//------------------------------// // 39: Over The Edge // Story: Empire and Rebellion // by Snake Staff //------------------------------// Imperial Security Bureau Agents Isaac Dorn and Telchar Kulkis were not in the best of moods. Soaring high above the earth in one of the agency’s many modified airspeeders, they had been pulled from their duties and tasked by their apologetic Major with stalking an ancient mental patient and pair of scum literally everywhere they went. Celebraine had of course explicitly said nothing to the effect, but the tone of their commander clearly revealed the origins of their pointless assignment: the “good” Lady Inquisitor. Like most in their department, the two shared their leader’s assessment of the Inquisitorius. “As arrogant and tactless as the Jedi, and twice as unstable,” as Celebraine had memorably put it in a rare emotional display. And wasn’t their existence a walking insult to the ISB? Hadn’t the Clone Wars proven that mystics running around with laser swords were nothing when faced with a proper army and intelligent tactics? The Imperial Security Bureau was well-equipped to handle any would-be Jedi insurrectionists, especially this close to Imperial Center. Sonic blasters could circumvent lightsabers, stun grenades and toxic gas canisters to bypass their reflexes, assassin droids had no emotions for them to sense, and let them try dealing with solid slug snipers at half-klick range or more. So what did the Emperor need some lunatics waving outdated red swords around for? That this particular one looked like an overgrown plush toy Dorn might buy for his daughter only made the humiliation more complete. It wasn’t as though the assignment even was difficult. A rookie fresh out the Academy could manage to follow an older, slower, ground-bound speeder even without the autopilot. Their targets not only weren’t aware of them, they didn’t even seem to be trying to get away from anyone. If anything, they seemed to be on nothing more than leisurely tour of the planet’s more backwoods areas. The Major had hypothesized that the two “mysterious” people were little more than old friends trying to yank the old coot of his slow, spice-induced decline and as usual his predictions seemed to be bearing out. Take him out for some fresh air and scenery, keep him far away from other scum and chemical temptation. Simple enough, and utterly unworthy of their time. They’d been following the trio for almost two days now, and all they had gotten was cramped and sore. Forced to live and sleep in an airspeeder, unable to touch down lest they lose their target or alert the quarry to their presence, they’d seen a lovely view of improvised camping on the plains but little else. The data was being duly sent to the Inquisitor, with hopes that one day the little equine might see sense. The duo figured that they would be there for a while. It was mid-afternoon, the sun was shining, the forests below were a brilliant green, and the two ISB agents were irritable and bored. From high in the sky, they watched with flat expressions as the speeder wove its way in and out of the forest cover, the road weaving its way along one of Corulag’s few remaining natural rivers. It was a nice view on a pretty day, and more than once one of them silently wished to trade places with one of the three lowlifes below. That lasted right up until the old speeder appeared once again out of the forest and one of its dual engines burst into smoke and died. The now unbalanced right engine sent the junk pile swerving uncontrollably. Before the luckless scum could regain any sense of control it punched straight through a thin rail on a bridge and soared out right over and into the river. The other engine failed to prevent it being caught in the powerful current, and whole scrap pile was swept along, choking and sputtering, right over the edge of the nearby waterfall. From their perch in the forest, Twilight and Janus watched through magnoculars with baited breath as their vehicle went over the edge. Behind them Kersh just shivered, now deprived of his addictions for almost two straight days. It wasn’t like any of them had any particular attachment to the heavily-used speeder, but even this close to a town it was a gamble. But they had to shake the ISB somehow, or they’d never get anywhere. They had wasted too much time already. Who knew what Maul had been up to? Slowly, carefully, but not surprisingly, the two of them made out a shape descending from the sky. An older model of airspeeder, slightly worn and painted in dull blue with tinted windows, it came into view with clear reluctance, descending towards the area the speeder had gone over. The alicorn and human held their breath. The old man jerked up. “I KNEW – MMPH!” Two pairs of hands appeared over his mouth. Now perched above the waterfall themselves, Dorn and Kulkis simply stared down at the several hundred-foot drop into deep, rocky white-water rapids as their equipment did its work. The occasional hunk of rusted scrap could be seen, weaving in and out as it was bashed mercilessly into ever-smaller chunks. “I’m getting no life-signs from down there,” said Dorn, looking at one of their sensors. “Well, nothing above the level of fish, anyway.” “What about the forest?” Kulkis asked. “It’s a forest,” The other man stared incredulously at him. “There are thousands of life signs in all directions.” “What about human ones?” “Dozens on either side of the river. Hikers and hunters from the nearby town, undoubtedly. We should get out of here, before someone reports us to local police. You remember what happened last time the Major caught wind of security breach like that.” Kulkis peered out the window. “Should we check down there?” “You want to go fishing for little chunks of scum? In that? For likes of some alien interloper?” Dorn snorted, then waved his hand. “Be my guest.” The other man thought for a moment. “You raise a good point.” “I always do,” he punched a few buttons on the airspeeder’s autopilot, and it began to rise. “Let’s get out of this thing already and get back to real Imperial business.” “You said it, partner.” “What do you MEAN you lost them?!” Luna roared, eyes blazing and wings flared wide. “First of all,” said the hologram of Major Celebraine in his usual emotionless tone, “I did not lose them. At my rank I seldom perform fieldwork any longer. Secondly, my agents have already forwarded you all the data I myself looked at. They fell victim to their self-induced poverty and negligence at a particularly inopportune moment.” He snorted. “Unfortunate but hardly unprecedented. Scum, spice, and poor engine maintenance are not a good combination.” “And you didn’t see fit to do anything about any of this?” The princess was grinding her teeth now. “What was I supposed to do, offer them a free tune-up and rehabilitation program courtesy of the Imperial Security Bureau?” He countered. “Your orders were simple and direct: dispatch agents to tail them, and nothing more. And that I did. You may review the entire footage at any time, as you no doubt already have.” “Your men failed to confirm any evidence of their bodies.” “As did the probe droid you dispatched. Nor any evidence that they managed to pull a miraculous escape from their watery graves. I ask again, my lady, what would you have me do? If you wish me to send half men to scour the river and the surrounding area for any signs of their survival I will, but otherwise I see little point. Unfortunate things happen in the course of investigations. One simply learns to accept setbacks as they come.” “Remind me again, Major…” Luna hissed. “Why I shouldn’t just kill you for insolence and incompetence?” “Firstly, because I am neither incompetent nor offering you insult. I am simply stating the facts, as I have always done since my days with Republic Intelligence.” Celebraine folded his arms behind his back. “I have done nothing except offer you all the resources at my disposal from the moment we first spoke, pulling many of my agents off of preexisting investigations to aid yours. Many trails will no doubt go cold by the time we find Maul. Secondly, because by killing me you would make an enemy of not just the Bureau on Corulag, but throughout the Core and even beyond. The deaths of officers are not taken lightly, and while I’m sure you can kill any number of us willing cooperation is usually far more effective. It would be an act of grossest inefficiency.” He met her gaze without flinching, despite the unease she could sense. “But if you wish to lash out at me and cripple your own investigation, you know where I can be found.” It was tempting, Luna gave it that. “I’m through with the delicate touch,” she growled after a moment, struggling to wrestle down the urge to strangle this impudent whelp. “Mobilize your men. Bring me every last surviving acquaintance, friend, and family member Yorrick had on Corulag! I won’t lose any more to misfortune! I’ll wring the man’s story out of them if I have to tear it from their beating hearts!” “Very good, my lady.” He bowed again, stiff and military as ever. “Will there be anything else?” “Just don’t screw this up.”