "Nice of you to join us, Captain Tallig," she said sarcastically, causing heads to turn in my direction. I smiled weakly. "Sorry I'm late, Commander." She ignored me and addressed the group. "Commander Cibock is getting the ship underway, so I will con- duct this briefing," she began. As she spoke we could feel a shudder as the docking clamps were released. Then the ship began to move. Cibock wasn't wasting any time. "The operation to counter Rebel incursions into this quadrant has begun," she began. I could tell that J'Una was in her element as she stood tall, proud and official in front of the group of officers. As the ship's Operations Officer and next senior to Cibock, it was only logical for her to give the briefing in Cibock's absence. Nevertheless it was obvious to me that there was more than a mere sense of duty motivating her here. Ambition. I was sure that whatever GUSTAV's role in the plans she was about to discuss was, J'Una had had a major part in drafting those plans. I also assumed that her obvious enthusiasm was due in no small part to the anticipation of a successful operation which, since she helped plan it, would reflect well on her and help her career. "Vice Admiral Thrawn with the Main Body of three star destroyers and numerous smaller vessels has already begun to sweep several systems in and near sector CT-38." Behind her a holographic display of the areas in question lit up. "Admiral Traalco is leading a smaller force with star destroyer VENGEANCE and several support vessels to investigate reports of Rebel activity in sector BJ-20." More lights lit up showing that force's track. I noticed that sector BJ-20 was nearly on the other side of the quadrant from CT-38. J'Una pointed a laser pen at several systems through which Thrawn's force had passed. "Several of the smaller, resource rich systems," she continued, "have been seized to preempt Rebel infiltration efforts." "That's not going to win us many friends out here, Commander," I chimed in. Heads turned. It is not customary for pronouncements from on high to be questioned. J'Una shot me an angry stare, red eyes blazing. "It is not our purpose to make friends, Captain," she said deliberately. "Our mission is to carry out the will of the Imperial High Command and exterminate the Rebel traitors so that we can end this war." There were murmurs of approval from the other officers present. I sat back and shut my mouth, but I couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right. "GUSTAV," J'Una continued unperturbed, "will rendezvous with Frigate SHAMUS and the Assault Transport Carrier HININBURG. We will proceed to the Resead system." The holographic map changed to display a closeup of Resead, a small unremarkable planet. "Resead has been the center of smuggling, legitimate commerce and other activities for a long time," J'Una said pointing her laser pen at the planet. Resead was just about exactly in the middle between CT-38 and BJ-20. Coincidence? "The Empire has left Resead alone because, frankly, some of the intelligence they provided due to wide ranging connections often proved valuable." She paused. "Until now. We have learned that the Reseans have virtually joined the Rebel Alliance. There is a large space platform in orbit around Resead which had been used for shipping, storage of goods, etc. Now, however, the Alliance has been allowed to move in and use the platform as a small base and, more importantly,to use the communications facilities to broadcast Rebel propaganda throughout the quadrant, which they have begun to do." There was an angry murmur from some of the officers. Major Maarek, the stormtrooper commander, seemed particularly distressed. "Our mission," J'Una said after pausing dramatically,"is to capture the platform and suppress the planet." Major Maarek couldn't contain himself and started clapping. Many followed. J'Una smiled but didn't let the clapping last long. "The execution will be simple and straightforward," she continued. "TIE fighters from GUSTAV and SHAMUS will eliminate any starfighter opposition. We don't expect much. The Reseans mainly have old Z-95 Headhunters and some old corvettes. TIE bombers will deliver heavy space bombs to knock out the platform's shields and incapacitate its defenses." The holographic display now showed TIE bombers attacking the platform. "Once that's accomplished," she went on, "Major Maarek will lead GUSTAV's stormtroopers to attack and sieze the platform. A much larger number of stormtroopers from HININBURG will attack and sieze the planet. Resead will become a permanent part of the Empire." There were nods of agreement all around. "A final word on command," J'Una said, smiling. "Commander Cibock is the senior officer present for this operation which means that GUSTAV will be in tactical control throughout." I think she really meant that she would be in control. It was apparent that she considered this a great opportunity. J"Una switched off the holographic display and the lights came up in the room. "I remind you," she said sternly, "that this is strictly confidential. No one outside this room is to know the nature of our operation until after we go to hyperspace. Thank you for your attention, this briefing is over." I waited until the room cleared to approach J'Una, who had been collecting her notes and chatting with other officers. She looked at me and smiled. "Well," she said putting her hands on her hips, "did you enjoy yourself on Mofta IV, Captain?" "Bet your ass, I did," I replied grinning. "Fucked your brains out the whole three days, eh?" "Just about," I replied. I always enjoyed this kind of banter between us. It made our relationship special. "I asked you to come along, remember?" "I remember, Val," she said earnestly. "But there was a lot of work to do." I looked at her for a long moment. "OK," I said, "tell me about the Admiral's aide." She laughed loudly at that. "You prick," she said still laughing. "I guess I had that coming." I merely smiled and raised an eyebrow. "He was good," she said. "I went with him to the VANGUARD for a while. What a ship! Absolutely enormous. He showed me around and we talked about things." "What things?" I asked, curious. J'Una was right about star destroyers. They are so big that it's hard to comprehend. Their crews number in the thousands and they can carry a dozen or more starfighter squadrons. J'Una looked around the room and lowered her voice. "Remember that mobile battle station that Thrawn talked about?" I nodded. "Yes. What about it?" "According to Rickna- that's the aide- this isn't any old battle station," she said. Her eyes had become intense, the red glowing. "It's as big as a moon and can wipe out whole planets. Or will when it's done." I shook my head in amazement. "Wipe out whole planets?" J'Una nodded. "Pretty nasty stuff," she said. "Is that how we're going to win?" I asked, "by wiping everybody out?" J'Una looked at me for a moment. "I hope we can bring this all to an end before that, Vel. But I don't think the Rebels will ever give up." "You're probably right," I said. "Anything else your aide friend tell you? Like why we're sending almost half the damn fleet out here chasing Rebel ghosts or beating up on some small system?" "Only that the Emperor was really pissed when he heard that Mon Mothma herself, the Rebel leader, had been out here stirring up the local populace. Since Resead was one of those places she visited, he wants it crushed." Something about all this puzzled me. "Why," I asked J'Una, "would the Rebels turn the Resean station into a comm center for broad- casting propaganda? Surely they know we'd come after it." She looked puzzled as well. I knew that she had had doubts about this course of action, too, but in her position she couldn't always express them. I was certain, however, that doubts or no doubts J'Una would take full advantage of any opportunity that presented itself. "I'm afraid I can't answer that one, Vel," she said after a moment. "Maybe you're right and they want us out here. I don't know. I do know, however, that we're here, we have a job to do and we'd best do it." With that we both left the room. She was right. There was a lot to do. We didn't have much time until we got to Resead. Dromo and I briefed the squadron, including the new pilots who had just checked in. We also inspected the missile modifications that were installed by Mofta IV technicians. Each TIE now had the capability of carrying four missiles. Not a lot, but I wasn't complaining. -- Star Wars; The TIE Fighter (Part 5) Walter Slaven We had further briefings, which merely expanded on the first one and filled in some details. As soon as GUSTAV, SHAMUS and HININBURG came out of hyperspace, GUSTAV and SHAMUS would each launch their two TIE fighter squadrons, then the TIE bombers. I was designated to be in overall command of both of GUSTAV's TIE fighter squadrons, Gamma and Beta. SHAMUS' squadrons, Sigma and Tau, would be commanded by one of her pilots. We were told that there would be minimal fighter opposition, that the real threat was from the heavy laser cannons on the platform itself. I didn't really buy the line about 'minimal opposition.' I guess when you're the one doing the flying there is no such thing as 'minimal opposition.' I had a nagging feeling about this operation, but I set it aside and carried on as professionally as I could. No sense in letting the troops see that you have doubts. Not good for the mission. My one real concern, however, was that we didn't get to practice with the new missile launchers. I ran the pilots through the simulator so they could get use to switching back and forth between missiles and lasers, and become accustomed to the missile's targeting system. Simulators are fine, but they just can't substitute for actually flying the TIE and operating its weapons. Sometimes training takes a back seat to operational requirements. Concerns aside, I felt confident as we approached Resead and GUSTAV prepared to come out of hyperspace. Morale was up, thanks to Mofta IV, Admiral Thrawn had delivered on his promise to get us more starfighters and more pilots, and we would not be operating alone this time. During the few periods when we were able to talk privately J'Una expressed some of the same concerns I was feeling. Vice Admiral Thrawn's force had encountered virtually nothing. Only a few systems where some Rebel dignitaries had visited, but nothing else. Thrawn crushed those systems nonetheless, their populations either forcibly evicted or else subjugated to Imperial military rule. Admiral Traalco's smaller force, on the other side of the quadrant, hadn't been heard from recently. J'Una was uneasy about the lack of intelligence about Resead, and about the High Command's apparent indifference. "Sometimes I wonder how some of those bastards got to where they are," she said bitterly. Then she answered her own question. "Probably by avoiding combat duty aboard ship." GUSTAV was preparing to come out of hyperspace. I assembled the Gamma and Beta pilots in the hangar one more time. "We're still expecting only light opposition," I told them. "Mainly old Z-95 Headhunters. Maybe an old corvette or two. That's what the geniuses at intel tell us." There was a ripple of laughter. It is almost a cultural requirement for starfighter pilots to despise the people who work in intelligence. "What do you say, Captain Tallig," a voice called out. "I say don't waste your missiles on a Z-95," I said sternly. "You only have four so save them in case somebody else shows up." There was a murmur of approval. This made sense. In its day the Z-95 was the premier starfighter, serving the Old Republic. But that was a long time ago. Still used in great numbers by smugglers, bounty hunters and the like, the Z-95 was totally outclassed even by a TIE Fighter. I almost felt sorry for the poor dumb bastards that flew those things. Those feelings would stop, I knew, when those poor dumb bastards started shooting at me. "Remember," I told the pilots, "don't attack the platform directly. Let the bombers do that. Our job is to clear the area of fighters." Heads nodded. "Also, we're working with SHAMUS' fighters this time: Sigma and Tau squadrons. Give them help if they need it, and don't be afraid to ask for it yourself. Good luck." We climbed into our ships and went through the pre-launch cycle. The overhead cranes picked us up and moved us to the launching bay. GUSTAV came out of hyperspace and the launching bay doors in the bottom of the ship opened. As flight commander mine was the first ship to be lowered through the doors and released into space. I engaged the twin ion engines and checked out the electronics and the weapons systems as Gamma and then Beta squadron formed up around me. Off in the distance I could see SHAMUS' flight group doing the same thing. Between us there were nearly 50 starfighters and I suddenly felt like kicking a little ass. "Gamma one, GUSTAV," J'Una's voice, clear, professional and always sexy, purred into my ear through the commlink, "report status." "Roger, GUSTAV," I replied. "Flight groups formed. We will commence sweep around the platform." "Very well," J'Una acknowledged. "Be advised that the platform is launching starfighters." "Acknowledged. Any ID on them?" "They appear to be Z-95's, Gamma One," J'Una said. If that's all there was, this wouldn't be a problem. But my internal misgivings persisted. I contacted the SHAMUS flight leader. "SHAMUS flight leader this GUSTAV flight leader, Captain Tallig of Gamma Squadron," I called, switching comm channels. "Hello, Captain," said a sweet female voice. I was momentarily taken aback. There aren't many female starfighter pilots in the Imperial Navy, and fewer still who are flight leaders. "This is Captain Ijuf of Tau Squadron ." "Roger, Tau leader. We will commence our attack on the fighters near the platform. Request you hang back and cover us in case anyone else shows up." "Acknowledged, Gamma leader," she said. "We'll cover you. Holler if you need help." "Thanks," I said. The Z-95s were approaching now, so I put the squadrons into attack formation and led them forward. "Remember to stay paired up," I told them. "One guy shoots, the other covers him. Try to get behind them. The Z-95 isn't fast enough to run away. Use speed matching and rip them up." Then, to Dromo I said, "Gamma Two, you're with me. Let's go." "Roger, Gamma One. I'm with you." I could see him tucked in behind and to the left of me. Then we were in among the Z-95s, our formations dissolving into individual battles. Dromo and I teamed up and quickly dispached two of the obsolete craft. They didn't even get shots off at us. I noticed similarly one-sided engagements taking place all around me. This was quickly becoming a slaughter. The Reseans weren't giving up easily, however. Still more Z-95s arrived and joined the fray. We were outnumbered now, but our tactical and technical superiority more than compensated for that. Z-95s continued to vaporize and I felt no need to call the SHAMUS fighters for help. Dromo and I had just dispached two more Z-95s when I heard J'Una break in excitedly. "Gamma One, GUSTAV. Hyperspace alert! Numerous ships coming out of hyperspace." The excitement in her voice bothered me. I barely had time to acknowledge when blue streaks appeared everywhere, indicating ships coming out of hyperspace. Lots of ships. Lots of X-wings! Shit. And these were Rebel fighters, not Resean. We'd been set up! "Gamma One to all fighters. Watch out for X-wings coming out of hyperspace. Now's the time to use your missiles." My warning wasn't soon enough, however. Two TIEs were destroyed before they knew what happened and the battle suddenly became very confused. I accelerated to full throttle and activated the missile target- ing system, listening for the tone that would tell me I had a lock on an X-wing. I maneuvered in behind my target and released the missile. The range was close and I had a good lock. The missile hit the X-wing dead on and took down his shields. My sensors told me that the X-wing's hull had been damaged as well. I activated the speed matching device, switched to dual fire lasers and finished the job. The X-wing disintegrated. More ships were arriving from hyperspace! I decided it was time to call for help. "Gamma leader to Tau leader," I called. "We've been ambushed by Rebel X-wings. We need assistance now." "Roger, Gamma leader," Captain Ijuf responded. "We're on our way." The space around the Resean platform seemed to literally burst with starfighters swirling and weaving in a deadly ballet. The SHAMUS fighters slammed into the fight, momentarily taking the pressure off of us. I zapped a stray Z-95, then decided that we needed to reevaluate this mission. "GUSTAV, this is Gamma One," I called. "We are heavily engaged with a large number of Rebel X-wings. Repeat, Rebel X-wings." "Roger, Gamma One," J'Una replied. "What's the status of the battle?" "The SHAMUS fighters are helping us hold our own," I said. "But X-wings keep showing up. I'm not sure that we can clear them away for the bombers to make their run on the platform. GUSTAV," I said earnestly, knowing that J'Una's wouldn't be the only set of ears hearing me, "they knew we were coming." There was a pause on the other end. I assumed that J'Una, Commander Cibock and the other officers in the Operations Center were discussing my report. "Gamma One, GUSTAV," J'Una's voice, taut, determined. "GUSTAV and SHAMUS are launching the TIE bombers now. HININBURG is launching assault transports. Continue the attack." I could tell by J'Una's tone that it was useless to debate the issue. She was in charge, after all, and undoubtedly had more information than I did. "Understood, GUSTAV," I said reluctantly. "We'll try to keep the Rebels off the bombers, but that will leave you and SHAMUS vulnerable if anyone else shows up." "Continue the attack, Gamma One," J'Una said curtly. "Gamma One to all fighters," I called, "the bombers are on their way. Give them cover." Dromo and I made a hard right turn, blasted an X-wing and headed toward the line of TIE bombers that streamed toward the platform from the two frigates. As if magnetized, the bombers drew the attention of every starfighter in the area. X-wings streaked through the bombers' formations, intent on thwarting their attack runs. TIE fighters streaked after the X-wings. I found myself in the middle of this mad melee with an X-wing on my ass. Dromo had gotten lost somewhere in the fight. I pushed my TIE to max speed, and tried to corkscrew out of the X-wing's line of fire. He took several shots at me, but I was able to dodge them. I just hoped that he didn't have any missiles left. "Gamma Two, this is Gamma One. Dromo, I need help," I called. I wrenched my TIE hard right and barely avoided another laser blast from the X-wing. "Sorry, Captain," Dromo's voice was tense. "I'm in a bit of a fix myself. There's too many of these bastards." I veered hard left, the X-wing still on my tail, and came face to face with another TIE fighter flying straight at me, lasers blasting. Shit! I pulled the TIE violently upward and the other TIE kept firing, chopping my pursuer into pieces. "Thanks, whoever you are," I called out. "You're quite welcome, Captain." Captain Ijuf's voice purred into my ear. I remembered that Dromo was still having problems. "Dromo, I'm on my way," I said, turning my TIE 180 degrees. "I'm OK, Captain," he said, relieved. "One of the Tau fighters helped me out." "Roger, Gamma Two," I said. "Form up on me and let's go help the bombers." The TIE bombers' formation had been ripped and disrupted by the repeated X-wing attacks. Nevertheless they pressed on. They were now within range of the platform's heavy turbo lasers which opened up. Another bomber quickly disintegrated and the remainder commenced evasive maneuvers as they closed. The bombers had to get very close to deliver their load of two heavy space bombs. The space bomb can be a devastating weapon, but it must be launched at point blank range. Unlike the missile or proton torpedo, the space bomb does not have its own propulsion. It is "lobbed" at its target. Thus, the bomber has to get very close, release the bomb, pull up and get the hell away. It is not conducive to a long life and I had nothing but re- spect for those guys in slow, unmaneuverable craft flying right into the teeth of enemy fire to deliver their weapon. Dromo and I, along with Captain Ijuf and some of her Tau fighters, had our hands full keeping X-wings off the bombers as they began their final attack run. Just then J'Una's voice came over my comm link. "Gamma One, GUSTAV. More ships coming out of hyperspace!" New blue streaks slashed across space as more Rebels piled into the battle. But these guys weren't X-wings. They were Y- wing attack craft and modified corvettes. Shit. The Rebels had suckered us in close to the platform, then sent in attack craft and corvettes to go after our frigates. They sure seemed to know a lot about what we were doing. No time to contemplate that, though. The bombers were delivering their ordnance. My sensors detected several large explosions as the heavy space bombs pounded the platform's shields. Several more bombers vaporized right under the platform's lasers, which were firing incessantly. I could see Major Maarek's stormtrooper transport approaching the platform. I turned away from that scene and started to worry about the latest Rebel arrivals. "GUSTAV, Gamma One. Rebel Y-wings and corvettes in attack formation heading your way," I warned. "Roger, Gamma One. We are counterattacking." Counterattacking? J'Una's voice was cool, unemotional. I could see SHAMUS and GUSTAV closing each other to combine their fire. In this case Imperial tactics permitted a withdrawal. When surprised by a superior Rebel force, recall as many starfighters as possible, then get the hell out with your capital ships intact and come back later with a bigger force. That's the way the Empire operated and I'm sure that's what the Rebels were counting on. They had guessed right so far. What they hadn't counted on was encountering a Bardin female who was in tactical control of the Imperial forces and had no intention of withdrawing. "Gamma One, detach some fighters to assist us." "Roger, GUSTAV," I replied. She was taking a huge risk and I found myself hoping that Major Maarek's stormtroopers captured that platform because we'd need a place to land if the frigates got wasted. I quickly mustered up Dromo and two other Gamma fighters, plus Captain Ijuf and some of her Tau fighters. We formed up and sped after the Rebel force. The rest of the TIEs continued covering the bombers. There were three corvettes and numerous Y-wings approaching the two frigates. Smaller than a frigate, the corvette had been used pri- marily as a blockade runner due to its speed. The Rebels had modified many of these ships, however, equipping them with additional shielding and turbo laser mounts so that they posed a formidable threat. Three corvettes definitely meant trouble. I had recently seen what one proton torpedo could do to a ship like GUSTAV, so I decided that my group of TIEs would go after the Y-wings, and let the frigates slug it out with the corvettes. The battle had degenerated into a wild, uncontrolled melee and my concerns now focused on our long-term survival as opposed to the immediate tactical objectives. I had one missile left which I targeted on a Y-wing that I had slipped in behind, ignoring fire from another Y-wing. I got the lock and fired. The Y-wing's shields were damaged, but not completely down. I switched to dual lasers, activated speed matching and sawed the Rebel ship in half. It finally blew apart. I saw several other Y-wings suffer the same fate as our TIEs got in among them. Without X-wing protection they were very vulnerable. The corvettes pressed home their attack. Two of them seemed to head toward SHAMUS, probably because she was closer, and the third was attacking GUSTAV. The two Imperial frigates put up a wall of laser and missile fire at their approaching foes. J'Una and Commander Cibock had maneuvered the ships so that their broadsides faced the Rebel corvettes, who were approaching head-on. This enabled GUSTAV and SHAMUS to employ all of their guns, while the corvettes could only fire those that faced forward. Which meant, of course, that the other guns fired at us. The blackness of space was ripped by a fireworks show the likes of which I had never before seen. GUSTAV and SHAMUS concentrated their fire on the lead corvette approaching SHAMUS. Their combined turbo lasers hammered the corvette, smashing into the shields and ripping into the forward part of the ship. It continued toward SHAMUS, however, turbo lasers blazing. The two corvettes attacking SHAMUS began scoring some hits and I could see the ship shudder under the blows, its shields buckling but holding. Dromo and I and the other TIEs were still chasing down Y-wings, dodging fire from the corvettes and trying not to get shot by our own ships. "GUSTAV, Gamma One. We've eliminated most of the Y-wings," I reported. "We will commence strafing runs to give these corvettes something else to think about." "Roger, Gamma One," J'Una replied. Her voice was a little tense, but otherwise she did not betray any of the anxiety I knew she and others on the ship must be feeling. "We'd appreciate any help you can give us." GUSTAV continued hammering away at the corvettes, but started taking some fire herself. Dromo and I began strafing one of the corvettes. Our puny lasers couldn't penetrate the hull, but we could knock out some of their turbos and distract their fire. We tried to stay in between the corvettes so that if they shot at us, they risked hitting each other. Captain Ijuf and a couple of her fighters were also strafing a corvette. One of them was vaporized by a turbo laser blast. We were in the middle of a royal slugfest. The corvettes were pounding SHAMUS and I could tell that she was taking damage. I dived on one of the corvettes, targetting a turbo laser mount. I pressed the trigger and held it as I closed, my lasers slashing at the mount. It exploded in a flash of brilliant colors. One less turbo mount to worry about. I pulled out of my attack run and that's when I spotted them: two Y-wings we had somehow lost track of were approaching SHAMUS. I was closest to them, but I knew instantly that I was too far to be able to intercept both of them. Nevertheless I diverted all power to the engines and my TIE shot forward at full speed as I maneuvered between the corvettes. "SHAMUS, this is Gamma One. Incoming Y-wings, "I warned. "Watch out for torpedoes." "Acknowledged, Gamma One," SHAMUS replied. The first Y-wing launched its torpedoes before I could get a shot off. Both torpedoes slammed into Shamus, collapsing her shields and wreaking havoc in interior spaces. I could see explosions in the hangar bays. The entire ship seemed to shudder, but held together. The rate of fire from her lasers decreased markedly as power was undoubtedly lost to various sections of the ship. The offending Y-wing pulled out. I let him go, concentrating instead on the other one that hadn't launched. I got behind him and started blasting away, but this guy kept jerking his ship around, and I couldn't get a good lock. I knocked his shields down and targeted his torpedo launchers as we raced in toward SHAMUS. The frigate was visibly damaged, but a couple of her turbos were firing again, some of the laser bolts coming uncomfortably close to my ship. I hit the Y-wing again, damaging his weapons system but he kept on heading toward SHAMUS. "SHAMUS, this guy's gonna ram you!" I hollered as I pulled up and narrowly missed hitting the ship myself. The Y-wing slammed into SHAMUS, exploding in a huge flash. The frigate lost all power and I could see fires, smoke and collapsed bulkheads. I fully expected the ship to explode, but it didn't. It just floated, dead in space, a sitting duck. At that instant GUSTAV's gunners tore through the hull of the lead corvette and it did explode, the flash blinding me in my cockpit, debris hurtled for miles, rattling against my hull. The normal crew compliment of a corvette is 150-200 people. There could not possibly be any survivors. GUSTAV began firing at one of the other corvettes. "Gamma One this is GUSTAV," J'Una's voice, still anxious but determined. "The platform has been secured by our forces. HININBURG's assault transports are descending to the surface." The attack had continued unabated. Rebel efforts to drive the frigates off had failed. But there were still two corvettes out there. "Gamma One, we are launching four reserve TIE bombers with space bombs to attack the corvettes. Cover them." So that was her ace. Space bombs will knock down the shields of a heavily defended platform, but they'll blow a corvette to pieces. "Roger, GUSTAV," I replied. I had to admire J'Una's guts. She had held on to her reserve for as long as possible. Now, when the enemy was most vulnerable, she went for the kill. Two of the bombers swooped down on the nearest corvette and blew it into space junk before the poor bastards knew what hit them. The second was luckier. It managed to destroy one of the bombers attacking it, then get away from the other. It escaped into hyperspace. As quickly as the battle had erupted, it was over. The remaining Rebel starfighters joined the corvette in a hyperspace getaway. Captain Ijuf and I reformed what was left of our respective flight groups. The carnage had been incredible. The space platform, object of this adventure, had been blasted into a wreck by the TIE bombers, but was now fully under the control of Major Maarek's storm- troopers. Wreckage from numerous starfighters, Imperial, Rebel and Resean, drifted lazily through space. SHAMUS had managed to restore some power, but it was obvious that the ship was severely crippled. I could only imagine the devastation inside that vessel. I found myself asking myself what was all of this for? A relatively obscure system had become the center of a viscious battle resulting in horrendous destruction and loss of life, and for what? The Emperor? I'd never even seen the guy. I snapped myself out of this somewhat heretical reverie as I heard J'Una's voice come over the commlink. "Gamma One, GUSTAV." Her voice sounded much more relaxed now that the succession of crises had passed. "Prepare your group to return to base. Mission successfully completed. Well done." "Thanks," I said dryly. Then, "What about SHAMUS?" "SHAMUS is too badly damaged to recover starfighters," J'Una replied. "GUSTAV will recover her fighters after your group lands. It will get a little crowded but, accounting for our losses, we should be able to handle them." "Roger, GUSTAV," I said. "We're on our way in." The fortunes of war sometimes have a way of working out, I guess. I'd get to meet Captain Ijuf of Tau Squadron. She had proven herself to be an excellent pilot and a fine flight leader, and she had a very sexy voice. I wondered what she'd be like in person. I switched to the flight control frequency. "GUSTAV, Gamma One requesting landing sequence." "Roger, Gamma One," the Flight Control Officer responded. "Be advised that we are parking two TIEs to a stall." "Understood, GUSTAV," I responded. I cut the engines as I felt the tractor beam take hold of my ship. "Just try not to scratch the paint." The tractor beam guided my TIE through the bustling hangar and set her down all the way forward in the stall. I went through the post flight shut down quickly, then climbed out of my TIE. I suddenly felt exhausted and I really needed a drink. Another TIE was being parked in the same stall I was in, and I had to scamper out of the way. Great, I thought. Survive all that to be squashed by one of your own starfighters in a parking stall! The TIE's hatch dropped open and the pilot climbed out and dropped to the deck. The pilot straightened and removed the flight helmet. The first thing I saw was red hair. Lots of red hair flowing halfway down her back. The flight suit hid the particulars of her figure but her face was exquisite. She had steely blue eyes, full lips and a smooth, prominent nose. I extended my hand in welcome. "Captain Ijuf?" I asked. She nodded. "Welcome aboard, Captain. I'm Vel Tallig of Gamma Squadron." She took my hand in a surprisingly strong grip. She wasn't particularly big or powerful looking, unlike J'Una who towered over damn near everyone and exuded strength. Captain Ijuf smiled. "Pleased to meet you, Captain," she said. "Call me Kao. Any more word on SHAMUS?" We were walking toward the hangar bay doors. "I'm afraid I don't know any more than you do," I said knowing how concerned she must be for her shipmates. "You saw how much damage she suffered. It didn't look good." "I appreciate that effort you made trying to intercept that attack," Kao said. Her eyes glistened a little, but there were no tears. Tears are not part of Imperial protocol. "We're all on the same team," I said. The hangar bay doors opened and J'Una walked into the hangar bay, obviously looking for us. "Captain Ijuf?" she said to Kao who nodded. "I'm Commander Selena, Operations Officer." She extended her hand, which Kao took. "I'm afraid you and your flight group will be with us here on GUSTAV for awhile. SHAMUS was severely damaged and there were heavy casualties." Kao looked at her stoically, trying not to show emotion. I had only just met her, but I knew what she was feeling. "HININBURG has taken SHAMUS under space tow," J'Una continued. "Assault transport carriers," she said referring to HININBURG, "aren't much for combat, but they do have good medical and repair capabilities. Hopefully SHAMUS' hyperdrive can be repaired soon and she can travel quickly to a repair facility. In the meantime, you and your fighters will augment GUSTAV's crew. We can sure use you." -- Star Wars; The TIE Fighter (Part 6) Walter Slaven "Thank you, Commander," Kao said stiffly. "Commander Selena," I said formally, changing the subject, "the Rebels knew what we were doing. Either that or they're damned lucky. They anticipated every move we made, except your decision to stick it out. What I don't understand is why they sacrificed so much for such an insignificant place like Resead. Hell, " I exclaimed, exasperated. "I don't understand why we sacrificed so much for it." J'Una ignored my rhetoric. "We had our orders, Captain," she said sternly, looking down at me, red eyes hot. "This 'insignificant place' was being turned into a major Rebel presence. We have eliminated that presence." She seemed satisfied with her answer, but I wasn't sure that she believed everything she was saying. I looked at her for a moment. "I hope the cost was worth it," I said quietly. J'Una's stance softened. "I hope so, too, Captain," she said. "We are going to remain in orbit here for a few days, to ensure the planet is fully secured. We'll make repairs to the platform and restore its capabilities as a communications station. You'll fly regular patrols to ensure that the Rebels don't interfere." "So, what great assignment awaits us when we're done here?" I asked somewhat sarcastically. J'Una's face broke into one of those great smiles of hers. "Right now, Captain," she said, "we have absolutely no idea. But I'm sure it will be interesting." I feared she would prove to be right. Part Three- From the Badlands to the Death Star GUSTAV had been in orbit about Resead for three days. Our mission during this time was to fly patrols in the surrounding system to guard against any further Rebel attacks, while the stormtroopers and other ground personnel solidified Imperial control of the planet. The badly damaged orbiting platform was also undergoing repairs. In addition to the patrols, I used the time for training. Our TIE squadrons and those of our sister frigate SHAMUS, which had been badly damaged in the attack on Resead [see pt 2], needed to learn to work together as an extended team. This only made sense because with SHAMUS sidelined indefinitely for repairs, her flight group would be part of GUSTAV's crew for the foreseeable future. I was in GUSTAV's packed hangar, going over pre-flight instructions with the SHAMUS flight leader, Captain Kao Ijuf of Tau squadron. One of the few female starfighter pilots in the Imperial Navy she had shown me during the Resean battle that she was both an exceptional starfighter pilot and an inspiring leader. During her first few days onboard she had fully supported me in integrating the fighter groups and in making the SHAMUS pilots feel a part of the crew, despite the crowded conditions. In addition to her obvious competence as an officer, she was quite stunning physically. I often found my mind wandering as I fantasized about her. Very un- professional, I know. The only thing about her that I found somewhat unsettling was her intensity. She seemed to be single-mindedly focused on combat with the enemy to the exclusion of all else, and she approached that subject with a fervor that bordered on zealotry. "The next training flight," she was saying as we stood between a pair of parked TIE fighters and looked out over the hangar deck, which was bustling with activity, "will be six fighters- three each from GUSTAV and SHAMUS groups." She looked up from the roster she held. "Sound alright to you, captain?" "Sounds fine to me, captain," I responded, wishing she wouldn't be so formal but understanding her desire to appear professional. "Who's going to lead this one?" I wanted her to feel that she could assign personnel to key positions. If she was surprised by my question she didn't show it. She responded without hesitation. "I think your Lieutenant Acer should lead this one," she said referring to my wingman and friend Dromo Acer. "I think he could use some leadership experience." "Agreed." I said. "Dromo's a good pilot and a fine wingman, but he hasn't had much opportunity to actually be in charge of a flight. I think it's a good choice." Kao cracked a smile. "Glad to hear you say that." I looked at her, and saw that her steely blue eyes were actually twinkling. I think it was the first time that I had seen her eyes reflect anything other than a cold, blue, professionalism. "You've already told him, haven't you?" I asked, trying unsuccessfully to contain a grin. "Yes, captain. I have." Her eyes positively glimmered now, and she tossed her head slightly, which sent shimmers through the waves of long red hair. "What if I had not agreed?" I asked her, a little impishly. "Then I would have convinced you that you were wrong," she replied in a matter-of-fact tone. She probably would have. "So," I said playing along,"you think I can be convinced so easily?" "No, I don't," she replied. "But I would have had some help." She indicated Dromo who was approaching us from across the hangar. He bounded up to us, his face brimming with enthusiasm. "Captain Ijuf says I've been assigned as flight leader for the next training mission," he said rapidly, excitement hurrying his words. His eyes darted back and forth between Kao and me. I nodded. "That's correct, Lieutenant," I said evenly. "You've got this one." Dromo's handsome face broke out into a smile that was beaming. His chest swelled up so that for a moment I thought his flight suit might come apart. "Great. Thanks," he stammered. He seemed dazed. "I guess I'll go brief the other pilots." He turned to leave, then stopped and turned around. "Did you see that shuttle that just came in from the planet?" he asked. Kao and I both shook our heads. "No," I said. "Anything interesting?" Dromo nodded. "A whole bunch of Resean traitors," he said, his voice heavy with disdain. "These scumbags were the leaders who helped convince the populace to join the Rebels." He spat on the deck in disgust. "It did my heart good to see them in chains." With that he turned and walked off toward one of the briefing rooms. Kao and I looked after him a moment. "He certainly seems to dislike our adversaries rather intensely, doesn't he?" Kao said, turning to me. "That's Dromo," I replied. "His family is real big in Imperial circles, so he's been exposed to the anti-Rebel sentiment for a long time." I paused, then added, "He was a bit more dramatic just now than he usually is." Kao nodded reflectively. "So his loyalty to the Empire and disdain for the Rebels stems not from a personal commitment or experience, but rather is a result of his family's position?" I wasn't sure where she was going with this, but I was mildly intrigued. People in the Imperial service are generally very guarded about their personal feelings and beliefs, lest they be used against them. Here was someone who seemed to want to talk about this subject, so I went along. "I guess you could say that," I said, attempting to answer her question. The hangar was filling with noise as several TIEs began winding up and the overhead cranes moved into position. Maintenance personnel shuttled about on carts making last minute checks. In the distance I could see Marina Haarkov supervising a maintenance crew. Kao and I moved to the far end of the hangar where it was quieter. "I don't think that Dromo has any strong personal commitments to any particular cause or philosophy," I continued when the noise had abated somewhat. "You must keep in mind that he is still young, cares more about chasing women than just about anything else, and has been told by his family what to think since he was a baby. Members of his family have prospered under the Empire, so they support it." "I suppose we all have our motivations," she said quietly. "At least he's hating the right people." She paused for a long moment, looking at me intently, her eyes searching mine for something. Then she smiled. "And what about you, Captain Tallig?" she asked. "What brought you here amid all this?" She waved her arm, indicating the hangar deck. Again I checked myself, unsure how to respond. I knew that from time to time the Imperial High Command planted agents among the rank and file to "purge disloyalty." Since "disloyalty" could mean just about whatever a particular agent or High Command official wanted it to mean, most service members were very reluctant to say anything to anybody that they didn't know well. This practice also had the negative effect of stifling open discussion and criticism. I decided that Kao Ijuf was no such agent, and that she was merely seeking conversation; trying to fit into her new surroundings. I measured my words, however, because.....hell, you never knew. "My homeworld of Kuan had known little but civil war, strife and hardship for many years," I began. "Then the Empire showed up. The wars stopped, it became safe to travel, and, after a while, we began to enjoy a little prosperity." I didn't tell her that the price for all this had been a very restrictive Imperial imposed government and the exploitation of Kuani resources, both human and material, to support the Empire. "Like many Kuanis," I continued,"I joined the Imperial service as a way out of difficult circumstances, and, of course, out of appreciation." Kao nodded, but said nothing. "The academy wasn't open to us, of course," I said, "so I joined as a maintenance tech, learned to fly a TIE, and here I am." I smiled and shrugged as if to say 'that's all.' Kao looked at me earnestly for a long moment, her steely blue eyes seeming to bore right through me. "So," she said after a pause,"you are motivated neither by a strong sense of commitment to the Empire, nor a personal disdain for the Rebels." Although she said it as a statement, her eyes were questioning. I hesitated, hating myself for not having a quick answer. Was she right? If so, did that make any difference? "Of course my loyalties are with the Empire," I said somewhat testily. After all, every morning I awoke aboard an Imperial starship, put on an Imperial uniform, strapped myself into an Imperial starfighter and did battle. Who could question that? Captain Ijuf, of course. Indirectly. "Loyalties, yes," she said softly. "But what about commitment?" Before I could think of an answer, which probably would have sounded lame, she continued. "Let me ask you this," she said. She moved very close to me, her eyes locked onto mine. "If the Rebel Alliance, and not the Empire, had provided solutions to your planet's problems, would you now be out there flying an X-wing?" I was somewhat taken aback by the directness of her question. "I'm afraid I haven't thought about that possibility," I responded. As soon as I said it, I knew it probably wasn't the right answer. "Well, then, captain," she said with a wry smile, "perhaps you should." With that she abruptly turned and walked away, red hair streaming, her incredible ass swaying gently. I stood there a moment, somewhat confused. I wasn't sure what she had been trying to get at. Was she really all that concerned with my personal motivations? Or was she toying with me, establishing herself as a co-equal even though she was not on her own ship? What were her motivations? Hell, I told myself, she could just be making conversation. Maybe she even found me attractive and was checking me out. Maybe she was just a bitch. I smiled to myself and shook my head. I took another look around the hangar then headed for the exit. I had several hours before I was scheduled to fly another patrol, and I was starting to feel horny, so I went to find J'Una . J'Una was wailing like a banshee as she savagely bounced up and down on my erect cock. This was our first fuck in quite a while- what with the Resean operation and all- and she was really getting into it. I was lying on her bed in her quarters with my hands on those beautiful black hips of hers trying to keep her from snapping my dick off on the downstrokes. "Fuck me, Vel. Fuck me deep," she said looking down at me, red eyes glazed over with lust. "I want it." And she slammed herself down on me yet again. I reached up and grasped her tits, rolling the nipples in my palms. She had great breasts and I could never keep my hands off them. I squeezed and tugged at the luscious globes, causing her to moan as she rode me. As she approached her climax J'Una leaned forward, grasped my biceps and, with a great heave, rolled us over so that I was now on top. Her long, powerful legs closed behind me, pulling me into her. Her Bardin cunt muscles went to work and, in a few short strokes, I was right there with her. I pounded my cock into her, my balls slapping her ass. As I fucked her I raised myself up so that I could bend my head down and suck on her nipples. I took one into my mouth and licked it and bit it gently. That drove her crazy. She cupped her hands underneath her breasts and offered them to me. "Do them," she said, almost pleading. "Do them hard." I knew what she wanted. Shifting my weight over to one arm I continued sucking and biting one tit as my free hand found the other. I squeezed and twisted it roughly, knowing she loved that. She moaned and thrust her cunt up at me even harder. I kept pounding away and mashing her tits, trying to bring her off. I didn't have long to wait. J'Una's moaning got louder and her thrashing about more intense. She grabbed my arms with her hands, her fingers digging into my flesh. Her head was thrown back, her whole body tensed and her legs squeezed me even tighter. "That's it," she gasped. "That's it!" She thrashed wildly about, her hands clawing at me, her legs damn near cutting me in half. I thrust forward and my cock spasmed as my balls let go. Sperm shot up from the base of my penis and burst forth from the head, pouring into J'Una's cunt. My cock continued to pump cum into her until I felt it overflow her pussy. I lay atop her for a few moments, kissing her and licking her tits, while she stroked my hair. Finally, I disengaged and lay beside her. My cock was covered in cum and cunt juice. Second to those of Commander Cibock, Commanding Officer of our ship, the Imperial Frigate GUSTAV, J'Una's quarters were exceptionally comfortable and boasted a huge skylight over her bedroom. I lay back and looked out at the stars and the planet Resead, which Imperial forces had recently conquered, and about which we were orbiting. The planet shimmered, reflecting light from its sun. It was an incredibly beautiful sight. Gazing up at it, I almost forgot that, at that moment, Imperial troops were solidifying control over the place. J'Una curled up next to me and ran her hand over my chest. She looked at me intensely, with those fire red eyes of hers. "You seem lost in thought, Vel," she said softly. I looked at her and smiled. "Not lost," I said. "Just thinking about what we're doing here." I looked back up through the skylight at the planet. "About what is happening down there." J'Una raised herself up on an elbow. "You know the drill, Vel," she said, sternness entering her voice. "The system went over to the Alliance, and now they're paying for it." "Yeah," I said. "That's the drill. Forced evacuations and imposition of a military occupation. Shuttles full of prisoners unloading in our hangar. Transport to a prison planet somewhere. Some liberators we are, eh?" J'Una sat up. "It's not a question of liberation and you know it." The sternness had been replaced by a softer tone. "The Rebels made the move out here and we countered it." "What I can't figure," I said, "is why the Rebels are making so much noise way out here. This is the Epsilon quadrant. There isn't much out here." I reached up and tweaked one of J'Una's nipples. She smiled down at me, white teeth flashing against the blackness of her skin. "There's always the possibility," she said quietly, "that this is where they want us to be focusing our attention." "A decoy?" I asked. "It's been discussed at high levels," she replied, nodding. "If that's the case, I'd say it has worked." I continued tugging at her nipple, eliciting a soft moan. "Yeah," I said, agreeing. "Not long ago it was just us out here patrolling the badlands, busting smugglers and pirates. Now we've got fleets running around, and we're conquering systems that we didn't care about." "Makes you wonder, doesn't it?" J'Una said. "Wonder what?" "Well," she said removing my hand from her breast for a moment, "If the Rebels' intent was to shift our focus out here, it could be that they're planning something in the inner sectors." "Like what?" I asked. She laughed softly. "That is the question, isn't it? I haven't a clue, and if High Command does they certainly haven't told us. I don't think they do, either, though. I have seen some message traffic referring to the Death Star, so maybe that's involved somehow." She returned my hand to her tit and I resumed my tweaking and massaging, knowing she really liked that. "Death Star?" I asked, curious. J'Una nodded. "That battle station that Admiral Thrawn talked about on Mofta IV. [see pt 2] That's what it's being called. There's no way that something that huge and that powerful can be kept secret for long. And I'm sure that the Rebels won't sit around and let us develop something that can instantly annihilate them." I lay there quietly for a moment, playing with her breast. "J'Una," I said looking up at the planet again. The ship's orbit had taken us around to the night side, so I could only see an outline of Resead. "The Rebels must have known the Empire would come here, especially after they set up that communications platform." She nodded. "I think that was their whole plan. Remember how they ambushed us in the middle of our attack? I think they were trying to inflict as much damage as they could, hoping we'd retire." "Which means," I said, bitterness rising in my voice,"that the Rebels used an entire planet as a decoy to lure us out here, then, when things went wrong, abandoned it to us, knowing what would happen." "Some liberators they are, eh?" J'Una said as she bent down and began licking and sucking my cock, bringing it back to life. I stretched, delighting in the feel of J'Una's hands and mouth on my dick. She grasped the base of my cock as her tongue worked its way up the shaft and flicked the head. I was beginning to enjoy this when, abruptly, she stopped. Her grip tightened on my cock and she looked at me mischievously. "By the way," she said, "how are things going with Captain Ijuf?" Uh-oh. J'Una obviously knew that Kao Ijuf and I had been working closely together since the SHAMUS groups came aboard. She saw us together at daily briefings and knew that we were scheduling our missions together. She also knew me, and probably figured that sooner or later I'd be trying to get into Kao's flight suit. Of course, she was right. Although I was suprised by J'Una's question, and concerned about the grip she had on my cock, I didn't really think her question was prompted by jealously. Our relationship had always been fairly loose. Nevertheless, mindful of her grip, I answered carefully. "Things are going just fine with Captain Ijuf," I responded. "She's very professional, her pilots are very good. We'll have quite a strike force." J'Una flicked her tongue across the head of my penis. She did not loosen her grip. "So, your evaluation of her is purely professional?" "Sure," I said cautiously. She still had that grip. "She's a great pilot. She's a little intense sometimes. Works her people hard. Something's driving her. I'm not sure what. She seems a little too fond of combat. But I think she'll be a real asset for as long as the SHAMUS people are here." J'Una chuckled. "And you've never looked at that cute ass of hers and wanted to fuck her brains out?" I grinned down at her. "Well," I said, "the thought had crossed my mind once or twice. What about you?" J'Una just laughed. She loosened her grip on my cock, then lowered her head to take it in her mouth. It wasn't long before I shot my cum deep into her throat. Contrary to popular perception, or misperception, military life is not all glamor and excitement. Mostly, it's dull, boring routine. In fact, Commander Cibock, GUSTAV's Commanding Officer, once de- scribed military service as 97% boredom punctuated by 3% sheer terror. I'd say that about sums it up. I hated boredom just like every- one else, but since that 3% sheer terror usually consisted of someone trying to kill me, I've learned to appreciate the boredom. I had seen enough combat to know better than to seek it out. If you're in the Imperial Navy and there's a war on, combat will usually find a way to seek you out. I have always been wary of people who seek glory through combat, and who salivate in anticipation at every opportunity to charge off into battle. People like Vice Admiral Thrawn and our own Major Maarek made me nervous. I was beginning to feel the same way about Kao Ijuf, too. I find nothing glorious in blowing up a space platform, shooting apart a starfighter or savaging a planet. Unfortunately, the Imperial Navy is full of those who do, and they're usually in charge. And so it goes. Dromo and I had just returned from another long, dull, boring patrol around the Resean system. No blips on the scanners. No intercepted transmissions. Nothing. About halfway through the patrol I could tell that Dromo, who is one of those glory types I was talking about, was getting bored and impatient. To liven things up we practiced dogfighting techniques on each other. I called a halt to that and resumed our patrol after Dromo almost crashed into me in his zeal to simulate a kill. Getting killed by a Rebel pilot in combat is one thing. Getting killed by my own wingman is something I refuse to contemplate. The tractor beam operator gently set my TIE down in its stall in GUSTAV's crowded hangar deck. I went through the post-flight checklist quickly, disconnected my comm link and lowered myself through the hatch in the bottom of the starfighter. I dropped to the deck and pulled off my helmet. Around me the hangar deck was alive with activity. TIEs were being craned into launch position for the next patrol, and weary maintenance crews, who now had nearly twice as many starfighters to care for, were struggling, along with their repair droids, to keep the TIEs operational. I was walking away from my TIE when I was approached by an obviously very tired Marina Haarkov, one of the maintenance officers. She had a large tool bag slung over her shoulder, and a set of maintenance schematics in her hand. Her blonde hair was badly tousled, her face and hands were smudged with grease and other lubricants and her blue eyes were blood shot and rimmed with dark circles. In short, she looked like hell. "Got a minute, captain?" she said. "Sure, ensign," I responded. "What's on your mind?" Marina shrugged her shoulder and the tool bag dropped to the deck with a loud thud. "Well, captain," she began wearily, "I think we need to consider slowing down the pace of the patrols and training flights. My people are working themselves to death trying to keep all these birds flying." She wiped the back of her hand across her forehead, streaking it further. "We have nearly twice the normal number of TIEs onboard and I'm not operating with a full maintenance crew. Remember, we lost some people when we took that torpedo hit [see pt 1] and they haven't been replaced." "What about the repair droids?" I asked. "We've pushed them past their own scheduled maintenance, sir," she responded. Although Marina and I had shared some very pleasurable sexual encounters, we maintained a professional distance out in public. It avoids a lot of gossip and unpleasantness. "Have you spoken to Captain Ijuf, ensign?" I asked. Marina nodded. "Yes, sir," she said. "The captain wasn't very sympathetic." "No?" I asked, surprised. I knew that Kao was fairly intense, but she didn't strike me as the type to ignore advice. "She said that our pilots needed as much flight training as possible so that they would be able to kill the enemy." "'Kill the enemy'? She said that?" I was a little more surprised now. I found that a unique choice of words. Of course, killing the enemy is usually what we end up trying to do. It's not something you hear re- ferred to in that manner very often, however. Marina nodded again. "Yes, sir. She was deadly serious, too." -- Star Wars: The TIE Fighter (Part 7) Walter Slaven I sighed. I agreed with what Marina was telling me. Her people were tired, her equipment overtaxed. That combination usually leads to mistakes and accidents. One thing a TIE pilot has to be absolutely certain of is that his ship is in first rate condition. After listening to Marina, I no longer had that certainty. The problem was that I didn't want to appear to override Kao. It could dampen our relationship and turn Kao and Marina into bitter enemies. We certainly didn't need that. A warship needs all of its elements working together in harmony to defeat the enemy, not each other. So, I fell back on a time honored leadership quality- I equivocated. "Tell you what, ensign," I said thoughtfully. "Let's stay with the current schedule for the rest of the day, and I'll talk to Captain Ijuf and Commander Selena, and we'll see about tomorrow's schedule." Marina nodded thankfully. "Sounds good to me, sir," she said. She picked up her tool bag, heaved it over her shoulder, winked at me and headed back toward the hangar bay. I followed her with my eyes, marvelling that someone so good looking, and such a good fuck, could also be such a competent and dedicated officer. Must have been her military upbringing, I said to myself. I exited the hangar and headed toward my quarters, intending to grab a shower and a nap. No such luck. "All senior officers report to the conference room. All senior officers report to the conference room." The ship's loudspeakers blared the announcement. Shit. Another fucking briefing. I turned around and headed forward, still in my flight suit. So much for the shower and nap, I thought. I arrived at the conference room and sat down next to Kao Ijuf. I placed my helmet under my seat. Most of the other officers had already arrived. "Any idea what this is about?" I asked Kao. "I think we've received new orders," she responded pleasantly. "Perhaps we can get away from babysitting this planet and go somewhere where we can kick some more Rebel ass." "Or get ours kicked," I responded dryly. Kao gave me a sharp look. "In any case," I continued, "I'd like to discuss the flight schedules with you after this meeting." Kao smiled. "I see you've been talking to young Ensign Haarkov," she said. I nodded. "She complained to me earlier, but, frankly I think that the training opportunity is too important to pass up. At least as long as we have to be here." Kao was about to continue, but was interrupted by the arrival of J'Una and Commander Cibock. "Attention on deck!" somebody shouted. We all stood up. Commander Cibock waved us all back into our seats. "Ladies and gentlemen," he began, "we have received orders to leave Resead, leave the Epsilon quadrant and return to the inner sectors for a very important and delicate mission." There was a buzz in the room at this pronouncement. Leave the badlands? We had been out here for so long that I'm sure many of us thought we'd never leave. Cibock nodded to J'Una who stood up and faced us. "As soon as we recover our starfighters on patrol," she began,"we will jump to hyperspace and proceed to the Fest system in Beta sector. There we will be boarded by the newly appointed commander of the new Death Star, Grand Moff Tarkin himself, who was on an inspection tour." Another buzz, more intense, filled the room. Tarkin? Coming aboard us? I had never met the guy, but I'd heard of him. Everyone in the Imperial service knew of Tarkin. He was the Emperor's right hand man who had helped the Emperor overthrow the Senate and assume power. He was a real prick, from what I'd heard. As a starship captain he had massacred a group of innocent civilians who were protesting excessive taxes at a place called Ghorman. This action helped precipitate the fall of the Republic. Tarkin threw in his lot with Palpatine and had been the scourge of the Rebels and their sympathizers ever since. He was the most visible symbol of Imperial autocracy and power, and it was no secret that the Rebels wanted him dead. And he was coming aboard our little frigate? I leaned over to Kao. "Well, you wanted a change," I whispered. Kao nodded but didn't reply. J'Una was continuing. "Once we arrive, a shuttle will bring the Grand Moff and members of his staff to GUSTAV. Captain Tallig," she said looking toward me, "you and Captain Ijuf and a handpicked group of pilots will launch and fly escort." "Are we expecting trouble?" I asked. "Nothing specific," she answered. "Rebel intelligence has been very effective lately. Too effective. It is only prudent to assume that they know about the Death Star and that Tarkin has been appointed to command it. With that in mind, it is only reasonable to also assume that the Rebels will try to disrupt our operation." She paused, then smiled at Kao. "The extra fighters from SHAMUS may prove to be most valuable." Kao nodded in acknowledgement. "Once aboard," J'Una continued, "Major Maarek's stromtroopers will provide security for the Grand Moff." Major Maarek shot up from his seat to stand ramrod straight. "I assure you," he intoned, "that the Grand Moff will be quite safe once he is aboard. My loyal stormtroopers are ready to lay down their lives if necessary to ensure his security." "Thank you, Major," J'Una said, somewhat annoyed at the outburst. Maarek sat down. "Where are we taking the Grand Moff once he gets aboard, Commander?" Kao asked. "Why, to the Death Star, of course," J'Una responded. "When the Grand Moff gets aboard he will divulge to Commander Cibock and myself, only, the secret location of the Death Star, which is still under construction, but nearly operational. We will proceed to that location, deliver the Grand Moff and his staff, and await further assignment." "Commander," I said, "what about all of the operations out here? I thought we were supposed to join Admiral Thrawn when we are done here and continue chasing Rebels in this quadrant." "Orders change, Captain," J'Una said sternly. "The forces under Admirals Thrawn and Vaalco are deemed sufficient. The transport HININBURG has returned and will assume control of the Resean operation." Kao leaned over to me. "I guess she told you, eh?" She smiled sarcastically. I frowned and said nothing. This bitch was getting on my nerves. "Once we get to Fest," J'Una was saying, "we'll have to go into a high orbit because of the heavy asteroid belt surrounding the planet." I grimaced at that statement. "Commander," I said, "that will mean that the shuttle's transit time from the surface will be tripled, not to mention that asteroids are a great place for the bad guys to hide." J'Una looked at me for a moment, then smiled sweetly. "That is why, Captain," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm, "we have entrusted the Grand Moff's safety to your capable hands." I shut up and sat back. Kao looked at me and grinned, obviously enjoying all this. Commander Cibock stood up. "Thank you for the briefing, Commander Selena," he said. J'Una nodded and sat down. Obviously Cibock wasn't interested in our banter. "For your information," Cibock continued, "GUSTAV has been tasked with this mission because the star destroyer GARRETT, which the Grand Moff had been using, has suddenly been called away on other business." "GARRETT?" somebody in the back asked. "Isn't that Lord Vader's ship?" Cibock nodded. "Yes, it is." At the mere mention of Vader's name a sudden hush fell over the room and the mood of the people visibly changed. Lord Darth Vader's origins and background were largely a mystery to those of us in the Imperial service. Some said he had once been a member of some cult called the Jedi. Others said no. I didn't know and, frankly, didn't much care. What everyone did know was that Vader was a very close associate of the Emperor's and ruthlessly carried out Imperial edicts. Some people admired him as a great servant of the Emperor. I thought he was little more than a glorified hatchet man, but, of course, you never said anything like that. Vader was a very powerful individual and, in that crazy black get-up he wore, he was very intimidating. He ruled by fear and terror. Ultimately, I think that's why he failed. He failed to get the best out of his people because they were always so scared of him. You aren't much inclined to take a risk or implement an innovation if the slightest setback or mistake can result in you getting murdered by your boss. I was amazed, however, at the effect that that name had on us. I also found it ironic, and sad, that we always seemed to fear our senior commanders more than we feared the enemy. Commander Cibock looked around the room. Though he tried hard to maintain his professional military bearing, he was not unaffected by the mention of Vader's name. "If there are no further questions," he said solemnly, "this briefing is concluded." He quickly walked out of the room as we all stood to attention. As the room cleared out, J'Una approached Kao and me. She seemed thrilled by this new mission. "Well, captains," she said, smiling broadly, "this ought to prove interest- ing." "At least it gets us out of here," Kao said. I nodded. "Yes," I said, "and it will give the maintenance crews a break while we transit." Kao shot me a look, but said nothing. "I'm not sure," I continued, "that I look forward to being responsible for the safety of the Emperor's number one pal." J'Una smiled that wonderful smile of hers. "It could be a great oppor- tunity, however," she said. "How so?" "I hear there's an opening on Tarkin's staff for a commander with recent tactical experience," she said. "This will give me a chance to check it out." I was floored. "You mean you'd actually go work for somebody like that?" I exclaimed. "Like I said," J'Una replied as she turned to leave the room, "it could be a great opportunity." She strode purposefully out of the room. I just sat in my seat, dazed. Kao looked at me harshly. "What's the matter, captain?" she said sarcastic- ally. "Afraid you might lose some of your regular pussy?" Now, I was pissed. "Look here, captain," I said angrily. I really wanted to punch her right in that sanctimonious grin of hers. "My relationship with Commander Selena is none of your fucking business." She laughed. "Spare me, captain," she said. "I've only been onboard a few days and even I know that you fuck her." "What's that got to do with anything?" I said, seething. Kao paused a moment. "Well," she said, "if you'd stop thinking with your cock, you'd realize what this could mean to Commander Selena. You know how difficult it is for non-humans, particularly female, in the Imperial Navy. Joining Tarkin's staff could be a great opportunity for her, and instead of being supportive you start whining." I started to say something, but stopped myself. Was she right? Did I think of J'Una only as a convenient lay? Kao reached out and patted me on the shoulder. "Don't worry, captain," she said sarcastically, "you'll still have little Ensign Haarkov to nail when you get horny." She gave a shrill laugh and walked out of the room, red hair streaming behind her. I was angry but couldn't help noticing her ass. I sat back down in one of the chairs in the now empty conference room wondering what in hell had just happened. The transit to the Fest system was quick and uneventful. We had just enough time to rest the maintenance crews and still get the TIEs ready. We decided to launch two flights of TIEs to escort Tarkin's shuttle. I would command one flight, Kao the other. Although I was still pissed at her, I behaved in a strictly professional manner, knowing that our cooperation was crucial to the success of our mission. Neither of us mentioned our conversation in the conference room, and I got the feeling that maybe she felt she had gone too far. Not that I expected an apology or anything. Reflecting on what Kao had said, however, I had to admit to myself that I was more concerned with how the possibility of J'Una's departure might affect me, than I was for what it meant to her. I had little opportunity to discuss the situation with J'Una. It was by no means certain that she would join Tarkin's staff, though I was certain that that was what she really wanted. Knowing J'Una as I did, I knew that the Grand Moff was in for the lobbying effort of his life once he came aboard. Getting him aboard alive was what I was worried about. Although we had no direct intelligence that the Rebels even knew where Tarkin was, much less that they were planning anything, they had interfered with our plans enough recently to put us all on edge. As J'Una had said, their intel network was damned good. GUSTAV was approaching the Fest system and preparing to come out of hyperspace. Kao and I gathered our pilots in the hangar for a quick last minute briefing. "GUSTAV will be in a very high orbit due to the asteroid rings around the planet," I told them. "This means that the Grand Moff's shuttle will have a long way to go to get here. It also means that any Rebels that want to interfere will have a lot of places to hide in the asteroids, so be extra alert." There was a murmur of agreement from the pilots. "I will lead Gamma flight," I continued. "We will thread the asteroids and meet the shuttle shortly after it lifts off. Captain Ijuf's Tau flight will remain above the asteroids. This will allow for better surveillance and position them to provide assistance if necessary." Kao smiled. "We'll be happy to save your asses again, captain," she said, referring to her group's timely intervention during the battle at Resead. Several pilots laughed. I was one of them. "Captain," I said in reply, "you can save my ass anytime." This was met with a great deal of laughter and a few cat calls. Kao took it good- naturedly, smiling at me. "Alright, alright," she said, quieting the pilots down. "We should be coming out of hyperspace and going into orbit very soon, so let's get to our TIEs, and if those Rebel bastards show up, we'll kick their asses!" The pilots cheered and applauded as we dispersed to our ships. I had to hand it to Kao. She knew how to get them pumped up. I climbed into my TIE, strapped in, hooked up the comm link and swiftly went through the pre-flight check-list. The overhead cranes began picking us up and positioning us for launch. As usual, I was first in line. GUSTAV had come out of hyperspace and Commander Cibock was maneuvering the ship to put her into a high orbit to avoid the asteroids that circled Fest. The charts I had seen depicted a fairly thick field of asteroids with objects ranging in size from a few meters to hundreds of kilometers. Flying through that kind of stuff is bad enough. Trying to dog- fight X-wings while escorting a VIP is damned near impossible. GUSTAV had attained orbit and the launch lights came on. The launch doors in the bottom of the ship slid open, the crane lowered my TIE through them, then released me out into space. I engaged the twin ion engines, powered up the lasers and established communications with GUSTAV. "Gamma One, GUSTAV," J'Una's voice, professional, take-charge, and always sexy, was in my ear. "The Grand Moff's shuttle has just lifted off. Rendezvous with it and escort it through the asteriod field." "Roger, GUSTAV," I replied. "Any word on our Rebel friends?" "Nothing solid, Gamma One," J'Una said. I could hear a bit of tension creep into her voice. "I would expect company, however." "Understood, GUSTAV," I responded. Shit. That's all we needed. "What's the shuttle's call-sign?" "Caligula," J'Una said. She paused a moment, then said, "Remember, Gamma One, that our sensors don't penetrate these asteroids very well. You'll be on your own once you enter them." "Understood, GUSTAV," I replied. By this time the rest of my flight had launched. "Gamma One to Gamma flight, formation Beta," I instructed them. Formation Beta is a loose grouping of TIEs. I chose this to allow the pilots maximum room for maneuvering through the asteroids. "The shuttle has lifted off," I informed them. "Let's get through the asteroids quickly and pick it up." They all acknowledged. Dromo, as always, was on my port wing, though a little further away than he usually was. We entered the asteroid field at high speed and began to thread our way through it. You really had to watch it. Those damn things seemed to spin and bounce around all over the place. My TIE's joystick and maneuvering jets got a real workout as we penetrated deeper into the field. "Unless we get company," I told the flight, "safety over speed. Everybody through in one piece. Watch out for the gravity pull from the bigger asteroids." Because the TIE is unshielded, even the smallest of asteroids can be fatal if you hit it. Shielded craft like the Rebel X-wing or Y-wing can shrug off a couple of hits from small rocks and keep going. That gave the Rebels an advantage in the event of a dogfight inside an asteroid field, and was preci- sely the reason I was convinced that, if the Rebels did show up, it'd be while we were in among the asteroids. Minutes passed, however, and nothing happened. We exited the asteroid field to the full glory of the planet Fest. A very large blue-green planet, Fest's image blotted out most of the visible space. I enjoyed the sight for about two seconds, then got down to business. My sensors located the shuttle and I maneuvered my flight group toward it. It was a Lambda class T-4 Imperial Shuttle which meant that it had shields, and a couple of laser cannons. Although it was slow, at least it could defend itself. "Shuttle Caligula," I called,"this is Gamma One, Captain Tallig of the GUSTAV. We are on station and ready to escort you to the ship." "Roger, Gamma One," replied the shuttle pilot. "Lead us through." I split my group so that Dromo and I preceded the shuttle, and the rest were on either side of it. Although the formation would be disrupted by the asteroids, I felt that this would provide the best protection for the shuttle, and position us for quick response. "We're reentering the asteroid belt," I called to the flight. "Maintain formation as best you can, and be alert." Dromo and I penetrated the field first, followed by the rest. So far so good, I told myself. At least no one had hit an asteroid. "X-wings! X-wings at one-five-five coming out of..." One of my pilots yelled a warning before his TIE was destroyed. I jerked my TIE around in a violent turn, nearly smashing into a big drifting rock. "Gamma Two, let's go," I called to Dromo who had already turned. "We've got trouble." "I'm right with you, captain," he replied. Our formation, such as it was inside the asteroid field, had been totally disrupted. TIEs and X-wings were dancing around among the rocks and boulders and I really couldn't tell how many Rebels there were. There seemed to be a lot, however. Once again, we'd been ambushed. This shit has got to stop, I thought. I spotted the shuttle maneuvering in between two large asteroids with an X-wing on its tail. I activated my missiles, powered up and dove to intercept, Dromo hanging onto my wing. The missile targeting system isn't very effective in an asteroid field (not much is) so I decided to get as close as possible to the X-wing before launching two of my four missiles. I silently thanked Admiral Thrawn and his technicians on Mofta IV who had modified our TIEs to carry missiles. I dodged two big boulders as I continued to close on the shuttle and its pursuer. The X-wing pilot, I knew, would have his hands full evading the asteroids and trying to get a shot at the shuttle. He launched a missile but it hit an asteroid. Apparently he had the same problems with missile targeting. I was getting close now. I ducked behind one of the larger asteroids to shield my approach. The asteroid was between me and the shuttle and the X-wing. I could feel the asteroid's gravity begin to tug on my TIE. The gravitational pull wasn't real strong, but it was there. I accelerated to maximum speed (very risky in an asteroid field) and continued my circumnavigation of the asteroid, fighting its gravity all the way around. I saw the shuttle, darting and weaving, emerge from behind the asteroid's limb. I knew the X-wing was not far behind. "Stay with the shuttle, Dromo," I called as I energized the port side retros. The retros slung me around the asteroid and, in combination with the asteroid's gravity hurled me toward the X-wing at nearly twice the TIE's maximum speed. I launched two missiles as I energized the starboard retros to help slow me down and avoid another asteroid. The X-wing never reacted to my approach. I think he was too intent on the shuttle. My missiles blew him apart. I spied two more X-wings threading their way through the rocks and debris, heading toward the shuttle. I rolled my TIE to the right, passed underneath an asteroid and came up firing behind the X-wings. I had switched to dual fire lasers and poured it into the first X-wing. In rapid succession I took his shields down, then, before he could evade, my lasers chopped his upper port wing off. He careened into an asteroid and exloded. I was forced to make a hard left turn to avoid the debris and I lost the second X-wing. >From listening to the chatter on the commlink I knew we had a major engagement on our hands, but it was hard to tell. I contemplated asking for help from Kao's flight group but decided against it for now. More fighters, I thought, would add to the confusion and we might need them to get the shuttle from the asteroids to GUSTAV. So, I closed on the shuttle wondering where that second X-wing had gone. My question was quickly answered. A laser bolt passed uncomfortably close to my port solar panel and slammed into an asteroid I was passing. Somehow, the bastard had gotten behind me. My first thought was to lead this guy away from the shuttle, so I turned hard left and passed in between two large rocks. The X-wing stayed with me, occasionally letting loose a laser shot at me. Dodging laser bolts while maneuvering through a bunch of asteroids at high speed is just about the most nerve- wracking experience anyone could have. Sweat poured off my body, soaking my flight suit and pooling in the seat of my pants. I didn't have time to worry about my discomfort, however. I was twisting and weaving my TIE through the asteroids trying to either shake the X-wing, or fly him into a rock. This was guy was evidently a veteran pilot and didn't fall for any of the obvious tricks. Additionally, his laser shots were getting closer. I dove under a boulder, narrowly avoiding it, and saw it glance off the X-wing's shielding. Damn, I thought. What I wouldn't give for a shielded starfighter right now. The X-wing and I continued our deadly dance through the rocks and space debris. I had completely lost my bearings by this point. I didn't know where the shuttle was, and I wasn't really certain in which direction GUSTAV was. What I was certain of was that I had a very tenacious X-wing on my ass and I had no one around to help me. I jerked my TIE to the left just as the X-wing launched a missile. It passed to the right of me and slammed into an asteroid, peppering my ship with debris as I flew by. I was starting to get really worried now. I was running out of tricks and maneuvers and it was only a matter of time before my pursuer got a good lock on me or I flew into an asteroid. I figured I had one trick left, but I didn't much like it. Though outclassed by the X-wing in nearly all categories, one advantage the TIE does possess is the responsiveness of it's twin ion engines. When you want to go, you GO. When you throw the engines into full reverse, you STOP. When used in combination with the oversized retros (which the X-wing does not possess) the engines can stop a TIE dead in space very quickly, assuming of course that the vibrations don't shake the ship apart. I maneuvered around a boulder and picked out the largest asteroid I could readily see. It was easily a hundred kilometers in diameter, a small moon, really. I pointed my TIE toward it and diverted all power to the engines, draining the lasers. I didn't need them right now, anyway. I hurtled toward the asteroid, the X-wing hanging onto my ass and tossing laser bolts at me. My TIE was shuddering as the engines strained to give me even more speed. The asteroid loomed large in front of me as I got closer. Finally, I felt the tug of its gravity. It's now or never, I told myself. I threw the engines into full reverse and activated the forward retros. The shuddering increased as the TIE struggled to a stop. The X-wing shot past me, a red and white streak. I could see that he was struggling to pull out, but he didn't make it. His ship smashed into the asteroid with a violent explosion. -- Star Wars: The TIE Fighter (Part 8) Walter Slaven I let out a deep sigh of relief, cut the retros, engaged the engines in the forward direction, powered up the lasers and turned toward the direction I thought the shuttle might be. Much to my surprise I exited the asteroid field. My sensors immediately picked up GUSTAV, in the distance, in her orbit. Closer, the shuttle was just exiting the asteroid field with a swarm of TIEs and X-wings dogfighting around it. I raced toward the shuttle. As I approached the melee I noticed that there were significantly fewer TIEs around now. I saw Dromo flame an X-wing, but decided that we needed help. "Gamma leader to Tau leader," I called to Kao. "We've just exited the asteroid belt and are being pursued by numerous X-wings." "Roger, Gamma leader," Kao replied. "We're on our way." "Caligula, this is Gamma leader," I called to the shuttle. "Accelerate to maximum speed and head for GUSTAV. We'll try to keep these X-wings off of you." "Roger, Gamma leader," the shuttle replied. I could see it pick up speed as it made its run for GUSTAV. "GUSTAV, Gamma leader. Shuttle inbound." "Roger, Gamma leader," J'Una replied. "Sorry about the X-wings. We didn't pick them up at all." I didn't answer. I had reentered the melee and was flaming an X-wing that had tried to get in behind the shuttle. Ruined his day. At that point I could see Kao's flight approaching, a wall of TIEs between the X-wings and their prey. I guess the Rebel commander admitted defeat because the X-wings broke off and headed back toward the asteroid field. Kao's flight group continued past us at top speed, pursuing. "Gamma leader to Tau leader," I called to her. "Let them go. Our job is to get the shuttle to GUSTAV." "And pass up a chance to flame these Rebel bastards?" she asked incredulously. "You get the shuttle to GUSTAV. We'll be back shortly after we've cleaned up this mess." I decided not to argue with her. Dromo and the remaining TIEs from our flight formed on me and we headed toward GUSTAV. I could see that the shuttle had already landed. I approached GUSTAV and switched to the flight control frequency. "GUSTAV, Gamma One requesting landing sequence," I called to the flight control officer. "Roger, Gamma One," he replied. "Engaging tractor beam." I cut the engines and released the controls as I felt the tractor beam take hold of my TIE. The operator skillfully set me down in my stall. Thankfully, the flight control people didn't have a trainee on duty today. I went through the post flight checklist quickly, disconnected the comm link and dropped through the hatch to the hangar deck. Pulling off my helmet, I saw J'Una standing with a group of people near the hangar bay doors. As I approached the group I saw that J'Una was standing next to, and had taken the arm of, a tall, thin man with lots of medals and other decorations on his uniform. Must be Tarkin, I thought. I chuckled to myself. J'Una wasn't wasting any time. "Grand Moff Tarkin," she said to the man, "this is Captain Vel Tallig, leader of our Gamma squadron. He commanded your escort." "I am very honored to meet you, sir," I said respectfully, head bowed. "On the contrary," Tarkin said pleasantly, "it is I who should be honored." I raised my head. "If not for you and your brave pilots," he went on, "I might not be standing here now." He turned to Commander Cibock who was standing in the group of people around Tarkin. "Commander," Tarkin said sternly, "we must get a report off to the Emperor at Coruscant at once. This was a deliberate assassination attempt and these leaks to the Rebels must be stopped." "Yes, sir," Cibock replied and left to carry out Tarkin's orders. Although Commander Cibock was GUSTAV's commanding officer, there was little doubt as to who was really in charge now. Tarkin had just established that he was. Grand Moff Tarkin was a tall, thin man with a hawkish appearance. He had a prominent nose, high, swept cheekbones a high forehead and thinning, grey hair. His mouth was firm and unsmiling, his eyes blue and very cold. An older man, he nonetheless gave the appearance of a strong, firm man who was very much in control. He turned to J'Una. "When do we get underway for the Death Star, Commander?" he asked pleasantly. "As soon as we finish recovering the fighters,sir,"J'Una responded. Tarkin nodded. "In the meantime," J'Una continued, "allow me to show you around our ship, then to your quarters." "I'd like that very much," Tarkin said, patting her hand. He turned to me. "Until later, captain," he said. I nodded, bowing my head again. With J'Una leading the way Tarkin and his staff exited the hangar deck. I saw Kao's TIE come in and set down. I walked over to it and waited until she dropped through the hatch to the hangar deck. "Well, Captain," I said. "How many Rebels did your group manage to get?" "Three," she responded warily. "And how many TIEs did you lose?" "Two," she replied. "Not much of a trade, is it?" I asked harshly. "Those Rebels damn near tore you to pieces," she said angrily. "And now there's three less to worry about." "And we're down two more TIEs and two more pilots that we can't afford to lose," I said. "Did it ever occur to you that the Rebels might have been laying another trap for you? That when they saw they couldn't get Tarkin they set up an ambush to get as many TIEs as they could?" Kao stood her ground. "Our mission is always to kill the enemy, captain," she said through clenched teeth. "Bullshit!" I exclaimed loudly, startling her. Several nearby maintenance personnel stopped what they were doing to look our way. After a moment they resumed their work. "Our mission," I continued, "is to achieve our assigned objective and bring our people back without unnecessary losses. Today's objective was to get Tarkin safely aboard. That objective was met the moment his shuttle passed through your flight group. Hell, even the fucking Rebels saw that. They turned away. Pursuit was unwise and unnecessary." "Are you questioning my judgment, captain?" she asked. Her voice was quiet, but threatening, and she was standing stiffly erect, blue eyes blazing. I glared right back at her. "No, captain, I'm not," I said quietly. "But I'll bet those two pilots would." I spun around on my heel and walked out of the hangar. I wasn't able to see J'Una alone during the transit to the Death Star. She was always too busy, or was with Tarkin or one of his staff members. I knew that she was using this opportunity to try to get onto Tarkin's staff and I guess that the realization that she might succeed was finally hitting me. I also realized that I didn't want her to go, but that I probably couldn't stop her, and shouldn't even try. J'Una had always made it clear that her career was first. She was driven by a deep desire to excel, in spite of her background, in spite of prejudice, in spite of all the odds against her. I had to admire her tenacity, though I tended not to share her enthusiasm for advancement in the Imperial Navy. I spent most of the time with my pilots, running them through the simulator, recreating the Fest action and trying to learn from it. Kao and I treated each other professionally, but coolly, almost sidestepping around each other. There definitely was some sort of gulf between us that I wasn't sure could be bridged. I was relaxing in my quarters after one such training session when my intercom buzzed. "Captain Tallig," I called in response. "This is Commander Selena on the bridge, captain." J'Una's husky voice seemed to hum through the speakers. "We'll be approaching the Death Star shortly. Perhaps you would like to join us up here?" I didn't, really. I knew that Tarkin and his staff would probably all be up there and I wasn't real keen on associating with that crowd. They made me nervous. But I as sure as hell wanted to see this Death Star. My interest in seeing if it was everything everyone said it was overrode my abhorrence to what it was designed to do. Curious how that works. "I'll be right up, commander," I said. I arrived on the bridge and found J'Una. She smiled at me as I approached her. Commander Cibock and the navigation team were prepared to pilot GUSTAV to her berth inside the Death Star once the ship came out of hyperspace. Tarkin and several members of his staff were standing to one side, staring out of the forward windows. On Commander Cibock's command GUSTAV came out of hyperspace. The rich panoply of colors that had been streaking by the ship suddenly gave way to the most awe inspiring sight I had ever seen. There was a collective gasp on the bridge as the Death Star came into view. I was stunned by the image before me. The descriptions that ran through my mind: huge, immense, enormous, gargantuan, all seemed pathetically inadequate to describe the Death Star. Easily the size of a small moon the Death Star completely dominated the space in front of the ship. Though we were still tens of thousands of kilometers away, we couldn't see all of the station. It was simply too large to be completely captured by the ship's viewfinders at that range. What we could see, however, was damned impressive. I marvelled that such a thing could be constructed and, at the same time, lamented the fact that it actually had been. It was so imposing that it was frightening. The silence was broken by Commander Cibock's orders to the helmsman. "Steady as she goes. One half forward thrusters." "Steady as she goes, aye, sir. One half forward thrusters, aye, sir," the helmsman responded. In the Imperial Navy, as in most navies throughout history, standard commands and repeat back procedures on the bridge of a ship are rigorously enforced, and are the subject of intense training. It is absolutely imperative that there be no misunderstand- ings between the officer giving maneuvering orders and the crewmembers who carry them out. Commander Cibock had trained his bridge crew well. GUSTAV was maneuvered skillfully toward the Death Star. "Commander Cibock," the communications officer said, looking up from his console, "we have been given priority clearance to proceed to berth 17A. All other traffic will be held up until we dock." "Very well," Cibock responded. Tarkin moved to the center of the bridge. He seemed completely in awe of the sight of the Death Star looming larger as the ship approached. "Ladies and gentlemen," he said loudly so that all of us on the bridge could hear, "behold the end of the Rebellion." He turned around to face us, his back to the Death Star's image. "With the power of this battle station," he said dramatically, "we will pursue the Rebels and their traitorous allies and destroy them." His eyes sparkled at the prospect. "We will expand Imperial control and carry the Emperor's will to all corners of the galaxy. No one will be able to oppose the Emperor for long. This is a great moment in the history of the Empire." He turned back to face the Death Star, acting like a kid with a new toy. "The Death Star's tractor beam has been engaged, sir," the Navigator called out. "Very well," Cibock responded. "Disengage thrusters." "Disengage thrusters, aye, sir," the helmsman responded. "Thrusters disengaged." "Very well." GUSTAV, now being pulled by the Death Star's powerful tractor beam, continued forward. As we got closer the enormity and complexity of this Imperial creation became even more evident. There were many ships and other craft moving in and out of numerous docking bays whose entrances dotted the station's surface. Communications towers and antenna were thick as forests and deep trenches ran along the surface almost like rivers. Dominating the upper hemisphere (the word is appropriate here) was a huge dish which looked like a weapons array. I shuddered to think of the power that that thing could generate. No wonder Tarkin was so confident. The Death Star was so big that it generated its own gravitational and magnetic fields. GUSTAV shuddered slightly as she passed through them. The docking bays were dead ahead now. We were so close that only a very small portion of the Death Star's surface was visible. To the right of one bay I noticed a long, narrow trench with what looked like an exhaust port near the end. I thought it strange that they should put an exhaust port there. Oh, well. I'm a pilot, not a designer. Still basking in the glory of the sight of his new command, Tarkin turned to Commander Cibock. "I want to congratulate you, Commander," he said smoothly, "on a most pleasant and professional journey." "Thank you, sir," Cibock replied. "You have a fine ship and an excellent crew," Tarkin continued. "You are all worthy servants of the Emperor." He paused, then smiled at J'Una. "Of course, I'm going to be stealing your fine Operations Officer, but I am sure we can find you a suitable replacement." I froze. My heart started pounding. Was I hearing things? Commander Cibock turned and he, too, smiled at J'Una. "Yes, sir," he said. "We'll miss Commander Selena here on GUSTAV, but I am sure she will be of great value to you on this new station." He and Tarkin turned back to face the Death Star's docking bay, which we were just entering. I turned and looked at J'Una in amazement. She gave me a weak smile and touched my arm. "I'll talk to you about it later," she whispered. I nodded, unable to speak, and unsure what to say if I could. One of Tarkin's staff officers approached him. "We've received a message from Lord Vader, sir," he said. Tarkin turned toward him and nodded for him to continue. "Lord Vader says he has just returned and will brief you on the progress of his mission after you disembark." Tarkin nodded again and the officer departed. He turned to Cibock. "Lord Vader has been chasing down a Rebel spy ring," he said. "Perhaps he has had some success." "Hopefully, he has, sir." Cibock responded. GUSTAV had reached her assigned berth and the thud of docking clamps engaging reverberated throughout the ship. Looking down onto the platform below I could see that an honor guard had formed to welcome Tarkin. Many obviously very senior officers stood in a group flanked by several detachments of stormtroopers. Amid the crowd, yet apart from it, stood a solitary black clad figure with a long cloak. Vader. With a quick "Thank you," Tarkin and his staff left the bridge, J'Una and Commander Cibock accompanying them. Somewhat dazed, I made my way to my quarters. I was a jumble of conflicting emotions and I really didn't want to talk to anybody. I entered my quarters, took off my jacket and threw it into a corner. I found a bottle of Arcturean something-or-other that Dromo had brought aboard a while back and knocked back a quick shot, ignoring its ghastly blue-green color. I was pouring a second shot when I heard my door chime. "Enter," I called. The door slid open and J'Una walked in, smiling. "Hello," she said as the door closed behind her. "Hi," I said awkwardly as I took another drink. That stuff was terrible! We stood silently facing each other for a moment. J'Una's fire red eyes seemed somehow softer, and I could tell that she was concerned for my feelings. Not that that would change her mind. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner, Vel," she said. "I guess I got busy and caught up in what was going on. You deserve better." "So, you're really going to do this," I said, stating the obvious. "Yes," she said quietly. "It's an opportunity I have to grab. You can see that, can't you?" I nodded. I could. And she knew it. "Are you sure this is what you want?" I asked. She nodded. "Yes, it is," she responded. "Tarkin's the Emperor's right- hand man, and people who serve him well are well taken care of. This is my chance to make it." "But, J'Una," I said, "serving on this battle station....." my voice trailed off. "I know. I know," she said quickly. "It's a terrible weapon. But if it can bring about the end of this war, maybe it's worth it." I looked into those beautiful red eyes of hers and I knew that she truly believed what she was saying. She walked up to me and gently stroked the side of my face. "Look, Vel," she said, "let's just hope that Tarkin can use this thing to end the Rebellion, and maybe you and I can go back to chasing pirates and smugglers together." She laughed at the thought. "Who knows? I may even make Admiral out of all this!" She laughed again. I looked at her and smiled. She just might. "So," I said sarcastically."How did you manage to pull this one off? Fuck Tarkin and half his staff?" She laughed, and smiled mischievously at me. "Well," she said coyishly, "not quite half the staff." Now it was my turn to laugh. "I hope the old guy was good," I said chuckling and shaking my head. J'Una licked her lips sensuously. "Old guys need to fuck, too, you know," she said impishly. "And, yes, he was good." She leaned forward and kissed me as she ran her hand down to my crotch. I grabbed her wrist. "I don't need a charity fuck, J'Una," I said. She laughed. "Who said this is for you?" she said, kissing me again. I released her wrist and she found my crotch again, massaging me through my trousers. Almost in spite of myself, I could feel my cock hardening. J'Una opened the front of my trousers and reached in with both hands to grab my now erect and throbbing penis. I suddenly didn't care what her motivation was. If she wanted a goodbye fuck, who was I to turn her down? Grabbing me by the cock, J'Una led me to a couch and shoved me down, throwing herself on top of me, her lips mashing against mine, her tongue probing deeply into my mouth. She was hot. She climbed off of me and stood next to the couch. Quickly she discarded her tunic and her pants which she pulled off over her boots in her haste to get naked. Then she stood naked before me, black skin gleaming, red eyes blazing, wearing only her shiny black knee high boots. Standing there, she seemed even taller than she was. She was truly beautiful, and I think I finally realized that my feelings for her went well beyond the physical. She looked down at me and smiled. "Your turn," she said. She bent down and yanked my boots off, nearly pulling me off the couch. I raised my ass off the couch and she pulled my pants and shorts off. My erection bobbed and slapped against my belly. I pulled my shirt off and tossed it somewhere. J'Una leaned over me and began kissing and licking my nipples. The hard points of her nipples dragged across my stomach sending electric jolts straight to my cock. It throbbed in anticipation. I put my arms around her and ran my hands up and down her sleek black flanks. Her skin was smooth, her body firm. I cupped her ass cheeks, then spread them, pressing a finger against her anus. She moaned and bit my chest. I thrust the tip of my finger into her ass and she shuddered, arching her back and shoving those magnificent breasts into my face. I cupped a breast in my other hand and squeezed it gently, licking at the valley between her ebony towers. J'Una grabbed my head and guided my mouth onto her tit. She had one hand cupped under the breast, feeding it to me. I sucked at it hungrily, flicking the nipple with my tongue, while I continued to probe her anus with my finger. I devoured the breast with my mouth. I could never get enough of her tits, and since this would be the last time for awhile, I licked and sucked and bit with a vengeance. What made it so pleasurable for me was the knowledge that J'Una loved it as much as I did. She was moaning and thrusting her tit further into my mouth. Saliva drooled out of the corners of my mouth and ran down the sides of her breast. Finally, I came up for air, her breast plopping free of my mouth with a loud sucking sound. By now she had both of those strong, shapely legs clamped tightly around my waist, and she was thrusting back and forth, rubbing her clit on the underside of my dick, while she gently caressed the head with one hand. I was struck by the thought that I'd love to have her jerk me off like that. But I could tell she was working up to something else. J'Una had buried her face against my neck and was beginning to clamp her teeth down. That, along with the way her body was starting to quiver and thrash about left no doubt that she was about to cum. Her sweet cunt was absolutely soaked, and the way she was rubbing it up and down against me was indescribably erotic. I could not believe how hard my cock was. J'Una detached herself from my neck, and whispered hoarsely in my ear, "I'm going to cum! Suck my tits again and make me cum! Suck my tits, Vel! Bite them! Please." I mashed my face against the other breast, and started sucking and nipping at it. She kept encouraging me to do it harder, until I was sure I must be causing her incredible pain, but I knew how much she liked having her tits handled roughly and she was rapidly approaching orgasm, so I kept it up. She was using her legs to slam herself against my cock, and I wrapped my arms around her waist and caught up with her rhythm. "I'm almost there, Vel," she moaned. "Damn, this is so good. So good." This last was smothered as she sunk her teeth into my shoulder again, and pulled my face even tighter against her breast. Pressed against her like that, I could feel a vibration starting somewhere down in her center, and spreading out through her entire body. Knowing what she wanted, I bit down on her nipple, at the same time lifting her off my lap and slamming her down, impaled on my cock. My sudden entrance into her cunt had the desired effect. Her pussy gushed, drenching my cock and she shuddered and vibrated atop me. I lifted my ass off the couch and hung there for a moment, both of us frozen, with her arching her back and the muscles of her pussy clenching around my dick. I knew I'd had it then. I lay back down on the couch, and started thrusting my cock inside of her, as she whispered in my ear, "Cum all over me, Vel! I want to feel your cum on my tits!" She didn't have long to wait before I started pumping my thick load of hot cum. The first couple spurts went deep inside her, then I pulled out, and leaned her back, spraying several thick gobs over her her heaving black stomach and breasts. Exhausted as she was, she eagerly grabbed my cock and pumped the last couple spurts out, smearing the sticky fluids all over herself, as she moaned and writhed in ecstacy. I had never seen her this hot. She raised a cum-covered hand to her mouth and sensuously licked it clean. It was an incredible sight. J'Una collapsed on top of me and we lay together for a long time, saying nothing, just holding and stroking each other. There was nothing left that needed saying. J'Una was packed and off the ship a short time later. Although GUSTAV had been berthed in the Death Star less than a day, we had already received orders to get underway again. "There's a civil war brewing out in the Sepan system," Commander Cibock told us. "The two peoples that live out there, the Dimocks and Replobans, have been rivals for a long time, but now their conflict threatens to erupt into a full scale war which could undermine Imperial interests in the area." -- Star Wars: The TIE Fighter (Part 9) Walter Slaven Commander Cibock explained that Admiral Haarkov had been directed by the Emperor to proceed to the Sepan system and bring about a negotiated settlement, without resorting to an all out attack. As soon as the Admiral and his staff got settled onboard, the Commander told us, GUSTAV would be underway. Here we go again, I thought. At least Marina Haarkov ought to be happy about this assignment. She hadn't seen her father for some time. A short time later, the docking clamps were released and GUSTAV got underway. This time, however, I opted for the privacy of the observation lounge. I looked out the windows at the Death Star as GUSTAV slowly pulled away. Behind me I heard the lounge doors open and someone enter. I did not turn around. I wasn't interested in talking to anybody. "Vel?" Kao's voice, soft and gentle. She was standing behind me as I continued to look out the window. "I wanted to tell you," she said, "that I was out of line before when I said you cared about Commander Selena only as a convenient lay. I realize that you and she meant a great deal to each other and I wanted to apologize to you. I had no right to say what I said. It was unfair to both you and to her. I'm sorry." I turned around to face her. We smiled at each other, and I nodded in appreciation. Kao was a very proud individual. Although our relationship had been somewhat stormy, I respected what she was doing now. "Thank you," I mumbled and turned back to the windows. I heard Kao leave the lounge. I continued watching the Death Star recede as GUSTAV picked up speed. I was still gazing at it when GUSTAV jumped into hyperspace. Part Four- The Sepan Civil War GUSTAV jumped to hyperspace, leaving the Death Star, Tarkin, Vader, and J'Una behind. We had embarked Admiral Haarkov and several members of his staff and were enroute to the Sepan system. The most difficult, and potentially frustrating, mission that any military organization can be assigned is one whose objective is not clear. The real purpose of any military, when you think about it, is twofold: 1)to kill people and break things when so directed, and 2)use the threat of force to keep potential adversaries at bay and preclude the necessity for 1). The political and diplomatic machinations which direct the use of a military force may vary, but it all comes down to the same thing. When it involved fighting the Rebels our mission was very clear: find them and kill them. Period. Their mission was the same regarding Imperials. One might debate the motivations of the respective governments involved, but the missions of the two military organizations were the same: defeat the enemy. All of which brings me to our mission to the Sepan system. As its details unfolded during briefings with Admiral Haarkov and his staff, our mission was not to destroy an enemy or capture an objective, but rather to use force, or the threat of it, to separate two enemies and then bring about a settlement. Not an easy task for an organization that likes clear, precise missions. Almost no senior Imperial officer that I knew of was temperament- ally suited for diplomatic service- it requires too much give and take, too much compromise. I wondered if Admiral Haarkov was really any different. "We want to remind you," the admiral was telling us during one briefing, "that this is a peace mission. Our objective will be to come to the aid, if necessary, of whichever side is currently being attacked. These will not be mop-up missions. We will deliver a telling blow to the aggressor, whichever side that is, but always allow some to escape to tell their superiors of the might and will of the Empire. The peoples of both Dimok and Repoblus must realize that the Empire will not tolerate the undermining of its interests in this sector because of some inter-planetary squabbling." Talk about a convoluted mission, I thought. We'd probably just end up pissing off both sides and uniting them against us. And what force did we bring out here? Just our battered old frigate with a few squadrons of TIEs. Not a whole lot. The good news was that the best that either the Dimoks or Repoblans could put up against us were some older modified corvettes and some Y- wings they bought from the Rebels. They also had a lot of old Z-95's. "I want to emphasize," Haarkov continued, "that the Emperor desires a peaceful solution to the Sepan problem." Admiral Haarkov was a short man with a thin, haggard appearance. His face was gaunt, and he had the general look of a man who was under a lot of pressure and needed some sleep. He seemed to be on edge, and his voice cracked and wavered at times, but he was intense, alert and knew his mission thoroughly. "We must be prepared," the admiral said, "to act quickly and intervene to break up this conflict as soon as we reach the Sepan system." He stepped back from the podium in the center of the conference room and gestured to one of his staff officers. Commander Solut, as he had been introduced, was every bit the stereotypical mindless Imperial automoton that the general public is now so familiar with. He was tall, thin, pale, had blue eyes and spoke in a monotone. His voice never betrayed any emotion and he always acted as though he expected that the admiral would hit him at any moment. His whole demeanor was quite disconcerting. Solut moved to the podium, blinked, and shot a nervous glance at the admiral. "The Repoblans," he began, "have a mining operation on the outer moon that orbits their planet." A holographic image of Repoblus with its three moons appeared. The outer moon, by far the smallest, was colored differently, highlighting it. "Although this moon is smaller," Solut continued, "it contains great concentrations of minerals and other resources. The Repoblans routinely run convoys from the moon to refineries and manufacturing installations on Repoblus. We have information that, as a result of the current dispute, the Dimoks will attempt to disrupt these convoys." I was sitting next to Captain Kao Ijuf, flight leader of the SHAMUS groups currently stationed aboard GUSTAV. SHAMUS had suffered serious damage in an earlier operation [see pt 2] and was undergoing repairs. I leaned over to her and said dryly, "This ought to be fun. Escorting some convoy and not knowing who's going to shoot at us first." Kao nodded her agreement, the movement sending shimmers through her long, luscious red hair. "There may be instances," Commander Solut continued, "when we will have to sieze installations or vessels. Our stormtroopers must be ready if such an occasion arises." Major Maarek, our stormtrooper commander, nodded vigorously and smiled. He couldn't wait to kill people and break things. Commander Solut droned on. "We also suspect that there may be other forces at work here. Specifically, we think that the Rebel Alliance may be fomenting some of these troubles." We all perked up at that, and I noticed Admiral Haarkov shift uncomfortably, eyes darting about. The guy was definitely nervous. Kao leaned over to me. "All this and Rebels, too," she said sarcastically. "What more could a girl ask for on a mission?" I chuckled. Admiral Haarkov stood up. Commander Solut immediately resumed his seat. "The Rebel connection," the admiral began, "has not been verified." He scowled at Solut. "Imperial intelligence has received some indications that the Rebels may be involved in supplying arms to one or both sides but, again, there is no solid evidence that such a connection exists." Haarkov looked around the room, then nodded to Commander Cibock, GUSTAV's Commanding Officer. "I think that's enough for now, Commander," Haarkov said, trying to sound pleasant. "Let me know when we're entering the Sepan system." "Yes, sir," Cibock responded. "We should be there shortly." Haarkov nodded curtly in acknowledgement then abruptly left the room before we could even stand to attention, as is customary. Commander Solut and other members of Haarkov's staff scrambled after the admiral. As the room cleared out, Kao looked at me, shaking her head slightly. "I don't know about you," she said, "but I'm not used to allowing people who have been shooting at me to run away so they can come back and shoot at me again later." I nodded. "I was wondering about that, too," I said. "I suppose that the purpose is to impress these folks by not destroying an entire attack force even though we could." I shrugged. Kao's blue eyes narrowed and she scowled. "I don't like it," she said. "We ought to kick their asses and keep on kicking them until they've had enough and decide to do what we tell them to do. This half-assed approach could get a lot of us killed and still not do the job." It was hard to argue with her logic, but I looked around to make sure no one was listening. Her kind of "logic" could get us into a lot of trouble. As I've said before, opinions that differed from official Imperial policy were not well received. They usually resulted in accusations of disloyalty or other such nonsense against the person voicing the opinion. "We'll need to be careful," I said. "But you heard the admiral: hit 'em hard then let 'em go." I paused. "At least these guys don't have X-wings." Kao snorted. "Unless the Rebels show up," she said, scoffing. "Are we supposed to let them get away, too?" "I don't think so," I said, chuckling. "Obviously Haarkov and his staff don't agree on Rebel involvement to begin with." "Yeah, that whole exchange was a little odd," she said. "First Solut says there might be Rebel involvement, then Haarkov all but says there isn't. So which is it?" "I guess we'll find out," I said. "Yeah. When some X-wing flames your ass. It'll be a little late then." Kao paused, then lowered her voice. "You know, Vel," she said, "I have a bad feeling about Admiral Haarkov." "What do you mean?" I asked, curious. I took another quick look around. The room was empty, the passageways quiet. "He seems so jumpy and edgy," Kao responded. "Marina came to talk to me about that earlier." Hmmm, I thought. So it's "Marina" now, and not "Ensign Haarkov." I was unaware that Kao and the admiral's daughter, one of our maintenance officers, had anything other than a distant, professional relationship. "Ensign Haarkov came to you?" I asked, sounding surprised. "What did she want?" Kao laughed. "Of course she did. There aren't many females in this outfit so we tend to stick together. Marina is one of a handful of female officers assigned to the ship. Commander Selena's departure has left a pretty big void. She was a mentor, a counsellor to a lot of them. Now I'm the senior female onboard, so they come to me. Marina was upset and needed someone to talk to." I nodded. That all made sense. "Marina's concerned about her father," Kao said directly. "She's his only child, her mother's dead, she hasn't seen her father for over a year and he's made virtually no effort to see her or to spend time with her since coming aboard." "He is kind of busy, Kao," I said. "He's got a tough assignment, and he probably has the Emperor, Vader, Tarkin or all three breathing down his neck. That would make me jumpy and edgy." "That's what I said," Kao replied. "But Marina wouldn't buy it. She thinks there's something else going on." "Like what?" I asked, a little impatiently. Kao sighed. "Marina doesn't know. She just feels that something isn't right and it has upset her." "I hadn't noticed anything," I said. "Of course not," Kao said with a slight smile. "Marina's very brave, very professional. She wouldn't let on in public or let her personal life affect her professional performance. But believe me, we had a very long talk and I can tell you that she's worried." "OK, she's worried," I said. "What do you want me to do?" "Nothing, really," Kao replied. "I just thought you should know because Marina is a friend of yours and so that you could keep your eyes and ears open." "I'll do that," I said. "Thanks for telling me." Kao smiled and started to leave. She stopped abruptly and turned around. "So, how are you doing?" she asked. I was momentarily taken aback. "Me?" I finally managed to blurt out . "I'm fine. Why?" "I was just wondering," Kao said softly,"how you were feeling now that Commander Selena is gone." "Oh," I said. Then, after a pause, "She hasn't been gone that long, and we've been pretty busy, so I guess I haven't had much time to think about it." Kao looked at me for a long moment. "You miss her already, don't you?" "I guess I do," I responded quietly. I smiled bravely. "But I'll get over it." Kao smiled warmly. "Well, captain," she said, "maybe I'll be around when you do." She turned and left the room, and I watched her gorgeous ass sway gently as she walked. I smiled to myself. Well whaddya know? A short time later, after completing a routine inspection of my squadron's TIEs to make sure that the equipment was ready if needed on short notice, I went to the Pilot's Lounge at the extreme forward part of the ship, just below the bridge. I wanted to check on the pilots and assure myself that they, too, were ready if needed. I didn't make a habit of spending a lot of time in the lounge. I felt that, in general, it was a good idea not to get too chummy with guys that I might have to order to their deaths tomorrow. Although I have been critical of the way a lot of things are done in the Imperial Navy, I agreed with the concept of a commander keeping a distance between himself and his subordinates. Most good commanders followed this rule. It made things easier. Although my wingman, Dromo Acer, and I had become friends, that relationship was confined to off-ship and off-duty activities. Onboard GUSTAV Dromo was just another pilot in my squadron. The Pilot's Lounge was one of the nicest compartments on the ship. It was very large, spacious, comfortably appointed, had a huge window that looked forward, and, best of all, the bar was always open. Say what you will about the Empire being a rigid, autocratic, unfeeling organization. The Imperial Navy knew how to take care of its pilots, even on a small starship like GUSTAV. The lounge was crowded with both GUSTAV and SHAMUS pilots. I was pleased to see that it was getting harder to tell them apart. The efforts that Kao and I had been making to integrate all of the pilots into one team seemed to be working. A new sense of comradship was de- veloping that could only help us. I was warmly greeted by several pilots as I made my way to a large table where Dromo and several other officers were seated next to the window. Through the window I could see the stars streaking by as GUSTAV continued her hyperspace journey to the Sepan system. Dromo rose to greet me, offering a chair. "Please join us, captain," he said pleasantly. "Thanks," I replied as I sat down. Dromo handed me a glass of some kind of ale. I had to watch it with Dromo. He could come up with some pretty strange stuff. This ale, I decided as I took a preliminary sip, wasn't too bad. "Hey, captain," one of the pilots called, "any chance of getting some liberty out here?" He was one of the SHAMUS pilots, a big burly man who looked as though he would barely be able to fit into a TIE. His companion, a smaller man who had had half his face shot away and then surgically reconstructed, took a gulp from his drink, nodded and said, "I hear Dimok women can't get enough." "But, Zeno," another called, "you don't have that much to give anyway!" I joined in the laughter that erupted around the table. Typical pilots, I thought. Always worried about getting off the ship and getting laid. The pilot called Zeno scowled and took another drink. "I'm not sure how much time off we'll get out here," I said. "Remember, we're here to break up a civil war, so we probably won't endear our- selves to either side." There was a murmur of agreement. "But," I continued, "I'll keep an eye open for any liberty opportunities that arise." There were some murmured 'thank you's' and I craned my neck, looking around the room for that long flowing red hair that would identify Kao Ijuf. I couldn't find her. "Anyone seen Captain Ijuf?" I asked. Heads shook. "No, sir," one pilot said. "The captain is a great pilot and a good leader, but she doesn't socialize with us very often." Another pilot laughed. "That's because she's probably tired of most of these guys trying to get into her pants." Several pilots chuckled. "Most?" said the first in mock indignation. "You mean there's some who aren't?" Uproarious laughter greeted that remark. I was sure that every one of those SHAMUS pilots was just itching to get into bed with Kao Ijuf. What the hell? So was I. "Hey, look," said Dromo, pointing to the window. "We're coming out of hyperspace." He was right. The panoply of streaking colors gave way to the still blackness of space. In the distance I saw what I presumed was the Sepan sun. "What now?" Dromo asked me. "Well," I said thoughtfully. "Commander Cibock said he was going to patrol the space between the two rival planets, Dimok and Repoblus. That would put us in a good position to respond to trouble." I sat back in my chair and chuckled. "Sounds more like a job for a traffic cop than for an Imperial warrior, doesn't it?" Dromo scowled. He was pro-Imperial through and through. His family was very wealthy and well connected on Coruscant, the Imperial capital. They viewed the conflict strictly in economic terms. To them the Rebellion was a threat to trade, commerce, and economic development. The political ideologies involved interested them not at all. Dromo leaned forward and said to me, "I read somewhere that some military philosopher once said 'Ours is not to reason why. Ours is but to do or die.'" "That certainly fits us, doesn't it?" I said sarcastically. "We've done a lot of dying." Dromo's reply was cut off by the clanging, klaxon sound of the general quarters alarm. "Red alert! Red alert! Dimok attack. All pilots to your ships. All hands to battle stations. Briefing in the hangar. Red alert!" "That didn't take long," I said, taking one last gulp. Dromo and I and all the other pilots piled through the doors in a mad scramble to get to our TIEs. The alarm clanged loudly in our ears, the red lights flashing. We lumbered down stairwells and through passageways, almost like a herd of Tatooine Banthas in a stampede in our relentless drive toward the hangars. Finally, the mob dispersed as we entered the hangar, each pilot dashing off to his own TIE. I spotted Admiral Haarkov and Commander Cibock in a corner and ran toward them to find out what was happening. Kao Ijuf was just arriving also, zipping up her flight suit. I caught a glimpse of her breast as she did so and realized she was wearing nothing underneath. What had she been doing, I wondered briefly. "A Repoblus convoy is under attack," Admiral Haarkov was saying. "Just as we feared. The Dimoks intend to disrupt the Repoblan convoy system." Kao and I nodded. "You will defend the Repoblan convoy," Haarkov said to us. "But, before using force against the Dimoks, I want you to issue them a warning." Kao and I looked at each other, surprised. "A warning, admiral?" I asked. "Yes," he said tersely. "Maybe a warning will be all that is necessary." "But, admiral," Kao said, "won't a warning alert them, and give them a chance to turn and shoot first? Wouldn't it be better....." Haarkov cut her off. "Captain I gave you an order!" he shouted, almost trembling with rage. "How dare you question me. There will be no shooting on Dimok vessels until a warning has been given! Do you understand me, captain?" Kao nodded. "Yes, sir." Haarkov turned to me. His face was flushed, the veins in his neck throbbing. "What about you, Captain Tallig?" "Understood, sir," I said in my best automoton voice. "They'll get a warning." "Very well," Haarkov said, decompressing a little. During this entire exchange I noticed that Commander Cibock had been looking at Haarkov, an expression of deep concern on his face. However, he said nothing. "Any other questions, captains?" Haarkov asked. I wanted to say 'are you kidding?' but merely shook my head, as did Kao. "Dismissed," the admiral said curtly, then turned and left the hangar. Kao and I looked at each other and shrugged. She ran off toward her TIE as the hangar started to fill with the noise of TIE fighters winding up. I was approaching my TIE when I heard a voice behind me. "Captain Tallig! Captain Tallig!" I turned around as Marina Haarkov came running up to me. "I'm in a hurry, ensign," I said. "What is it?" "Yes, sir," she said. "We've installed a prototype of a new cargo scanner in your TIE." "Cargo scanner?" I asked. "Yes, sir. It scans the interior of ships for cargo. Things like munitions, contraband, droids, that sort of thing." I nodded. Another new gadget. "If you get a chance," she said, shouting above the noise, "try to fly close to a couple of container vessels and test it for us." I nodded. "I will if I can," I shouted. She nodded her thanks and ran off to assist with the launchings. I climbed into my TIE, strapped in, put on my helmet and connected the comm link. The overhead cranes began picking us up and moving the TIEs to the launching bay. The huge door in the bottom of the ship slid open, the crane lowered me through it and released my TIE into space. I engaged the twin ion engines and the craft shot forward. I looped around GUSTAV and established communications as I waited for the rest of my flight to form up. "GUSTAV, Gamma One," I called. "Flight group forming up." "Acknowledged, Gamma One." I almost wet my pants. The voice was Admiral Haarkov's! What the hell was he doing taking direct tactical control of a mission? That was something Commander Cibock or another officer should be doing, not an admiral. Was it that he didn't trust us? Or was it that he was so nervous about this operation that he felt compelled to direct it himself? Either way, it was most unusual. On my tactical displays I could see the Repoblan convoy heading toward Repoblus. It consisted of a large number of ASBO class container vessels guarded only by a handful of old Z-95's. These guys must really be counting on Imperial support, I thought. I could also see the Dimok attack force approaching. It was considerable- a flight of Y-wings, a large number of Z-95's and a Corvette. Uh, oh. "GUSTAV, Gamma One," I called. "The Dimoks have a Corvette. We'll need TIE bombers with some heavy stuff to tackle that one." Admiral Haarkov's reply was gruff. "We don't know that we'll need to shoot at all, Gamma One. Close the Dimoks and issue your warning. We'll worry about the Corvette later." "Roger, GUSTAV," I said. Then,"Gamma One to flight group. Formation Delta. We'll approach at two-thirds speed. Keep your lasers charged up." Formation Delta is a tight wedge formation. I chose this because, if we needed to fight, it would give us a concentrated attack. I chose a slower approach speed so as to give the Dimoks time to back off. I switched to the Sepan channel that we had been instructed to use when communicating with the Dimoks and Repoblans. -- Star Wars: The TIE Fighter (Part 10) Walter Slaven "Dimok flight leader," I called, "this is Captain Tallig of the Imperial Navy." There was a pause. On my displays I saw that Kao's flight group had formed up and was following at some distance. We had planned it that way so that her group would be free to respond as the situation dictated. "Imperial Navy, this is Commander Tegy of the Dimok Self Defense Force. What do you want?" The voice was edgy and impatient. Self Defense Force? That was a new one, especially coming from a guy who was leading a flight in an attack on a convoy. I also noticed that he did not respond to my name. He wanted to remain impersonal. OK by me. "Dimok flight leader," I said in my most authoritarian sounding voice, "you are ordered to cease and desist your aggressive action against the Repoblan convoy." The response was quick. "Imperial Navy, you have no business here. I suggest you get out of our way. Any interference will be met by force." I decided to try one more time. "Dimok flight leader," I said sternly, "I must warn you that if you persist in this attack the Imperial Navy will stop you." If that didn't do it, I thought, nothing will. There was no response. Instead, a large part of the Dimok attack force turned and headed toward us, just as Kao had predicted. Giving the warning had cost us the element of surprise. "GUSTAV, Gamma One, " I said. "The warning didn't work.They are moving to attack us." "Roger, Gamma One," Haarkov said with a sigh. "Commence your attack, but remember, hit them hard but don't chase them if they run. We'll commence launching TIE bombers to take on the Corvette." "Acknowledged," I replied. At least he was doing that. "Gamma One to Gamma flight," I called, "accelerate to maximum speed and begin attack. Gamma Two, you're with me." "Roger, Gamma One," Dromo replied. Through my viewfinder I could see him take up his customary position just behind and to the left of me. "Tau leader, this is Gamma leader," I said, calling Kao. "A group of Dimok craft is still closing the convoy. Move to intercept. We'll handle this group." "Acknowledged, Gamma leader," Kao replied. "We're on our way." Having covered all the bases, I now concentrated on our attack. Our tight formation sped toward the Dimoks, who had sent a couple of Y-wings and a lot of Z-95's against us. Although they heavily outnumbered us I was confident. For all its faults the TIE thoroughly outclassed both the Z-95, which was quite obsolete, and the Y-wing, though the latter was heavily shielded and tough to knock out. I was also supremely confident in my pilots. Most of us had flown together a long time and operated as a smooth, efficient Imperial machine. Add to this the fact that our TIEs had recently been modified to carry concussion missiles and you had what I felt was a truly superior fighting force. Particularly against relatively inexperienced pilots in out of date starfighters. As we closed the Dimoks I noticed that they were approaching in a rather loose formation. Too bad for them, I thought. Our tight wedge of TIEs barrelled into the Dimoks at top speed and three Dimok craft became space junk in a matter of seconds. Our formation dissolved as the battle quickly became one of individual contests. Dromo broke off to flame a Z-95 that had gotten behind one of our TIEs. I targeted a Y-wing and got behind him. I activated the speed matching device, set my lasers on dual fire and began pounding away. I quickly took down his shields but the Y-wing twisted and turned violently, making it difficult to maintain a lock. I stayed with him but the bastard was re- charging his shields. He twisted and turned and looped and dove all over the place but, since the TIE is considerably more maneuverable than a Y-wing, I was able to hang on and take the occasional shot as I tried to regain a lock. The Y-wing jerked wildly to the right and headed toward a couple of Dimok Z-95's which were headed toward us. Uh-oh. He's got help on the way. I didn't like one on three even if I was in a TIE. I activated the missile system, got a partial lock and fired two of my four missiles, then jerked my TIE upward in a loop to meet the Z-95's. Sometimes you're lucky, and sometimes you're not. This time I was lucky. My two missiles found their mark and the Y-wing disintegrated. I didn't savor the victory long, however. The two Z-95's approached me, lasers blazing away. I put my TIE into a tight roll, sidestepped them, then jerked her around hard to the left and came in behind them. It was a pretty fancy maneuver that I'm sure those poor Dimok bastards never saw before. Or would see again. I got a quick lock on the nearest Z-95, put my lasers on rapid single fire and hammered away. My lasers quickly disabled the Z-95's shields then cut into his port engine mount. The port wing disintegrated and then the entire craft exploded. I was so close that I had to fly through the debris and I felt it clatter against my hull. The second Z-95 had looped to the right, hoping to evade me. I was on his ass before he knew it. His attempts at evasion were pathetically amateur and, as I blew his ship apart, I thought that this was quickly becoming a massacre. We had lost only one TIE so far and the Dimok force sent to attack us had been decimated. On my tactical display I could see that Kao's flight was having similar success nearer the convoy, though that Corvette was causing problems. I noticed that the TIE bombers had launched, however, and should make short work of that Corvette if it stayed around. The remnants of the Dimok force facing my group turned and began running away. A couple of my pilots, their blood up, pursued. I put a quick halt to that. "Gamma One to Gamma flight, let them go, boys," I called. "All units form up on me. That convoy still needs help." Kao's flight group now had its hands full. That damned Corvette was stubbornly pressing home its attack, trying to get at the Repoblan convoy. Kao had lost two TIE's and still had a bunch of Z-95's to worry about. The few Repoblan Z-95's stayed well clear of the action, content to let the Empire's minions save their asses. "Gamma leader to Tau leader," I called to Kao, "we've run off this bunch. We're on our way to assist you." "Roger, Gamma leader," Kao replied. "We can use the help." Several Dimok Z-95s had managed to break away and get in among the Repoblan convoy. The Repoblan Z-95s fired a few shots then took off, the bastards. The convoy broke up and scattered all over the place as the Dimok vessels made repeated attack runs. The ASBO container vessel, while slow and underarmed, is quite large, much larger than a starfighter. It takes more than a few laser hits to knock one out. Also, when operating in close to these vessels you have to be careful that you don't collide with one. The ASBO has the law of gross tonnage on its side and you lose. Particularly in an unshielded fighter. I was pretty pissed off when I saw the Repoblan Z-95s, who were supposed to be guarding the convoy, run away. I wanted to call the whole thing off and let the Dimoks have their way, but I remembered that our primary mission was to protect the convoy. We formed up and dove in among the ASBOs and the Dimok starfighters, adding to the total mess and confusion that the melee had become. I maneuvered between two ASBOs and flamed a Z-95 that had been strafing them. I looped around another container and covered Dromo while he killed another Z-95. The Dimok Corvette was shooting at the container vessels now, scoring several hits. Finally, the TIE bombers were within range to commence attacking the Corvette with heavy space bombs. The space bomb can be a devastating weapon, but it must be launched at point blank range. Unlike the missile or proton torpedo, the space bomb does not have its own propulsion. It is "lobbed" at its target. Thus, the bomber has to get very close, release the bomb, pull up and get the hell away. It is not conducive to a long life and I had nothing but respect for those guys in slow, unmaneuverable craft flying right into the teeth of enemy fire to deliver their weapon. Apparently, the Dimoks in the Corvette knew enough about TIE bombers and space bombs to know they'd get wasted real fast if they hung around. The Corvette turned and started heading away. We let it go, though I knew that the bomber pilots really wanted to blow the thing to hell. "GUSTAV, Gamma One," I called. "The Dimoks are retiring." "Acknowledged, Gamma One," Haarkov replied. "What is the condition of the convoy?" "They're fairly scattered and confused right now," I replied. "A few were shot up a bit, but nothing serious. Their escorts ran away." "Understood," Haarkov said gruffly. "Form up your groups and return to GUSTAV." That was odd. The convoy would have no escort for the remainder of the trip to Repoblus. "GUSTAV, do you want me to have a couple TIEs provide an escort?" "Negative!" Haarkov exclaimed, almost blowing out my earpiece. "All units return at once." "Acknowledged, GUSTAV," I replied. At least that was clear enough. I directed Dromo and Kao to form up the groups and head back to the ship. I remembered that Marina Haarkov had asked me to test a new scanner, so, while I was in among the ASBOs, I thought this would be as good a time as any. I activated the scanner and flew past the nearest vessels. The readout on the scanner indicated that their cargo consisted of raw materials found on the Repoblan moon. Normal enough. It was when I flew past the third ASBO that I did a double take. A red light flashed on the scanner and the readout indicated that the cargo consisted of Imperial style arms and munitions. What the hell? Since the scanner was a new gadget I thought it might have a few bugs. I reset it and flew past the container vessel again. Again, the red light flashed and the readout indicated Imperial war materials. This merited reporting. "GUSTAV, Gamma One," I called. Admiral Haarkov seemed annoyed. "What is it, Captain," he said, ignoring call signs and other communications protocol. I guess admirals can do that. "GUSTAV, I just flew by a container vessel that appears to be carrying Imperial weaponry." I could hear the jaws hit the deck in GUSTAV's Operations Center. I was only sorry I couldn't see Haarkov's face. "Imperial weaponry!" Haarkov spluttered. "How the hell would you know?" I couldn't tell if he was more angry at the possibility of Imperial weapons in the hands of the Repoblans, or at me for finding it out. "GUSTAV, Gamma One," I called, refusing to abandon procedure. "I'm testing a scanner. It identified two vessels as containing raw materials, but lit up on the third." There was a long pause. I kept circling the containers. I noticed that the other flight groups had been recovered. "Gamma One, GUSTAV," a new voice called. Commander Cibock. "Allow the vessels to proceed and return to GUSTAV." I was still confused. Why let a ship with Imperial weapons, which no one but us is supposed to have, proceed? Shouldn't we stop it or board it or something? I decided that it would be useless to ask these questions. "Acknowledged, GUSTAV," I replied. "I'm on my way in." I turned my TIE away from the container vessels and sped toward home, my mind full of questions, doubts and suspicions. I knew something was amiss shortly after I landed. The tractor beam operator set my TIE down into its stall and I quickly went through the post-flight checklist. I disconnected my comm link and dropped through the hatch at the bottom of the starfighter. I pulled off my helmet and saw Commander Solut, one of Haarkov's staffers, waiting for me near the hangar door. Times change, I thought, remembering how it had always been J'Una, tall, passionate, sexy, waiting for me at the end of a mission. Instead, here was this toady. What concerned me more was the fact that with him were two fully armed and equipped storm- troopers. Uh-oh. "Hi, Commander," I said, trying hard to be friendly. "Pretty successful mission, eh?" The commander was not impressed and his expression never changed. "The admiral would like to see you, Captain," he said mechanically. "Please follow me." He turned abruptly and started out of the hangar. The two stormtroopers fell in behind us, an uncomfortable presence. Commander Solut remained stoically silent throughout our walk from the hangar forward and up to the Admiral's cabin, located above the bridge. The stormtrooper on guard outside the cabin saluted the commander and announced our arrival over his intercom. The door slid open and Solut and I entered, our escorts remaining outide. Even smaller ships like GUSTAV have special quarters reserved for Admirals and other dignitaries or VIPs. The Admiral's cabin on GUSTAV was relatively palatial when compared to those of lesser officers. Rank does have its privileges. Admiral Haarkov was seated behind a large desk flanked by several computer consoles. I was relieved to see that Commander Cibock was also in the room, standing next to Haarkov's desk. The admiral looked even more worn out than he had earlier. Haarkov looked up from one of the consoles. "Greetings, captain," he said without feeling. "Your people did a fine job today. The Dimoks were driven off and the Repoblan convoy made it safely to its destination." I nodded stiffly. "Thank you, admiral," I said. "So where in your orders," Haarkov said grimly, "were you authorized to inspect the cargo of Repoblan container vessels?" He glared first at me, then at Commander Cibock. "I wasn't, sir," I acknowledged. "Then, what were you doing, captain?" Haarkov's voice grew more menacing. I had the feeling that there was something going on here, but I couldn't figure out what. Shouldn't the admiral be glad we discovered Imperial arms on a Repoblan vessel. Shouldn't we be trying to find out how they got there? "I was asked by the maintenance department to check out a new scanner, admiral," I responded. "After our mission was accomplished I saw an opportunity to do so, so I did." I decided not to mention the fact that Ensign Haarkov, the admiral's own daughter, had been the one who had made the request. I figured it might piss him off even more and get her into trouble. "You were requested by the maintenance department?" Haarkov asked sarcastically. "Did it ever occur to you that the Repoblans might take offense to such action? That they might think we're giving information to the Dimoks?" His voice rose in anger. "We're here trying to break up a civil war, dammit, not throw fuel onto the fire!" He was really pissed now, but I couldn't see how inspecting cargo could cause such a fuss, unless we weren't supposed to know about the arms. I could see how that might upset the Repoblans, but it shouldn't upset our admiral so much. Unless...... "Admiral, if I may," Commander Cibock interjected, derailing my thoughts. Haarkov glared at him. "We received several prototypes of a new scanner while we were at the Death Star," Cibock began. He was defending me in front of the admiral, and I appreciated it. "We also received a request from Imperial R&D to test the prototypes at our convenience. I instructed the maintenance department to do just that." Haarkov seemed to relax a little, but he was still tense and angry. "Very well, commander," Haarkov said reluctantly. "I can appreciate your position. In the future, however," and his voice became cold again, "you will make no changes to my instructions without my approval. Is that clear, commander?" Cibock stiffened. "Yes, sir, it is." "Alright, then," Haarkov said, smiling. He sat back in his chair. "Just so we understand each other." Commander Cibock nodded. There was an uneasy silence, then, feeling either bold or foolish, I opened a can of worms. "Admiral," I said softly, "what about the Imperial arms I found on that Repoblan container vessel?" Haarkov's eyes narrowed, his face became red and I could quickly see that I had succeeded in pissing him off again. Commander Cibock looked at me as if to say 'what did you do that for?' Haarkov could barely control his anger. "There will be no talk outside of this room about Imperial arms on a container vessel." He glared at Cibock. "No mention will made in any reports, is that clear, Commander?" Cibock nodded. "Yes, sir." "We are not here to act as customs agents," Haarkov continued. "Our job is to prevent a civil war and I won't jeopardize that mission by irritating the Repoblans by spying on them!" "Understood, sir," Cibock said. Haarkov stood up abruptly. "Commander, captain," he said to us, "that is all. You are dismissed." "Thank you, admiral," Commander Cibock said formally. He and I turned and walked past a silent Commander Solut and through the doors. The stormtroopers acknowledged Cibock and he beckoned me to follow him. We walked in silence down the passageway to the Commanding Officer's stateroom, located right behind the bridge. Cibock entered his access code, the doors slid open and we entered. Cibock walked across the room to the large window behind his desk and spent several moments staring out into space. The Sepan sun was visible, a bright ball far in the distance as GUSTAV patrolled the system at sub- light speed. I had served with Commander Cibock long enough to know that he had something on his mind and would talk about it when he was ready, so I waited in respectful silence. After all, he had just gone to bat for me with Admiral Haarkov. Many senior Imperial officers would have covered their own asses and let their subordinates hang. Finally, Commander Cibock turned around. He suddenly looked much older than he was. His forehead was furrowed and the wrinkles around his eyes seemed deeper than they had been. "Captain," he said slowly, "I never thought I'd say this, but I want you to disregard the admiral's order and to continue testing that scanner." "Sir?" I asked, confused. This was extraordinary! A commander directing a subordinate to disregard an admiral's order? He could get us both killed. "Captain," Cibock continued, "there's something more going on here than merely preventing a civil war. Someone had to provide those Imperial weapons to the Repoblans. And what are they doing with them? I think these questions need answering because the answer may involve treason and open collaboration with the enemy." "Enemy, sir?" Now I was really confused. "I thought we weren't to consider the Dimoks or Repoblans as enemies." What was he getting at? "I'm not talking about the Dimoks or Repoblans," he said calmly. "I'm talking about collaboration with the Rebel Alliance." I was stunned. "Are you suggesting that Admiral Haarkov is providing Imperial weapons to the Rebels?" Cibock smiled. "Not yet. But I think we owe it to ourselves to find out. After all, getting killed by one's own weapons in the hands of the enemy is a most unsuitable fate, don't you think?" "Yes, sir," I said slowly. I sure wouldn't want Imperial lasers or missile technology used against me or my pilots. "I want you to continue scanning for contraband shipments while we're here," Cibock continued. "Cargo vessels, space platforms, whatever presents itself. But be discreet. Don't call in or download your findings. Wait until you return and tell me only." I nodded. "Yes, sir." "Also, don't be obvious it, either. If the mission doesn't get you close enough to scan, wait for another opportunity. Haarkov will be watching closely." "That shouldn't be a problem, commander," I said. "I can stretch or modify most flights to go where we need to go." Cibock smiled. "Good. I don't think I need to tell you that we must keep this between us. It could be that my suspicions are groundless. In that case, embarassing the admiral and pissing off the Dimoks or Repoblans would be counter-productive." He smiled again. What he meant was that it would be the end for both of us. "But if I'm right," he continued, "then we will pass along what we find to Imperial High Command for them to take action." He paused, and I could tell that this whole business bothered him. "I don't like spying on a fellow officer," he said gravely. "There's too much spying and distrust in the Navy to begin with. But I can't stand the thought of an officer in the Imperial Navy smuggling weapons to our enemies. Admiral Haarkov is also in charge of some large supply installations. It might be interesting to check their inventories." "Why would somebody like Admiral Haarkov do that?" I asked. "Assuming that he is." Commander Cibock sighed. "I don't know, captain," he said slowly. "I suppose there are a lot of reasons. Money, power, revenge, ideology. Who knows? It could be that Admiral Haarkov isn't directly involved but knows who is. Of course," he said smiling, "we could be getting ahead of ourselves here. So, let's just continue our informal inquiry and see where it leads us. OK?" "Yes, sir," I responded. Cibock nodded and I knew the conversation was over. I saluted and left. We didn't fly at all for the next three days. All was quiet between the Dimoks and Repoblans, at least as far as we could tell, and Admiral Haarkov refused even to allow us to fly patrols. He said he wanted to avoid any chance of provocation, but Commander Cibock and I felt that he really wanted to keep us away from any convoys. We had daily briefings, of course. The admiral kept telling us how tense the situation still was. He had tried to mediate the Dimok-Repoblan dispute, but hadn't had much luck. The Repoblans were still pissed about the attack on their convoy. Admiral Haarkov was afraid that they would retaliate in spite of the fact that he had warned them that GUSTAV would intervene. Another interesting development was my relationship with Kao. From a rather stormy beginning, we were developing a respect and a friendship that seemed to be warm and genuine. We spent a lot of time together when we weren't checking our TIEs or conducting training sessions for our pilots. We took walks around the ship together and she actually came into the Pilots' Lounge with me a couple of times. There wasn't anything physical, yet. I could tell that, for whatever reason, she wasn't ready for that. Maybe she was being sensitive to the fact that I still missed J'Una and didn't want to appear intrusive. There were enough hints, though, to keep my hopes, and my cock, up. Despite the warmth and openness she was displaying, which was a significant change from her previous behavior, I could sense that Kao was holding something back. Not just the sex. Something else. Something that was an integral part of who she was, or had become. Something that would help explain the intensity that she brought to her role as a starfighter pilot. I tried several times to bring it out, sensing that she really did want to talk about it, but I was politely rebuffed each time. I finally came to the conclusion that she'd tell me when she was ready, when she could trust me. After three days of doing nothing but sit around as GUSTAV slowly patrolled back and forth between Dimok and Repoblus, we were hurriedly summoned to a briefing with Admiral Haarkov. We had barely gotten into our seats when Haarkov hurried in, waving us back into our seats as we began to rise. He seemed to be quite dis- traught and agitated. Commander Cibock followed him into the room. His face was ashen, his head was slightly bowed and he appeared to be in a complete daze, as though he was unaware of where he was, but was operating on some kind of reflex or instinct. I had never seen him like this. Kao and I exchanged worried looks. The thought briefly flashed through my mind that somehow Haarkov had discovered Commander Cibock's intent to continue searching for stolen Imperial weapons. I quickly dismissed that thought because we hadn't done any actual searching. It didn't take a well developed sixth sense or a Jedi to figure out that something wasn't right. I was, however, completely unprepared for what came next. Admiral Haarkov, his hands visibly trembling, moved to the podium. He stood there for a long moment, seemingly unable to speak. Finally, he glanced over at Commander Cibock, then took a deep breath. "Officers of the Imperial Frigate GUSTAV," he began slowly, almost inaudibly, "it is my sad duty to relay some most unfortunate news. We have just received word from Imperial Headquarters that the Death Star was destroyed in battle by the Rebel Alliance." -- Star Wars: The TIE Fighter (Part 11) Walter Slaven Startled murmurs and exclamations immediately broke out among the officers. I sat stunned and disbelieveing. My heart started racing un- controllably until I felt it would explode out of my chest and, as a reflex, I grabbed Kao's arm which had been resting on the arm of my chair. She turned and looked at me, a mixture of horror and fury in her eyes that suddenly changed to concern as she saw how distraught I must have appeared. I was almost oblivious to my surroundings, to everything, in fact except the image of J'Una that was now dancing through my brain. Admiral Haarkov allowed the shock to pass through us before continuing. "Unfortunately I must also tell you that other than Lord Vader whose fighter was thrown clear somehow, there are no known survivors." There was an audible gasp in the room and I saw Commander Cibock put his head in his hands. Through the veil of grief, disbelief, and anger that I felt coming over me I recalled that Commander Cibock had a son on the Death Star. My grip on Kao's arm tightened to the point where she had to gently pry my fingers loose. "How could this have happened, admiral?" someone in the back called out. "Details are sketchy," Haarkov responded, "but here is what we know. Imperial intelligence had traced a Rebel base to a moon of the planet Yavin. The Death Star was ordered to proceed to Yavin and destroy the base. The Rebels resisted and attacked the Death Star. In the ensuing battle the Death Star was destroyed. I'm afraid we know little more than that." Shock was beginning to turn to anger. "How could the Rebels have possibly destroyed the Death Star?" one officer shouted angrily. "There must have been treachery involved." An ominous murmur passed through the room. Haarkov cut it off. "Silence," he commanded sternly. Immediately the room got quiet. Haarkov softened his tone. "I know that this comes as a great shock to us all. To lose so many comrades, over twenty thousand, at once will be difficult for us to accept, and I want to express my sympathies to you, Commander Cibock," Haarkov turned and bowed toward GUSTAV's Commanding Officer, "and to all of you who may have lost a friend or loved one aboard the Death Star. It is a great blow to us all. Commander Cibock will make the announcement to the ship's crew shortly.I assure you that we will pass along relevant information when it becomes available." He paused for a moment, hands still trembling. "In the meantime, we have a mission to accomplish out here, so let's all remain professional and do our jobs well. In that way we can pay tribute to those who have perished." Haarkov nodded to Commander Cibock and quickly exited the room. I was still too stunned to stand with the rest of the officers. I just sat there. I don't think Haarkov noticed or cared. As he walked past where I was sitting I could see, now, that he was livid and I heard him mutter, "This madness must stop." Then he was gone and the room dissolved into expressions of shock, disbelief and anger. Several officers crowded around Commander Cibock, offering condolences. I had never met his son, but I knew how proud Cibock had been of him. I just sat there, staring at nothing, my mind reeling. Kao leaned over and asked me if I was alright. I nodded and then stood up and walked out. I had to get away from that room, from those people. I started wandering down a passageway, not knowing where I was going, oblivious to the activity around me. My mind was having trouble accept- ing what I had just heard. The Death Star? Gone? Just like that? J'Una gone, too? All those people gone? Tarkin? All gone except Vader? How did he manage to get away, the scumbag. Did he abandon everyone? How could the Rebels have destroyed something that seemed so power- ful? My mind was so overwhelmed by an onslaught of thoughts and emotions that I became confused and disoriented and, for a moment, forgot where I was or what I was doing. My legs were working, however, and I continued through passageways and down ladders until I found myself in the hangar. I walked over to where my TIE was parked and sat down underneath it, my back resting against one of the solar panels, the bottoms of which served as landing gear. It felt somewhat comforting, sitting there under my TIE. In that part of the ship I could feel the deck vibrate softly with the hum of the engines and I tried to relax and get control. It was difficult. For a while, every- where I looked all I could see was J'Una with her big smile, sleek ebony skin and fire red eyes. No more would I hear her laugh, share our hopes and aspirations or feel her powerful embrace. She was gone, and for what? For the Emperor? For the Imperial Navy? For what great purpose had she and all the people who had loyally served on the Death Star perished? It suddenly occurred to me, as I was asking myself these questions and trying to find a focus for my anger, that this was what war was really all about. This was what the survivors had to endure. And, undoubtedly, I had caused this very same thing to happen to others. Everytime I flamed a Rebel starfighter, or everytime I lost a TIE pilot, someone, somewhere surely went through these same feelings and asked themselves similar questions. I had approached combat with a cold, detached, 'just another day at the office' attitude. That's the way we were taught and that's what all the Imperial leadership manuals said. The 'people' cost of what we were doing did not enter into the picture. It wasn't supposed to. Never allow emotions to play a part. I wondered if I would ever be able to view combat in the same way again. Yes, I told myself, this is what war really is all about. And it stinks. I don't know how long I sat there before I heard footsteps approaching. I looked up and saw Kao smile and sit down next to me, her red hair flowing about her. "I thought I'd find you here," she said softly. "Are you alright?" I nodded. "I guess so." Kao looked at me skeptically. "If you say so," she said wryly. Obviously she didn't believe me. "Admiral Haarkov received another communique from Imperial Headquarters," she continued. "Do you want to hear what happened?" "Sure," I said quietly. "The Rebels attacked with X and Y-wing starfighters," she began. "They got under the Death Star's heavy defenses, so Vader led a bunch of TIEs out to defeat them. He didn't get them all. The Rebels used proton torpedoes and managed to find a weakness in the Death Star. That's how they destroyed it. Imperial Headquarters says that the Rebels had somehow obtained a set of plans for the Death Star. I guess that's how they found the weakness." I leaned back and closed my eyes for a moment. Suddenly, the pattern of recent events became startlingly clear. I sat up straight. "So that explains it," I exclaimed. "Explains what, Vel?" Kao asked, puzzled. "It explains everything, Kao." The light bulb had really come on inside my brain and in my exhuberance to explain it, I babbled. "It explains the whole fucking mess we've been through," I said. "The appearance of the Rebels out in the badlands in the Epsilon quadrant. Admiral Thrawn and two fucking fleets chasing ghosts all over the place. And the attack on Resead [see pts 1 and 2]. Don't you see?" I was intense now. Talking about this gave me an opportunity, albeit brief, to forget about J'Una and I was taking full advantage of it. Kao, however was completely confused and must have thought I'd lost it. "What are you talking about?" she asked, shaking her head. "They fucked us, Kao," I said, my voice rising. "They fucked us good." "Who?" she asked, still not following. "The Rebels," I responded. "They were after the Death Star all the time. All that noise out in Epsilon was just that. Noise. They wanted us to go charging out there to divert our attention from agents they must have had stealing the Death Star plans. They even sacrificed an entire planet to ensure that we took the bait." Kao looked at me, amazed. "And we took it," I said bitterly. "We took the whole thing." I started winding down. My exhuberance had expended itself. "And now," I said "I don't know who to be more pissed at: the Rebels, the Empire, or at J'Una for taking that damned job and getting herself killed." I looked at Kao and tried to smile. Kao stood up next to the TIE. She extended her hand toward me and said, "Come on." I got up and she turned and started walking. I went along, not sure where she was going or what she had in mind. We walked wordlessly through the ship. Crew members were still going about their normal activities, but I noticed that they seemed somewhat subdued. We arrived at Kao's quarters. She punched in her access code, the door slid open and we entered her room, the door sliding closed be- hind us. Kao led me into the room, which was similar to my own, and motioned for me to sit in a chair. I sat down, saying nothing, and waited. Kao remained standing, and began pacing back and forth in front of me. She stopped suddenly and turned to face me, blue eyes fierce with intensity. "I want to tell you something, Vel," she began, "something I don't talk about much." She paused as if to gather herself for some difficult task. "A number of years ago I lived with my parents on Sienar 6. They both worked for Sienar Fleet Systems." I nodded. Sienar Fleet Systems was the largest manufacturer of Imperial war materials and built, among other things, the TIE series of starfighters. They had constructed numerous large installations, usually on a terra-formed planet or moon. "We had a nice house," Kao continued. "My mother was a design engineer and my father was a production manager. Sienar had built a university there and I was attending classes, like lots of other kids. Life was pretty good." Her voice broke and her eyes became moist. "The Rebel High Command," she went on, "had decided that one way to defeat the Empire was to attack its source of production of starfighters and other munitions. So, they conducted a series of raids on Sienar installations. They sent fifty or sixty starfighters after Sienar 6. X-wings and Y-wings." She stopped again, her eyes filling with tears. One slipped out of the corner of her left eye and slid down her face. She quickly wiped at it. "The Rebels also had collaborators on the planet who disabled the ground defenses," she said, struggling to continue. I was moved by her vulnerability. Right then she was far from the brassy, overconfident, kick-ass starfighter pilot. She was revealing another side of herself and I felt somehow honored that she would reveal it to me. "The starfighters hyperspaced in," she went on, "and attacked the installation. They used laser cannon, missiles, proton torpedoes. They strafed and they bombed until the whole place was a smoking wreck. Then they left. Two thousand civilian workers, including my parents, were killed." Tears were flowing freely now. I stood up. "Kao, I'm sorry," I said and held my arms open to her, but she shook her head. "There's more," she said. "My life was completely destroyed that day and I swore to get even with the bastards. I had an uncle- my mom's brother- who had some influence and was able to get me into the academy. Not many females get in, but I did. The whole time I was there I had one goal: to become a starfighter pilot. I didn't care that no female had qualified as a pilot before. I just wanted to kill Rebels, and I let nothing stop me. I made it, and here I am." She laughed harshly. "I've made few friends, had fewer loves. My sole purpose in life since that day on Sienar 6 has been to kill Rebels. And I've killed hundreds of them. And you know," she said, voice breaking, "every time I flame one of those bastards, I say to myself , 'there's one less son of a bitch who can kill some kid's parents.'" Sobbing uncontrollably now, Kao threw herself into my arms and buried her face in my shoulder. I put my arms around her and held her tightly. I felt her body heave and shudder as she cried. It had obviously been a long time since she had talked about her parents and about what had happened. She was trying to tell me that she understood what I must be feeling, having suffered a grievous loss of her own at the hands of our enemies. She was trying to alleviate some of my pain by sharing her own, even though it was costing her. Perhaps she was also trying to warn me against becoming consumed with hatred, against becoming an unfeeling, mindless killing machine which she evidently feared was happening to her. What she was doing struck me as an incredible act of kindness. I held her even closer to me and I gently stroked her long red hair. After a while she pulled back and looked at me. "Vel," she said, her voice still heavy with emotion, "I hate this fucking war. I hate what it's done to me, and I hate what it's going to do to you." I looked at her for a long moment, then smiled at her. "I think we'll be alright, Kao," I said, trying to reassure her. Trying to reassure myself, as well, in all honesty. "I'm not at all certain what the greater purpose of this war is, either. Ever since I left Kuan, it's what I do." Kao had stopped crying now, but her eyes were still moist. Smiling at me, she pulled off her jacket and then began to slowly unbutton her shirt. I was momentarily taken aback. I hadn't foreseen that our emotional con- versation would end in a sexual encounter. "Kao," I said softly. "Are you sure about this?" She pulled open the shirt, revealing her beautiful, full breasts. She stood looking at me, her blue eyes no longer sad, her luscious red hair framing her face and flowing down over her shoulders to her breasts. Kao smiled at me and cupped her hands under her breasts. "Yes," she said quietly. "I'm very sure." I may not have anticipated this, but I had learned to take advantage of an opportunity when it presented itself, and I knew Kao well enough to know that she knew what she was doing, so I didn't hesitate. I walked over to her and kissed her deeply, my hands fondling her tits. The luscious round globes filled my palms and, as our tongues battled each other, I gently stroked the undersides of her breasts, causing her to shudder. Kao pressed herself more forcefully against my palms and wrapped her arms around my neck, pulling my mouth more tightly against hers. It was a long, slow, languorous kiss and I had no desire to hurry it, though my cock was surging into a full erection inside my pants. I ran my hands along the sides of Kao's breasts, then slowly up and down her sides inside her opened shirt. I could feel her breathing quicken. Her tongue continued to explore deep inside my mouth and she occasionally uttered soft little moans. She finally broke the kiss, leaving us both gasp- ing with its intensity. Kao smiled at me, blue eyes shining, and then ran her tongue sensuously around her lips. The sight was incredibly arousing and I pulled her toward me and began another kiss. I couldn't get enough of her lips. I ran my hands down her back and slipped them inside her pants to cup her ass. It was slim and firm and, still kissing her, I pulled her against me so that she could feel my erection against her. She moaned and ground her pelvis slowly against me. I slowly peeled Kao's shirt off of her shoulder, kissing and licking at the base of her neck, her collarbone and her shoulder. Kao moaned softly and licked my ear. The sensation ran straight to my cock, causing it to become even harder. I continued to kiss and lick my way down her arm. I pulled the sleeve off of the end of her hand and kissed her fingers. I started to work my way slowly back up her arm to do the same thing with the other sleeve. I kissed her upper arm, her shoulder and worked my way to the top of her chest. Kao was breathing heavily now, breasts heaving, and her sur- prisingly strong arm gripped the back of my head, holding me to her. I ran my tongue slowly down her chest, over her breast to the nipple, leaving a wet trail. I flicked the nipple with my tongue and then gently sucked on it, but only for a moment. I was teasing her and I could feel her trembling with anticipation. I moved to the other breast, flicked the nipple, then slowly licked up to the shoulder that was still covered by the shirt. I kissed her arm, easing the shirt off and letting it drop. Kao was now naked from the waist up and I stopped kissing her to step back and look at her. Kao was stunning, a vision of beauty. Her blue eyes were moist with passion and emotion, her long red hair framed her face and flowed down to her breasts, whose nipples were erect with arousal. There was a slight red flush across the white skin of her chest, giving evidence of her grow- ing excitement. Looking at her then it was hard to think of her as a steel- nerved, dispassionate starfighter pilot. She seemed soft, sensuous, vulnerable. In many ways, I thought, Kao was the antithesis of J'Una, who had radiated strength, power, lust and raw sexuality. I drove thoughts of J'Una from my mind. Standing there looking at Kao, I felt a strange and unique feeling begin to wash over me. I wasn't sure exactly what it was, but I welcomed it and let it flow through me. I really wanted this woman, but it was more than that. I wanted to share myself with her, which is more than just fucking. I stripped off my shirt and Kao moved close to me and ran her hands over my chest in a soft, tentative, exploring way. She bent her head down and began kissing and licking my chest and my nipples as I had hers. I reveled in the sensations she caused as she nipped at my chest with her teeth. I eased her into a sitting position on a couch and crouched down at her feet. I removed one of her boots and the sock and then kissed her foot, running my tongue across her ankle, and then sucking on her toes. She shivered when I took her big toe into my mouth and sucked and bit it. I did the same with the other foot. Kao was breathing heavily in her arousal. I ran my hands up the insides of her thighs, caressing her through her trousers. She moaned and thrust her pelvis back at my hand. We had said nothing to each other thus far. Words somehow seemed unnecessary. We were so caught up in passion, in the blossoming forth of very deep and powerful feelings that we were exactly in tune with each other and, without saying anything, each seemed to know what the other wanted and needed. At that moment, as I looked up at Kao, it felt almost as though the very core of our beings had merged. It was a wonderful, exciting and frightening rush of emotions and sensations. And we both still had our pants on! I leaned forward and planted a kiss on Kao's crotch, tongueing it through the fabric of her dark uniform trousers. I moved up and kissed her flat, toned belly and tongued her navel. She squirmed and raised her ass off the couch and unsnapped the trousers in an unspoken invitation to me to remove them. I reached around her and began peeling the tight-fitting garment off of her hips and down her thighs. As her crotch was uncovered I was inundated with the wonderful smell of a very aroused woman. I pulled the trousers off of her, tossed them behind me somewhere, and returned my attention to her pussy. I ran my hand slowly up the inside of Kao's thigh to her cunt, feeling her shiver with pleasure. Her cunt was already dripping with her passion and I drew my finger along her outer lips, feeling her cunt juices flow over it. Kao spread her legs opening her pussy to me and I swiftly shoved two fingers inside and began a slow in and out motion, flicking her clit with my thumb. A low moan which almost sounded like a grunt escaped her and she lay back on the couch, legs spread, back arched, her fingers pulling at her aroused nipples. She was an incredible sight. I kept moving my hand in and out of her wet cunt, slowly but forcefully. Kao really seemed to like that and she moved her pelvis in time with my thrusting hand. She removed her hands from her breasts and slid them down her body to spread her pussy wider. I responded by shoving a third finger into her and thrusting my hand even harder, using my free hand to stroke her belly and her tits and her thighs. Kao grunted again and started slamming herself against my hand. She was sopping wet and my hand was almost completely covered with her essence. Her juices ran down inside her thighs to the crack of her ass. I kept up the strong thrusting of my hand into Kao's cunt and she started thrashing about on the couch as her orgasm began to erupt. "That's so good, Vel," she gasped, finally breaking our strain of un- spoken communication. "Do it harder." I immediately obliged, ramming my whole hand into her now, working her clit incessantly. Kao shrieked and shuddered and bounced around as her orgasm hit her with the force of a quad laser blast. Her juices gushed forth in a torrent over my fingers and hand as the force of her ecstacy finally began to subside, leaving her breathless and glowing. Kao flopped back on the couch, spent. She looked at me and smiled as her breathing started to return to normal. "Damn, that was good, Vel," she said finally. "It's really been a long time for me. I'd almost forgotten." And she laughed softly. I stood up next to the couch and looked down at her. Kao reached up and gently stroked the inside of my thigh. "Captain Tallig," she said in mock seriousness, "will you please take these fucking pants off?" "Yes, ma'am," I replied, smiling at her. Very quickly I yanked off my boots, nearly falling over in the process, and pulled my pants off. My erection sprang forth and Kao reached for it, seemingly mesmerized by it. She softly caressed and stroked the shaft, then slipped her hand under- neath to fondle my balls. For several long minutes she stroked and caressed and fondled me, her eyes locked onto my cock. I spread my legs slightly to give her better access, feeling the pleasurable sensations radiate outward from my cock to every part of me. My cock throbbed and quivered under her touch. I couldn't remember ever feeling this hard before. Kao spread her legs and, pulling gently on my cock, guided me in between them. I climbed onto the couch and she threw her legs up over my shoulders and pulled me into her. I slipped into her warm, wet cunt easily. She was still dripping from her orgasm. Kao sighed deeply as she felt me slide in to the hilt. For a moment I was motionless, savoring the sensation of Kao's vagina grip me. Though she obviously did not possess those special Bardin cunt muscles that J'Una had liked to use on me, Kao's cunt walls fit themselves around my cock like a glove. I revelled in the feeling before starting a slow in and out motion, pulling my cock almost entirely out of her before easing it back in. I was raised up on my hands, one on either side of her, and her legs were draped over my shoulders, bending her back and opening her up complete- ly to my thrusts. Her hands were in constant motion, running over my chest, raking my back and ass, playing with my balls. Kao's cunt was like a cauldron, hot and bubbling, and it sucked me in deeper each time I plunged into its inviting depth. She was open so wide, and thrusting back at me so hard that it felt as though my entire penis, balls and all, was engulfed by her passion. It was an indescribable feeling and I simply went with it, feeling her seemingly endless supply of cunt juices spill over my balls and dribble down her ass. Kao threw her arms around my neck and pulled herself up against me, kissing my face and mouth with the same intensity she brought to her flying. Now I knew how some poor Rebel bastard must have felt when Kao got him in her sights. She was relentless. In her current position she resembled some bizarre pretzel, but she didn't let go and she didn't slacken the pace of her thrusting against me. If anything, it increased as she moaned and cried into my mouth. My arms began to ache from the strain of supporting both of us, but I ignored it, so wrapped up was I in fulfilling this unbelievably hot woman beneath me. And fill her I was about to do. My cock was straining, pain- fully hard and erect. My thrusts had become an incessant hammering and I could feel my own orgasm begin to churn deep within me and move into the base of my penis. I bent my elbows and lowered Kao, who was still wrapped around me, to the couch. She writhed and moaned and thrust herself against me in increased frenzy as I pounded into her with renewed vigor. Kao came. She raked my back with her nails, threw her head back and cried out as she abandoned herself to her climax. "God, Vel," she wailed, tears streaming down the sides of her face. "Please fuck me. Please!" Her body was covered in a light sheen of sweat and her red hair was matted against her face and neck. Her muscles were taut and her erect nipples stabbed into my chest. She was completely immersed in her orgasm, and her intensity sent me over the edge. My orgasm, which had been boiling and churning in my balls was now re- leased. Hot sperm rose like lava in a volcano, shot through the tube of my penis and blasted forth deep within Kao's hot, grasping cunt. Spasm after spasm racked my body as I shot my cum into her. I kept up my thrusting as I emptied myself into her, feeling wonderfully alive and rejuvenated. My cum overflowed her pussy and spilled out between our bodies, dripping over my balls and into the crack of her ass. God, what a fuck that was. We came down slowly, kissing and stroking each other as we savored our intimacy. Kao unwrapped her legs from around me and curled up against me, almost purring in gratification. She turned her head around to look at me abd smiled. "It's nice to know that you can do more than just fly a TIE fighter," she said, chuckling. "We aim to please," I responded, wrapping my arms around her. We lay quietly in each other's arms and gradually fell asleep. I awoke several hours later with Kao curled up tightly against me. I could smell her hair and feel her breasts move against my chest with her breathing. I reached down and gently stroked her gorgeous ass, running my hand along her sexy flank. As I lay there, softly stroking Kao, I felt a wave of conflicting emotions wash over me. I felt sadness at the loss of J'Una, a truly wonderful friend, companion and lover; anger at the fucking Rebels; mistrust of our own leadership and high command; joy at this new relationship with Kao; and guilt for having it. I was still ruminating when Kao, not fully awake, threw a leg over mine and began grinding her groin against me. My emotional conflict suddenly vanished as my cock surged to erection, pulsating against her slit. I was beginning to guide my cock into Kao when the goddamn red alert alarms went off. "Red alert! Red alert! Repoblan attack force approaching a Dimok space installation. All pilots to your ships. Flight leaders report to Admiral Haarkov in the hangar. Red alert." The red lights were flashing, and the klaxon was sounding. -- Star Wars: The TIE Fighter (Part 12) Walter Slaven Fully awake now, Kao and I disentangled ourselves and sprang for our uniforms. I struggled mightily with my trousers, unable to get them on, until I realized that they were Kao's. I stripped them off and tossed them to her. Finally, we managed to get our uniforms on and we took off out of Kao's quarters and down the passageway. The red lights were flashing all through the ship and the noise of the alarm was almost deafening. Crewmembers were hurrying to their stations. We reached the hangar and ran over to where Admiral Haarkov was standing with Commander Cibock. The Admiral gave us a long, stern look. I'm sure he was wondering what had taken us so long, but he didn't say anything about it. Instead, he proceeded to outline the situation. "As we feared they might," he began, "the Repoblans have launched a counter-attack against one of the Dimoks' space installations. We do not want an escalation of this conflict. You will drive off the Repoblans and show them that we do not favor either side." He paused, looking at us. He appeared to be waiting for questions, so I asked one. "Do we issue a warning this time, Admiral?" I asked. The last time this subject came up he became quite angry, but we needed clarification. "No, captain," he said smiling. "No warnings unless you deem it to be necessary." I nodded. "Thank you, sir." "Make sure you deliver a forceful, but not fatal, blow to the Repoblans," the admiral continued. "You are also to ensure the safety of the Dimok installation." "Do they know we're coming as friends this time?" Kao asked. "I'd hate to start getting shot at by both sides." "The Dimoks requested our assistance, captain," the admiral responded. "It appears they wish to test our impartiality. They will not fire on you." "Yes, sir," she replied. "These are important missions, captains," the admiral said. "I realize that being ordered not to completely destroy an enemy seems unusual to you, but it is vital to our success out here. With the destruction of the Death Star, the Empire can use all the success it can get right now." He paused for a few moments. Noise was building in the hangar as TIE fighters began winding up. "Good luck, captains," Haarkov said and abruptly turned and walked away. Kao and I nodded to each other and she turned and hurried toward her TIE. I started to turn away but Commander Cibock grabbed my elbow. He leaned forward so that his lips were near my ear. Even so, he had to shout to be heard above the noise. "See if you can get a look at that Dimok research station." I nodded acknowledgement. Cibock smiled and hurried off after the admiral. I climbed into my TIE, put on my helmet and hooked up the comm link. The overhead cranes were already starting to move us and, soon, my TIE was lowered through the launch doors and released into space. I engaged the twin ion engines and my craft surged forward. I pulled her into a tight turn and did the customary loop around GUSTAV, waiting for the rest of my flight to form up. I activated the sensors and began sizing up the situation. The Dimok installation was a large platform designed primarily for research. For defense it had shields and a couple of laser cannons but that was about it. There were several container vessels moored to its docking bays. The installation was guarded by only three old Z-95's. Not much. No wonder they requested our assistance. My sensors began picking up the Repoblan attack force. It was quickly evident that the Repoblans were intending not only to attack the station but to occupy it. Among the Z-95's and Y-wings that made up the bulk of the attack force were several Corvettes escorting assault transports. This was a huge force and represented, in my view, a major effort by the Repoblans, perhaps everything they had. "GUSTAV, Gamma One," I called. "The Repoblan attack force is quite large and contains Corvettes and ATR's." ATR was shorthand for assault transport. "Roger, Gamma One." Haarkov's voice. So, he was still directly in control. "Proceed with your attack. Maybe a quick strike will be enough to turn them back." "Acknowledged, GUSTAV," I replied. "I'm not sure that our two flights can handle a force like this, however. Recommend loading up TIE bombers with some proton torpedoes to go after the ATRs. You might also want to have our stormtroopers standing by in case we have to retake that station." There was a pause. I'm sure that Haarkov, being an admiral, didn't like hearing recommendations from a mere starfighter pilot. "Recommendations noted, Gamma One," he replied. "Proceed." "Roger, GUSTAV." I switched to the flight leader channel and called Kao. "Tau leader, this is Gamma leader." "Roger, Gamma leader," Kao responded. "We are forming up now." "Very well. This Repoblan attack force is a big one," I informed her. "I will take Gamma flight in for a direct attack, try to break up their formation and cause confusion. See if you can work your way around behind them and hit them while they're busy with us. They may not have realized that GUSTAV is carrying twice her normal compliment of TIE fighters and may think that Gamma flight is it." "Concur, Gamma leader," Kao said. "We'll head out at three-one- four mark six-six. That should put us in a position to loop around and end up above and behind them." I glanced at my display. Her idea was a good one, provided my guys and I could hold the Repoblans long enough for her to get into position. "Agreed," I said. "Just don't take too long." I could hear her chuckle. "We'll do our best, Gamma leader." She paused and then her voice became serious. "Be careful." "Don't worry about us," I said lightly. "Gamma leader out." When attacking an enemy who is numerically superior but tactically and technologically inferior (except that they had shields)one tactic is to hit hard, cause confusion, and break the enemy's formation up into pieces that can be handled one at a time. I noticed that the Repoblans were in a large massed formation. While this formation promotes cohesion and focuses an attack, it also restricts the maneuverability of the starfighters and other vessels that are in the center of the mass. Thus the formation is vulnerable to being picked apart from the outside in. I decided to employ this tactic hoping to create confusion and un- certainty within the Repoblans causing them to just go away without a wholesale battle royal. "Gamma flight, this is Gamma leader," I called. "We will commence attack run on the near wing of the formation. Stay away from the center of that mass for now. There's too much firepower in there. Don't waste your missiles on Z-95s. Save them for Y-wings and bigger." All TIEs acknowledged and Dromo moved into his customary position behind and to the left of me. "Accelerate to maximum speed, charge lasers," I coached. Most of these pilots didn't need to be told this stuff, but I felt better en- suring that we followed attack procedure step by step. It had kept me alive to this point. "Remember," I continued as I powered my TIE to full throttle, "speed and maneuverability are your only advantages. Move fast, hit hard and get the hell out of the way. There's a lot of bad guys in there." Bread and butter stuff that every experienced TIE pilot knew. Nevertheless, in the heat of battle, one sometimes forgets the basics. That's why you have leaders: to remind you. Then we hit the Repoblan formation at the point where the outer escort wing, mostly Z-95s and Y-wings, joined the main body. Fireworks erupted quickly as my TIEs wasted several Z-95s on the first pass. I targeted a Z-95 and approached head-on. I threw my TIE into a Wotan weave, a maneuver designed to avoid enemy fire while maintaining a constant heading, switched my lasers to rapid single fire and pounded away. The Repoblan Z-95 tried to counter my move, but flew right into the pattern of my laser fire. He died without getting a shot off. I maneuvered through the debris, yanked my TIE hard left and flamed the guy's wingman who was trying to go after Dromo. He didn't get a shot off, either. We had completed our first pass and had achieved the desired result. The outer wing of the Repoblan formation was in complete disarray with starfighters buzzing around angrily wondering what had hit them. More significantly, several ships from the main body were maneuvering toward us. This was good and bad. Good because it further disrupted the Re- poblan attack and slowed its progress toward the Dimok installation. Bad because it meant we had more enemy ships to contend with. Over the common channel that I had on loudspeaker in the background, I could hear Admiral Haarkov trying without success to get the Repoblans to break off. Although we were chewing up the outer formation, the main Repoblan attack force was proceeding undaunted toward the Dimok installation. Reinforcements started arriving from the Repoblan main force and things got ugly fast. I lost two TIEs to Y-wing missiles in the blink of an eye and I had to do some wild maneuvering to avoid becoming the third. Dromo took care of my attacker and I reversed course and charged back into the fray, frantically looking for signs of Kao's flight. Apparently she wasn't in position, yet. "Gamma leader to Tau leader," I called to Kao. "We need some help now." "Hang on, Gamma leader," Kao replied. "We will be in position momen- tarily and will attack the rear of the main body." "Roger, Tau leader," I replied. "Watch out for those ATRs." "Acknowledged, Gamma leader." I switched channels and called GUSTAV. "GUSTAV, Gamma one. The main Repoblan attack force will be in range of the Dimok station soon. Tau flight will hit them from behind but I think we could use some TIE bombers." "Concur, Gamma One," Admiral Haarkov replied. "I have tried to talk sense to these Repoblans but they're bent on attacking this station. We'll launch TIE bombers and follow them with our own ATRs to deliver some stormtrooper firepower to the station should the Repoblans assault it." Sounded good to me. "Acknowledged, GUSTAV," I said as a Z-95 laser shot passed uncomfortably close to my port solar panel. I turned hard right to avoid the second shot, then rolled left, sideslipped behind the bastard and pressed the trigger. My lasers quickly took his shields down and then, before he could turn, ripped into the rear of the main fuselage. The Z-95 exploded and I dived down to avoid its remains. "Tau leader to Gamma leader, we are commencing our attack." I heard Kao's voice and smiled. On my display I saw her flight pile into the rear of the main Repoblan attack force and the entire formation completely dissolved into little more than an organized rabble. Except, that is, for the ATRs and their Corvette escorts. They stubbornly con- tinued to proceed toward the Dimok installation. Our TIE bombers had just been launched and it would be some time before they could attack, so I decided to run some interference to slow down the ATRs. "Gamma Two," I called to Dromo, "form up on me. We're going in to make a run through the ATRs." "I'm with you, Gamma One," Dromo replied. "But I'm not sure I like going up against a bunch of ATRs in two unshielded TIEs." "I just want to slow them up a little until the bombers can attack," I explained. "Throw some missiles at them, cause them to take defensive actions." "OK," Dromo said reluctantly, "Let's go." "Roger, Gamma Two. We'll go in at full throttle, pass underneath the Corvettes, take a shot at the lead ATR and go out the other side of the formation." "If you say so," Dromo said, unconvinced. I opened up to full throttle, drained power from my lasers to get more speed, switched on my missile targeting system, turned hard left and dove toward the attack force. Dromo and I passed under the lead Corvette, evading its turbo laser fire and headed toward the ATRs. This was a highly unorthodox man- euver and I was hoping to catch the Repoblans by surprise. The feeble- ness of their poorly directed laser fire gave me hope. We shot through the Corvettes, jerking our craft wildly about to avoid fire. I picked out the lead Repoblan ATR and targeted it with my missiles, directing Dromo to do the same. By this time the ATRs had been alerted to us and a hail of laser fire poured forth to greet us. Dromo and I dodged and weaved our way closer to the lead ATR, then steadied up and quickly got a missile lock. "Gamma Two, fire missiles now!" I ordered as I fired two of my missiles. Four missiles streaked toward the ATR as Dromo and I split apart, he making a hard left turn, I a hard right. The Repoblan crewmembers on that ATR were better than I would have thought. They actually managed to shoot down one of the missiles. Not so the other three, however. The three missiles slammed into the ATR, taking down its shields and destroying its forward laser mount. Although three missiles aren't enough to destroy an ATR outright, this one had been badly damaged and was drifting. Our attack on the lead ATR had the desired effect on the rest of them. They slowed down and closed up into an even tighter formation. The Corvettes broke their formation and began turning about to come back to protect the ATRs. In short, we had succeeded in disrupting the entire Repoblan attack force. Not bad for a couple of Imperials in unshielded starfighters. It helped that the Repoblans, though brave, were stupid. Nevertheless, the battle had moved steadily toward the Dimok space station to a point where individual Repoblan Y-wings and Z-95s were making strafing runs to start bringing down the station's shields. The few Dimok Z-95s made a feeble effort against the attackers, but were quickly destroyed or driven off. While the Repoblan ATRs and Corvettes were trying to reform, and Kao's flight was chewing up their escorts, I led Dromo and the rest of my flight toward the space station, powering up my lasers as I did so. The Dimok station had sustained a few hits, but it was gamely hammer- ing back with what defenses it did have. The station's gunners had actually destroyed a few Repoblan ships. I attacked a Y-wing just as it released a proton torpedo, the blue streak headed straight for the station. I couldn't do anything about the torpedo so I targeted the Y-wing, set my lasers for dual fire and blew it away. The torpedo, however, slammed into the station, shaking it violently. My sensors indicated that the station's shields were down. Uh-oh. And here came the damned ATRs and Corvettes. "Gamma leader to Tau leader," I called to Kao, "break off your engagement with the escorts and get over here to the space station immediately. We need help." "Roger, Gamma leader," Kao replied, sounding cool and detached. "We've just about mopped this bunch up. We're on our way." "Thanks," I said curtly and jerked my TIE violently up to avoid a laser blast from somebody. I couldn't tell if it was one of ours or one of theirs. On my display I saw the TIE bombers approaching, followed by our own ATRs. Kao's flight was arriving from the opposite direction. If we were lucky we could catch these Repoblan bastards from two sides at once. Lovely. In the meantime I dodged and weaved my way toward the station. They had restored power to their weapons and were hammering away again, but their shields were still down. I activated the cargo scanner and flew closely underneath the station to "have a look," as Commander Cibock had put it. At first there was a lot of static and scrambled readings, probably due to all the shooting and explosions going on. I made another pass at a slower speed and hit paydirt. The scanner's alarm sounded and the little red light flashed. It identified Imperial arms and weaponry on the station itself and on two of the conveyors moored there. A shuttle was powering up in preparation for what appeared to be a hurried departure, but it carried no Imperial contraband. I made note of the fact that Imperial arms were in the hands of the Dimoks as well as the Repoblans and shut off the scanner lest it be detected by GUSTAV's operators. Something was going on, but I'd let Commander Cibock figure it out. In the meantime I was still in a fight. I looped back around the platform and quickly flamed a Z-95. The shuttle I had seen had lifted off and was heading away from the platform, accelerating quickly. I thought it worth reporting. "GUSTAV, Gamma One," I called. "There's a Dimok shuttle leaving the platform in a big hurry. You wan't us to stop it?" Admiral Haarkov's answer was quick and curt. "Negative, Gamma One. Let it go." "Roger," I acknowledged. I was about to turn away when I saw a Repoblan Y-wing streak in from out of nowhere and start shooting at the shuttle with its ion cannons. As opposed to lasers, which are designed to destroy, ion cannons are used to disable enemy craft. The Y-wing scored several hits and the shuttle was quickly adrift without power. I looped around, came up behind the Y-wing and pounded him into space junk. Not sure what to do with the shuttle, I figured he wasn't going anywhere so I turned back to the battle. The battle was about over. The TIE bombers finally showed up and their proton torpedoes made quick work of two Repoblan ATRs and a Corvette. The explosions were incredible and I briefly thought of the two hundred odd crewmembers normally found on a Corvette. The Repoblans, being hammered by TIE bombers from one side and from Kao's flight from the other, had finally had enough. The remaining Corvettes and ATRs started withdrawing. I flew past the platform and took a quick shot at a fleeing Y-wing. I missed and then turned away, letting him go. I remembered the shuttle and contacted one of our ATRs to go help him out, thinking no more about it. I found Dromo and we reformed our flight group. We had taken losses, but were not hit nearly as bad as the Repoblans had been. Although battlefields in space tend to disappear rather quickly, there was, at the moment, ample evidence of the carnage of war. Pieces of starfighters, the shattered hulk of a Corvette and lots of other indistinguishable junk floated around. I tried not to think about that aspect of it, but the image of J'Una's face kept dancing before my eyes. I shook my head to clear it, then led my group back toward GUSTAV. The landing was uneventful and my TIE was set down in its stall by the tractor beam operator. I went through the post-flight check-list swiftly, disconnected my comm link and climbed out of the starfighter, dropping lightly to the hangar deck. Pulling off my helmet, I saw Commander Cibock approaching me. He raised an eyebrow questioningly. I took a quick look around to make sure that no one was listening. I nodded and said, "The scanner picked up Imperial weaponry in the space platform and in two of the container vessels moored there." Cibock grimaced. " That adds up," he said. "Do you know who was on that shuttle?" "No. A Repoblan Y-wing disabled it, I took out the Y-wing and called in an ATR to help out." "There was a Rebel officer onboard," Cibock said matter-of-factly. "What?" I was incredulous. "The ATR that responded," Cibock continued,"was Maarek's. When Maarek and some of his troopers boarded the shuttle, the Rebel resisted so Maarek killed him." "I'll bet he liked that," I said wryly. "Probably," Cibock agreed. "They found some data disks on this guy, but when Maarek called it in and told Haarkov he'd upload it, Haarkov got livid and told him not to." "That seems odd," I said. "It's standard procedure. Gets the data back to the ship quicker." "I know," Cibock replied."But Haarkov insisted that Maarek carry the disks back and deliver them to Haarkov personally. It's as if he didn't want any record of whatever is on the disks." "What do you think is going on?" I asked. "I'm not exactly sure," Cibock said, glancing around, "but a Rebel officer on a Dimok station with Imperial weapons does lead to some conclusions." "The Rebel Alliance is fomenting this civil war?" I asked. Cibock smiled paternally. "No," he said. "As I told you before, I think, but can't prove yet, that Admiral Haarkov has been funneling weapons to the Rebels." I was astounded. "Are you sure, sir?" Cibock nodded. "I think so. He's been channeling them through this system and the Dimoks and Repoblans have been making a lot of money acting as middlemen. A discreet inquiry has revealed that there are, indeed, some- shall we say- inventory shortfalls at a couple of depots that the admiral controls." "How were you able to determine that, sir?" I asked skeptically. "I have my ways, captain," he said vaguely. Cibock was looking intently at me, deciding, I assumed, if he should continue. "This 'civil war' started," he said quietly, "because one side, and I'm not sure which, got greedy. So, Haarkov had to rush out here in the guise of quelling a disturbance when actually what's happening is a turf war between rival distributors. Of course, it's only theory." He smiled sarcastically. I was stunned by all this intrigue and subterfuge. I was a mere star- fighter pilot and tended to view things as black or white, us or them, never thinking that one of us could also be one of them. "Why would Haarkov come out here on GUSTAV?" I asked. "He doesn't know if he can trust us. Why not use the PREDATOR, his normal flagship?" "PREDATOR was unavailable when all this happened," Cibock replied. "But she's on her way. Once she gets here Haarkov will probably release us." I shook my head. "You mean my pilots are dying to protect a gun- running operation?" Now I was getting pissed. "Looks like it to me, captain," Cibock said, trying to calm me. "But you cannot let this knowledge affect how you do your job, and you must not relay any of this to anybody. I can't prove any of this and if we let on that we know anything...." He left the rest unsaid. "We'll just have to play this out. When I get a chance, I'll report what we know, which, frankly, is more supposition than fact." "Yes, sir," I said. "You have served the Emperor well, captain." Commander Cibock patted me on the shoulder and left the hangar. 'Served the Emperor?' Not 'served the Imperial Navy?' Was that a slip? What the fuck was going on? What did Cibock care about serving the Emperor? Most Imperial Naval officers served the Navy first. That's why there was some friction between the government and the Naval High Command. That's why thugs like Vader were placed in positions of high command, to ensure the political loyalty of the Navy's officer corps. Most of these political appointees, Vader and Tarkin included, were lousy field commanders. Tarkin's incredible ego and sense of self-importance led him to underestimate his enemies and caused him to make a series of stupid decisions which led to the destruction of the Death Star. Vader was merely a half-mad religious wacko who worshipped the Emperor and had mastered enough sorcery tricks to scare a lot of people. He, too, was a lousy commander because he had long lost the ability to listen. So, why did Commander Cibock, a loyal officer in the Imperial Navy, worry about serving an Emperor whom none of us knew, and who surrounded himself with psychophants, despots and idiots? I shrugged my shoulders, shook my head in disbelief, and left the hangar. We flew two more missions, one against each side, in this so-called Sepan Civil War, though neither was anywhere near as arduous or costly as the first two had been. In both cases we did little more than "wave the flag," to cause the Dimoks and Repoblans to retire. It was apparent that they were reluctant to engage us again. Admiral Haarkov was still trying to negotiate some kind of arrangement and he kept us informed with briefings. Every time I saw him, however, I seethed inside. How could an admiral in the Imperial Navy smuggle weapons to the very people who destroyed the Death Star, who killed J'Una? I had to caution myself that Commander Cibock and I really didn't "know" that Haarkov was doing this, we only "believed" it. I convinced myself, however, that Haarkov was just the sort to do this kind of thing. Maybe he even sold the plans to the Death Star! You can see how even I can get carried away. Treachery and disaster tend to do that to people. -- Star Wars: The TIE Fighter (Part 13) Walter Slaven I worried about how this would, eventually, affect Marina Haarkov. Every time I saw her: at work in the hangar, relaxing in the wardroom, I worried about the pain that this might cause her. What made it harder was the fact I couldn't talk to her about it. Or to Kao. Or anybody. After our fourth sortie, the Star Destroyer PREDATOR showed up. She was Imperial class and was easily three or four times larger than poor old GUSTAV. She carried twelve squadrons of TIEs and poss- essed incredible shipboard firepower. Things changed rapidly after her arrival. Admiral Haarkov immediately transferred back to his old ship. It was almost as though he couldn't get off of GUSTAV fast enough. He didn't even say goodbye to Marina. Shortly thereafter he somehow arranged for a meeting with the Dimok and Repoblan leaders onboard PREDATOR. We weren't privy to the negotiations, of course, but Commander Cibock expressed no surprise when Admiral Haarkov sent a message to Imperial High Command announcing he had negotiated a peaceful end to the Sepan problem. Commander Cibock shared with me his suspicions that the PREDATOR'S crew was in league with Haarkov and brought with them something that Haarkov used to bribe the Dimok and Repoblan leaders. What that something was he had no idea. Admiral Haarkov reported to the Imperial High Command that, while PREDATOR's presence was still required in the Sepan System, GUSTAV's part in the mission had been completed. He closed his message by lavishing great praise on GUSTAV and her crew. It rang hollow to me. Almost immediately GUSTAV received new orders and Commander Cibock gathered us in the briefing room to tell us what we were going to do next. That's the way it is in the Imperial Navy. Finish one assignment and move on to the next. The fact that you did a great job mattered only briefly. It was always "what else can you do?" As far as the next assignment was concerned, one's record of past success guaranteed nothing. Commander Cibock still looked a little haggard and worn down. I knew that the death of his son on the Death Star had deeply affected him, but I was proud of the way he had held up and always put the interests of the crew ahead of his own grief. That's what always separated him in my mind from most senior Imperial officers: Commander Cibock led by compassion and example and professionalism, rather than fear, intimidation and equivocation. It was really too bad we didn't have more officers like him. "I want to tell all of you," he began when we had been seated, "how proud I am of the way you conducted yourselves during this mission. It was very difficult, with unusual and vague objectives, yet you per- formed flawlessly." We all smiled at each other. Commander Cibock smiled, too, for the first time in a while. "I have nominated several of you," he continued, "including Captains Tallig and Ijuf, for decorations." We smiled some more. "While we're waiting on those, however, we still have work to do." GUSTAV's Commanding Officer paused, making sure he had our full attention. "As soon as this briefing is over," he resumed, " we will depart the Sepan system and jump to hyperspace. Our ultimate destination is to rendezvous with a large fleet being amassed in Beta quadrant under the personal command of Lord Vader." Again, that chill that Vader's name invariably causes ran through the assembled officers. Cibock let it pass. "Lord Vader is tracing the whereabouts of the Rebels who were on the base at Yavin and played a role in destroying the Death Star. They have apparently relocated to another system. We don't know which one, yet, but there are thousands of probes and hundreds of ships searching the sector. When we rendezvous with the main fleet we will undoubtedly be used in a reconnaissance role to assist in locating the Rebels." So, we'd be going up against real competition again. I found myself hoping we hadn't lost anything by taking on second-line opposition like the Dimoks and Repoblans. I also found myself hoping to get a chance to kill a whole bunch of those bastards that had been part of the Death Star's demise. "Once this new Rebel base is located," Cibock continued,"all available force will be brought to bear to crush this part of the Rebellion. We can anticipate a high tempo of operations and the possibility of some heavy fighting." We all nodded. We'd been through this drill before. "Enroute to the fleet we will stop briefly at the base at Letni Edisni to pick up some replacement crews and starfighters. Captains Tallig and Ijuf," he said looking at Kao and me, "you won't have much time to get these new pilots ready for battle, so make best use of it." "Yes, sir," I replied. "We'll get them ready." "That's all for now. Good luck," Cibock said then strode out the door as we all stood to attention. An hour later Commander Cibock sent a message to Admiral Haarkov paying his respects and requesting permission to depart. This was a custom which had been traditionally followed in the Imperial Navy, though it was mere formality. Admiral Haarkov granted permission, of course, and GUSTAV jumped to hyperspace. I was awakened in the middle of the night by an incessant knocking at the door to my quarters. The chimes were buzzed repeatedly and I finally managed to fight my way through the fog of sleep. I started to move, but then became aware of a weight on my chest and legs. Kao. I gently disentangled myself from her and she rolled over and went back to sleep. The knocking and chiming continued, and I was becoming irritated. I grabbed a robe and cast a backward glance at Kao's naked, sleeping form, recalling for a moment our latest bout of lovemaking. My prick started twitching so I stopped thinking about it and went to the door. This had better be good, I thought. I released the lock and the door slid open. Standing there, obviously uncomfortable, was a young crewmember whose red tabs on his collar identified him as a member of the ship's communications department. "What is it?" I asked groggily. "Sorry to disturb you, sir," the young man said crisply, "but Commander Cibock said you'd want to see this right away." He held out a text data pad. "A text pad?" I asked, a little surprised. "Not a hologram?" Usually, personal messages, which I assumed this to be, came via a hologram. "No, sir," the crewman answered. "This came from one of our more re- mote stations, which doesn't have holographic capability." "That's odd," I said. "I don't know anybody on any remote outposts." The crewman offered the pad to me again. "Commander Cibock insisted, sir." I nodded and took the pad. "Okay. Thanks." "Yes, sir," the crewman said as he spun on his heel and left. I went back inside my quarters, the door closing behind me, and turned on a light. I flipped open the data pad and nearly fainted. VEL, THE BASTARDS MISSED ME!! SEE YOU SOON! J'UNA Tatooine Part Five A Dirty Little War I was awakened in the middle of the night by an incessant knocking at the door to my quarters. The chimes were buzzed repeatedly and I finally managed to fight my way through the fog of sleep. I started to move, but then became aware of a weight on my chest and legs. Kao. I gently disentangled my- self from her and she rolled over and went back to sleep. The knocking and chiming continued, and I was becoming irr- itated. I grabbed a robe and cast a backward glance at Kao's naked, sleeping form, recalling for a moment our latest bout of lovemaking. My prick started twitching so I stopped thinking about it and went to the door. This had better be good, I thought. I released the lock and the door slid open. Standing there, ob- viously uncomfortable, was a young crewmember whose red tabs on his collar identified him as a member of the ship's communications department. "What is it?" I asked groggily. "Sorry to disturb you, sir," the young man said crisply, "but Commander Cibock said you'd want to see this right away." He held out a text data pad. "A text pad?" I asked, a little surprised. "Not a hologram?" Usually, personal messages, which I assumed this to be, came via a hologram. "No, sir," the crewman answered. "This came from one of our more remote stations, which doesn't yet have holographic capability." "That's odd," I said. "I don't know anybody on any remote outposts." The crewman offered the pad to me again. "Commander Cibock insisted, sir." I nodded and took the pad. "Okay. Thanks." "Yes, sir," the crewman said as he spun on his heel and left. I went back inside my quarters, the door closing behind me, and turned on a light. I flipped open the data pad and nearly fainted. VEL, THE BASTARDS MISSED ME!! SEE YOU SOON! J'UNA Tatooine I suddenly had trouble breathing and my vision fogged up as waves of powerfully strong emotions crashed over me. Through the tears welling up in my eyes I reread the message several times to make sure that it was real. J'Una alive? Could it really be? Where the fuck was Tatooine anyway? I was so overcome that I became somewhat giddy and I think I even jumped up and down a little. Not what you'd expect from a veteran Imperial TIE fighter pilot, but there it is. I must have made more noise than I thought because, when I turned around, there was Kao standing in the doorway to the bedroom. She had put on one of those black Imperial issue robes but hadn't belted it. It hung open in the front, exposing her breasts and crotch. Her red hair was wildly unkempt and stood out from her head like tongues of fire. She was still half asleep and was leaning against the doorframe. As quickly as it had started, the euphoria inside me stopped. I suddenly realized that the relationship that was rapidly devel- oping between Kao and me grew, in part, out of the assump- tion that J'Una had been killed. Now that I had in my hand a message that said J'Una was very much alive, I was uncertain, and a little apprehensive as to what would happen next. I sud- denly remembered why I had never allowed myself to get too involved with females. "What's going on, Vel?" Kao asked sleepily. "You won't believe this," I said, handing her the data pad. Kao took it and I watched her as she read it. Her eyes grew wide with amazement, and a large smile broke out on her face. She looked up at me with tears of joy in her eyes. "This is wonderful, Vel" she exclaimed, throwing her arms around me. I was a little surprised. I'm not sure what I ex- pected, but this wasn't it. I was relieved, however, that she seemed happy at the news. She pulled back and looked at me for a moment, then kissed me. "You're not the only one who loves J'Una and misses her," she said softly. My raised eyebrow and obviously puzzled ex- pression elicited a smile. "J'Una is a wonderful person and a fine officer," she said in a direct, almost scolding tone. "The fact that she is apparently not dead makes me very happy." She paused, looking intently at me. Then her eyes brightened and she actually giggled. "Did you think," she said between giggles, "that I would be- come jealous, or that this news would somehow create fric- tion? Is that what you thought?" I didn't say anything, but my expression must have given me away. Kao broke out in laughter and kissed me on the cheek. "You silly, silly man," she said, still laughing. "You men all think that everything revolves around you. That you're the center of the universe." She laughed again. "I've grown very fond of you recently, Vel," she said, the laughter finally giving way, at least temporarily, to seriousness. "But I know what J'Una meant to you, and what the thought of her dying did to you. What you don't know," she said and her eyes twinkled again,"was what she meant to me. We were developing a very close relation- ship and I'll be very glad to have the chance to resume it." 'Very close relationship'? Now I was thoroughly confused. I wasn't at all sure what she was telling me, but at least she seemed pleased by the turn of events. I smiled at her and shook my head. "I guess I didn't realize that you and she had become so close," I said. "That," she said as she kissed me and snaked her hand under my robe and grabbed my cock, " is because you're a man." I quickly tried to come up with a suitable rejoinder but Kao was kissing me and running her tongue inside my mouth while she grabbed my cock with both hands and began stroking it to life. I forgot all about a witty reply as I slipped my hands inside her robe and fondled her breasts, the nipples already hard with arousal. We pulled each other's robes off and sank to the floor right in the middle of the room. Our hands were all over each other and our tongues battled as we kissed deeply. Kao was a wonderful woman and a great fuck, but the news that J'Una was alive somehow stimulated me in a way that I hadn't be- fore experienced. My cock was painfully hard and I went at Kao with little of the soft, tender approach that had charac- terized our first union. For her part, Kao returned the frenzy. Apparently she was as excitied by the prospect of seeing J'Una again as I was. She tore at my back with her finger- nails while I bit and sucked roughly on her tits, both of us moaning, yearning for a release. Kao scissored her legs around my back and reached be- tween our thrashing bodies to grab my cock. She jerked it hard several times and I nearly shot into her hand. She placed the tip against the entrance to her cunt and pulled me into her. She was like a cauldron inside and I gasped at the heat that engulfed me. We rolled over on the deck so that she was on top of me. I grabbed her breasts and squeezed them as she began a slow thrusting motion, impaling herself on me. Her movements didn't stay slow for very long. We were both too hot, too out of control with lust for that. I'm not sure if our frenzy was caused by our desire for each other, or that we were each thinking of J'Una, or simply a longing for release from the stresses of incessant warfare. Maybe it was all three. In any case, neither of us was concerned with gentle foreplay. We slammed into each other with an intensity that was almost painful. I continued to manhandle Kao's tits, squeezing them hard and pinching the nipples as she rode me. Her head was thrown back in ecstacy, her long red hair draping over my upraised knees like a soft fur rug. After several more sav- age thrusts, Kao let out a sharp cry and flung herself for- ward onto me, her breasts in my face, her hair flowing over me and onto the deck. I took a nipple into my mouth and bit on it, sending a shock wave through her that ended with another hard downward thrust onto my cock. She shudder- ed and moaned and I could feel her orgasm flowing out from the depths of her cunt and onto my cock and balls. She flooded us with her juices, smearing our thighs and my belly. The force of her orgasm nearly overwhelmed her and she buried her face in my neck, moaning and weeping. "That is so good, Vel," she gasped into my ear. "So fucking good." She wriggled around on my cock. I grabbed her hips and thrust into her with renewed vigor, my own climax fast approaching. Kao sat up and began thrusting back down on me again, wanting to give me pleasure also. I didn't have long to wait until I felt the cum boiling within my balls. She smiled down at me as she re- cognized the signs of my impending orgasm. "Let it go," she cooed softly at me. I didn't need much more encouragement. I gave another powerful upward thrust, lifting her off the deck, impaling her completely as my prick shot blast after blast of cum into her. I groaned with the effort. My cock finished spewing its load and we collapsed together in a heap in the middle of the room. We fell asleep that way. "Many of you may have heard by now," Commander Cibock said at the next morning's briefing, "that Commander Selena, our former Operations Officer, was not onboard the Death Star at the time of its destruction." Several officers applauded. All were smiling and the supply officer, who was sitting behind me, clapped me on the shoul- der. J'Una had been very popular among GUSTAV's crew, and highly respected by her fellow officers. It was good to see that they cared about her. Kao smiled at me and squee- zed my hand. "Commander Selena is presently at a place called Tatooine," Cibock continued. A holographic map appeared near the front of the room showing a dry, desert looking planet orbiting a binary star system. "Several other Death Star personnel, "Cibock said,"are also at Tatooine. It seems that Commander Selena was assisting in the establishment of a permanent and extensive Imperial installation on that planet." Several officers exchanged questioning looks. What did we need an installation there for? Commander Cibock sensed the questions and moved im mediately to answer them. "I do not have all of the details yet," he said,"but it appears that Tatooine has harbored Rebel sympathizers for some time and that several spies transported the plans for the Death Star through Mos Eisley, Tatooine's spaceport. Commander Selena was conducting a follow-up investigation when the Death Star was destroyed. As a result, Tatooine is being secured as a major base to support operations in the surrounding sectors." Major Maarek, our stormtrooper commander nodded in satisfaction. "That'll teach the treacherous scum," he said. Commander Cibock looked sternly at the major but said no- thing in response. "We are being diverted to Tatooine," he went on. "A shipment of replacement TIE fighters along with some new pilots has arrived. They were originally meant to be transported to the Death Star." Diverted to Tatooine? I would get to see J'Una again? So much sooner than I would have expected. Kao and I smiled at each other. I knew she was just as happy about it as I was. "Once we arrive," Cibock continued,"we will take the TIEs aboard and immediately commence integrating the new pilots." He nodded at Kao and me. "Captains Tallig and Ijuf will ensure that these new pilots are ready for future assignment." "Yes, sir," I responded. "Upon arrival we will receive new instructions from an Imperial Special Envoy at the new Tatooine installation." Seeing our puzzled expressions Cibock smiled. "I don't know what an 'Imperial Special Envoy' is, either." He shrugged. "I guess we'll find out together." And he left the room as we all stood to attention. Kao and I looked at each other as the other officers filed out. "It will be great to see J'Una again so soon," she said with a smile. "I'll bet she's had quite an exciting time." "No doubt," I said. "Knowing J'Una." Kao laughed. "What are you implying, captain?" she asked, her voice rising musically. "Only that J'Una has always had the ability to insert herself into the middle of things," I replied, smiling back at her. "And get things inserted into her?" Kao asked, teasing me. Her eyes were bright, and her smile had broadened. "That, too," I said, chuckling. "You must remember that she's a Bardin." "Horny or not," Kao said, still smiling, "it'll be good to see her again. Do you think she'll be transferred back aboard GUSTAV?" "I don't really know, Kao," I replied. "It would depend on what they have her doing on Tatooine. She may be heavily involved in setting up the new base there." Kao grew serious. Her brow furrowed, the smile disappeared. "Is it true, Val?" "Is what true?" I was somewhat taken aback by her abrupt change of mood. Unlike J'Una, whose mood could change from moment to moment, Kao was far from being mercurial. "Is it true what I hear about what happens when we occupy a planet?" "Surely you know what goes on, Kao," I said, somewhat flabbergasted at her display of apparent naivete. She averted my gaze. "I guess I never paid much attention. I just flew my missions and killed Rebels." I just stared at her for a moment. This side of her was completely uncharted territory. "If you don't know, Kao, it's because you didn't want to know." "Maybe," she said softly, then raised her gaze to meet mine. "But I want to know now. I want you to tell me." "What do you think happens, Kao?" I asked rhetorically. My voice had started to rise and I had to tell myself to lower it. "What do you think happens when the Empire takes over a planet that has shown the slightest sympathy to the Rebellion? You were at Resead, dammit.[see pt 3] Didn't you see the shuttles transporting the leaders and their families and anyone who might cause trouble off the planet? Where did you think they were taking those people? They're all on a prison planet. Or dead." I paused. Kao was staring at me. "You want to know what else usually happens?" I went on. "A military governor takes over. Whatever personal freedoms the inhabitants once had are gone. Stormtroopers are everywhere, and they get the people to start spying on each other. All of the planet's resources are taken to support the Empire's war efforts. In short, life becomes pretty unpleasant. And that," I said finishing, "is what happens to a system that had supported the Rebellion. It happened on Resead, and it's probably happening on Tatooine. Hell, my homeworld of Kuan isn't in a whole lot better shape, and we welcomed the Empire in." Kao snorted sarcastically. "I thought the Rebels were the bad guys," she said. "They're no better," I said. "They're just as capable of using people or exploiting worlds for their own agenda. My experience tells me that in a war like this one, the lines between good guys and bad guys often get blurred and confused." Kao shook her head. "Is this what we're really about, Vel?" "It's what the Emperor's about," I said grimly. "And he's in charge." >From a geosynchronous orbit high above the planet's surface Tatooine looked like a big, dirty brown ball. There was very little surface water visible, and large brown clouds, which were in fact enormous dust storms, roamed the planet's surface. Mos Eisley spaceport was the only visible sign that the planet was inhabited. There were, we knew, other settle- ments scattered around the planet, but they were too small to be seen from this height. GUSTAV had entered orbit above Mos Eisley and one of the first things I noticed was the traffic. Imperial freighters and transports of all shapes and sizes were maneuvering into and out of the spaceport. From several ships that were just too large to land at the spaceport an endless stream of shuttles flowed back and forth, offloading and delivering cargo. Among those were several large assault transports delivering more stormtroopers. The occupation of Tatooine, and its conversion to an advanced Imperial base, was evidently well underway. I was standing to one side on the bridge, gazing out of the large observation windows as Commander Cibock and his bridge team completed the maneuvers that placed GUSTAV in her assigned orbit. "Quite a lot of activity, eh, Captain?" Commander Cibock was standing behind me, looking out of the window as well. I turned around. "Yes, sir," I agreed. "Looks like we're serious here." "It would appear so, " Cibock replied smiling. "I suppose the Empire is in dire need of another desert planet," he continued sarcastically. I was a little taken aback, hearing such sarcasm directed at Imperial activities by the Commanding Officer of an Imperial Starship. But, I had served with Commander Cibock long enough to know that he was a competent and loyal officer, if a bit outspokenly skeptical at times. It occurred to me that perhaps the recent death of his son aboard the Death Star might have jaded him a little more. I smiled at his attempt at humor. "It doesn't look very inviting, does it, sir?" Cibock shrugged. "No, but we're here," he said quietly. "And, unfortunately for the people of Tatooine, we'll be here for a long time." He turned away abruptly and addressed the Deck Officer. "Is the shuttle ready to take Captains Tallig and Ijuf and myself down to the surface?" "Yes, sir," he replied. "Your shuttle is ready to depart at your convenience." "Very well," Cibock said. "Ask Captain Ijuf to meet us in the shuttle bay. I want to depart immediately." "Yes, sir," the Deck Officer responded and turned away to carry out Cibock's instructions. Cibock nodded toward the turbolift doors. "Let's go, captain," he said and headed off the bridge. I fell in step with him. -- Star Wars: The TIE Fighter (Part 14) Walter Slaven Less than ten minutes later, having been joined in the hangar bay by Kao, we boarded our shuttle and departed at once . The shuttle pilot darted and weaved his way through the freight- er traffic in a long looping spiral down toward Mos Eisley. As the detail of the city emerged, Mos Eisley began to resemble an egg that had been hurled against a wall. It was spread out all over the place in an apparently random and unplanned manner. The spaceport itself dominated the city's central sec- tion, with numerous webs of streets and alleys weaving a sinuous pattern outward from the facility. The new con- struction needed to support an Imperial base could also be seen. These new installations were going up near the space- port and, as we got closer, we could see piles of rubble from previously existing structures that had been demolished to make room for them. Yes, I thought to myself, the Empire has arrived in force. The spaceport appeared primitive by modern Imperial standards and had obviously not been designed to handle the current volume of traffic. The pilot gently set us down in an open air docking bay and opened the main hatch to the passenger compartment. Instantly, we were nearly overwhelmed by the planet's intense heat. As we stepped out of the shuttle, it felt like we were walking into a blast furnace. Dressed as we were in our heavy Imperial uniforms, all three of us broke out in a sweat. The two suns were directly overhead hammering us as we walked across the docking bay toward the squad of stormtroopers who were waiting for us. I don't know how they managed to survive in that heavy armor that they wore. I guess it must have been because storm- troopers were such well conditioned and exceptionally tough bastards. I also think that they were too fearful of their superiors to allow themselves to be affected by heat or cold or anything else. The squad leader stepped forward and saluted Commander Cibock. "Welcome to Tatooine, sir," he said briskly. "The Special Envoy and Commander Selena are waiting for you." He turned and led us into a new and hurriedly constructed headquarters building, the rest of the troopers falling in behind us. I was grateful to get out of the sun. The trooper led us through a maze of hallways and down two flights of stairs. Obviously, the headquarters' nerve center was below ground. It got cooler and more comfortable as we de- scended. There was a great deal of activity as personnel hurried about, and construction workers, assisted by droids, mounted equipment and strung communications cable. The trooper finally came to a stop before a large set of double blast doors. He activated the comm link and announced our arrival. He stepped aside as the door slid open noiselessly. The room, obviously a command office, was huge. It had been so hurriedly constructed that the rock out of which it was cut was still visible in several places where wall covering had yet to be applied. Comm screens were hung haphazardly and computer equipment was stacked along the sides. At the far end was an enormous desk. And standing next to the desk, tall, black, beautiful and sexy, was J'Una. She was smiling broadly at me and I felt relief surge through me, followed immediately by joy, then, inevitably, arousal. I wanted to dash across the room, take her in my arms and fuck her brains out. She always did have that effect on me. But, Imperial etiquette prevailed and I merely smiled back and nodded a wordless hello. I glanced at Kao, who was smiling broadly, as well. There were three other people standing with J'Una around the desk on the far side of the room. At the end of the desk opposite from J'Una stood two men. One was middle aged with graying hair, fierce blue eyes, stocky build and was wearing the uniform of a stormtrooper general. The other was very tall, very big and very blonde. His shoulders were broad, his hands were huge and his biceps were massive. He wore two blasters strapped to his hips and stood with his arms folded, leaning casually against the wall. Easily the most dominating presence, however, was that of the woman standing behind the desk. She was only of average height, but she was exceptionally well proportioned with beauti- ful sloping hips, a firm round ass and large upsweeping breasts. She had short black hair that neatly framed her face, dark eyes, very red lips and finely chiseled features that stood out in stark relief. Her demeanor was one of a person who is used to being in charge, used to being deferred to, used to being important. Her eyes seemed to glow with the intensity of a person on a mission. She wore a simple black tunic with dark grey trousers. In contrast to J'Una and the general, she wore no medals or decorations or any rank insignia. Though hers was the least impressive presence physically, it was immediately obvious that she was in charge and that the others, including the gen- eral, deferred to her. "Welcome to Tatooine, Commander Cibock," the woman said as she gestured, somewhat imperiously I thought, for us to cross the room and approach the desk. "I am Marta Emoh," the woman said, "Special Envoy to the Imperial Staff." She paused a moment to let the importance of her title sink in. I had never paid much attention to Imperial politics, and was not easily impressed by titles or rank, but I instantly caught the significance of what she said. So, too, did Commander Cibock. The 'Imperial Staff', as opposed to Imperial Headquarters, was the Emperor's personal organi- zation, which was apart from the Imperial Navy. It also placed itself outside the military's sphere of authority. This had often caused friction. There were rumors of a 'secret order,' of which the Emperor and Vader were the founding members, and which pledged undying loyalty and allegiance to the Em- peror personally. I had no first hand knowledge of such a 'secret order' but it wouldn't have surprised me. Marta continued with the introductions. She waved a hand toward the general. "This is General Koss," she said. "General Koss is the Commanding General of this installation. It is his job," she continued, her voice suddenly turning cold, "to get this installation fully operational on schedule and to con- tinue the extermination of Rebel sympathizers." Koss shot her a quick glance, but said nothing. Instead, he turned and welcomed Commander Cibock. "I believe you all already know Commander Selena," Marta said with a smile. "It's good to see you safe, Commander," Cibock said warmly. "When we heard about the Death Star, we feared the worst." J'Una smiled, and was about to say something, but Marta inter- jected. "No time for sorrows, Commander. There is much to be done." She paused, and smiled. "Commander Selena and I and a few others," she said smoothly, "had been sent here by Grand Moff Tarkin to begin preparations for this base. At that time I was the Grand Moff's Chief Assistant." For a moment I thought her eyes were starting to tear up, but she quickly regained her imperial air. Casting a quick glance at the blonde giant in the corner Marta said, "And this is Tomba, my assistant." The way she said assistant made it clear to me that he was her muscle, to be used when she needed to exert some force. Judging from his physique and the way she had looked at him I figured he probably used some muscle on her from time to time. Marta definitely im- pressed me as someone you didn't fuck with, unless she want- ed you to fuck with her. Marta sat down behind the desk. As there were no other chairs in the room, the rest of us remained standing, which is probably what she had had in mind. It helped to reaffirm her superior status. "Now, Commander," Marta said briskly, "let's discuss your orders." Cibock nodded, but said nothing. "Since the cowardly attack by the Rebels on the Death Star," she continued, "we have been pursuing those responsible. What you must understand is that although Yavin was a principle Rebel base, it was not the only one. There are many other Rebel cells who, along with their allies, have become emboldened by the Death Star's destruction. Lord Vader has amassed an enormous fleet to pursue the Yavin Rebels. Unfortunately, this has left us with painfully few assets elsewhere." She paused, and leaned back in her chair. "We have received disturbing reports that a group of pirates, supported and supplied by the Rebels, have begun operating out of the Pakuuni system. A primary trade artery runs through Pakuuni and on to Mylok IV, a major Imperial industrial base. These pirates have become quite bold, and unfortunately quite successful, in raiding our commerce vessels. We have been unable to counter them due to commitments elsewhere." She smiled grimly. "Even the Empire has its limits, Commander." "Yes, Special Envoy," Cibock agreed deferentially. "What are the orders for GUSTAV?" "There are two full squadrons of replacement TIE fighters here at Tatooine," she began. "They were meant to be transported to the Death Star. Take aboard as many as you can fit in GUSTAV's hangars. It will be crowded, but you will need as much firepower as you can get." Cibock nodded, but I could see a questioning look on his face. Why was it necessary for a 'Special Envoy' to issue what looked to be routine patrol orders? We could just as easily have re- ceived the orders by message, taken the replacements onboard, and headed out. "Once that's done," Marta continued, "we will proceed directly to the Pakuuni system." WE? Kao and I exchanged questioning looks, and Commander Cibock's puzzled expression was not lost on the Special Envoy. "Yes, Commander," she said smoothly, responding to the un- asked question. "I will be accompanying you. And Commander Selena will be reassigned to GUSTAV, at least temporarily." A surge of joy rushed through me and I looked over at J'Una and smiled. She smiled back warmly. "Her tactical abilities," Marta continued, "were remarked on frequently by Grand Moff Tarkin, who held her in very high regard. Our mission is to smash the pirates and their Rebel friends and establish a permanent, enduring Imperial presence." "Yes, Special Envoy," Commander Cibock replied. "But isn't that a rather large task for one frigate with a few squadrons of TIEs and a couple of companies of stormtroopers?" Marta stood up and walked around the desk until she was standing directly in front of us. "Oh, we'll have help, Commander," she said vaguely in a voice that held out the prospect of sinister things to come. Obviously, there was more going on here than merely nailing some pirates, but Commander Cibock remained silent. Marta Emoh paused for what seemed to be a long time. Then, she raised an eyebrow. "Doesn't Admiral Haarkov's daughter serve aboard your vessel, Commander?" she asked. Even some- one as politically unaware as I could quickly make the connection. She was after Admiral Haarkov. What that had to do with us and our assignment I hadn't a clue. I assumed that the reports that Commander Cibock had sent in regarding the admiral's activities during the Sepan operation [see pt 4] were the catalyst for this development. Instantly I was afraid for Marina Haarkov. I was sure that she was unaware of her father's "questionable" activities, but it was also clear to me that this Marta Emoh had a game plan, and that Marina would play a part in it. Commander Cibock must have been thinking the same thing because he stiffened noticeably. "Ensign Haarkov is one of our leading maintenance officers," Cibock said slowly, measuring his words. "She has an exemplary record." Marta smiled at him. "I'm sure that she does, Commander," she said. She turned and moved back behind the desk and sat down. Abruptly, she turned to J'Una. "Commander," she said as she waved her hand imperiously toward Kao and me, "perhaps you could show the captains around for a few minutes. Commander Cibock, the general and I have a few more things to discuss." She didn't mention her 'assistant', and he wasn't moving from his position against the wall, so I assumed it was understood that he was staying. "Of course," J'Una replied, then motioned Kao and me to exit through the same double blast doors through which we had entered. Once we were outside and the heavy doors had slammed shut, J'Una and I flew into each other's arms, our lips meeting in an intense, almost savage kiss. It's amazing the emotions that come over you when you see someone after getting used to the idea that they're dead. J'Una grabbed me in her powerful arms and slammed me against the wall, her tongue probing deeply into my mouth. For a few moments we forgot where we were, forgot Imperial decorum, lost in our mutual longing. Suddenly, almost as one, we remembered Kao, who was standing there looking at us, a wry smile on her face. J'Una and I broke apart, grinning sheepishly like a couple of schoolkids who had been caught necking by their parents. "It's alright," Kao said softly. "In fact, I feel like doing the same." And she stepped up to J'Una and placed a gentle, soft kiss on her lips. J'Una returned the kiss hungrily and it was obvious to me that this wasn't the first time they'd kissed like this. Kao broke away and stepped back. "Well, Commander," she said in mock deference, "aren't you going to show us around?" J'Una laughed. "There really isn't much to see around here," she said. "Everything's a mess, what with all the construction going on." As if to validate her statement several base personnel, their uniforms wrinkled and dusty, hurried past accompanied by two droids carrying heavy construction materials. J'Una followed them with her eyes as they disappeared down the passageway. She stared after them, then her face brightened, her red eyes lit up and she turned to us with that wide, beaming smile of hers. "Come with me," she said as she began striding purposefully toward a stairwell that led up. "I know a great little cantina that's just down the street, and it's got a band that you won't believe." J'Una and I were naked, locked in a fierce embrace, my cock plunging deep into her pussy, her Bardin cunt muscles working me over. It had been two days since our reunion on the base at Mos Eisley, but we had each been so busy that we had had no opportunity to be alone together. Kao and I had supervised the onload of the replacement TIE fighters and the indoctrination and berthing of the new pilots. J'Una had been busy gathering the latest intelligence reports on the Pakuuni situation, and ensuring sufficiently lavish quarters were made available to Marta Emoh and her 'assistant,' Tomba. Not an easy task on a frigate, but J'Una had managed to satisfy the Special Envoy. It had been a hectic two days. And a long two days. Finally, however, GUSTAV was underway and we began to settle into our transit routine. J'Una and I had been able to arrange to meet in my quarters the evening after we'd left Tatooine. When she arrived, we went at each other like a couple of rutting animals. No preliminaries, no conversation, no petting, no foreplay. We tore each other's clothes off and tumbled onto my bed. I raised myself up onto my elbows and sucked on J'Una's fantastic ebony breasts as my cock continued to piston in and out of her cunt. Her long, powerful legs wrapped around me and pulled me deeper into her. I ran my tongue over a nipple and then sucked the breast into my mouth, biting it, remember- ing how much she loved having her tits handled roughly. She moaned and thrust her pelvis up hard at me, exercising that incredible vaginal muscle control that sent lightning bolts of ex- quisite pleasure up and down my spine. My balls churned as I felt my desire grow to new heights. I increased the tempo of my thrusting, my balls noisily slapping against J'Una's ass. My cock is not huge by any standards, but, fortunately, it's big enough to get the full benefit of those exquisite Bardin cunt muscles which actually felt like an internal hand grasp- ing and milking my cock. I raised myself up on my arms and looked down at her as I continued pounding away at her pussy. J'Una's red eyes were glowing and her lips were curled back in a kind of snarl and I could hear a low growling in her throat as she became more and more aroused. She grabbed my arms and pulled herself up onto me until her tits pressed against my chest and her lips ground against mine. She was getting hotter by the second and I knew her well enough to know that her orgasm was fast approaching. The tingling at the base of my cock told me that mine was, too. "Fuck me, Vel. Fuck me," J'Una whispered as she licked my ear. I pounded away, harder and faster, my cock slamming into her sopping pussy. J'Una released her grip on me and flopped back onto the bed, arms stretched out above her head, breasts heaving, red eyes rolling back into her head. That was the signal to me that she was cumming, so I slammed even harder into her, grunting and perspiring with the effort. J'Una uttered a moan which started deep in her throat and worked its way up until it exited her mouth as an ear splitting shriek and her legs scissored around behind me and threatened to chop me in half. I felt a shudder deep within her and her Bardin cunt muscles gave my cock one last squeeze which sent me over the edge. My cum poured out of my balls and raced up the length of my prick, blasting out deep within her. I slammed into her again, feeling spurt after spurt of my cum shooting out of my prick. It felt so good that it almost hurt. The memory of the emotions I had experienced when I thought she had been killed suddenly washed over me and my eyes teared up. I buried my face in her neck so she wouldn't notice. We held each other tightly as we slowly came down from our mutual ecstacy, our breathing grad- ually returning to normal. Presently we disentangled ourselves and J'Una sat up, leaning back against a bulkhead, the scent of our sex hanging over us. I stretched out next to her, my penis resting limply against my thigh. J'Una seemed pensive, and her expression, for a moment, was far away. Since returning to GUSTAV after serving on the ill-fated Death Star, J'Una seemed to have changed. She seem- ed to have lost some of the exhuberance and enthusiasm which was so characteristic of her. Her lovemaking was still the best, but she seemed somehow detached. I was sure that something was troubling her, probably something that had happened while she was on the Death Star, but I wasn't sure how to broach the subject with her. So, I just did. "Do you want to talk about the Death Star?" I asked directly. I thought that she did, and didn't know how else to get her going. Hell, I'm a pilot, not a diplomat or a politician. I tend to take a straight line approach to things. Sometimes that gets me into trouble. J'Una looked at me for a long moment. Her expression was tough to read, but I noticed lines and wrinkles around her eyes that hadn't been there before. She heaved a sigh and patted my thigh. "I'm not sure I like what we've become," she said quietly. "What do you mean?" I asked, surprised by her answer. I'm not really certain I knew what kind of response I should have expected, but that one wasn't among them. "The things that we do in the name of the Emperor...." she said, her voice trailing off. She had definitely aroused my curiosity now, and I sat up next to her. It was hard not to be aware of her nakedness, of her smooth, gleaming black skin, of her overpowering sexuality, but I forced myself to concen- trate on what she was saying. "What things, J'Una," I asked quietly, not certain I really want- ed to know the answer. She looked at me intently, her red eyes glowing, and let out a deep sigh, almost of resignation. "Remember when we first brought Tarkin to the Death Star, and he met Vader and there was talk of busting up some Rebel spy ring?" I nodded. We had delivered Grand Moff Tarkin to take over the Death Star amid a great deal of activity involving Vader's pursuit of some Rebel spies [see pt 3]. I hadn't paid much attention then. I was too busy feeling sorry for myself because J'Una had chosen to take a position on Tarkin's staff. Now, I was paying very close attention. "Well," J'Una continued, "Vader caught one." "A spy?" J'Una nodded. "At least someone he thought was a spy. Her name was Leia." "A female?" I asked, surprised. I don't know why I was sur- prised. A woman can be a spy just as well as a man can, I suppose. I guess I was just expecting something else. "Yes, a female," J'Una replied smiling. "She was a princess or senator or something, a fairly important person. But Vader was convinced she was involved with the Rebels so he attacked her ship not far from Tatooine and took her prisoner." Tatooine. I made the connection. "So that's why we've occupied Tatooine?" "Yes," J'Una said bitterly. "Vader thought that this Leia person was meeting contacts on Tatooine so he sent a bunch of storm- troopers down to find out while he interrogated her." "Did the stormtroopers find out anything?" J'Una shook her head. "Not much," she said. "But it wasn't from lack of effort. They killed and tortured people. They arrested people on sight. They burned farms. Lots of nasty stuff. And for what?" She looked at me with a deeply troubled expression. "So," she continued, "Vader and Tarkin decided that Tatooine was a hotbed of Rebel activity and ordered it occupied. You saw the results." She slowly shook her head. "So, what happened to that woman?" J'Una laughed derisively. "Oh, it gets better," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "Vader and his people did the most un- speakable things to her. They drugged her. They beat her. They raped her. They forced her to eat her own shit." J,Una's eyes welled with tears and she continued with difficulty. "Vader's men took turns raping her. One after another after another until she passed out. Then they'd revive her and rape her some more." A single tear ran down her cheek. "It was horrible, Vel. Horrible." I was speechless. I didn't know what to say. I suppose I was guilty of the same kind of naivete that I had accused Kao of earlier. Or, maybe, I had refused to acknowledge what was really happening, while pretending that I did. If I had really allowed myself to understand and accept the reality that inci- dents like this actually took place, I wouldn't have been so shocked. But now, confronted by J'Una's first hand descrip- tion of accepted Imperial methods, I found myself questioning myself and, thus, was unable to respond. "That woman was a tough little bitch," J'Una said smiling and sniffling at the same time. "She didn't tell Vader anything. I don't know if she knew anything, but she didn't tell him anything. No matter what he did, the humiliations, the raping the drugging, she defied him. This little woman didn't give an inch." There was a tone of admiration in her voice. "So, what did Vader do with her?" I asked, finally able to speak. "He went nuts trying to get her to give him the location of a Rebel base. He and Tarkin wanted to use the Death Star to destroy the base and bully others into submission. But she just wouldn't talk. So Vader wanted to kill her. That's usually Vader's approach." Her tone became bitterly sarcastic. "If they don't cooperate, kill them." She shook her head. "I don't know how lunatics like him get into positions of power." My eyebrows must have shot up because she smiled at me. I had never heard her talk like that before. She got up from the bed and grabbed a robe and put it on. "Anyway," she continued and started to pace in front of the bed where I still sat, naked, "Tarkin got a bright idea to try to make this Leia talk. It turns out she was from a place called Alderaan, not far from the Tatooine system. So, Tarkin takes the Death Star to Alderaan and brings Leia up to the bridge and tells her he'll blow up the planet if she doesn't tell him where her Rebel friends are." "Blow up the whole planet?" I asked exasperated. "Yep," she said. "He threatened to use the Death Star's weaponry. I was there. I saw everything." Her eyes teared up again. "Everything." She paused and looked up at the ceiling for a few moments, then turned back to me, tears flowing freely down her face. "Well, that broke her," she said quietly. "Or, at least that's what Tarkin thought. She gave him the name of some planet on the other side of the quadrant. Dantooie or something like that. Tarkin got all puffed up and strutted around in front of Vader, crowing how he had made her talk and Vader couldn't. Then," and she stopped and looked right through me, seemingly right into my soul, "he blew up the planet anyway." She struggled to maintain her composure, but the tears were flowing. "The bastard destroyed that entire planet, Vel. Tens of millions of people vaporized in an instant. Is that what we've become, Vel? Is that what I've become? I fucked that bastard more than once so I could get a job on his staff and serve on the Death Star and be real important and get promoted. Instead, I feel like I have blood on my hands and it won't wash off." She collapsed into a chair and pulled the robe tightly about her. She seemed tired, though her red eyes were still blazing. I just sat there, unable, or maybe unwilling, to comprehend what she had just said. "Not long after that," she continued quietly, "Marta and I were sent back to Tatooine to oversee the establishment of a base. Later, I heard that there wasn't any Rebel base on that planet that Leia had given them. They were chasing phantoms. I don't really know what happened at Yavin, or how the Death Star was destroyed. I do know that that woman Leia somehow ma- naged to escape and wasn't onboard when the Death Star was attacked." She paused and smiled at me. "Vader's still chasing her and the other Rebel leaders. I guess she got the last laugh on all of us." I could tell that J'Una was pleased by that thought. "Who is this Marta person, J'Una," I asked innocently, trying to change the subject a little, "and why is she here? Why is she important?" J'Una's brow furrowed and her eyes glowed like two embers. "Marta Emoh was Tarkin's chief assistant," she began. "She was devoted to him, did anything he asked. Tarkin's death really got to her. I don't think she's gotten over it. She's also a loyal follower of the Emperor, so watch what you say around her. She's very sharp and well connected, but ruthless. She gets what she wants. Watch out for that Tomba character she hangs out with. He's little more than a hired gun." "I got that impression," I said. "Marta's not as bad as Vader," J'Una continued, "but she has been known to kill and torture in the name of the Emperor." She chuckled. "She's also known for getting the hots for any- one she finds attractive, or thinks can be useful, so watch your- self, stud." She laughed. "Marta's not all that bad, I guess," she continued, "considering some of the real sick characters I've heard about. But she is passionately devoted to the cause of the Emperor. She is also passionately devoted to the cause of Marta Emoh. She is a very tough woman." She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "You may not be aware of this, Vel," she said and she leaned forward, almost as though we were engaging in a conspiracy, "but there's a growing rift between various elements within the Imperial hierarchy." I shook my head. I hadn't a clue what she was talking about, other than the fact that while we were in the Sepan system Commander Cibock had suspected Admiral Haarkov of supplying arms to the Rebels [see pt 4]. -- Star Wars: The TIE Fighter (Part 15) Walter Slaven "First, there's the Emperor's faction," she went on. "These people are devoted to the Emperor personally. They derive all of their power and status from association with him. They hate the Rebels and want to wipe them out, because the Rebels pose the greatest threat to an Imperial domination of this part of the galaxy. The Rebels are so opposed to the Emperor that they won't even consider negotiating. So, the Emperor's faction has to destroy the Rebellion in order to survive." I merely nodded stupidly, dumbfounded and fascinated by this analysis. "Marta Emoh," J'Una continued, "is part of that faction. So was Tarkin. So is Vader. Vice Admiral Thrawn might be, too. Right now they have the upper hand but I think they're getting ner- vous. That's why they're going to such extreme measures." "What are they nervous about?" "The other factions, of course," J'Una said smiling. "There seems to be a growing number of senior military officers who, while loyal to the Empire, are not personally loyal to the Emperor. They aren't fans of the Rebels, but I get the impression that they would like to see this war ended. After all, they and their troops are the ones doing the dying. I don't think they'd be averse to some kind of negotiated settlement but, since the Rebels think the Emperor is a criminal and won't negotiate, they have little room to maneuver, unless they want to try to depose the Emperor and I don't think they have the strength or the balls for that. Yet." She said 'yet' with such finality that I knew she believed that it was only a matter of time before a coup was attempted. I was stunned. I was also getting angry. Here we were, my pilots and I, out here flying combat mission after combat mission in inferior starfighters and our leaders, the very people who should be giving us the most support, were busy maneuvering against each other. Unfuckingbelievable! "That leads us to the third faction," J'Una continued matter-of- factly, "and the reason that Marta Emoh is with us on this assignment. There appears to be a very small but growing num- ber of people in the military who are so disgusted with what the Empire has become that they are willing to actively help the Rebels. A few of these people have been exposed and ex- ecuted as traitors. Admiral Haarkov is suspected of being one of those people." She sat back, finished. "We're out here to get Haarkov?" I asked. "If he's dealing with the Rebels, yes," J'Una replied. "That's what Marta is going to confirm. The Emperor has to be care- ful how he handles senior officers like Haarkov, or he'll just piss a lot of them off, and drive them away from him. He may be the Emperor and he may be very powerful, but he's not untouchable. If Marta establishes proof that Haarkov is giving arms to the Rebels they'll move against him." "Do you think Marina's in any danger?" I asked. J'Una paused for several moments. "Assuming she doesn't know anything about what her father is suspected of doing," she looked at me and I shook my head, "probably not. But you never know what someone like Marta will do. She may try to use Marina to force the admiral to make a move. Who knows? I'll keep an eye on Marina, though. Marta and I get along pretty well. We were the only two females in any kind of leadership position on Tatooine, so we became close." She stopped, pondering, it seemed to me, whether to elaborate. She didn't, and I didn't ask. "So what do we do?" I asked, finally. "Why, captain," she said with a smile. "We do what we were sent here to do- smash a bunch of pirates." She stood up. "And now that I've given you all of this cheery information," she said, smiling devilishly, "I'm going to take a shower." She walked to the doorway of the bathroom, turned and dropped the robe. "Care to join me?" she asked, batting her eyes in mock innocence. Instantly I forgot all about the Emperor and Marta and Haarkov and infighting. My prick sprang quickly to life and I swiftly crossed the room and followed J'Una's gorgeous, swaying black ass into the shower. Caught up in my rapidly reviving lust, I forgot to ask her which of these three 'factions' she thought she belonged to. GUSTAV was still in hyperspace, but we were nearing our objective, the Pakuuni system. Commander Cibock had had the word passed for all senior officers to assemble in the briefing room. Special Envoy Emoh, we were told, wished to give us some final instructions for our mission. We hadn't seen much of the Imperial Special Envoy or her muscle bound assistant Tomba during our transit. One of the galley stewards who was tasked with delivering meals to their quarters told me that they were nearly always in a state of undress when she arrived. She had been quite shocked, in fact, when she saw Tomba enter the room completely naked while she was setting up the meal. Some 'assistant,' I thought. I took my customary seat up front next to Kao as the other officers filed in. J'Una was at the podium, organizing briefing materials, holographs and displays. It was good to see her there again. She fit into GUSTAV'S routine so naturally. Or, maybe, GUSTAV fit her routine. She exchanged pleasantries with many of the officers as they entered and sat down. They were obviously happy to see her back. A warship that operates on its own for an extended period of time, as we had [see part 1], develops its own rhythm, its own cadence. Each memb- er of the crew occupies a unique place in the ship's life. The more senior the person, as J'Una was, the more important and vital a part they played. J'Una's departure had disrupted that cadence and we hadn't established a new one. Her return re- established a sense of balance and familiarity. The crew seemed more relaxed and less tense and edgy than we'd been during the Sepan operation. I always preferred to take a relaxed group of starfighter pilots into combat. It improved my chances of staying alive. The hubbub of conversation ended abruptly and we sprang to our feet as Commander Cibock, followed by the Special Envoy and her assistant, entered the room. There were no preliminaries. Marta strode directly to the podium and took charge. "Good morning," she began. There was no pleasantness in her voice. The greeting was merely perfunctory. She looked around the room at the assembled officers, her eyes bright with intensity, her bearing rigid, imperious, businesslike. "As many of you may know, Lord Vader has most of the Im- perial Navy's assets employed in hunting down and exterminat- ing the Rebel terrorists who were responsible for murdering our colleagues aboard the Death Star." There was a support- ive murmur among the officers in the room. Most everyone there had known someone who perished on the Death Star and we were still out for blood. Marta gave a thin smile, then proceeded. "Although Lord Vader has not yet located these scum," she continued, "I assure you it is only a matter of time until he does." Her voice was chilling in its tone and I almost, but not quite, felt sorry for those Rebel bastards once Vader caught up with them. I glanced at Kao, who was sitting stoically, her face betraying no emotion. I knew she had no love for the Rebels. After all, they had killed her parents and shattered her comfortable, privileged existence [see pt 4]. But I had been sensing a change in her. It seemed that the zeal which she had displayed for kill- ing Rebels was slowly being tempered by a realization that all was not black and white, good and bad, and that pure ven- geance was an insufficient foundation upon which to base one's life. "Because of the large force gathered by Lord Vader," Marta continued, "our assets in other regions of the Empire have been stretched fairly thin." She gave a rather wan smile before pro- ceeding. "In the Pakuuni system there has been an alarming in- crease in pirate activity. These pirates, supported by the Rebel- lion, have become quite bold in attacking our commerce." She paused, her eyes narrowing in intensity. "Our job here is to smash these pirates and anyone who helps them." I noticed, as I'm sure J'Una did also, that Marta didn't just say 'Rebels.' The implication was clear to me. Treachery was suspected and that was really what Marta was here about. "I am not a military person," Marta continued, suddenly showing some warmth, "so I will not tell you how to do your jobs. Com- manders Cibock and Selena have come up with an impressive operational plan, which Commander Selena will brief you on. My role is to represent the Emperor and emphasize the import- ance of this assignment." She turned to J'Una. "Commander Selena." J'Una rose and walked to the podium as Marta took a seat. I had to hand it to the Special Envoy. Marta had been direct and professional and had shown due respect for GUSTAV's senior leadership. I could tell that she had won a grudging re- spect from most of the officers, many of whom were naturally reluctant to trust a civilian. She had done well. "Thank you, Special Envoy," J'Una said, bowing in Marta's direction. She turned to face us. "Our battle plan for this oper- ation employs a series of hit and run raids against several locations that we have identified as being centers of pirate activity throughout the Pakuuni system." A holographic repre- sentation of the Pakuuni system appeared on the front table. While there were several sizeable planets, what dominated the system was asteroids. They were all over the place, large and small, floating in a seemingly random pattern throughout the system. The only significant open area was near one of the inner planets. That was the jump point for the merchant traffic that Marta had alluded to. The rest of the system was a floating rock pile. A good place for pirates to hide in, and a tough place to operate with unshielded starfighters. I let out a soft groan. Kao looked at me and nodded. She was thinking the same thing. "Our first target," J'Una continued, "will be a large asteroid identified as Delta 5." The holographic display changed, highlighting a medium to large sized asteroid orbiting one of the system's outer planets. At least we won't have to penetrate too far into the field, I thought. "Intelligence reports indicate increased pirate activity coming from this asteroid. It is an old abandoned mining facility that we believe is now being used by pirates and their Rebel friends. As soon as we come out of hyperspace we'll launch all of our TIE Fighters. Captains Tallig and Ijuf will establish local superiority by defeating any enemy craft that oppose us. Hopefully, we will achieve sufficient surprise that the pirates are unable to respond quickly." She paused and smiled at Kao and me. "Once Cap- tains Tallig and Ijuf have eliminated the opposition, TIE bomb- ers will attack the asteroid with heavy space bombs. Major Maarek's stormtroopers, in three Assault Transports, will land on the asteroid, overcome any resistance and destroy as much of the installation as time permits." "Excuse me, commander," said Major Maarek, our erst- while stormtrooper commander, as he rose from his seat. "But what about the pirates who are still on the asteroid after we secure it? Do I kill them all?" He asked the question in such a casual, detached tone that J'Una was momentarily taken aback. He could just as well have been asking about the weather, or the price of blaster rechargers. "I want prisoners, Major," Marta Emoh said from her seat. "No wholesale killing. We want some to survive to spread the word about what's happening." Maarek sat back down, clearly disappointed. J'Una, having re- gained her composure, continued her briefing. "Once the installation has been sufficiently damaged," she said, "the stormtroopers and any prisoners will return. GUSTAV will hyperspace out of the system and we will begin planning future attacks. The pirates have been working with the Rebels, so it is possible that during this or subsequent raids we could see Rebel starfighters. Keep alert." The holographic display terminated and J'Una looked out at us. "This series of operations is de- signed to eliminate the threat posed by these pirates to Imperial commerce. We will be coming out of hyperspace shortly, so let's man our stations." She turned toward Marta. "Special En- voy Emoh?" Marta stood up and smiled at us. "I know that you will all serve the Emperor well," she said. "Good luck. That is all." She strode quickly out of the room, followed by Commander Cibock and the ever present Tomba. Kao and I looked at each other. "Great," Kao said sarcastically, "Fighting X-wings in an asteroid field in unshielded starfighters again. Not my idea of a good time." "Nor mine," I agreed. "At least you'd think we could get shield- ed fighters." "Preferably before the war is over." Kao didn't look too hopeful. She picked up her flight helmet and strode from the room. I climbed into my TIE, strapped in and hooked up the comm link. Kao and I had briefed our pilots on the upcoming opera- tion and GUSTAV had just come out of hyperspace on the edge of the Pakuuni asteroid field closest to our target. Comm- ander Cibock demonstrated once again his superior ship handling skills as he kept GUSTAV as close to the field as possible without risking a collision with a boulder. The hangar deck filled with the high pitched whine of TIEs winding up, and the overhead cranes began picking us up and maneuvering us to the launch bay. I quickly went through the pre-flight checklist and energized the ship's sensors and weapons systems. The heavy launch bay doors in the bottom of the ship opened, the crane lowered me through them and re- leased me out into space. I engaged the twin ion engines and my craft surged forward. It felt good to be at the controls of my TIE again, away from the intrigue and the politics and the bureacratic bullshit that permeated the Empire. When all was said and done, this is where I belonged, where I felt most com- fortable. Flying a TIE, particularly in combat, gave me a sense of accomplishment and importance like nothing else I had ever done. Leading a highly trained and motivated group of TIE pilots into a combat mission was an incredible rush and, for a time, any doubts I had about the Empire were set aside. "GUSTAV, Gamma One," I called, establishing comms. "Flight group forming up." "Roger, Gamma One," J'Una replied. It was good to hear her voice on the other end again. "Commence your attack as soon as you and Tau leader are ready. No signs of enemy craft." That was good. Maybe we'd surprise them after all. "Roger, GUSTAV," I acknowledged. My flight had formed up, Dromo in his usual position off my port side. My sensors showed that Kao's group was about ready as well. "Gamma leader to Tau leader," I called to her, changing fre- quencies. "Go ahead, Gamma leader," Kao replied. I could see that her flight had formed and they had taken up station behind mine. We were approaching the asteroid field in two loose formations. "We'll attack the installation and take out their ground de- fenses," I told her. "You cover us and watch for any new- comers." "Acknowledged, Gamma leader," Kao said coolly. "Give 'em hell, Vel." "Gamma leader to Gamma flight," I called to my group, "stay in a loose formation until we pass through the asteroids to the pirate base, Delta 5. We'll make a few strafing runs to take out their ground defenses and soften them up for the bombers. Watch for any fighters that may rise to meet us." I increased speed and turned into the asteroids. We threaded our way through with little difficulty. It wasn't a particularly thick asteroid field and we weren't being shot at- yet- so it was fairly easy going. The dodging and weaving was actually fun and I enjoyed watching Dromo trying to stay with me through all the twists and turns. Of course, he did. We were nearing our objective, Delta 5, and still no sign of any response. The hair started rising on the back of my neck. Although there was no reason to suspect an ambush, I had had too many bad experiences not to be wary. Either we had actually achieved complete surprise, or they were waiting for us, or they were gone. Since I had no way of knowing which was the case, I activated my targeting computer as I led my group down toward the asteroid's surface. I switched my weapons to missiles and sighted a turbo laser installation. "These guys must really be asleep," Dromo said curtly. "Commence attack," I ordered, ignoring him. My targeting system gave off a series of beeps indicating that my missiles had a lock on the turbo mount. I fired two missiles -out of the four we each carried- switched to lasers and opened up. My missiles found their mark and the laser mount disappeared in a series of explosions. Other surface installations were suffering the same fate as the rest of my TIEs commenced their runs. The pirates on Delta 5 finally responded to our attack. I didn't understand how people who made their living off of illegal activities could be so lax in their security arrangements. Maybe they thought the Rebels would protect them. Or perhaps they got lazy because the Empire had not had a presence in this area for so long. Whatever the case, these guys had definitely been caught napping. Once they did begin to return fire, the pirates did so with im- pressive ferocity. Green and red laser bolts leapt up at us from several turbo laser mounts and the space around the base be- came thick with missiles. Several fighters launched and rose to meet us, mostly old Z-95s. I looped around a small, drifting asteroid- really a big boulder- and targeted a Z-95. I activated speed matching, switched my lasers to rapid single fire and opened up. My shots quickly took the pirate's shields down (Z-95 shields aren't all that strong anyway, but, hell! They're shields). He twisted to the right to avoid my fire and flew straight into an asteroid. His craft disintegrated in a blinding flash of color. I flew past the asteroid and locked onto another pirate craft that had somehow gotten onto the tail of one of my TIEs and was blasting away. Once again I intended to approach from the rear. "Gamma Four, Gamma One," I called to the pursued TIE pilot, "Hang on. I'm on him." "Thanks, Captain," came the relieved reply. The three ships twisted and darted through the floating rocks. The pirate seemed so intent on his prey that he never checked his six. I crept closer and closer, wanting a clear shot so that I wouldn't miss and hit my own pilot. As we rounded another boulder I saw my chance. The Z-95 and the other TIE were now no longer in a direct line so I opened up and rapidly cut the pirate into pieces. I don't think he ever knew I was there. "Gamma One, GUSTAV," J'Una's voice in my ear. "There are more Z-95s approaching from outside the field. They appear to have launched from another asteroid." "GUSTAV, this is Tau Leader," Kao broke in. "This group has just passed between my flight and the field. I'm above and behind them." "Roger, Tau Leader," J'Una responded. "Attack." "Tau flight attacking," Kao acknowledged. "Gamma One," J'Una called to me, "the TIE bombers are launching, as well as the ATRs. Cover their approach." "Roger, GUSTAV," I replied. "We've taken care of most of the opposition here. It should be clear for the bombers." "Acknowledged, Gamma One. Commencing launch." On my screen I could see the wave of TIE bombers form up and begin navigating the asteroid field as they approached the pirate base. I could also see the three ATRs carrying the stormtroopers following behind them. Dromo was back with me and he and I looped around some asteroids to close up with the bombers and provide escort. The rest of my flight was finishing off the meager opposition. I watched the bombers go in and begin pounding the asteroid with their heavy space bombs. The idea, as I was told by one of the bomber pilots, was to collapse some of the many tun- els that had been dug into the asteroid, first by the mining interest, then expanded by the pirates. The asteroid seemed to literally shudder from the pounding as bomber after bomber delivered its weapons. At one point I half expected the asteroid to fly apart into a million little pieces. It didn't, of course, but it took a horrific beating. It was while I was watching the bombers in action that I com- mitted an error which few combat pilots commit and live to tell about. I got lazy and inattentive. I didn't see a lone Z-95 emerge from its hiding place among a series of large aster- oids and target me from behind. In fact, I had no inclination that anything was amiss until his laser bolts started slamming into my ass. Then it was too late. My TIE was shaken and thrown about violently from the force of the laser hits. I fought for control, but my maneuvering jets were gone. The cockpit started filling with smoke and the smell of fried electronics filled my nostrils. "Dromo, I'm hit. I'm hit," I yelled, not knowing if the comm link still worked. The Z-95 fired again and ripped the starboard solar panel to pieces. I was still fighting for control when I heard Dromo's voice in my ear. "Eject, captain," he called. "Eject NOW!" A pilot's instinct is to stay with his ship and I hesitated a mo- ment. I also had another consideration. The TIE's ejection sys- tem was notoriously unreliable. Sometimes the hatch wouldn't open and the pilot would be smashed to a bloody pulp by the force of the ejection. Sometimes the life support cocoon wouldn't activate and the pilot would instantly freeze to death in space. Sometimes nothing at all would happen and the pilot would die with his ship. All of those things flashed through my mind in an instant and I refrained from activating the ejection system. My mind was changed, however, by the fire that started inside the electronics suite and spread rapidly through- out the cockpit. "Dromo, I'm ejecting," I called and hit the button and prayed. This time, everything worked right. The life support cocoon wrapped itself around me in a moment, the escape hatch blew off and the chair rocketed itself out of the top of the TIE and into space. I hoped that there weren't any asteroids close by. I also hoped that the homing beacon had activated. I couldn't see much, being wrapped up like I was, but I knew that Dromo would have to get help. A TIE fighter is just too small for a second person to fit inside. Also, it doesn't have a tractor beam. So, I figured I'd be out there awhile until a shuttle from GUSTAV could pick me up. The emergency life support system was rated to last about three hours. I didn't want to test it, however. I had been floating less than five minutes when I felt the unmis- takeable tug of a tractor beam pulling me in. It was 'way too soon for a shuttle to have gotten out here, and I knew that the Z-95 didn't normally have a tractor beam. Well, I thought, at the very least I'll get out of this damned cocoon. I could hardly move and I was starting to feel claustrophobic. The tractor beam continued pulling me in. I strained to get a look at the ship that had found me, but the life support co- coon so severely restricts your field of vision that I couldn't see it. So, I waited, and longed for a blaster. The tractor beam ride ended abruptly. A hatch on the bottom of the ship opened and I was pulled inside, the hatch closing behind me. My chair landed heavily on the deck. I heard the loud hissing sound of the compartment being pressurized, followed by the sound of a door sliding open. Hands pulled at the life support unit, unwrapping it. My legs were freed first and I was able to rise from the pilot seat to facilitate the removal of the rest of the unit. The cocoon was removed from around my head and I found myself looking into the smiling face of Major Maarek, who was in full stormtrooper gear, minus the helmet. Two other troopers were busy helping me out of the life support unit. I stepped free of it and moved my arms and legs to get the blood flowing again. I had never felt so cramped, but was grateful that the ejection system had actually worked. "Welcome aboard, captain," Maarek said pleasantly. "We saw you eject, but had to double back through some boulders to pick you up." The intercom speaker on the bulkhead squawked. "Pilot to Major Maarek. Do we have the ejected pilot, sir?" "Yes, lieutenant," he called. "Let's proceed to the assault point." "Yes, sir." I felt the ATR surge ahead. Maarek turned to me with a sarcastic grin. "Looks like you're joining the grunts on this one, captain." I smiled thinly. If I had wanted to experience ground combat I wouldn't have become a pilot. Maarek chuckled. "That Z-95 really flamed your ass, didn't he?" He laughed. He was really enjoying this. "Shouldn't we notify GUSTAV that I'm aboard?" I asked, ig- noring his sarcasm. "Can't break comm silence, captain," he said. "Major," I said, somewhat exasperated, "don't you think that the pirates know by now that we're here?" Maarek gave me a long, cold look. I was questioning him in front of his men and he didn't like it. "Of course the pirates know that we are attacking them with starfighters," he said calmly, patiently, as though explaining something to a child. "But they might not know that three ATRs loaded with stormtroopers are about to descend on them. If it's alright with you, captain, I'd like to keep it that way." I said nothing. He was right, of course. "If you'll excuse me, captain," Maarek said impatiently, "I have an assault to lead." He turned and left the airlock chamber followed by the two troopers. I trailed behind them. We walked down a short passageway, through a blast door into a large troop assembly area. It was the largest compart- ment on the transport. Fifty or more stormtroopers were seat- ed on the long benches that ran the length of the compartment along either bulkhead. They were in full combat gear, assault rifles at the ready. Maarek and the two troopers sat down and strapped themselves in. "Better take a seat, captain," he said indicating a jump seat at the front of the compartment. "It can get a little rough." I sat down and strapped myself in. Maarek grinned at me, then reached behind him and unfastened an assault rifle from a rack on the bulkhead. He looked at the rifle, then tossed it to me. "Here, captain," he said. "You might need this. Try not to hurt yourself." He laughed and pulled on his helmet. I could hear snickers and chuckles from nearby troopers. I examined the rifle. It was set on 'kill.' The intercom speaker squawked with the pilot's voice. "We are commencing our approach on the target. Stand by for evasive maneuvers." The pilot put the ATR through a series of gutwrenching twists and turns as a precaution against possible enemy fire. I don't know if the pirates were shooting at us or not, but we weren't hit. "We are approaching the main tunnel," said the pilot. "Standby for touchdown." -- Star Wars: The TIE Fighter (Part 16) Walter Slaven "Feet up!" Maarek bellowed. Almost as one man the storm- troopers lifted their feet up off the deck. I had no idea why, but I figured there must be a good reason, so I did the same. Maarek turned his helmeted head toward me. "If the landing is too hard," he said, his voice muffled by the face shield, "the shock can break your ankles." I nodded. The ATR touched down with a heavy thud, and skidded to a stop. The back of the transport opened up as a large ramp, which formed the rear wall of the troop compartment, dropped into position. "Let's move," Maarek called as the troopers swiftly released their harnesses and exited the transport. I followed them out. The other two transports had landed on either side of ours and their troops were filing out and forming up quickly. I had to admit that the precision and discipline that they displayed were impressive. The troopers formed up into teams and began moving down the tunnel. The tunnel was quite large, larger than I had thought it would be. It was wide enough for the three ATRs to land side-by-side with plenty of room between them. The tunnel was dimly lit and, due to the smoke and debris from the bombing, I couldn't see to the end. In fact I soon lost sight of the stormtroopers as they systematically moved down the tunnel. The three ATR pilots were standing near the center shuttle, talking. I started to walk toward them when I heard an ex- plosion, then laser fire, erupt down the tunnel. I stopped and turned toward it. The fire got heavier and heavier, the sound reverberating through the tunnel. I could see laser bolts flying about and, above the din, I heard screaming. Presently the firing sputtered and stopped. I couldn't restrain my curiosity and began walking slowly, carefully, down the tunnel, the assault rifle at the ready. I had gone about fifty meters when I came upon the bodies of two stormtroopers that had been ripped apart by some sort of blast. There were parts of another, non-uniformed, body strewn about. I took a deep breath and continued down the tunnel, trying not to slip on the blood and the gore. I went another ten meters and then I saw them. Bodies. Many, many bodies. Some were piled in heaps, some scattered about the tunnel. I drew closer and the vomit suddenly rose in my throat. Many of the bodies were children! Some very young children. At first I thought they must have been killed in the bombing, but then I saw the unmistakable scorch marks of assault rifle blasts. The little bodies had been ripped and blast- ed and were horribly contorted. Amidst the dead children was the occasional body of an adult, some of whom had weapons nearby. In a small alcove, where she had obviously tried to take refuge, was a dead woman, the headless body of an in- fant clutched in her arms. This part of the tunnel was literally awash in gore, blood, limbs and internal organs that had been splattered about. Leading away from the carnage down the tunnel were the bloody footprints of the stormtroopers. It was the most horrific sight I had ever seen. My eyes welled up with tears and I could go no further. I turned my back on the carnage and slowly walked back to the ATRs. The pilots acknowledged me but I walked past them to the rear of Maarek's ATR and sat down on the ramp, my mind numb. I don't know how long I sat there, staring out at the tunnel en- trance, before I heard heavy footsteps approaching. I stood up and looked down the tunnel. Maarek and some of the troopers had returned. Maarek's body armor was splattered with blood, but it was obviously not his own. Maarek pulled off his helmet and grinned at me. "What's the matter, captain?" he asked in mock seriousness. "Does the sight of real combat make you ill?" Again, snickers among the troopers. I walked up to Maarek and looked him coldly in the eye. "Since when," I said slowly, deliberately, biting off each word, "do we massacre children, major?" I was glad to see that Maarek actually flinched. Not much, but he did flinch. He recovered quickly, however. "Ground combat isn't clean and neat and tidy, captain," he said indignantly. "We don't have sensors and scanners that clearly label the enemy, like starfighter pilots do." The contempt was heavy in his voice. "We don't always know what or who will be waiting for us in a tunnel, or on a space platform or down an alley. My orders were to secure this asteroid, and I have done so." I was becoming angrier by the moment. "What orders gave you the right to butcher children?" I noticed that all other con- versation among the troopers had ceased. They were looking at Maarek and me. Senior officers aren't supposed to argue in front of the troops, but I was unconcerned with Imperial protocol at that point. Maarek gave me a long, cold stare. I could tell that he was seething. His disdain for pilots was well known and he was damned if he was going to allow his ground combat leader- ship to be questioned by one. "Captain," he said slowly, fighting to control himself, "we were advancing down a dark tunnel and we were attacked. We returned fire and kept firing until the resistance was over- come. Then we moved on. If these damned Pakuunis want to bring children into a war zone they have only themselves to blame for what happens to them." I was furious at what I was hearing. "What kind of threat did those children pose, Major?" "There was fire coming from that area, captain," Maarek re- plied, obviously becoming as furious as I, but for different reasons. "When someone's shooting at me I don't stop to check their age. How do you know that that pilot who flamed your ass today wasn't some kid? The Rebels have been known to make up for pilot shortages by using sixteen year olds. Are you so sure that none of the pilots you've ever flamed was a kid? Do you even think about it up there?" He paused only for a moment, then answered his own question. "Of course you don't. All you see is an enemy fighter shooting at you. You take him out. That's what we did. I'm sorry if it offends your moral sensibilities, but warfare isn't always clean and neat. I suggest you pull your head out of your flyboy ass and join reality. As long as the Rebels continue to defy our Emperor, and as long as scum like these cooperate with them, this kind of thing is going to happen. Get used to it, captain. This is only the first raid on these pirates." "I don't think you give a fuck what you're shooting at, Major," I said, spitting my words at him. "And I don't think you plan- ned to take any prisoners, either. I think you and your men get your rocks off massacreing anything that gets in your way. The fact that they were children doesn't matter to you at all." Maarek took a step toward me. He was sweating profusely inside that heavy body armor. "My job, captain," he said through clenched teeth,"is to accomplish my mission with as few casualties as possible. I lost two men today. One of your precious 'children'" and he spat the word out,"approached with his hands in the air then detonated a bomb that was hid- den in his clothing. He blew himself up, along with my two men. They were good men, captain, and they both had fam- ilies. Maybe you ought to worry about their kids." He turned away from me and walked into the ATR, where one of the troopers had activated the comm link with GUSTAV. "Notify GUSTAV that we've secured the asteroid," he told the trooper. He turned and looked at me, disgust in his eyes. "Tell them also," he continued, "that we have recovered Cap- tain Tallig and will return him to the ship as soon as we can." I walked away from the ATRs, found a big rock, knelt down behind it and threw up. Several hours later I stepped out of the shower in my quarters on GUSTAV and toweled myself off. I had felt unclean and was trying, unsuccessfully, to wash that feeling away. GUSTAV had jumped into hyperspace after recovering the stormtroopers and starfighters and was proceeding out of the Pakuuni system to prepare for the next raid. The pirate installation on Delta5 had been thoroughly wrecked, and Special Envoy Emoh had seemed quite pleased with the re- sults. My description of what had happened inside the aster- oid hadn't seemed to bother her much. I guess I wasn't really surprised, particularly not after hearing J'Una talk about what kind of person she was. I finished drying off and put on a robe. I went into my sitting room and collapsed onto a couch. I realized just how long and arduous a day it had been, and I suddenly felt very tired. I put my feet up on a stool and was just starting to relax when my door chimed, and I heard the access code being entered. Only J'Una and Kao knew my access code, other than ship security, of course, and I briefly wondered which one of them it was. The door slid open and, to my surprise, both J'Una and Kao strode into my quarters, the door sliding shut behind them. They were both smiling but, at the same time, looked worried or concerned about something. Kao seemed to look me over critically. There I was in my bathrobe lying on the couch, feet propped on a stool, too tired to even stand up and say hello. "Did we have a tough day, captain?" she asked in mock sympathy. Obviously, they weren't worried about me. I smiled weakly. "You could say that." "Pretty dirty business, isn't it?" J'Una asked as she sat down in a chair opposite my couch. Kao pulled up another chair and sat down next to her. I nodded. "If this is the way the Empire operates," I said, "no wonder the Rebels hate us so much. No wonder they have so many allies." J'Una looked at me skeptically. "Just remember that the Rebels destroyed the Death Star and everyone on it," she said. "After Tarkin blew up Alderaan," I said. "At least the Death Star was a military target." "Maarek would tell you that that tunnel was, too," J'Una said. "And the Rebels certainly think that industrial installations are legitimate targets," Kao added. "My parents weren't in the mil- itary." [see pt 4] I stared at them. Were they serious? Were they justifying what I'd seen today? I shook my head in bewilderment and longed for a time, which wasn't that long ago, when things seemed so clear. "So, what are you telling me?" I asked, somewhat plaintively. J'Una gave me a long, cold stare. She was being all business, the complete professional. "I'm telling you something you ought to already know," she said. "War is a dirty, nasty, bloody business and yelling at Maarek in front of his men doesn't help." I had never heard such sternness in her voice directed at me, but she was just getting started. "You are a professional officer in the Imperial Navy, Vel," she continued, her voice rising. "We have a job to do here, so you'd better realize that and not let emotion cloud your good judgment. You wouldn't have survived as long as you have flying TIEs if you did." She paused, and seemed to soften a bit. "A lot of us dislike what we see going on," she said. "But we are professionals and we do our duty. I suggest you remember that." She looked at me, red eyes blazing. I nodded in silent agreement with what she had said. She sat back, speech over. Kao looked back and forth at J'Una and me, then said quietly, "From what J'Una tells me, Vel, the Pakuuni have been more than just space pirates." "What do you mean?" I asked. Kao was about to answer when J'Una interrupted. "What she means is that the Pakuuni are actively supporting the Rebels by funneling stolen Imperial weapons and munitions to them." I sat up, alert. "Imperial weapons? Where do they get them?" J'Una just smiled. I wasn't sure at first why she was smiling. Then, the lights came on inside my head. "Haarkov?" I asked. "Quite possibly," J'Una replied. "Marta Emoh has recently re- ceived some reports from Intelligence that indicate that a lot of ordnance has been moved through here lately and on to the Rebels. So, our raids here may bust up the Rebels' supply lines." "If that's true," I said, "we could be getting some visitors." "If that's true," J'Una echoed, "that would be the whole idea." J'Una deliberated for a moment, then continued. "Marta is also sending and receiving a lot of high level, high- ly encrypted communications from somewhere, but we don't know where. She has her own dedicated comm channels." We sat silently for a few moments. We could all see what was going on. Marta Emoh was attempting to lay a trap, and GUSTAV was the bait. "So you see," J'Una said quietly, "the Pakuuni aren't exactly innocent, either." "I guess no one is," I said, almost to myself. "Not even child- ren." I looked up at J'Una and Kao and, for some reason, thought of Marina Haarkov. "Does Marina know any of this?" I asked. J'Una and Kao shot each other a worried look. Something was up. "She does now," Kao said bitterly. I looked quizzically at J'Una. "That's the other thing we wanted to discuss with you," she said. "Marta has already moved on Marina Haarkov." 'Moved on'? What did that mean? I began to get alarmed. "Did she arrest Marina?" I asked. J'Una and Kao both shook their heads. "No, Vel," J'Una said. "At least not yet. She questioned Marina at considerable length about her father and then flat out told her he is suspected of treason." "She told Marina that?" I was incredulous. What purpose could it have served? J'Una nodded. "Naturally Marina became quite upset and, as she told Kao and me, Marta tried to take advantage of that by seducing her." "Seducing her? What the fuck are you talking about?" Sud- denly that bloody damned tunnel didn't seem so bad. At least there one knew what the fuck was real, and what wasn't. "I told you that Marta is a real smooth operator, and usually gets what she wants," J'Una said. "Marina told us that before she knew what was happening Marta had her coveralls un- zipped and was fondling her breasts and kissing her. She has quite an effective technique." She paused, looking directly at me. "I know." I sat back, slightly stunned. Kao looked nervously from me to J'Una. "Marina started to submit," she said to me, "but then she saw that Tomba character approaching with his cock hanging out and she wanted nothing more to do with them. So she left and came to see us. She was nearly hy- sterical." "How did Marina manage to get away?" "Marta let her go," J'Una said matter-of-factly. "She may be somewhat predatory, but she's not a rapist. Nothing's been proven about Admiral Haarkov yet, and Marina is an Im- perial officer. Marta knows her limitations." "Does Commander Cibock know any of this?" I asked. J'Una nodded. "I discussed it with him. There isn't much he can do, however. Marta has been given virtually unlimited authority by the Imperial Staff. Cibock can protest through channels if he wants to, but it won't do much good." "So, what do we do?" "'WE' do nothing," J'Una said sternly. "I will talk to Marta about Marina. You two say nothing about this and stick to flying your missions and accomplishing what we need to accomplish out here." Kao and I nodded our concurrence. "Remember," J'Una continued, "Marta is out here trying to find and stop whomever it is that's supplying weapons to our enemies." "And, after all," I said sarcastically, "it is only the word of an Ensign against an Imperial Special Envoy who was merely con- ducting an inquiry." J'Una looked at me and smiled. "That's the smartest thing you've said all evening." I flopped back on the couch, defeated. J'Una was right, and I knew it and it angered me. I couldn't get the vision of those slaughtered children out of my mind, and no amount of words about 'targets' and 'Rebel sympathizers' could change the way I felt about it. Pragmatically speaking, J'Una was right. I knew that she had been disturbed by the Alderaan episode, but she seemed to have been able to put it behind her and carry on as a loyal, professional Imperial Officer. I wondered if I could. I gazed at the overhead and let out a sigh. "It looks like the captain has had a tough day, Commander." Kao's voice. I moved my gaze from the cieling to the two females. Kao was looking at me and smiling mischievously, blue eyes sparkling, red hair flowing about her shoulders. J'Una glanced at Kao, then looked at me. Her red eyes were glowing as she stood up and walked purposefully over to where I was sitting. She reached down and unceremoniously opened my robe. She looked down at my penis, which was resting limply against my thigh. She straightened and looked over at Kao. "I think you're right, Captain," she said to her. "He has had a tough day." She sank to her knees next to the couch and took my cock in her hands, stroking it softly at first. She smiled up at me, then bent her head down and licked the tip of my penis, running her tongue around the head. My cock began surging to life and I suddenly didn't feel so tired. Kao stood up from her chair and began peeling off her uni- form. Naked, she moved toward the couch, her blue eyes sparkling, her full lips slightly parted, her red hair flowing gent- ly over her shoulders and caressing her breasts, whose nipples were already hard with arousal. She was a true vision of ele- gant beauty and my prick surged to greater hardness at the sight of her. Kao knelt down next to J'Una and ran her hands through the Bardin's lush black hair. J'Una lifted her mouth from my cock and turned to Kao, her hands never missing a stroke on my rod. The two females leaned toward each other, their lips pressing in a deep, passionate kiss, their tongues battling in- side their mouths. Kao moaned and her hands clutched J'Una's hair firmly, pulling her tighter against her mouth. J'Una's hands abruptly abandoned my cock and moved to Kao's breasts. Her long fingers, ebony against the ivory white- ness of Kao's skin, fondled and gently caressed the redhead's breasts, eliciting soft groans of pleasure. Kao broke the kiss and drew her face back, gazing at J'Una with lust in her eyes as J'Una pinched and tugged at Kao's swollen nipples. J'Una gently cupped one of Kao's breasts in her hand and, bending down, ran her tongue over the turgid nipple. Kao gasped and looked over J'Una to me. "You like this?" she asked, teasing me. She gasped again as J'Una opened her mouth wide and took as much of Kao's tit inside her mouth as she could. J'Una, who hadn't removed any of her clothing yet, wrapped her powerful arms around the red- headed starfighter pilot and pulled her to her, her mouth sucking insatiably at Kao's breast. I knew what it felt like to have J'Una's hot mouth go to work on my cock, so I could imagine that Kao was feeling similar pleasure. "You see why I'm glad she's not dead?" Kao said, laughing. "I get the picture," I replied, grinning at her. "It would have been a shame to have wasted such a good fuck." Kao laughed again and nodded in sarcastic agreement. J'Una released Kao's tit from her mouth and sat up, looking at each of us in turn. "It's good to be appreciated," J'Una said, her voice caustic. J'Una stood up and began unbutton- ing her tunic. Kao remained on her knees and, reaching up, began tugging at J'Una's trousers, eager to get at her pussy. J'Una pulled off the tunic and tossed it aside, her magnificent breasts coming into view. She cupped her hands under those twin ebony towers, pinching the nipples with finger and thumb, pointing them at me in a gesture of offering. Her red eyes were hot and she smiled salaciously at me. Kao finally worked J'Una's boots and trousers off and ran her hands up along the insides of the Bardin's sleek, dark thighs. As Kao's fingers slid inexorably toward the juncture of her thighs, J'Una straddled her legs slightly, and reached down and ran her hands through Kao's long red hair. Kao's probing fingers met at the entrance to J'Una's cunt. She inserted a fin- ger and moved it in and out of J'Una's very wet pussy. J'una straightened and gasped in pleasure. Kao's tongue quickly accompanied her finger and she licked and sucked at J'Una's pussy lips. Needless to say, I was becoming quite aroused by the sight of these two beautiful females going at it right in front of me. My cock was rock hard and, after the day I'd had, some sex- ual diversion seemed just what I needed. As much as I want- ed to dive right in, I was enjoying watching Kao lap noisily at J'Una's dripping snatch, and hearing J'Una moan and grunt with pleasure. It was quite stimulating, so I contented myself with sitting on the couch and lazily stroking my prick, my eyes glued to the sight before me. Kao reached through J'Una's legs and grasped her buttocks, pulling her snatch against her mouth, her tongue snaking into J'Una's cunt. J'Una was moaning and wriggling with excite- ment, her breasts tense, nipples hard, her hands firmly grasp- ing Kao's head, holding it against her. I could see Kao's teeth and tongue working on J'Una's cuntlips and clit, causing the Bardin to shudder with ecstacy. Although Kao was lapping hungrily, she missed some of the heavy flow of cunt juice that poured out of J'Una's pussy and ran down the insides of her thighs, a sheen on her already gleaming black skin. Kao's fingers worked their way between J'Una's buttocks and probed her asshole. She thrust a finger hard into J'Una's anus as she increased the tempo of her licking and sucking on J'Una's cunt. I could sense that J'Una was losing control, and was about to explode. Her head was back, her red eyes were blazing and she thrust against Kao's invading finger, brutally impaling herself as she held Kao's face even tighter against her, nearly smothering Kao with her cunt. J'Una grunted and groaned and thrashed her hips about, but Kao kept her face glued to the tall Bardin's cunt, licking, biting, sucking at her. Kao's finger continued its brutal probe of J'Una's ass, pushing in deeper and deeper with each thrust. Kao continued her assault on J'Una's pussy, her tongue a blur against J'Una's swollen and distended cuntlips. J'Una threw her head back and growled in ecstacy, her thighs qui- vered visibly and her knees buckled collapsing her and Kao into a heap on the deck, Kao's mouth never losing contact with J'Una's cunt. Kao's finger continued to penetrate J'Una as she thrashed about on the deck in the throes of her or- gasm. The sight of Kao's puckered asshole and dripping pussy pointing directly at me was too much. I could remain a silent onlooker no longer. I walked on my knees across the deck to where the two females were thrashing and writhing, my bobbing erection leading the way. I maneuvered in between Kao's legs, her ass facing me as she continued to eat at J'Una's pussy. I gripped her hips and, placing the head of my cock against her cuntlips, plunged it deep into her, shoving her face against J'Una. Kao raised her face, now covered with J'Una's cuntjuice, and smiled at her Bardin lover. "He is good, isn't he?" she asked, grunting as I thrust into her again. J'Una smiled down at Kao, running her hand through the pi- lot's long red hair. "Yes he is," she agreed, smiling over her at me. "For a man." She laughed at her own joke, gasping as Kao resumed lick- ing her pussy. I got into a comfortable rhythm as I fucked Kao's hot, wet pussy. She thrust back at me, her pussy gripping me tightly. She didn't have J'Una's amazing cunt muscles, but her cunt had a good grip just the same. J'Una disengaged herself from Kao's mouth and moved to kneel next to me behind Kao as I started to pound into Kao. She kissed me and ran her hands across my chest, pinching my nipples. I closed my eyes, savoring the sensations, my pulsating erection pistoning in and out of Kao's cunt, my balls slapping against her. J'Una bent down and kissed and licked Kao's buttocks and gently probed her anus with her tongue. Kao groaned, burying her face in her hands, and thrust her ass harder against me. "Turnabout is fair play, no?" J'Una asked as she continued to lick at Kao's anus. Kao's entire body shuddered and she moved her hands to her breasts, pulling harshly at the nipples. J'Una moved a hand between my legs and squeezed my balls. I groaned and increased my thrusting into Kao. J'Una maneuvered herself so that she slithered between my legs and laid on her back underneath us, her face inches from the juncture of my cock and Kao's cunt. She reached up with her tongue and licked us, her hands stroking Kao's legs. "God, J'Una," Kao gasped, grunting with my thrusts, "This is so good. So good." Looking down between us I could see J'Una's tongue going to work on Kao's swollen clit. That did it. Kao started to wail and shudder, overcome by her orgasm. J'Una grasped my cock, pulled it out of Kao and took it into her mouth sucking and stroking me. J'Una's artful mouth on my cock quickly sent me over the edge. Cum shot forth from my prick, rapidly filling her mouth, spilling out of the corners like white lava. J'Una swallowed heavily and continued sucking on me. Kao quickly reversed her position and licked my balls, moving up my cock to where it entered J'Una's mouth. She licked the cum that had dribbled down the side of J'Una's face. Kao grasped my cock and eased it out of J'Una's cum filled mouth and licked and sucked the last of my orgasm from me. I collapsed onto the deck as the two females began kissing each other, my cum still drooling from J'Una's mouth. It was an exhausting end to a long day. I fell asleep on the deck. -- Star Wars: The TIE Fighter (part 17) Walter Slaven We flew two more missions against Pakuuni installations with similar results, with the exception that I managed to get through them without getting my ass shot off. I also didn't have to get a closeup view of Major Maarek's handiwork. I was grateful for that. Although the Pakuuni weren't caught napping the way they were on the first raid, they offered feeble opposition to our forces. As I've pointed out before the Z-95, while still avail- able in great numbers, is obsolete and seriously flawed, and the fact that the Pakuuni were not trained to fight as a military unit only made things worse for them. I was impressed, how- ever, by the bravery demonstrated by those pilots. They had to know they were totally outclassed, yet they still put up the stiffest resistance that they could. And they died doing it. It was on the second of those two missions that Maarek's men hit the jackpot, and validated the suspicions that Marta Emoh and the Imperial High Command had held all along. Maarek's men discovered and siezed a huge cache of Im- perial weapons and munitions that were being prepared for transfer to the Rebels. Now, there was no longer any doubt that someone was supplying arms to our enemies. The ques- tion of who that someone was was quickly answered. Marta and J'Una ran a trace on the weapons siezed and discovered, to no one's surprise, that they came from Imperial depots that were under the authority of Admiral Haarkov. "The trap's been baited," J'Una told me. "Now we'll see what we catch." GUSTAV came out of hyperspace and, once again, we pre- pared to strike. This time our target was an installation that had been identified on a small moon called Echo 3 that orbit- ed the outer most planet of the system. Since the Pakuuni and, presumably, the Rebels knew we would be coming again, it was speculated that they might have moved much of their supplies and munitions out of the system. Marta Emoh had acknowledged such speculation but stated her be- lief that our incessant destruction of these installations had to be hurting the Rebels and that the mission was worth con- tinuing. I found myself in complete agreement with her view. The overhead crane had lowered my TIE through the open launch bay doors in the bottom of GUSTAV's hull and re- leased me into space. I engaged the twin ion engines and my new TIE- it was one of the replacements we picked up at Tatooine- surged forward. I did my customary loop around GUSTAV and established communications while I waited for my flight group to assemble. "GUSTAV, Gamma One," I called. "Flight group forming up." "Roger, Gamma One." J'Una's voice, confident, professional, assured. "Be advised that our sensors are detecting no, re- peat no, Pakuuni activity." I glanced at my sensor displays. They didn't show anything, either. No electronic emissions at all; not from Z-95s; not even from our intended target. The hair started to rise on the back of my neck. "Concur, GUSTAV," I replied. "I don't have anything." "They might be hiding among the asteroids," J'Una offered, but I could tell that she was no more convinced of that theory than I was. To hide a large group of Z-95s among an asteroid field without emitting any kind of signal, be it a stray communication or a scanner, required a much high- er degree of training and discipline than what the Pak- uuni had thus far demonstrated. No, I was starting to feel that maybe, this time, we were the ones being set up. "I don't think so, GUSTAV," I replied. "Nevertheless, my flight has formed up, as has Tau flight." On my sensor dis- play I could see Kao's group in formation following my own. "We will proceed through the asteroids toward the tar- get." "Roger, Gamma One," J'Una replied. "Proceed." "Gamma leader to Tau leader," I called to Kao, "we're moving out to transit the asteroids. Neither GUSTAV nor we have detected any enemy activity at all. Follow at a safe distance." "Roger, Gamma leader," Kao replied, "we'll take station about-" "Hyperspace alert! Hyperspace alert!" J'Una's voice, excited. "Vessels coming out of hyperspace and they aren't ours!" Flashes of blue streaked across the blackness of space as numerous vessels exited hyperspace right in front of us. X- wings. Lots of them. Shit. "Gamma leader to all flights," I called, a little excited myself. Now we were up against Rebel pilots, not poor, untrained Pakuuni in inferior craft. "We have Rebel X-wings exiting hyperspace at zero-one-four, mark six. Attack formation delta. Let's hit them before they get organized." Formation delta is a tight wedge formation. I figured we had to respond fast and strike quickly. The Rebels would need a little time to get formed up and see where everybody was once they all ended their hyperspace journey. They wouldn't need much time, mind you. They were highly trained pro- fessionals who knew their business. My initial goal was to hit them with a tight formation, a mailed fist, and take some of them out. This would have the effect of improving our odds and disrupting their formation. "Accelerate to max speed, charge lasers, activate missile targeting." I increased speed and my TIE raced forward, the rest of my group in a tight wedge on either side of me. As usual, Dromo was on my left wing. I activated my missile targeting and picked out the first X-wing that I saw. The TIE fighter doesn't normally carry missiles. Many of ours had been modified by Vice Admiral Thrawn's technicians on MoftaIV [see pt 2] and, since then, our own techs, armed with new schematics and materials, had modified all new TIEs. I was counting on the fact that these Rebels probably didn't know we had missiles and were expecting your aver- age TIE with just two lasers. A series of high pitched beeps told me that I had a lock on the X-wing. I fired a missile and toggled to dual lasers. I had vectored our approach so that we closed from an angle. It was near suicide for an unshielded TIE to attack head-on against the heavily shielded, quad laser firing, X-wing. The X-wing pilot had nearly all of the advantages: shields, heavy armor, four lasers, missiles and a companion droid which acted as a second pilot. The X-wing had a superior power plant, an ejection system that was flawless, and could match the TIE in speed. The TIE's only advantage was superior maneuverability. It could turn circles around the X-wing and accelerate and decelerate much faster. We also had certain technological advantages such as speed-matching which we had to exploit to the fullest if we were to survive combat with X-wings. All of these considerations passed swiftly through my mind as my missile found its mark, taking down the X-wing's shields. We piled into the X-wings and I destroyed my target with several well-placed laser blasts. I saw a number of ex- plosions as other X-wings suffered similar fates. We had suc- ceeded in getting in the first blow. More X-wings came out of hyperspace and the battle degen- erated into a free-for-all. Kao's group slammed into the melee and all semblance of cohesion was lost. Several TIEs were vaporized as the Rebels started shooting back with a vengeance. Green and red laser bolts streaked across space and the commlinks were alive with excited pilot chatter. Dromo and I teamed up and dispached several more X- wings, always endeavoring to attack from behind. We were holding our own against the X-wings and, as the battle de- veloped, we were actually beginning to gain the upper hand. The Rebels, however, were disciplined, seasoned pilots and fought back hard. Their quad lasers blasted more TIEs into space junk and we continued our dance of death. I performed a series of twists and loops, using the TIE's maneuverability, and targeted an X-wing from behind. My missile system had just achieved a lock when J'Una's voice, now almost electric with tension, came across the comm link. "Hyperspace alert! Capital ship coming out of hyperspace." A capital ship? That's all we needed was some Rebel Cal- amari light cruiser or something. A large blue streak flashed across my field of vision as a sizeable ship came out of hy- perspace. My sensors immediately told me that it was an Imperial class Star Destroyer. It immediately began launch- ing TIEs. Help had arrived. I started to relax just a bit. My sense of relief lasted about five seconds. "Gamma One, GUSTAV," J'Una called. "You are to con- sider the Star Destroyer and its fighters as enemy craft. Attack at once. I say again, the Star Destroyer is to be considered an enemy vessel." What the fuck? Had they been drinking some of Dromo's nasty concoctions? "GUSTAV, Gamma One," I replied, "Repeat instructions." "That Star Destroyer is the PREDATOR," J'Una said stern- ly. PREDATOR was Admiral Haarkov's ship. But, would Haarkov attack fellow Imperials? That would give him away for certain. "Captain Tallig," Marta's voice, stern, forceful, exasperated. "Captain Tallig, this is Special Envoy Emoh. We have reason to believe that Admiral Haarkov and his entire crew are de- fecting. Do you understand? Defecting! Now shut up and attack before they destroy us all and take an entire Star Des- troyer over to the Rebels!" Defecting? An Admiral in the Imperial Navy? What the fuck was happening to us? "Roger, GUSTAV," I replied. "Gamma Leader to all flights, this is Captain Tallig. Consider Star Destroyer and her fight- ers as hostiles. Change squawk to two-three-two-two. I say again, change squawk to two-three-two-two. Authentication code Alfa Sierra one." I ordered all of our starfighters to change their identification codes to read 2322 as friendly, and all other codes as hos- tile. This would help us differentiate between ourselves and the PREDATOR's TIE's who I assumed would be squawk- ing standard Imperial codes. Or maybe not, but I didn't want to take the chance. I received verification that our flights had switched codes and confirmed it by checking my sensors. The PREDA- TOR's TIEs now showed up as hostile. The PREDATOR's TIEs had formed up and were approaching us while the PREDATOR herself closed on GUSTAV, intending to take her under fire with her considerable battery of heavy lasers. This did not look good. We were heavily outnumbered by the combination of X-wings and TIEs, and PREDATOR, an IMPERIAL class Star Destroyer, was easily three times GUSTAV's size. "GUSTAV, Gamma One," I called. "We will engage these TIEs, but there's an awful lot of them." "Roger, Gamma One," J'Una replied. "We are launching our TIE bombers to assist you." Bombers? To assist us in a dog- fight? Things must be desperate. "I don't know how much good those bombers can do, GUSTAV," I replied. "Unless they can make some torp- edo runs on that Star Destroyer. Watch out for those heavy turbo lasers." "Acknowledged, Gamma One," she replied. "Let's all do our best." Her voice sounded expectant, as though she were an- ticipating something. I couldn't imagine what, and drove those thoughts from my mind as I concentrated on the task at hand: killing fellow Imperials. I targeted an approaching TIE, switching my weapons system to use my last missile. I was hoping that PREDATOR's TIEs hadn't been modified, and that we could get the jump on them. "Gamma leader to all flights," I called, "If you have any miss- iles left, use them now." My targeting system beeped, indicating a lock, and I pressed the trigger, lamenting for a moment the fact that I was about to kill a fellow Imperial pilot. Seconds later the missile slammed into the unshielded TIE, disintegrating it in a bright flash. Other missiles streaked toward the opposing TIEs, most of them finding their marks. We had narrowed the odds a bit, and messed up their formation. We attacked while they were trying to reform. "Stay with me, Dromo," I called as we piled into the PRE- DATOR's TIEs. I quickly took one out with my lasers. "I'm right with you, captain," he replied. With Dromo on my wing I threaded my way through the giant fuzzball of battling starfighters. I targeted a PREDATOR TIE that had just flamed one of ours. I slipped behind him, switch- ed my lasers to rapid single fire and opened up. My shots ripped the port solar panel to shreds, then pounded the hull. The TIE exploded. "Gamma One, GUSTAV," J'Una's voice in my ear. "PRE- DATOR is launching more TIE fighters." Shit. We were having a hard enough time with those we were already en- gaged with. "Roger, GUSTAV," I replied. "This isn't looking too good." "Continue your attack, Captain," Marta Emoh interjected. Her voice was tough, hard, no-nonsense. "Acknowledged, GUSTAV," I said. On my sensor display I could see more TIEs pouring out of the bottom of the Star Destroyer. I could also see that PREDATOR was closing on GUSTAV. Soon the two ships would be exchanging turbo laser fire and there was only one way that that fight could end. I dived through the wave of oncoming TIEs, taking out two on the first pass. Dromo nailed one that had tried to slip in behind me. The perfect wingman, always watching my ass. PREDATOR had closed GUSTAV and the two starships began exchanging heavy laser fire. A spectacular fireworks show erupted as huge green and red laser bolts were flung through space. I saw GUSTAV shudder as she took seve- ral hits. "GUSTAV, Gamma One," I called. "You still there?" There was a pause, then J'Una's voice. She was coughing and sputtering. "We've taken several hits, Gamma One," she replied. "Damage and casualties," she coughed again. I could see that GUSTAV would get pounded into space junk if this continued. With no place to land, and no hyper- space capability to get us anywhere, my pilots and I would be doomed. The TIE bombers that J'Una had mentioned earlier had finished launching. I had the idea that maybe we could buy some time. Time for what I wasn't sure. "Alpha One, Gamma One," I called to the bomber leader. "You guys got torpedoes?" I hoped like hell that they did. "Affirmative, Gamma One," was the reply. "This is Captain Tallig," I said. "I want you to form your group for an attack run on the Star Destroyer." There was a pause. "Attack a Star Destroyer?" "That's what I said, Alpha One," I nearly yelled back at him. "She's about to pound GUSTAV into space junk, so move your ass or you won't have a place to park it later." That got his attention. "Roger, Gamma One." "I'll provide escort," I told him. "Now move." I saw the bombers form up and start toward PREDATOR. "Gamma leader to Tau leader," I called to Kao. "Keep those fighters busy. Gamma Two and I will cover the bom- bers while they make a run on PREDATOR." "Acknowledged, Gamma leader," Kao replied. "Good luck." "Let's go, Dromo," I called to my wingman. We quickly intercepted the bombers and slowed to match their speed. The PREDATOR's TIEs were preoccupied with dogfighting our groups and didn't molest Dromo and me and the bombers as we approached her. PREDATOR's crew must have noticed us, but didn't recall any fighter support, probably be- cause she was so heavily armed with missile batteries and heavy turbo-lasers that an attack by a group of TIE bombers wasn't deemed serious enough. I'm not sure what they were thinking, but no fighters interfered with our approach. I didn't complain. PREDATOR's heavy batteries opened up on us and two bombers disappeared in a matter of milliseconds. The bomber leader ordered evasive action and his formation dissolved as each pilot attempted to approach on his own. With only our puny lasers, Dromo and I could do nothing to a Star Destroyer, but we hung around anyway, drawing fire away from the bombers and covering them in case the fighters returned. Several of the bombers actually got close enough to launch and the heavy blue streaks of proton torpedoes slashed across space as they released their weapons. Incredibly, several of the torpedoes made it through PREDATOR's heavy defensive fire and slammed into the Star Destroyer's port side. I knew the a mere three torpedoes would neither destroy, nor seriously disable, a Star Destroyer. I did hope, however, that a few hits might take out a vital system or two, maybe cut power to some weapons, cause confusion, or merely make Haarkov and his people reconsider what it was that they were doing. Small chance of that, though. "GUSTAV, Gamma One," I called. "We've scored several hits on PREDATOR. We've damaged her shields, but be- yond that I cannot assess any damage." "Roger, Gamma One," J'Una replied, her voice now com- posed, calm, in control. "PREDATOR's fire has slackened noticeably. Well done. We will recall the bombers for re- loading. Stand by for ATR launch." Reload bombers? ATR launch? What the fuck were these people thinking? I was thinking that, now that we might have a little time on our side we'd recall all of our starfighters and GUSTAV could hyperspace the hell out of here. That seem- ed the rational approach to me. I couldn't imagine Comman- der Cibock leaving his ship in danger any longer than he had to. But, perhaps Marta Emoh was overruling him. Who knew? "Roger, GUSTAV," I replied. Dromo and I shepherded the remaining bombers back toward GUSTAV. The TIE vs TIE dogfight was still going strong. Kao and her groups seemed to be holding their own, though their losses were considerable. I still had trouble believing that Imperials were killing Imperials. The Rebels must be laughing their heads off. Dromo and I had just looped around GUSTAV, the last of the bombers having returned, when J'Una's voice came over the commlink. "Hyperspace alert! Large capital ship coming out of hyper- space!" Oh, shit, I thought. Not some Rebel ship like a Calamari cruiser. We'd be fucked for sure. Funny, though. J'Una didn't sound terrified. I would have been. I saw the ATRs, carrying Maarek and his stormtroopers, launch and begin their transit toward PREDATOR in what I thought was a suicidal gesture. Dromo and I made a hard left turn, placing us between GUSTAV and PREDATOR, who seemed to have re- covered from the torpedo attack and was once again clo- sing our frigate. Suddenly, the entire expanse of space in front of me seemed to be ripped asunder by an enormous blue flash. My sensors, temporarily overwhelmed, whited out on me and I squinted through the brightness in an effort to see what was happening. A VICTORY class Star Destroyer, several times larger than PREDATOR, came out of hyperspace and immediately began launching dozens of TIE squadrons. They poured out of her like angry bees, heading swiftly toward the dogfight that was still going on. My first thought was, whose side are these guys on? My sensors had recovered enough to get an ID on the newcomer. It was VANGUARD, Vice Admiral Thrawn's ship. I smiled to myself because I figured he had to be on our side. "Gamma One, GUSTAV," J'Una called. She sounded bouy- ant, optimistic. "VANGUARD will attack and disable PRE- DATOR. Escort the ATRs who will board her." "Yes, Ma'am," I said, relieved. Perhaps we'd live through this after all. Dromo and I raced after the ATRs as VANGUARD op- ened up with a heavy ion cannon volley, the blue bolts pounding into PREDATOR. The ion cannon is designed to disable a ship's ion driven power plant, thus crippling its prop- ulsion and weapons systems. From where I sat, PREDATOR was having the crap pounded out of her. The dogfight ended almost immediately. Seeing the swarm of TIEs from VANGUARD descending on them, the re- maining PREDATOR TIEs either surrendered on the spot or ran. They might have been seeking refuge among the pirates in the asteroids, but that didn't bode well. The Re- bels had all hyperspaced out, leaving their Allies out on a limb. Typical. For all their talk about liberty and taking on the Empire, the Rebels were little more than cowardly terrorists in my book. When the going got tough, they got gone. Kao and her fighters turned over the renegades to VANGUARD's fighters, then proceeded back to GUSTAV. VANGUARD's ion cannon barrage continued to slam into PREDATOR. The smaller ship tried to fight back but was quickly overwhelmed. Her ion power disrupted, PRE- DATOR drifted limply, helpless. Dromo and I escorted Maarek's ATRs to PREDATOR's launching bays, then doubled back to do likewise for a dozen ATRs from VAN- GUARD. It was apparent that PREDATOR was to be boarded and siezed, and the ringleaders arrested. I shook my head in admiration. Marta Emoh had apparently had this entire operation planned to the second, and she pulled it off. Dromo and I linked up with VANGUARD's ATRs and head- ed toward PREDATOR. Halfway there, I saw Maarek's lead ATR exit PREDATOR's launching bay, heading toward GUSTAV. At the same time, a command shuttle departed VANGUARD, also headed for GUSTAV. I didn't see a need to provide escort for VANGUARD's ATRs since their was no opposition, so Dromo and I broke off and headed toward GUSTAV. Most of our fighters, in- cluding Kao's group had been recalled. VANGUARD's nu- merous squadrons had fanned out, patrolling the area. It was the most abrupt, and decisive, end to a battle I had ever seen. "GUSTAV, Gamma One, requesting landing sequence," I called, changing frequencies. "You'll have to come in manually, Gamma One," was the reply from the flight control officer. "The tractor beams are at reduced power, and we have priority traffic ahead of you." "Roger, GUSTAV," I responded. "Manual it is." "Be advised that there is a lot of traffic and activity in the hangar," the flight control officer said, almost apologetically. "I'll have my people clear a path for you to your stalls." "Thanks," I said dryly. Great. We damn near get wiped out by our own people and I have to thread my way through who knew what on retros just to land. I shook my head. "Gamma Two, we're going in on retros," I called to Dromo. "Understood." I made my approach toward GUSTAV's landing bay and saw the shuttle from VANGUARD begin her landing se- quence. As I drew closer I saw the markings on the craft. It was Vice Admiral Thrawn's personal shuttle. Major Maarek's ATR had just completed landing. I could see a crowd of people in the landing bay. I guessed that that was what the flight control officer was talking about. I cut my engines and engaged the retros, gliding slowly into the bay. I saw a lot of heads turning toward me. The TIE's power plant makes a lot of noise. Combined with the retros, the sound can be deafening, particularly within the confines of an enclosed hangar deck. I set my TIE down in my stall and rapidly flipped all the switches to 'off', not bothering to go through the post-flight check-list. Once everything was shut down I unhooked the commlink, took off my helmet, dropped through the hatch in the bottom of the hull to the hangar's deck, and walked across the hangar toward the shuttles, both of which had completed their landing sequen- ces. I pulled rank a few times and managed to push my way to the front of the crowd that had gathered around the shuttles. I saw Kao near the front and moved to stand next to her. Marta Emoh, with Tomba and a squad of stormtroopers, was in the center of the area between the shuttles. She was unarmed, but Tomba had his hands on his holstered blasters, and the stormtroopers had their assault rifles at the ready. I looked at Kao inquisitively. "Maarek's brought in Admiral Haarkov," she said. "Captured him after a fire-fight on PREDATOR." "So it was him after all," I said quietly. Kao nodded. The buzz of conversation among the crowd in the hangar deck came to an abrupt halt as the door to VANGUARD's shuttle opened and Vice-Admiral Thrawn stepped out. As usual, he was impeccably dressed, his admiral's uniform crisp and neat, medals clinking softly as he descended the stepladder. I realized that most of the crew had never seen him before and his blue skin, deep red eyes and gleaming black hair must have seemed an odd combination. Most people, I was sure, didn't know that there was a non-human admiral in the Imperial Navy. Thrawn moved with seemingly effortless grace to where Marta was standing. They nodded acknowledgement to each other, but said not a word. I guess they didn't have to. Marta and Thrawn turned their attention to the ATR as the rear ramp opened. Several troopers, weapons at the ready, came down the ramp followed by Major Maarek, who was holding Admiral Haarkov by his uniform collar, shoving him roughly down the ramp. I heard Kao gasp as we got a good look at Haarkov. A blow to the left side of his face had swollen the eye shut. There was blood on the side of his face, in his mouth, and mat- ted in his hair. His complexion was pasty and he was sweating profusely. His uniform was torn and soiled. As he descended the ramp he grimaced in pain at the restrainers that bound his arms tightly behind his back. He was, in short, a mess. It was hard to believe that this was the same man who had been a- board our ship, in command of an operation, only a short time ago. Straggling out behind the admiral, similarly bruised and bound, were other officers. I presumed that they were Haar- kov's fellow defectors from PREDATOR. Maarek rudely jerked Haarkov along by the collar until they were standing in front of Thrawn's shuttle facing the admiral and Marta Emoh. Haarkov drew himself up straight and, with his one good eye, glared at the Special Envoy. Marta glared right back and, for a long moment, the two of them were lock- ed in some kind of psychological power struggle. Haarkov's stare was one of defiance, Marta's one of sheer malevolence. Finally, the Imperial Special Envoy broke the silence. "Well, Admiral Haarkov," she said, her voice dripping with a combination of hatred and triumph, "it would appear that the Emperor's suspicions about you were well founded." -- Star Wars: The TIE Fighter (Part 18 Final) Walter Slaven Haarkov, for his part, didn't try to deny the obvious. He drew himself up and spat a great gob of spit and blood at Marta. It struck her tunic just above the left breast and dribbled down her front. Marta shook with rage and raised her hand as if to strike Haarkov. Haarkov just looked at her, not seeming to care if she hit him or not. Marta lowered her hand. Sneering at her from behind a bruised face, cut lips and broken teeth, Haarkov spoke loudly, but with some difficulty. "This Empire is evil!" he shouted. "Evil! The Emperor and Vader murder millions! You all have blood on your hands." This time Marta did hit him, the sound of her slap echoing across the hangar. Haarkov's head snapped sharply to one side with the force of the blow, but he returned his defiant stare to Marta. "You are a traitor, Admiral," she said quietly, her voice heavy with emotion. "You tried to turn over weapons and technology and a starship to our enemies! I am sure Lord Vader will look forward to questioning you." Her voice oozed maliciousness. At the mention of Vader's name all color seemed to drain from Haarkov's face. "NO! Daddy!" A voice shrieked across the hangar and Marina Haarkov pushed her way through the crowd, past the stormtroopers and flung her arms around Haarkov, sob- bing. The admiral tried to comfort her, but his arms were securely bound and he struggled in vain. He could only kiss her head and murmur something which I couldn't hear. Marta stared at them for a long moment and I saw a look of absolute evil pass across her face. Her eyes narrowed and her lip curled upward in a snarl. "Arrest the daughter," she said to Maarek, who seemed stunned. "No!" Haarkov shouted. "You can't. She's done nothing." An angry buzz passed through the crowd of assembled GUSTAV crewmembers. They may not have known all of the particulars of what was going on, but they knew Marina and cared about her and couldn't believe she had done any- thing wrong. In response, some of Thrawn's stormtroopers formed a wall between us and the scene that was playing itself out on our hangar deck. One of them shoved Kao into me and I had to grab her to keep her from falling. Marta seemed surprised by our reaction and was momen- tarily taken aback. Her gaze darted fleetingly from the crowd to the troopers to Thrawn to the Haarkovs and Maarek, and back. She took a deep breath and glared at Major Maarek who actually seemed unsure what to do. "Major," she said loudly, imperiously. "You will take Ensign Haarkov into custody." "No you won't." Another voice. J'Una's. I strained to locate her. She pushed her way through the crowd and shoved a stormtrooper aside. He didn't resist. Heads turned as she strode toward Marta and Admiral Thrawn. She had an open cut above her left eye, her uniform was torn and splattered with blood, her hair was in disarray and her black skin was gleaming. She appeared to be almost wild, but her eyes were cool and determined and she strode purposefully, ra- diating power and authority. I didn't start to worry until I saw the blaster in her right hand. I started to worry even more when I saw Tomba, hands on his holstered blasters, edge closer to Marta. I cursed the fact that I was unarmed. J'Una walked directly toward Marta and placed herself be- tween the Special Envoy and the Haarkovs and Maarek, who still looked confused. She held the blaster by her side, not pointing it at anybody. But Marta saw it, and frequently glanced down at it. "This officer has done nothing," J'Una said quietly, coldly, indicating Marina with a nod. "There is no evidence against her. You will not take her." She spoke as though what she was saying was a simple, unrefuted fact. Marta looked as though she had been slapped. "By what authority do you dare speak to me this way, Commander?" she asked haughtily. She glared hotly at J'Una. J'Una return- ed the glare with a cool stare. "Commander Cibock was seriously injured during the attack," she said, "and is receiving medical attention. I have assumed command of this vessel and as Commander I am telling you that you will not take one of my officers for your own personal reasons." She left unspoken what she meant by 'personal reasons,' but I'm sure Marta got the point. Her eyes widened in surprise and anger. "How dare you speak to me this way," Marta said angrily, almost spitting the words at J'Una. While the two females were glaring at each other Tomba made his move. He stepped forward, his hands pulling the blasters out of their holsters. Before a surprised J'Una could react Major Maarek lunged forward and jammed the barrel of his assault rifle into Tomba's chest. "I don't think so," Maarek snarled. Tomba stepped back quickly and raised his hands, the blasters sliding back into their holsters. J'Una returned her gaze to Marta. Vice Admiral Thrawn, who had been watching all this with a somewhat bemused expression on his face, stepped forward and spoke to Marta. "Special Envoy," he said smoothly, "perhaps the commander is right. After all, we have the traitor, Admiral Haarkov, and his lackies and their starship, surely not a bad day's work?" Marta glared at him but said nothing. Thrawn smiled wanly at her and continued. "Ensign Haarkov isn't going anywhere," he said. "If further investigation reveals complicity on her part we know where to find her." He paused, then added almost as an afterthought,"With your concurrence of course." Marta stared at him, shock etched in her features. J'Una turned back toward Marina. "Ensign Haarkov," she said forcefully, "lay to your quarters immediately." Marina continued to sob, and looked up at J'Una with tears streaming down her face. "I can't leave my father, commander," she said plaintively. "Go," Haarkov said to her as he looked thankfully at J'Una. "Ensign, I am ordering you to leave this hangar now," J'Una persisted, her voice firm and professional. Marina just looked at her, sniffling, and wiped her tears away with the back of her hand. But she made no move to leave. There was a slight commotion to my right and, turning, I saw Kao push past the stormtroopers, who weren't offering any real resistance at this point, and walk up to Marina. Kao gently put her arms around the young blonde's shoulders and slowly led her off of the hangar deck. We could hear mar- ina's sobs the whole way. No one tried to stop them. Marta, who could barely contain her fury, looked first at Thrawn, then at J'Una, then back at Thrawn. Without a word she spun on her heel and stormed onto Thrawn's shuttle, Tomba following close behind. The Vice Admiral nodded wordlessly to his troopers who quickly escorted Haarkov and the others onto the shuttle. I could hear the pilot begin his pre-launch sequence. Thrawn turned once again to face J'Una, and smiled. "I respect your loyalty to your crew, commander," he said, bowing to her."They and you have served the Emperor well." He straightened. "Thank you, Vice Admiral," J'Una replied. "We shall always try to do so." Thrawn smiled again, then turned and boarded the shuttle. Seconds later it lifted off on its retros and quickly exited GUSTAV's launching bay. J'Una stared after it, oblivious to the cheers rising from the crewmembers on the hangar deck. I walked over to her, smiling. "You were pretty good," I said. She looked at me, a sad expression on her face, and tried to smile. She turned to Maarek, who was still standing there looking like he was ready to shoot somebody. "I appreciate your support, Major," she said warmly. "I always support my Commanding Officer, Commander," he said gruffly, then whirled about and walked away. J'Una turned back to me. "What will happen to Haarkov?" I asked her. I thought I knew the answer, but felt compelled to ask the question. "He's a dead man," she answered simply. "They're all dead men." She looked down at the deck, and then at me. "They took a gamble, Vel. And they lost. So they're dead." "What about what Haarkov said," I continued, not quite ready to close the subject. "About the Empire being evil and us being evil and having blood on our hands?" J'Una heaved a sigh. "I'm not sure that he was wrong in what he said," she said quietly. "But I am sure that he was wrong in what he did." She seemed to stare off into space, her red eyes moist with tears. "Would you really have used that?" I asked her, indicating the blaster that she still held by her side. She looked at me and flashed one if her trademark bright, wide smiles. "I don't think so," she said, handing it to me."It isn't charged." She laughed, and so did I. She had taken on one of the most powerful people in the Empire, her heavily armed sidekick and a bunch of stormtroopers with an uncharged blaster. She was either incredibly shrewd or she was fuck- ing crazy. I honestly had no idea which she was. But I was amazed. We were still standing in the middle of the hangar deck, laughing our asses off, when a crewman from the commun- ications department hurriedly approached us. "Commander Selena," he said. J'Una nodded for him to continue. "We have received urgent orders from the Imperial High Command. Lord Vader has located the Yavin Rebels." J'Una and I looked at each other. "Go on," she said to the crewman. "Yes, commander," he said. "We are to rendezvous with the main fleet at a place called Hoth." J'Una nodded to the crewman and he turned and walked away across the hangar. She looked at me and shook her head in a sad, almost resigned way. "And so it goes," she said. --30--