//------------------------------// // [Chapter 9] - Knightfall // Story: Dead or Alive // by Rust //------------------------------// DEAD OR ALIVE Chapter 9: Knightfall By: Rust Mytaranor sector, Kashyyyk system, on the planet Kashyyyk... A gentle night rain tickled her hide through the open window, but still she slept on. Her body lay nestled high in the woshyr treetops, tucked safely away by cautious beings. While the forest swayed with the rivers of clouds and wind that played in the highest reach, the trees would creak and groan, giving off a barely-audible hum as the wood flexed and water dripped down their boughs. Visitors to Kashyyyk often told of this strange natural phenomenon, as if the forest itself would sing. She noticed this, watching from the realm between the conscious and the dreaming, a shade of a fragment of the mare that crept through the trees. Her body slept on, but her spirit yet soared. Most of the night had been spent as many others before it. She was no stranger to prowling the dreams of little ponies, traveling all across the land crafted by their sleeping minds, a ghost in a hall of mirrors. This city held it's own unique flavor, though, unique to the creatures that inhabited it. One that tasted... invigorating. They lived miles above the forest floor, her rescuers, where the clouds sometimes scraped the treetops and the air didn't taste of gloom and things that had never seen the light of the sun. Their city was built into the sides of the very trees themselves, great domed platforms bulging out from the mighty trunks like mushrooms. Lights flickered in the night from a few windows, but many were dark and cold. She noticed this all and more as she glided through the shadows, spectral wings no longer crippled by bone and flesh. There was a peacefulness to this place, a sort of sanctity that reminded her of the monastery that had once been the only building on the face of Canterlot Mountain. They hunted and gathered in the shadows of the trees, one large family splintering off into several smaller clans. They built many things from the wood of their homes, and as such took great pride in their health. She slid through a multitude of slumbering minds, carefully glimpsing from afar, learning all she could. Some of them remained awake, though their eyes were not keen enough to spy her, a slash of smoke in the dark. Figures moved, far and few between, taking the bridges strung between the treetops or ambling through the passageways that honeycombed their buildings. She let herself brush past one on a bridge, letting a ghostly wingtip kiss the top of its head. Foreign concepts and memories swirled her mind, each blossoming like a new flower in the dark. The People of the Trees, she gleaned. That was what they called themselves. An apt name. They tasted strange, and yet so familiar, bearing many traits that she knew were borne in her little ponies. Honest... undoubtedly. Fiercely loyal, to family and friend... Generous... Kind... Underneath it all, a ferocity she could not describe, a terrifying mix of pride and instinct that made her spirit boil in all the right places. She immediately decided she liked these creatures, these People of the Trees. Despite everything, she felt better than she had in long while. A change in scenery did a mare good every couple of centuries. Canterlot had been feeling rather stuffy of late. It reminded her of the old days, when the Equestria was still wild and raw. When she and Celestia roamed the countryside, brave adventurers righting wrongs and pummeling villains. Oh, the ballads they had inspired! Oh, Celestia. How terribly thou art missed. But it would not do to dwell on such saddening thoughts. She would be reunited... somehow. Her interest sated for the moment, she turned herself skyward. Like a cork from a bottle, she shot out from the treetops, slid through the clouds, and emerged into the night sky. It took her a moment to comprehend what she saw. Shining resplendent in the silver gleam of the dreamtime, a trio of beautiful orbs hung among the stars, dewdrops above the ocean of forest. Her moon had... foals? Scrutinizing the largest of the three, she came to a startling conclusion. This was not her moon. It's pockmarked surface was unfamiliar, as were those of its children. Reaching out with a tether of magic, she was further astounded when it resisted her call, willfully carrying on it's course without any further guide, the smaller two following their mother like ducklings in a row. Where had her moon gone? Where had her stars gone? These constellations were unfamiliar, and they too were cold and distant to her advances. But still, she could not help but rejoice a little at the sight. The sky pulsed with more light than ever before, and it was quite beautiful, even if the canvas had been marred by a clearly untrained painter. Still. Like much else she had seen of late, it left her with more questions than answers and an uneasy feeling in her spirit. Slipping down beneath the boughs, she reluctantly left her night behind, unsure of what to feel by the sight of the new moon and its children. She promised herself she would return soon. But in the meantime, she had more to learn from her rescuers. One in particular. They had obviously been planning all along to save their comrade, the one she ascended from the great spider's lair with. She did not like to think it, but she may have only been saved by the grace of luck, being in the right time and the right place of their intervention. There was no end to the questions she had to ask, and she decided she would speak with her creature first, the one who was there with her in the deep. The essence of its spirit wasn't that hard to find -- they rarely were -- and she dove down through the city to find that the creature was sleeping in the same building as she was, nearest to the center of the city and below what seemed to be a large gathering hall. She slipped through the same window she had originally left from.. A pile of deep blue and black shivered in its nest as she began to glide past, but stopped. She took the moment to look at herself while she slept. The forest had not been kind to her mortal shell, now covered in scrapes and bruises and dirt, the larger wounds having been treated by the People of the Trees with bandages and strange smelling salves. She had now been awake when they brought her in, nor had she been dreaming yet. Luna looked down at her sleeping form and saw something that was not quite herself, some strange mix of her and the darkness within she had harnessed. Nightmare Moon's fangs still glinted from half-open lips, and patches of black still blotted her coat like ink-stains. Her good wing was still larger than the other, raven feathers tightly tucked for warmth. It would fade, as it had before. She had come to peace with that part of herself. Beyond, on the other side of the room she now came to see as a sort of sick back, her creature was at rest in its own nest, sitting upright with legs crossed underneath it, arms folded across its furry chest as the shaggy head slumped forward. It too sported a few bandages and scrapes, she noticed. Whispering a prayer under her breath, Luna's shadow reached out. The world became a blur, accelerating away from her at a sickening pace until it screamed to a jarring halt. Luna looked around, her surroundings had changed to the dream of its creator. She stood on the shore of a frozen underground pool, bright, glowing crystals spiking from the ceiling and ground. Here and there, one poked out from the surface of the ice. A cold chill permeated her core, and she ruffled her feathers for warmth. Her creature sat in the same position upon a small rise of rock in the center of the pool. It was wearing a colorful poncho, a thick belt wrapping around its waist. Before it, a slim length of wood floated motionless in the air. Silence deafened the cave, so loud she fancied she might even hear the blood pumping through its veins. Luna tiptoed across the ice. Frost crept up her silver shoes, but she failed to notice. "Hail, and well met!" she called out, her voice echoing weirdly through the crystal cave. Dragonbreath passed from her mouth. The creature gave no sign of hearing her, other than open a single eye, a deep golden brown. "We wish to have words with you," Luna explained, coming to a halt on the ice before the small rise of rock it sat upon. "There is much that needs be discussed. Will you hear us?" There was no need to change her tongue; here they spoke the universal language of thought. A second eye opened now, an expression of curiosity crossing the furry face. "So you have finally come for me, Dark One." Luna cocked an eyebrow at the odd title. His -- she decided to refer to it as a male after hearing the voice -- customs were new to her, so she felt it was not necessary to question. Still, she now had an open audience to finally begin learning more about this alien place she had come to. One step closer to discovering where that armored monster swept her sister off to. But now that she was standing in the doorstep, she found difficulty putting the proverbial hoof in. "Who... are you?" she awkwardly settled. He shifted slightly. "You did not already know?" He seemed surprised. Luna shook her head. "I am called Gungiwaroo." He grunted, taking the handle of wood that floated before him in hand. "And your hunt ends here." Luna's eyes widened. "Truly? Thou knows the location of my sis -- Wagh!" A hiss of ignition, and a brilliant arc of emerald green cleaved through the space before her muzzle . Had she not instinctively flinched away, it would have taken her throat. The creature had cleared the gap between them in the blink of an eye. A shining blade of light was now gripped in clenched fingers. Luna was astounded - he had a weapon just like Reaper! Reaper... ...The only prize which she had taken from the monster... ...The same monster that spirited Celestia away... The jigsaw puzzle of her circumstances were shaken roughly. ...This creature had just attacked her with the same weapons of the monster... ...And must therefore bear some affiliation with it... ...Which meant this creature was one more step on the stairs to Celestia. ...Logic. "Thou hast no concept for the ferocity of the posterior pummeling container thou just opened!" A flick of a thought, and her scythe blazed into life. Pale blue and deep green clashed together on the cave walls, to the tune of crackling and humming emitted by the two blades. The creature growled deep in his throat. Luna growled back at him, lightning sparking about her horn. They charged. Unknown sector, unknown system, unknown planet... Two police ponies watched as for the first time in over a week, the celestial bodies jerked into motion. The skies above Canterlot darkened further as the moon unsteadily jerked around at a rapid pace. After a moment of travel, it had zig-zagged all the way to the far horizon. To the east, a pink glow began to shine through the overcast not yet cleared by the weather crew. It started quietly at first, a distant rumble that soon grew to a jubilant cacophony that made the cobblestone streets dance and the towers sway. A great cheering sounded out over the vast land of Equestria, sounded forth from the throats of ponies far and wide. Twilight Sparkle was victorious. The new Princess had finally done it. Not simply was it enough to move the sun or the moon. No, Princess Sparkle had taken on the challenge of maneuvering them both. At the same time. The two police ponies sat on a bench in the city park, waiting to begin their shift and relaxing as they were wont to do. Uncharacteristically idle, they watched the celestial movement in silence. Singing had begun to break out through the streets, and appeared as though a spontaneous city-wide block party was on the cusp of birth. The mare nudged her friend, who grunted stoically, "I'm not going to say it." "But you promised!" "Nope. Not happening." "Puh-leeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaase?" "Not. Happening." "Oh? Then I suppose me accidentally dumping those embarrassing photos of you at last year's Hearth's Warming party isn't happening either.." "Cherry, for the last time, I didn't know she was the Commissioner's daughter! Or under eighteen." "...Wasn't there one with a sombrero? And one or two maracas in places they should never be?" "Cherry!" "And let's not forget about what happened to the back yard. That statue was expensive!" "I apologized for that one. Wait, you were the one who blew that up!" "Did I?" "Yes!" "Or are you just saying that to make me not want to leak the one with Fancy Pants." "YES! Wait, I mean no! And there is no picture with Fancy Pants!" "...At least, with his front end." "CHERRY WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU." "I'M SUFFERING FROM A SEVERE CASE OF NOT HAVING A PROMISE KEPT!" "Fine! I'll say it, okay! Just don't... don't let those out." "..." "..." "Well?" "Twilight Sparkle is the prettiest, prettiest pony princess ever and I was wrong to think that she was crowned for marketing purposes." "There. Was that so hard?" "I hate you, Cherry." "Love you too, Dodge." They then set out into the new day, to apprehend suspects and damage large amounts of property in the process. And it was almost as everything should have been. Mytaranor sector, Kashyyyk system, on the planet Kashyyyk... Loud crashes of light blasted through the icy cavern. At the center, two combatants whirled like dervishes, exchanging a flurry of heat and noise. Each time their blades collided, their features were blanketed by the sparking illumination that erupted forth. One stoic and determined, as if hewn from mossy stone, the other contorted into a predatory grin of barely-restrained wrath. Luna dipped under a smooth horizontal swing, allowing the green blade to coming within inches of the fur on the back of neck, before rearing high, telekinetically whipping her scythe up and two the left, a move that would have taken an arm off had the creature not shuffled to the side at the last instant. She laughed loudly, enjoying every second of the bout, and the knife's edge to eternity it brought with it. Her foe had some amount of skill, it seemed. They parted, swirling backwards a few steps, each panting heavily. "You wield the blade of a Master. The Force all but sings in your veins, though it feels neither dark nor light. You bear great power, and you are certainly no Jedi. But... you are no Sith, either," Gungiwaroo declared. "Curious." "Cease thy cryptic terms!" the alicorn shouted at him, lowering her horn and unleashing a blast of lightning. The green blade was barely raised in time, and although it absorbed the pillar of electricity, the creature tumbled backwards several feet, rolling swiftly back upright. It beckoned with a paw, and a loud cracking was heard from above. Luna glanced upwards, and was confused to see a sharp stalactite descending towards her. Had the creature just used magic!? She smoothly pirouetted backwards, pivoted upon her forelimbs, and, channeling her magic into her hooves, bucked the pillar of rock as it whistled past. The entire mass rocketed away, a metamorphic missile that soared across the cavern. Gungiwaroo dove to the side as it speared past him, plowing through the ice and into the deep pool. The ice shattered all around their outcropping, breaking into small paces that revealed a dark, mysterious lake of crystal clear waters. The creature scowled, before charging her again, a yodeling battle cry sounding from his throat. The alicorn gratefully met his rush, shrieking like a banshee. They collided at the center of the rock outcrop, and Luna found herself bowled off her hooves by the much more robust creature. Pushing back at the emerald blade that shoved at her throat, she back-flipped away, kicking him under the chin as she disengaged. Luna grinned ferociously. Her foe had the edge in terms of raw brute strength, but she was faster by far, and she was determined that her magic bested his tenfold. Warrior spirit singing, she dove in from the side, slashing each time from new, surprising angles that forced him to take gradual steps away or lose limbs in the process. Each time he found a gap in her assault, she merely cartwheeled away from the brutal counterstrike, flawlessly meshing her evades with offense by using her momentum to simply attack from the side. Gradually, she began driving him back across the outcrop. She could see the unease in his eyes as they neared the water's edge. It only spurred her on to greater heights of aggression, and so focused was she in her mounting bladework that she failed to note a colossal mossy palm open itself in front of her face. It was as if the breath were forced from her lungs; an almighty telekinetic shove erupted from the creature's paw, tossing her end over end, out over the shattered ice, until she painfully slammed into the far cavern wall. Reaper extinguished itself as it slipped from her grasp. Gravity peeled the groaning Princess off the rock face, dropping her into the pool of water below. The cool water was a shock to her system, cooling the raging fires that burned through her veins. Luna floated idly in the depths, not needing to surface for air anytime soon. The respite gave her the chance to collect herself. They resided in the realm of dreaming. This was her domain. Perhaps it was about time she utilized that. In the darkness, two points of light burst into existence. Luna felt herself ascending, and she reached out, collecting her fallen Reaper, and piercing the surface like a ghost ship rising from the depths. She stood upon the water itself, eyes bright with magic, the smallest of ripples upon the waters still surface betraying her mass. Her foe stood by the water's edge, gaping openly. "Yield, he named Gungiwaroo." She stated, without rage or eagerness in her voice. "Thou hast fought most admirably, but know that this be a struggle unconquerable." "Not as long like a threat like you exists to my people," the creature replied. Despite herself, Luna smiled a bit. She loved it when they went down fighting. Her horn ignited, and the fragments of ice floating in the water rose up alongside her. In a single motion, they swarmed the outcrop, surrounding the lone figure upon it in a tornado of frigid blades. A defiant howl rose up from within, and Luna felt another surge of magic welling, but she easily crushed it beneath her own. The wall of ice fell away, revealing the creature, forced into a kneeling position at the water's edge, his limbs coated in ice and rock, seemingly fused into the stone itself. He struggled mightily, but could not break the bonds. Luna approached him, stopping on the surface of the pool, mere feet away. "Yield," she asked again. And again, the creature refused, instead focusing another surge of magic, one that she felt forming against her very thoughts. His efforts were almost cute, she thought, as all his magic had been rough and unrefined, like that of a foals. She easily swatted away the mental barb as though it were a pesky fly. But the creature had one more trick up his sleeve. Luna felt the world around them dissolving -- -- Reforming again in an instant as the darkened confines of the infirmary. Luna's eyes flickered open where she was curled in her nest, one still bearing a draconinc pupil. They focused just in time as something huge and furry suddenly surged forwards, knocking her to the ground and pinning her there. Luna winced -- her true body was still recovering from the conflict with the spiders in the forest. Gungiwaroo glared down imperiously at her from above. In this world, she was battered and sore and still drained of most of her mana. In this instant, he held the upper edge... ...Were it not for the green blade of light that was currently held close to his throat, near enough to singe the thick fur and fill the air with the scent of burning hairs. Luna smirked, her aura glowing brightly around the creature's own weapon. AS an afterthought, she cast a spell of tongues, that they might converse. "Yield," she said again. He shook his head. "I will not unleash you upon my kin." Luna frowned. "Thine fellow tribesmembers have taken us in to be healed and protected. Thou truly thinkst us so dastardly that we would betray the Law of Guests? We mean no harm upon thou or thine furry ilk." "Then what," the creature growled, "do you want." "Information," she replied. "We are looking for somepony -- somepony who bears a weapon similar to the ones we both carry, clad in green metal and rider of a flying ship that sails the stars." Gingiwaroo glanced warily down at the weapon she mentioned, the very lightsaber currently inches away from ending his life. "A Jedi?" Suddenly, he found the weapon shoved even closer. The sizzling of burning skin could be heard. "That word again," she hissed. "Why dost thou insist on speaking in riddles and of terms we knoweth naught?" "Jedi?" the creature stammered. "You've never heard of a Jedi, but you wield one of their weapons!" At her icy glare, he continued, "or the Sith? Your Force aura is tinged with their darkness, though not nearly as rotten." Luna scowled dangerously. She wore the kind of expression Celestia would fondly have called That Face She Got When She Went Dragonslaying. "Not even... the F-force?" "Neigh." An uncomfortable silence lasted for a moment, or two, before Gungiwaroo relaxed himself. "Enough. I yield to you, creature. I sense there is yet to be a long night ahead for us." Luna let the blade extinguish, and flicked it on the bed. "We are alicorn, and will be addressed as such." "I am a Wookiee." He raised himself off her. Luna rolled over and stood, grimacing as her joints cracked. One of her wings was still tainted black, much larger than the other, making her feel lopsided. She extended a hoof to him. "Thine name is known to us, so we deem it fair that thou have ours. We are Luna, Princess of Equestria." He met it, but at his blank expression, she tried, "...of Equestria? Surely you have heard of it." "...No?" He blinked again. "Though there are many stars unfamiliar to me. Surely there are worlds I have not yet heard of. Equestria. Is that where you hid all these years?" Luna frowned. "I hide from nothing, Gungiwaroo." Cringing, he shook his head. "I did not mean it like that." With a snort, Luna asked, "What did you mean? About worlds other than Equestria." "To name a few; Hoth, Mygeeto, Felucia, Mandalore, Ilum, Naboo, and Alderaan... Coruscant." His expression darkened. Luna remained silent. "Princess Luna...?" "Neigh." The alicorn frowned. "This was not known to us. This was never even a possibility for us." Luna's thoughts began to whirl. Was it really possible? She detected no deceit in him. Either he really believed that there were entire worlds out there... or... Luna sat down. Or her universe just gotten much, much bigger. She swallowed. "This is not what we had expected." At least she had an explanation to why there were three moons, now. She wasn't just in a strange land, she was in a strange world. Gungiwaroo untangled his limbs and stood upright, towering over the alicorn. Luna suddenly realized how much bigger his kind were than hers. "No," he said. "It is not." "We know not of which you speak!" Luna cried. "Did the Emperor send you? Did Vader?" He was clearly trying to explore another path, one she was unsure of. "Those names are not even known to us!" The biped frowned. "Then... what exactly is your hunt for?" "We seek out our sister. She was taken from us, by the monster we described earlier. She is the reason we are here. We..." she fought back a sniffle. "We miss her greatly." "Show me." So she did. With a pulse of her horn, the surrounding infirmary vanished in an instant, pillars and wooden walls fading from the darkness as if they were always there. The scene came into stark relief, of a shattered bedroom in the tower of Canterlot Keep. Luna had taken the helm of the dream now, painting it with her memory. At the Wookiee's sudden discomfort, she said, "Still thyself. This be merely a memory. Thou may observe as preferred." Crouched upon the bed over the unconscious figure of Celestia, weapon raised to fire, was the monster. Nothing moved except the two visitors. Even the flames of candles were still. Gungiwaroo strode over to the bed, inspecting the monster. Luna had recreated it in exquisite detail, so ingrained into her mind was this vision. Everything from the sheen of the black visor to the glint of scarred armor. She wanted to find it, and crush it into dust. The creature eventually looked back at her, even more confused than before. "Do you know who this is?" Luna shrugged. "Someone who made a very grave mistake." "This is Boba Fett! The Boba Fett!" He said the name like it was supposed to mean something. Luna supposed the monster could be called whatever it wished. It made no difference to her, for the dead had no need for such titles. "The greatest bounty hunter in the galaxy?" Gungiwaroo continued. "Who has held entire planets hostage, decimated fleets single-handedly, killed scores of Force-sensitives, and even faced Vader himself and lived to tell the tale?" "Aye, and we hit him in the face with lightning." Luna was unimpressed. The furry creature pinched the sides of his brow. "And you say he kidnapped your sister..." he gestured to the ivory alicorn on the bed. "Celestia," said Luna. "...Celestia. Why?" Luna punched the tiled floor in anger. "We haven't the faintest clue! This was unprovoked! All we know is that he fled into the stars, and we gave pursuit, only to fail and wake up... wherever this place is!" The scene faded away again, back to the darkness of the medical center in the trees. Insects chirped in the distance, and a cooling wind whistled through the boughs. Luna looked at the creature imploringly. "Please... help me, Gungiwaroo. You are my only hope." He met the gaze for a moment, then looked away. "Your sister has fallen to the clutches of the Empire. She is with the Force now. There is no hope." "Well, where is this Empire?" Luna bristled. "Tell us, that we might pummel it into the ground with our bare hooves!" "Its here, its there, it's everything around us." Gungiwaroo growled. "The Galactic Empire is the governing body of the stars. And if it has your sister, then she is as good as dead." "Why!?" Luna demanded. She began to pace back and forth. "Utterly impossible. What slight could we have committed against them! We didn't even know there was life beyond our lands until moments ago!" "Was she like you? Was she strong with the Force?" "THOU KEEPS SAYING THAT WORD, AND WE DO NOT UNDERSTAND WHY!!!" Luna roared. Her eyes flashed while crackles of lightning danced around her starry mane. "Astounding... such power, and you don't even know the name." "'Tis magic," growled the Princess. "All our kind have it. Some wield it differently, but every one bears a spark of magic inside them. We merely posses the means to turn that spark into a flame." She smirked. "A very strong flame." Gungiwaroo gaped openly. "All your kind...?" Luna nodded proudly. "Every one, large or small. 'Tis the nature of Equestria." "Equestria," breathed the creature. "I never imagined an entire world, an entire race attuned to the Force so strongly. But why would the Empire take only your sister?" He frowned, speaking now more to himself. "A race that clearly hasn't even taken to the stars. Why not just strike from their Star Destroyers?" "Well..." Luna started, "We are both royalty." She went to gesture to the crown upon her head, but felt only empty air. It must have fallen off in the forest! Blast and damn! "A bargaining chip, then," Gungiwaroo reasoned. "The Emperor must have plans for your kind..." "Why? What business does this mad tyrant have for us! What could we have possibly done to provoke such a gross incident!" The conversation was going in circles, and she still felt like she was missing something. "For existing, most likely," was his dark reply. "All Force-sensitives that aren't with the Emperor... are against him." "We ponies use magic, not this Force thou speakest of." "No. I suppose there are many names for it. The Force is your magic, and what gives a Jedi their strength. It is an energy field created by all living things, great or small. It surrounds us and penetrates us; it is what binds the galaxy together." "You claim you wield the same power as we do?" Luna was taken aback. "After those cheap parlor tricks we witnessed in thine dream? Fie! We strongly doubt this." "Oh, yes." The creature gestured with his paw, and his sword handle began to float above it. "Certainly not like you, for I am still but a Padawan, and apprentice of the Jedi Order. My Master was... hmm, lost to me many years ago." He put the handle back into his belt. "And the Jedi? Thou has mentioned them before." "Hmm." The creature stroked at the dreadlocks that dangled over its shoulders. It began, "For over a thousand generations, the Jedi Knights were the guardians of peace and justice in the Old Republic. Before the dark times. Before the Empire. We used the Force for righteousness and knowledge, seeking to enlighten and protect all we could." "Before the Empire," Luna slowly repeated. "Whom you now state posses mine sister. What happened to your Order?" "The Great Purge." Gungiwaroo beat his chest with a fist. "We were betrayed. Our allies turned against us in an instant. The Republic fell, and the Emperor took its place. All across the Galaxy, the Jedi were wiped out in an instant, save a few survivors. I had hoped for an instant... when I sensed you in the cave, with such power, I hoped you were a Master, who had finally come out of hiding to find me. "I did not expect," he waved at her, "this." Luna felt her ears lay low to her head. "'Tis an unfortunate fate to befall anypony, or creature. You have my most sincere condolences, Gungiwaroo." The creature shrugged. "I have had many years to come to terms with it. Now I simply do what I can for my people. It is not easy. Every day, more of us are taken to work as slaves for the Empire. And I cannot reveal myself, or bring destruction and death upon those who still remain here." A sudden rumbling shook the landing, and Luna felt her form shudder. "What is going on?" "I am not sure. It came from a distance." Luna pursed her lips. "Trouble?" "Could be." "Then let us investigate," murmured the alicorn, blinking exhaustion from her eyes. The sick bay came into stark relief, and she could see Gungiwaroo stirring across the room. She uncurled from her sitting position and rose on wobbly legs. Looking out the window, she spied something moving far above the treetops. "Gungiwaroo! Come and see," she called. "Great floating slices of pie!" He was at the window in an instant. Luna noted that his kind seemed to heal much faster than her. Fascinating. "...We have to leave," growled the Wookiee. Luna blinked. "What? Pray tell, why?" "Those are Star Destroyers," he pointed one massive paw out the window. Above the treetops, three monumental shapes hung in the night sky, blotting out great swaths of moonlight. Each was angular and wedge-shaped in nature, with a hunched-over portion in the back that seemed important. Already, swarms of something could be seen pouring from each one. "The Empire is coming here," Gungiwaroo muttered darkly. They are here for you, or they are here for me. It matters not -- we must flee." The princess stomped a hoof into the floor, cracking wood. "We do not flee." Outside, a loud noise boomed forth from the sleeping village. An alarm of some kind. Here and there, lights came on in the mushroom-like buildings, but never enough. Far too many lay dormant and empty. Motion could be seen, stirring on the distant gangplanks. "Then a tactical withdraw. The village is evacuating to our sanctuary." The Wookiee began herding her away from the window. "As our guest, we are bound to ensure your safety. Now come, we must be away before the ships arrive." Luna followed, but not before casting a hateful glance over her shoulder at the distant Star Destroyers. Her wrath would not be stayed. Not for long. Soon, she would have justice on the ones who conspired against her. This Emperor and his pet Vader, the Empire itself... and especially the one called Boba Fett. Especially him. Celestia had only recently been reunited with her. Luna would not lose her sister again. Not without a fight.