Fandom Star Wars: A Beacon of Light

[KyloGlenn]

‘...Please hurry. Don’t know how much time some of us have left here. Be inconspicuous.’ Poe recalled part of the message they deciphered. It came to them encrypted and they were quick to unravel the true words behind the message. The desperation that came with a set of coordinates. And if someone else was watching, on the lookout for out of the ordinary messages, they would be quick to put the pieces together, as well. Poe just hoped the Resistance had been quick enough.

He wouldn’t know until he got there.

Poe was fully aware that this could be a trap. Leia, too. But they’d both agreed it was worth the risk. Poe could get himself out of a lot of sticky situations. And they needed to be on top of First Order business. More lives than his were at stake.

Be inconspicuous. That Poe could do. He abandoned his X-Wing and his orange flight suit for this mission, borrowing a still small, but less incriminating ship. One thing he refused to leave behind for this trip was his beloved droid, BB-8. Other than being a great companion, the droid could be quite useful. And if anything happened to Poe, he hoped BB-8 could find its way back to the Resistance.

The two closed in on the planet of Eiram. Poe didn’t know too much about Eiram, if there was anything special about it. He did know it had some relation to ships and shipyards, but he didn’t know how much of the planet was industrial. Whatever the case may be, the coordinates he followed had him finding himself in the middle of rusted and scrapped ships. It didn’t seem like there was much life to this area, but he could see movement and objects in the distance, outlines of buildings and such.

His ship blended in well enough, he decided as he landed it. “You got the instructions out, buddy?” Poe asked his droid. Along with the message and coordinates, there had been a series of dashes and points. They’d assumed it was further directions of where to go once he was on the planet. They’d soon find out, though, as BB-8 beeped his confirmation, pulling up a holo with the presumed directions. “Alright, let’s find out what we’re dealing with.” Poe didn’t even know who or what they were looking for, exactly, the message saying they’d know when they got there. It was safe to say Poe Dameron’s hand ghosted over his blaster with each sway of his arms, ready to withdraw should things turn south.

As lonely as the maze of parts seemed to be, Poe didn’t feel very alone.

-

Rain pounded away at the exterior of Uthe’s capitol building, water droplets running down the expansive glass windows that covered the building, casting shadows through the very halls Jillian was hurrying down. It was dreary, and if Jillian didn’t know any better she’d say it was ominous. But dark skies and heavy rain were not unusual for Uthe.

The furious click of her shoes on the hard ground is what gave Jillian’s presence away, the sound familiar to the man waiting for her. “You’re late,” he grumbled as soon as he felt her standing beside him, not even sparing a glance to confirm it was her. He didn’t need to.

Jillian huddled just inside the building, avoiding being drenched by the rain that doused the docking bay. “No. Not late. Never late,” she said, slightly out of breath from her march. To prove her point, she held up the datapad she’d clutched the entire trek to her destination, pointing to the time displayed. “As scheduled.” Jillian had a knack for that, somehow managing to time herself correctly. She was never late, however she was rarely early.

“If you’re not early, you’re late.” He insisted as if reading her thoughts, finally looking at her in time to catch her rolling her eyes.

His eyebrow raised, and she sighed as she fussed with her hair. “Apologies, your highness.” She said. Normally, Jillian just called him by his name. Thane, the older man, was the reigning monarch of Uthe. He’d never quite taken to being called the king or anything of the sort, and so Jillian referred to him as such teasingly. He was strict, but not unkind to her. He often brushed her off easily. They'd gotten used to each other over the years. “I’m here before they are, aren’t I?”

They, being the First Order. Whoever they were sending to meet with them. Thane had several advisors, and aside from him vaguely asking her opinion – which had been, essentially ‘if it’s what you think is best’ – she hadn’t been as involved in whatever alliance they were forming. She knew who had been advising him, his military counselors, his Senate connections. So, she wasn’t exactly sure why she of all people had been asked to aid him during this meeting. She wasn’t one to deny him.

So, Jillian waited alongside Thane and a few others that made up the welcome committee, watching the skies for whatever ship these First Order people arrived in.

cleopat

 

[cleopat]

Azra made a living off of chasing rumors. She made it her priority to eavesdrop on conversations, to become friends with everyone, and to find any way to expand her resources. It was the life of a journalist, who was always hunting for the next big scoop.

And the next big scoop was on the planet Eiram.

She received a tip from an anonymous source on the planet a few days ago. Between then and now, Azra spent time debating on following the source, or deciding it was a fake, not worth the fuel to get to Eiram. Something in her gut disagreed. Her loyal droid, Teddy, a repurposed First Order TD unit, also disagreed.

So she set off for Eiram in her ancient freighter, the first ship she was able to get her hands on after leaving the First Order. Azra needed something that was cheap, and could fly. She couldn’t afford to be picky.

And it got her around the galaxy. That was what was important.

The anonymous tip mentioned a specific shipyard on the planet. Azra hoped she wasn’t leading her defenseless self right in the middle of a dangerous and violent area, but she took the risk. She needed the risk. For herself. To prove to herself that she was right in leaving behind the First Order, all she had ever known, for a better future.

To prove that the First Order was hiding so much, even from its own officers.

Azra left her ship amidst the discarded ships and junk that littered the shipyard. Her trusty droid perched on her shoulder, and a cam remained firmly clutched in her hand to record everything incriminating she found. At least her ship blended in well.

Teddy beeped at her. “Yeah, I’m not getting a very pleasant feeling about this either.” The shipyard seemed deserted enough, yet Azra didn’t feel quite alone. Like someone was watching her, or someone was about to pop out in front of her in the maze of abandoned parts. But she couldn’t hear anyone else.

Until she did.

Azra froze. There was the unmistakable beeping of a droid, followed by a man’s voice. Not that far away. Should she risk hunting them down to see what they knew about the connection between Eiram and the First Order? Or were they the First Order?

Swallowing, she followed the voices through the maze, until one turn put her and Teddy a few feet in front of the other two. They certainly didn’t look like the First Order, and Azra could easily recall how strict they were about maintaining a certain image in the austere uniforms.

First, identify herself to them. “I’m from the Holonews Network.” Second, ask an easy, opening question. “I was wondering if you could tell me anything about this shipyard.”

~~~

“As I can’t be there, I am expecting you to understand the ramifications of representing the First Order during this meeting.”

Kylo Ren watched the flickering hologram of General Hux with no interest at all. “Of course I understand the ramifications.” He could’ve huffed. Kylo of all people knew about the importance of meeting with royalty to secure alliances. The diplomacy, the acting, all of it.

His mother was a princess, after all.

General Hux did not look pleased at Kylo, but when did he ever show an emotion other than disgust? “Be sure that if one foot is out of line, Supreme Leader Snoke will hear about this.”

Kylo held back a wince, but one fist tightened into a ball where Hux couldn’t see it. “I understand,” he gruffed. His fear of the power their Supreme Leader held was enough to placate Kylo into obeying, just this one.

He would behave and play nice at the meeting, even if he would rather be trapped in a rancor pit.

“Good. I expect a full report on this meeting later.” With that, the hologram disappeared, and Kylo heaved a great sigh that expressed his displeasure at the situation he was in. To meet with the royal family of Uthe, and secure an alliance for the First Order.

His mother may be a princess and a senator, but that didn’t mean Kylo shared the same interest in politics. He rather used fear than brain to get out of precarious situations, which was one great reason for the helmet he always wore. People feared what they could not see.

And it always unnerved Hux. That may have been the greatest reason for Kylo to continue wearing it.

His ship descended into Uthe’s atmosphere, the gloomy atmosphere a perfect metaphor to express how Kylo felt about the whole situation. If Hux hadn’t already been otherwise occupied, then Kylo wouldn’t even be there. Neither he nor Hux trusted Kylo on such a mission, and yet there he was, his ship descending into the docking bay.

There were people there, waiting for him. How wonderful.

Kylo disembarked his ship and glanced at each individual standing there, not that they could see through the helmet. Sure, maybe he should have taken it off for such a diplomatic mission, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. With a nod, he at least exchanged minor pleasantries. “My name is Kylo Ren, and I am here today on behalf of the First Order.”

 

[KyloGlenn]

The hair on the back of Poe’s neck stood up with the increasing feeling that they weren’t alone in this maze of wrecked parts. His ears picked up on the sound of footsteps that didn’t match up with the rhythm of his own. He gave BB-8 a show of his hand, signaling the droid to keep quiet and keep an eye out for trouble.

Poe recognized all the variations of this scenario. It could just be an echo of his own feet. Or maybe just a shipyard worker, or even the supposed informant. But he also had to be prepared for the fact that it was none of those things, that it was the First Order or someone else out to harm him.

BB-8 let out a startled beep when two figures appeared in front of them, alerting Poe whose hand twitched towards the blaster at his side, ready to draw. As quick as his draw was, it seemed his brain processed faster that this person wasn’t obviously a threat. No First Order uniform, no blaster aimed at him. Just a girl and a droid.

‘Stars.’ He sighed, releasing the tension that had built in his shoulders. A journalist? Really? If she was here, then surely the First Order had figured out the message, too. Though…he didn’t want to underestimate journalists. He had a few friends who were much too sharp for their own good. “I can tell you that you shouldn’t be here.” This wasn’t the time for Poe to be dealing with this. He had to think about her safety as a civilian in this and frankly he didn’t have the patience to deal with her.

He needed to get to the bottom of this Eiram mystery.

“It’s not safe here. You could hurt yourself on just about anything here,” Poe was uncertain of how to play this off without giving her anything to investigate. He knew how these people operated. Give them a crumb and they’ll look for the whole cake. “C’mon, how about I take you back to whatever you rode in on.” Poe offered, knowing it would set him back a bit.

It was then that BB-8 gave an uncertain beep, and Poe looked at him. He followed BB-8’s lense all the way to the other droid, and he realized then why BB-8 was nervous, finally recognizing the issue. “You and the fancy droid you have there.” He said. If he wasn’t mistaken, that was a First Order droid. Based off another, much rarer droid, sure, but he was fairly certain this was a TD unit. Maybe this girl was a threat after all. "What did you say your name was again?"

-

Ominous was the word of the day, Jillian decided. That was the best word to describe the ship that descended from the gloomy clouds to land in the bay. Same could go for the person who exited the ship. Dark, masked. Mysterious. She briefly wondered to herself what Thane was getting them into, but she brushed that thought away.

Maybe it was some sort of uniform, or some religion she didn’t know about. Maybe a medical device. She knew she shouldn’t judge based on looks alone.

Thane spoke first, unbothered by Kylo Ren. He knew that General Hux was sending a representative in his stead, though he more expected someone…typical from the Order. Didn’t matter much. Ren was pleasant enough so far. “Welcome to Uthe. It’s a pleasure to host you. I am Thane Vondas,” he would simply assume Kylo Ren knew Thane to be the monarch here, also assuming he was well informed of the situation at hand.

Thane gestured to Jillian then, “This is one of my advisors, Jillian. She’ll be a useful resource in today’s discussions, as well as future ones.” He knew what he was setting her up for would be difficult for her, the terms of this alliance. He could sympathize with that. But it was what it was. Jillian wouldn’t agree if he didn’t put her in this position. He could always trust her to be calm, collected. Compliant in a professional setting. He was taking advantage of that, but he'd never hear the end of it from her later.

He was prepared for that.

Jillian, having had no prior discussion or information, was confused. Of course. But she was careful to not let it be known. “It’s nice to meet you, Kylo Ren.” She said, unsure if she should offer her hand. Kylo didn’t, so she wouldn’t either. “I’m just one of many advisors, but I’m happy to be of assistance.”

“You’ll meet some of our other advisors shortly. If you don’t mind, we’ll move this to the conference room. To allow a bit more confidentiality. Jillian?” Thane gestured for her to lead the way, which she was quick to turn and do. Another march for her.

 

[cleopat]

Azra saw the man’s hand twitched towards his blaster, and she tensed, ready to protect herself. She didn’t consider that the man and his droid might have been dangerous. She blamed her need to hunt down the story and answer every little question that popped in her head. One day, that just may kill her, if the First Order doesn’t find her first.

Fortunately, it seemed that the man relaxed, and his hand fell away from his blaster. “If I shouldn’t be here, then that means I should be here,” she said with a grin, taking a few steps closer to Poe. Teddy beeped out what she swore was the droid equivalent of a sigh. He was used to her shenanigans, risking far too much for the right information.

“And I’m not a child, I think I can avoid hurting myself with all this junk.” Really, she could hurt herself? Is that the best this man had? Azra knew he was hiding something with that lame line. She just had to be on the right trail. But she was beginning to think she wasn’t going to get anywhere with this guy.

Who apparently now had suspicions about her, and her droid. The way his own droid beeped did not escape her notice. Of course another droid would recognize that her own was a First Order droid, albeit reprogrammed and with a bit of a makeover. “I didn’t give my name.” And he hadn’t offered his yet either.

But she would play nice. “Azra Durand.” Not her legal birth name, but the name she chose to go by ever since she started her new life. “And what’s yours?” Since he’s here as well, then maybe it would be worth knowing his name. If he continued to skirt around giving a name, then Azra would know for sure that he was someone of interest.

Now, whether or not that interest was dangerous, remained to be seen.

Her own droid was regarding the BB unit with careful curiosity from her shoulder.

~~~

Thane Vondas. Kylo did enough preparation to know that he was the monarch of Uthe, and thus should be treated with some respect, lest he wanted to invoke the ire of General Hux later. He nodded his head in some semblance of respect. It would be useful to act diplomatic while he was there.

He would later regret it if he didn’t.

“A pleasure to meet you both.” Even if in reality, it wasn’t so much of a pleasure. But he played nice. He did what he was supposed to. All for the benefit of the First Order and the future alliance with Uthe.

His eyes glanced over at Jillian. “And of course, I look forward to our future endeavors together.” Kylo hoped she would be of some assistance to him in the future, instead of just being a pretty face. She seemed to have intelligence sparkling in those eyes of hers, but Kylo knew very well how looks could be deceiving.

Kylo was eager to get this conversation moved to somewhere more private. The less people overhearing their conversations and negotiations, the better. Already he could tell several people were intrigued and shocked by his appearance. Good. As they should be.

He followed after Jillian, trailing behind her through the corridors and to the more private conference room. “Are the other advisors already waiting for us in the conference room? Or are we to wait for their arrival?”

 

[KyloGlenn]

What was this girl saying? Was this reverse psychology, was he an unwilling participant in some science experiment? He remembered then, journalist. He probably was a science experiment alongside this girl pulling out all the stereotypical stops to get the next big scoop. Was she even aware of the scale of danger this could be?

To be fair, he didn’t either. Not exactly. But he did know what the First Order was capable of.

She gave her name. Azra Durand. He supposed she looked like an Azra. But she could very well be lying about her name. Poe’s brown eyes narrowed on her as he debated telling her his real name or not.

‘I don’t have time for this.’ He really didn’t. Every second dealing with Azra and debating whatever thoughts were going through his head increased the chance of getting compromised.

“Poe. Dameron.” He said, watching for any reaction out of her to see if she knew his name. BB-8 beeped in protest, gesturing with its half-dome head to the made over First Order droid. Poe didn’t acknowledge the droid and it shifted its round body away from him. Poe could’ve sworn BB-8 would be glaring if it could glare. “Listen, I’m just trying to keep innocent people out of any potential harm in a place like this.” But maybe she wasn’t innocent. Were newspeople ever?

Poe looked around, shifting his weight. This all felt off, but he didn’t necessarily think it was because of the woman and her droid. Every creak of old mechanics and every gust of wind made the hair on the back of Poe’s neck stand up. He ran his hand across the back of his neck, as if that would soothe his instincts.

“Alright, Azra. Great to meet you and all that. You said you worked for the Holonews Network, right? So what’s the juicy gossip you’re after here in this particular shipyard?” They were both there for a reason. Maybe the same one. And while he doubted it, maybe she knew something he didn’t.

Or perhaps it was all just a coincidence. Yeah, no. The galaxy was too big for coincidences this specific.

-

All of them were acting. Pretending to be a lot more pleasant than any of them really were, certainly. Jillian wanted to better gauge this Kylo Ren, as she did with most potential associates that came through these halls. But Kylo proved difficult, with the mask and all. She couldn’t see his face, his voice was modulated. The little intricacies that gave people away even in a facade were not apparent in this case.

Maybe that’s how he wanted it.

She glanced back as he asked a question. She assured him, “They’re awaiting us. We try not to keep our company waiting for us. Wouldn’t be a good impression, would it?” She paused in front of a large, sleek door. “That’s why I’m part of the welcome wagon.”

“Jillian is more…hospitable than my other advisors,” Thane agreed, slightly amused. “They all have their own advantages, of course.” As any good council would have, a group of unique individuals.

The woman waved her wrist in front of a panel, the doors sliding open to reveal a spacious conference room. The walls were lined with windows giving a view of Uthe’s gloomy capital city. In the center was an expansive circular table. Scattered around the room were the aforementioned advisors, assistants, the like. And they had seemed to have fallen silent at the opening of the door.

“Everyone, take a seat.” Thane spoke as he entered the room and moved around the table to his usual seat, “Let’s welcome Kylo Ren, the representative the First Order has sent, and get to business.”

Although some gazes held uncertainty, the room began to settle and seats began to be filled. Jillian gestured Kylo over to a seat across the table from Thane before she moved to take her own seat next to the monarch. “Discussing terms of alliance, yes?” Jillian didn’t know what exactly brought the two parties together or what they wanted from each other, but she was curious. And she’d learn soon enough.