//------------------------------// // The Journey Home And Awkward Meetings // Story: Star Wars Episode V, Phantoms Of The Past // by FourShadow //------------------------------// With everyone in hyperspace, the group finally had a chance to sit and calm down. Sunset and K2 stayed in the pilot seats while the rest of the girls in the cockpit chatted to each other, with R2 and Spike present as well. And Zorii just sat uncomfortably, wrapped up in the animal skin blanket. She was visibly shivering and shaking, even if she didn’t make much noise. “Zorii? Darling, are you alright?” Rarity asked. “I’m fine, thank you,” she said, rather quietly. “You look and sound cold,” Fluttershy observed. “I’m just not used to warmer conditions,” she said, still trying to stay warm. “Still reeling a little bit from the outside.” “Sorry the heat’s not inside the cockpit, I keep putting in a work order to get it fixed, but it keeps getting pushed back by several weeks,” Sunset apologized, just gazing at the flashing of hyperspace around them. “You’re welcome to hang out in the kitchen or the living area, it should be warmer in those spots.” Pinkie Pie zipped away without warning, and then back over to the masked woman with a coffee mug in her hand, extended to Zorii. “Here. Hot chocolate is always the answer when you’re feeling cold.” Slowly she looked up at the very eccentric Jedi, but she hesitantly put a hand out and took the mug she offered. “I… don’t know what to say. No one’s offered me anything aside from money.” “Well, it all changes today!” Pinkie squeaked. Her other hand tapped a button on the side of her helmet. The girls were curious and moved closer, wondering who it was underneath the mask. Sadly, they didn’t get a chance, as all they saw was the bottom of the mask transform and reveal the mouth hidden underneath. All they saw anyway was a light purple skin and lavender lips as they took a sip of the hot chocolate. She slowly moved the mug away and wiped her mouth momentarily. “This is good. Thank you,” she said, softly smiling. And that smile was enough to make the rest of the girls return the expression. “So what are you under there? You’re wearing a mask, but just based on lips alone, you don’t seem freaky or having anything necessary to hide,” Rainbow asked, trying to til her head to see if there was any glimpses of other features besides her lips. “Rainbow Dash, in this cold and unforgiving universe, masks are a necessity for some who need to do what they can to survive,” Rarity said, defending the spice runner. “Although I do have to ask, how heavy is that thing? It doesn’t look very… comfortable.” Zorii looked at her, still letting her mouth be exposed. “It does its job. Besides, I’ve worn this thing for many years, I’ve gotten used to it.” “But why hide, what’s there to hide?” “When you’re stuck on a place like Kijimi, you need what you can to hide,” she explained. “You can’t exactly trust anyone in the Outer Rim, especially when most people you meet try to screw you over, sell you to a gangster as a slave, imprison you… need I go on?” Everyone was quiet for a moment or two. “Nope.” “Nah, I think we get the picture.” “How long will it be until we arrive to your base or whatever?” Zorii asked. “Should be about two hours or so, so until then, just kick back, relax, and enjoy the ride. Also there’s a vac tube down the hall if you need it,” Sunset pointed behind her without looking. “Thank you,” Zorii acknowledged. “So, is there anything I should know before we arrive?” “That depends on what kind of races you can tolerate,” K2 asked, tilting his head back to look at her. “I have no prejudices, if that’s what you’re asking,” she replied. “Well then I should warn you about the girls you’re currently with. They’re Equestrian,” K2 said, continuing. “And?” “No one’s given you that warning? I do not understand why no one ever warns anyone about this. Well, you should take note of this now for the future; Equestrians have a habit of singing. And breaking into surprisingly choreographed musical numbers at random,” K2 explained. "I would also recommend not tuning in to Buried Lede’s podcasts. Very angry, and despite his status, his opinion on the Jedi and everyone who participated in the war isn’t a kind one.” Zorii didn’t know how to respond. “Um… okay. Is there a reason they like to do that?” “It’s in our nature!” Pinkie squeaked, zipping from the ceiling for no reason at all. “Also we sang a song in Ackmena’s bar before the Midnight troopers could kill us!” Zorii’s head looked up. “How are you even hanging from the ceiling, how did you get up there?” “The less asked, the better your life will be.” R2’s dome shook back and forth, sighing. “Brt brrrp berp berp brrrp boop.” “Agreed,” Spike replied. “If anyone minds, I think I may need to use the refreshers,” Zorii said, standing up and setting the hot chocolate down. “Just down the hall,” Spike pointed out. “Swing past the living area, it should be on the left.” “Thank you,” Zorii said, walking down the hallway to take care of her business. Once she stepped away, Sunset let out a bit of a sigh as she leaned back in her chair, hands grasping her face, no longer able to keep herself composed. “Sunset? Darling are you alright?” “No,” Sunset moaned. She spun around in her chair and looked at the girls with a face that no longer looked non-chalant but now expressed trauma and fear. “I… it's my fault." "That wasn't your fault, you didn't kill her," Applejack reassured. “She was our only chance to find out what the Empire was planning!” Sunset suddenly snapped, making them all jolt. "I didn't step in, I didn't help her, and now Trixie's dead! She's dead because I wasn't there for her, and we're now back to square one with figuring out the Empire's newest project!" Sunset groaned as she spun her chair back around, looking out into space. "Look, let’s just focus on making sure we get back home before I screw up anything else today, hopefully we don’t get yanked by any gravity wells on the way back,” Sunset’s voice turned more stern and angry. "Sunset, it isn't your fault, we didn't know Twilight was going to show--" "--Midnight," Sunset corrected. "That... that wasn't Twilight. Not anymore." “Darling, you understand we just want to help. We’re not trying to make you upset—” “—I’m fine, Rarity!” Sunset suddenly snapped! “Just…” she stopped for a second, recognizing how mean she was starting to sound. “Just… leave me alone right now.” The rest of the girls didn’t want to leave. But it was clear Sunset wasn’t in any state to talk some more, so they decided to step out of the cockpit to let her breathe. Maybe once she had some time to calm down she would be more receptive, but not now. The uncomfortable silence filled the cockpit once Sunset was by herself, with the exception of K2SO. The droid looked at her briefly, eyes studying her now tense posture and shaking demeanor. “You’re making a grave mistake getting upset with them,” K2 informed. “Perhaps you should tell them how you've been feeling before your emotional state deteriorates and you chase more of your friends away." Sunset slowly turned her head and glared at the former Imperial droid, daggers forming in her irises. “But what do I know? My only intellect is in strategic analysis.” After exiting the vac-tubes, Zorii wandered back out, trying to adjust her suit again. She kept yanking on the part of her gloves and her hips making sure none of the leather was bunched up or riding up on her. “Hey Zorii!” Pinkie greeted, somehow coming from the ceiling. “Ah!” Zorii yelped. “Please, don’t do that. I would have drawn my blaster on someone if they did that.” “But you didn’t!” Pinkie pointed out, plopping off the ceiling and on the ground. “Anyways, while we’re going to be in space for a while since we have a few hours until we get back to Yavin IV, I had an idea on some fun we can have while we’re on the road!” “Fun?” The spice-runner questioned. “Yeah! Didn’t you ever have fun on Kijimi?” Pinkie asked, not liking her potential response. “Well… I don’t know. Fun isn’t exactly something I could afford to have, if I wanted to stay alive. Honestly dipping my body in nice hot water after a long day was the closest thing I had to any real fun.” “Wh… never? You didn’t do anything fun growing up?” “No. My ideas of fun were considered childish. It was either ‘grow up’ or ‘stay a baby’.” Pinkie’s hair suddenly deflated. “You… you weren’t allowed to fun? Not even as a little girl?” “I didn’t have much going for me, Pinkie. Where I’m from, you weren’t allowed to have fun, nor were you allowed to just be a little girl. You weren’t allowed to be yourself, or receive some form of unconditional love, no, no, it was something you had to earn! Because something as simple respect just couldn’t be given naturally!” She suddenly growled. Pinkie took a step back, now afraid of what this woman was about to say or do. But it wasn’t until Rarity and Applejack walked into the area did they make Pinkie’s comfort better. “Uh… how much did you hear that?” Zorii asked, concerned. “Darling, we heard enough. You weren’t… allowed to do anything?” “No.” “Did your parents even know how ya felt?” Applejack asked. That question finally did the thing. Zorii’s fists clenched and were visibly shaking. They didn’t see her face, but the rattling on the back of her helmet was enough. “No, there’s nothing to tell. It wouldn’t matter if I told them anything, nothing I said mattered! What would I even say to them now?” She said, starting to pace back and forth now. “I wish you helped me when that neighborhood bully put permanent slash marks on my face, I wish you didn’t put me down when I wanted to show you how fun dancing was, I wish you let me get a lothcat so I have some fragment of joy in my life, I wish you didn’t teach me how to smuggle spice because that’s not what girls do! And you know the reason why I could blast like a little girl at six, it’s because I AM A GIRL.” None of the girls ran away. They stayed in the room, waiting for her to finally let everything out. They could hear her breathing heavily as she tried not to break down in front of them. “You’ve held that in forever, haven’t you?” Applejack said softly. Zorii couldn’t bring herself to speak, still trying to breathe and not explode. But the farmer knew just what to do; she walked towards her and pulled her close, holding her in a hug. The spice-runner was worried when she got that close, but stopped trying to fight her when she felt Applejack’s warm embrace. “Easy… I’m right here,” she whispered. Zorii slowly moved her arms up and embraced her back, hugging her tightly. Applejack could feel the spice runner trembling anxiously, a feeling she knew all too well. She let Zorii hug her for a few more minutes, at least as long as the new Rebel needed. "Okay... I think I'm okay," Zorii said, breaking out of it. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you all, it was uncalled for, and... I don't know where that came from." "That's okay, sweetheart," Rarity reassured. "But just know, if you want to talk about it, we will listen. And if not, we won't pry you any further." "I... thank you," Zorii sighed. "Although if it's all the same to you... I think I need to be alone for a minute," she said, looking for a space to sit. "There's some bunks down the hall," Pinkie pointed. "Oh, actually..." she reached into her bag, pulling out some devices from Equestria; a headset and a cassette player with a cassette already loaded. "Listen to this; it's always helpful to listen to music to calm down after a stressful day." Zorii wanted to push her gift away, no reason someone would be this kind to her, no one should be. The only response she was accustomed to with screaming or letting loose was people telling her to 'smile more' or to 'stop complaining'. The lack of those replies and instead offering to help or listen was... strange. Wasn't it? "T... Thank you," she said, softly, accepting the player. Walking off to a separate section of the freighter, she found one of the bunks; two of them clearly designed for some of the Jedi in mind; as shown by the bedsheets covered in graphics of their marks they always had blazed on their outfits. But regardless, she just slowly slumped into the empty bunk covered in party balloons, no longer feeling the energy she had earlier. Slwoly her fingers reached up to grip her helmet, the back of it letting out a hiss as she pulled it off her head. With a sig, she removed her gloves and put her blasters down, along with her boots. Reaching for the player, she looked at the tape inside, reading the label. Curiousity enticing her, she put the headset on and lowered the volume, closing her eyes as she allowed the music to fill her world as she sat still, slowly drifting asleep... Some folks like to fight for land Others like to fight for friends But if it means that we'll save the day Well I'mma fight til the end Punching out of hyperspace, the freighter arrived outside of Yavin IV ready to descend to the surface. "Yavin IV, this is Amity's Hand, sending you clearance codes now to land," Sunset spoke into the coms. "Amity's Hand, we have received your codes. You are clear to land." The freighter's engines thrust towards the atmosphere, brushing past the clouds until it saw the base just up ahead. Inside, the girls were getting ready to gather their stuff to get off, with the exception of Pinkie who knocked on the bunker door. "Zorii! We're here!" ".. mm, hmm, wha, what? What's going on?" "We're here!" Pinkie chirped. "Give me a minute!" Zorii was heard fumbling on the other side, adjusting her boots and gloves to go back on her body. And there was also various clicking and whirring of metal, Pinkie could only guess she was getting her helmet back on. The doors opened, with Zorii looking ready to step off. "Sorry, I think I passed out," Zorri apologized before handing the headset and tape player back to Pinkie. "Thanks for lending me this, it was... rather nice," she said, earnestly. The freighter landed back on the ground, and some crewman came out to welcome the girls back. Sunset Shimmer was first to come out, along with the droids. And eventually the rest of the Jedi came out, with Zorii Bliss slowly emerging with them. “General Shimmer, welcome back,” General Dodonna welcomed. “Thank you, Dodonna,” Sunset nodded softly. The older gentleman looked at the woman in the fur-skin cloak and gold helmet. “May I ask who is your new friend here?” “General, this is Zorii Bliss. She’s agreed to join our cause. We helped her escape Kijimi, and she helped us fight off the Imperial forces,” Sunset explained. “Have you heard back from the Heartstrings company?” “Negative,” he shook his head. “We tried contacting them, we haven’t heard a thing.” “Well I have some information to share, come on, let’s take it inside,” Sunset said, walking with Dodonna into the base. The others stood with Zorii for a moment, thinking of what to tell her or give her something to do. “Zorii, darling, I know you were cold on the ship, but it isn’t so cold here. You don’t need the fur coat, no matter how lovely it looks on you,” Rarity suggested. Acknowledging her words, Zorii slowly removed the fur coat, letting Rarity lightly fold it up nice and neatly. And to the spice runner’s surprise, Rarity was right. It wasn’t cold. She didn’t feel so chilly anymore. In fact when she walked around on the landing pad, she felt the sun touch down on her. It felt nicer than Kijimi; a sensation she had not experienced in such a long time. “It’s… not cold. This is oddly nice,” Zorii smiled underneath. She looked at Rarity. “Are there other planets out there who are just as nice as this one?” “There are. Some nicer than others,” Rarity admitted. “But perhaps if I get the time, I could compile a list of the best planets to go to. There are so many out there that are just so gorgeous.” Zorii smiled even more, despite it not being visible. “I would love that. Now then, as long as I’m here, do you require me to do anything? Clean some weapons, ships, maybe run diagnostics, kitchen duty, what do you want me to do?” “Come with me,” Applejack suggested. “I think maybe you should get more acquainted with the base first. Get registered, meet some of the folks you’ll be working with.” “Fair enough. Lead the way.” And so, Applejack and Rarity walked together with Zorii into the base to show her around for a needed tour. Meanwhile, Sunset met up with General Dodonna in the briefing room to discuss her latest findings, with K2-S0, R2, and Spike by her sides. “I think that mission went rather well,” K2 replied. Sunset glared at K2. “You know, sometimes I swear why no one has deactivated you.” “Because you would be wasting opportunities for infiltration missions, and I’m one of the best droids you can ask for.” Sunset sighed. “Anyways, General. I’m afraid our mission on Kijimi went less than smooth.” “How come?” “Let me explain. Ackmena told us the Empire has a brand new project. One that is almost done being made, although she has no idea what it is. The only thing we know is that apparently this project will finally make the galaxy completely obey their rule, whatever that means,” Sunset rubbed her chin. “The Fourth Sister mentioned of their weapon is something related to ‘Dath’, whatever that means, although any chance we have of learning more is lost.” Dodonna was intrigued. “Why?” “Because the Fourth Sister is dead,” Sunset admitted. “Midnight killed her before we could get any information. And now with her gone, we lost a potential lead to this new weapon.” “We’ve been losing leads left and right, Sunset. We’ll figure something out,” Dodonna said, understanding her position. "General," one of the technicians called. "We've received clearance from the Sweetie Drop, they've returned." "Good, hopefully they have better news. I'll go make sure there isn't any issue down there," Sunset said, not letting anyone else have a chance to speak up. She just walked out briskly and left the rest of the staff alone to conduct whatever business they still had to attend to. The Sweetie Drop’s legs unfolded and parked on the landing spot, the hatch opening up with Lyra and Bon Bon being the first to come out. Sunset and the rest of the girls soon ran out to greet them as they started getting out of the ship. “So, how did it go?” Pinkie asked excitedly. “Well… we have good news and bad news. The good news is, Adagio was telling the truth, so I think we can trust her… for now. But yeah, Derpy is alive, and she’s back,” Lyra began. “Eeeee! I’m going to have to make a ‘Welcome Back’ party!” Pinkie squeed. “That’s wonderful news, darling,” Rarity clapped her hands. “Though wait, what’s the bad news?” “That’s the other thing… she’s not alone. She brought company with her, and they aren’t exactly guys you all would want to see,” Lyra said with a bit of a sneer. “Let’s just say they brought up some… rather traumatic memories that I’m not over.” “Trandoshans? Weequays?” Sunset asked. “… You didn’t by chance get tricked into a cult-- “—We didn’t bring a cult with us, Sunset,” Lyra said, rather flatly. “But well… know what, I can’t even bring myself to say it, I’ll just let you see for yourselves.” The girls watched as some legs climbed out of the ship, those first legs being Flurry’s, then Adagio’s, and then Gallus and Smolder’s. G-G and Cheep rolled down the ramp and to the ground to join them, standing by as they awaited for the clones. Rex’s footsteps were first, as his feet were the first to touch the ground of the Rebel base. But when that same armor, and familiar Phase I helmet made it’s appearance to them… the girls all froze in fear. It couldn’t have been, that was impossible… And then some more walked down. Bubbles, Mix, Vargas all came down to the floor, holding their weapons down so they didn’t scare anyone as they came out. And last of them all, Hurricane. The Jedi Six were in shock at the sight of them; and not in a good way. “No… it can’t be… it’s not over…” Sunset’s voice started to shake, hearing sounds of distant blaster fire from long ago. “Stay back! All of you!” Rainbow yelled, igniting her lightsaber. The other Jedi did the same, turning on their lightsaber blades in defense and out of fear. The clones backed off, holding their hands up to show they weren’t armed. “Still think it’s a good idea coming back to the fight?” Bubbles muttered to Rex. So many questions went through the heads of the Jedi. How could there still have been clones alive? How was it even possible? Worse, were they still under the influence of Order 66? Were they still willing to turn on them so quickly? As for the clones, they were honestly surprised to see there were still Jedi around that had survived. There was some relief to see this, but now all of them were second-guessing as to whether or not they should have even come here if this was the welcome they were going to get. In retrospect, they weren’t expecting anything warm, but this was not what they had in mind. “Why did you bring back clones!?” Rainbow snapped, trying not to panic. “Wait, stop! We’re not here to attack any of you,” Rex protested. “None of us have inhibitor chips, we’re safe!” “How can you be safe? You all were ordered to wipe out the Jedi!” “We didn’t have a choice! None us knew we were going to be used like that!” Mix argued. The tension was still among everyone, the clones still kept their distance just like the Jedi. Rex looked over at Hurricane, giving him a silent nod. The commander understood, and so, he took his chance. Slowly, he took his helmet off, revealing the same face that Rainbow had fought beside so long ago; now with a big bushel of a beard. Rainbow still kept her distance, even reaching for her side-arm weapon if he was gonna get closer. “General…” Hurricane paused, changing his mind on how to speak. “Rainbow Dash.” Rainbow didn’t react. “A long time ago, when I had become your commander, the only name I knew was CC-7827. My brothers could not find me a name, and neither did I. But after our first mission, you picked a name; you called me Hurricane. You called me Hurricane because you said I reminded you of one of your planet’s founders, known for strength and resilience. That stayed with me ever since the start of the war to the very end, and I never forgot.” Rainbow didn’t know what to say. His words caught her off guard, but she still stood in a warrior pose, unsure of how to handle this. He spoke truth, and it didn’t seem like he had any intention to kill her. “I… we…” Rainbow said, trying to find the right words. “Get away from the clones, now,” Sunset grit her teeth. “They’ll kill us all!” “These clones are—” “—brainwashed, ready to kill us—” “—THEY’RE FREE MEN!” Everyone stopped shouting as they looked at the source of the voice, yelling at them. Derpy Hooves was the last of them to come down from the ship, slowly approaching them. But she didn’t look like herself, no. She had redressed in the clone trooper suit that she cobbled together back on Ajan Kloss. The girls watched as she stepped down, while the Heartstrings family stood off to the side, waiting for everyone to lower their weapons. No way they would get involved on this, at least until they would have to. Needless to say, it shocked them all when the more spandex-revealing trooper took off their helmet, revealing that same friendly face and hair; wall-eyed as she was from birth. “Derpy?” The blond Jedi’s eyes focused on Sunset Shimmer. “Sunset.” Some more awkward silence passed between them. “You’re… alive,” Sunset said, trying to figure out how to start a conversation. Frankly speaking, she didn’t know how. What could she even say after being gone for all this time? “Yeah. I am,” Derpy stated. And more awkward silence. “Derpy, darling, why… why are you dressed like them?” Rarity asked, getting some glares from her fellow Jedi and the clones. Derpy didn’t respond right away, and instead looked down at her hands. She looked at her bare fingers, wiggling through the fingerless gloves she applied to her hands for combat. Then she looked back at her old Jedi friends. Realizing she wasn’t going to answer that, Sunset instead spoke up. “It’s… it’s so good to see you again,” Sunset interjected, trying to see if she could get a smile on the wall-eyed girl. And it did work, seeing the adorable smile Derpy had on her face. She was also so dang cute, whether it was just being herself. “Thank you,” Derpy acknowledged. “So… you… have been, um…” “—Living with a handful of men, as I did suggest,” Adagio said, playfully purring. “Hush you!” Smolder elbowed the Siren. “I can assure you it is not that kind of relationship as she seems to be implying,” Bubbles glared. And once again, there was another vow of uncomfortable silence. “How… how did you escape? How did you even live all this time?” Derpy was quiet, but quietly spoke. “Ajan Kloss. The Empire never came near it; which meant a perfect home for me… and my brothers.” Sunset couldn’t even believe what she said. Brothers? “I never wanted to come back. I only agreed to come because Lyra is my friend; and she needed help. But now…” her eyes almost looked normal as she glared at Sunset, but they did. She took a step forward, fists slowly balling up. “I’m starting to have second thoughts.” Some more accompanying silence was among the others. “… So,” Pinkie interrupted awkwardly. “Um. They haven’t aged a day.” “Derpy, I… wh…w… may I ask, why are you… um—” “—If you’re asking why I’m living with clones, it’s because I value them like my own family. They’re all I have. And they’ve done more for us than I can even imagine,” Derpy said, softly this time. “And I’m going to say this.” She took a step forward, her wall-eyes looking right at Sunset. “I only came because Lyra’s daughter was in danger. I held that little girl when she was just a baby, and I swore I wouldn’t let anyone hurt her; especially predators who come charging at her with intent to kill,” and she stepped further, which forced Sunset to take a step back. “I don’t want to fight; I gave up fighting a long time ago. But I’m willing to come back, because Lyra told me you need everyone you can. But I’ll only come back under one condition…” she looked to her brothers who were standing there, who were now having equally disdaining expressions just as much as the rest of the Jedi Six. “If I’m coming back, then so are they. If you don’t want them… then you can forget about me staying.” More silence arose among the two sides. Jedi vs clones, negative emotion ready to bubble up and explode at any second. Adagio, for once, stayed quiet and didn’t say anything to set anyone off, instead choosing to take a temporary vow of silence. Sunset had considered protesting, but she was still trying to reel herself from another big surprise today, this was becoming too much for her. No more words were expressed between either side. Derpy just simply walked away into the base, without another word. The rest of the clones soon joined her, with Hurricane looking wistfully at Rainbow Dash before moving to join the rest of his brothers. Rex was the last to leave, and took the longest to leave. He considered speaking up, but ultimately decided not to. Everyone was too mad right now to consider having a peaceful conversation. Sunset let out a sigh. “I… could have handled that better.” “You’re not seriously considering, I mean… they, well… they tried to kill us!” Rarity whined. “Because they were under control of an inhibitor chip. Like it or not, they didn’t have a choice in how that particular factor played into your survival,” Smolder said with some snark, folding her arms. “Look I’m not sure I’m on board for having a bunch of look-a-likes with us, but they saved our butts back in the jungle from a hostile predator.” Sunset rubbed her temple. “I’m still not sure. I thought I had moved on but—” Sunset stopped. “Wait a minute--saved you from what?” “A predator. A hunter, some Nautolan with trophies all over him, armed to the teeth,” Gallus reported. He flicked a hologram on, showing the image of who they had seen. “Oh dear… I recognize him,” Fluttershy feared. “Sleestak.” “You know him, Fluttershy?” Rainbow asked. “He's a hunter. Takes from everyone; Republic, Separatist, gangster, he even kills innocent woodland creatures and makes them into trophies,” Fluttershy glared with grit teeth. "They were all just a big game to him!" Sunset silently thought about their situation for a moment, seeing the two concerned parents who were folding their arms, waiting for a response. “We’ll have to look into him later; the important thing is Flurry is still safe,” Sunset said, reassuring the parents fears. “We have bigger priorities.” “Looking into whatever Trixie was tell—” “—Figuring out what we’re going to do about Derpy and the clones,” Sunset suddenly derailed. Her eyes looked back at the troopers and Derpy who were still walking over to the registration offices. “… Oh. Okay, that’s important too,” Pinkie awkwardly replied. “We didn’t have a choice, it was either leave with all six, or don’t come back with anyone,” Lyra shook her head. “Well, we’ll have to deal with it, I suppose,” Rarity sighed, looking back at the troopers. “I suppose since it is only five of them, it won’t be too bad. There aren’t any other clones in the Rebellion that we know about, do we?” “Not that I’m aware of, and I want to keep it that way,” Sunset said, firmly. “Oh, has our new ally gotten herself registered?” “You found a new trooper?” Lyra asked, her interest suddenly piqued. “Sunset!” A familiar voice shouted. Bon Bon recognized that voice instantly, enough to jolt and turn around. “The advisor was kind enough to prepare a bunk for me, which I appreciate. And he offered two potential jobs, but I wanted to talk to you about… them…” Complete silence fell between all four adults. That is until both Bon Bon and Zorii shouted in unison. “YOU!” Following up their shout, they pulled out their blasters at each other, ready to shoot. Not surprisingly, the two adults had attracted everyone’s attention. “Uh... did we miss something?” Gallus asked. The spice-runner snarled. “I guess she hasn't told you. We used to do jobs together on Kijimi, until she decided to up and leave me.” The Mandalorian held her stance. “I didn't sign up to become part of a drug cartel.” Lyra stayed by her wife, kicking part of her jacket aside to show the lightsaber on her belt. She didn’t draw it, but she wanted the drug-dealer to know she was willing to swing. “You’re the Jedi. Glad to finally see your face, I didn’t recognize you with the hood on. Who is she? Your lover? “Try again, Bliss.” “You… ohhh. So you two are together now? I'll admit. I didn't think you swung that way.” Bon Bon shrugged her remark off. “Neither did I, but guess what? I do. Now, I'm going to make this clear honey. I don't know what you're doing here, I don't know what business you have here, but lemme make this simple. This woman here, and that little girl over there... they are my life. And if you think about talking, or touching... or getting anywhere near them, then you better listen to these words; I have no problem going back to prison.” There was some… more awkward silence than before. Everyone surrounding them was dead silent, not sure how to defuse the two acquaintances. But it seemed like their presence wasn’t necessary as both bounty hunters slowly put their weapons away, not pulling them out to shoot one another. And only one voice spoke up; Pinkie Pie’s. “You know, maybe bringing her back here wasn't such a hot idea...” Far from Rebel and Imperial eyes, hanging in the lawless Outer Rim was a single freighter drifting in space. Power was still present, but the occupant inside was winding down after a long day. Walking into the cockpit, the figure marched past a wall with several pieces of disturbing ‘art’. Trophies from all over the galaxy were mounted, including some pieces of armor and several badges. Among the trophies were skulls of various animals like a nexu, a reek, a mynock, several anoobas, etc. Armor remained plastered, belonging to various clone trooper battalions along with a few odd ones from random mooks and mercenaries no one would miss. But he also had collection of more recent trophies; badges. Badges belonging to various Rebel factions and cells across the galaxy, ones that the current ones on Yavin IV never knew about. Pegasi Insurgency. Irontail Railway. Storm Revolutionaries. Separatist Sympathizers. Partitionists. Partisans. Sectorists. Many, many, many cells that were nameless to the common word. Looking around as his victories, the hunter clicked, deciding to pull off his helmet. The mask went down, exposing his face in the light. Tendrils remained loose as they had been before, but as he stepped forward, new features unveiled. Sunken-in eyes, with various scars permanent on his cheeks, lip, and under one of his brows. He clicked some more as his bare feet met the warm feeling of the fur rugs that led to the pilot chairs. A small med patch was applied over his cuts as he healed himself, clicking more as he grabbed another helmet to take a break from his previous ones. Just as intimidating as the others, but providing more breathing. With a click of a button, a new hologram projection came through, showing an Imperial in an officer’s uniform. “State your business, bounty hunting scum.” The Nautolan clicked some more as he looked at him, slowly leaning forward. “Tell your master, Sleestak has information to provide to the employer.” “I do not have any frame of—” “—Step aside, Captain,” a new voice entered. A Grand Admiral outfit stepped forward, dressing a colored woman with a harsh gaze. “Sleestak, I presume. Midnight herself told me to anticipate your call.” “I have information to report to her directly,” he said, slowly tapping his nails against the console. "Mission completed. I'll be on my way to meet her, personally to relay some information. We can discuss payment... later."