Tempest Shadow and Starlight Glimmer make a trip into the wider galaxy in search of the Rebellion.
It has been nearly two decades since the pony world of Equusi Prime was discovered during the Clone Wars. Their world was forever altered. Much has changed for them with the sharing of technological developments and spacefaring advancements. The Empire has risen from the ashes of the Republic. There are whispers of a rebellion, an Alliance to Restore the Republic that could possibly help free their world from tyranny. However, with the repressive regime of the Galactic Empire around, this is not an easy task. It’s time for a select group of ponies to explore the wider galaxy.
Just wanted to mention the secondary title, A Light in the Dark, was the original title I had for this story until recently changing it.
It was quiet, so quiet that the only thing that could be heard was the sound of the occasional dripping of water and breathing. The crystal caverns were pitch black. The walls shimmered and the crystals glowed around a hooded purple figure. It was Twilight Sparkle, deep in thought and concentration. A glowing dark cyan crystal was suspended in midair. At her hooves, there were several shiny metal pieces on the ground. She slowly exhaled as a vision flashed in her mind:
She saw herself as a unicorn on a platform in Canterlot. She stood there with princesses and her friends, along with Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Ahsoka Tano and Captain Rex.
“Let us be the first to welcome you as a Republic ally, at least for now,” Obi-Wan said as he shook Celestia’s hoof.
The pieces began to lift off the ground and float. She couldn’t believe she was doing it after practicing for so long to try to get them to move. She had spent long hours reading about the entirety of galactic history and the Jedi Order, not long after they had been visited by the Jedi.
Another vision came to her mind of a new memory: This was a hologram of a hooded figure with a disfigured face and yellow eyes. “The Republic will be reorganized into the first Galactic Empire!”
She enclosed the crystal in the primary crystal mount, followed by the focusing lens. The inner workings are locked into place. The pieces slowly came together, first the pommel cap to the power insulator, then the power cell to the crystal chamber. The smaller adjustment knobs slipped into place. Twilight went back to that earlier memory with the Jedi.
“If things were different and your planet was known to us, you would have made a great Jedi,” Kenobi told her.
She then glided the crystal chamber to the upper portion, connecting them, screwing on the activation button and finally sliding the blade emitter shroud.
The hilt slowly turned upward as she heard Obi-Wan’s voice again, “…you would have made a great Jedi.”
The silence was cut when she ignited it. There was a humming sound as the lightsaber came to life. The dark cyan blade lit her face. She smiled softly, deactivated it and placed it in her bag under her cloak, making her way out of the caves.
The daylight was slightly blinding coming out of the caverns to the noisy, busy streets of Canterlot. Over the last two decades, the city has certainly seen growth and change. Upon being introduced into the wider galaxy, the first thing that was built was the Canterlot Royal Starport, a facility with over a hundred hangar bays and landing platforms. Not only that, but many species from around the planet, such as hippogriffs, dragons and kirin, were calling the city of Canterlot home now. She glanced up just in time to see two ships taking off. Even after all this time, though she had gotten used to seeing that, she could still spend hours watching them coming and going. The ponies had embraced many of the technological advancements and had begun creating their own successful line of starships. Ones that could be piloted by ponies as well as other species.
The ponies and other species began colonizing and settling on the other planets in their solar system and even built a space station that orbited their planet. Everything was not perfect, however, as several months after becoming a Republic ally and later member, the Clone Wars ended. The Galactic Republic became the Galactic Empire and the Jedi were declared traitors. An Imperial garrison was set up on the planet, destroying part of the Whitetail Woods. It was just one of the many ways that the Empire used to keep themselves feared and the planet in check.
Princess Luna trotted out of the castle, noticing Twilight going down the street. Luna knew what Twilight was doing; she had seen it in her dreams. She kept her eyes on her and followed close behind. Twilight went through the entrance of a large complex that read Canterlot Starport above the entrance in Aurebesh. She trotted down the bright, shiny white hallway. The walls were trimmed with gold. The gray floor was so reflective that it was like looking in a mirror. Her hooves echoed with each step she took. The drone of background chatter barely registered with her.
She made her way to the elevators and stepped inside. Twilight inserted her horn into the small hole above the level buttons. There was beeping confirmation. Despite their advances in technology, ponies still relied on older systems like this for security because they could not be hacked into easily. Only princesses and those who worked with them had access to the royal hangars. Luna walked in before the door closed and stood alongside her.
“Princess Luna?!” she said, surprised.
The elevator went up until it stopped, then the door opened. She asked, “What are you doing here?”
She walked over to a large, open, three-walled room labeled Hangar R4. There were four smaller Equus-class starfighters located on the right side of the hangar bay. There was a larger starship, a Nonius-class Courier, on the left. It was plated in shiny chromium with a dark purple trim. It had long angled wings with an engine on both sides next to the hull and a cockpit at the end of its long body.
“May we speak… in private, Twilight?” she asked in a hushed tone. They went into an empty room and the door slid closed.
“I know what you are up to, Twilight,” she told her. Twilight stared at her.
“What? I’m just checking in on things here because of a diplomatic mission soon,” she lied.
“You don’t have one scheduled,” said Luna, seeing through her lie. “I know what you are up to,” she repeated again. “And I don’t like it,” she admitted. “It is dangerous.”
“I know it is,” Twilight said.
“You know as well as I what happens to leaders who seem to be sympathizers for the Rebellion or just go against the Empire. They are removed from power and exiled or worse.”
“You’re right,” she admitted to her.
“You think you can just take your ship, the Duskfall, and nopony would notice it? Especially your closest friends or not involve them at all?” Luna stated.
“It does seem impossible for me to do it alone,” Twilight replied.
“Exactly, we all want the Empire to leave us alone, but we don’t need to do the task by ourselves,” Luna said.
They went back down the elevator and began trotting back the way they came. The two ponies noticed a pastel pink unicorn. Her mulberry-purple mane was done in a braid. She had jade green eyes. She was wearing a white and light green dress that hid a scroll cutie mark on her flank.
“Senator Zephyra Sparks,” Twilight said.
She bowed to them, greeting them with, “Princess Luna and Twilight.”
Luna asked, “How are things?” Zephyra sighed, frowning, “The senate seems to be getting less and less done. It seems hopeless.”
“Keep trying,” Twilight said. She nodded. Twilight took the hover train from Canterlot to Ponyville. She made her way to the Castle of Friendship. She pressed a communicator and requested that Fizzlepop Berrytwist come see her. She trotted into the cutie map room.
Tempest got the princess’s message and went to the cutie map room. Gallus, captain of the guard, was standing at attention outside the door. Despite having become a guard before him, he showed great leadership and they had mutual respect for each other. They saluted each other before entering. Tempest Shadow was wearing her guard uniform when she trotted up to Twilight. She had a silver metal prosthetic horn, something ponies were able to invent several years ago.
“You wanted to see me, Twilight?” she asked.
“Yes, I did,” she answered, then followed up by asking, “How has your day been, Fizzlepop?”
“Oh, just the usual really, nothing exciting. Well, except seeing some Imperial stormtroopers arrest an off-worlder while on patrol,” Tempest told her.
“I have a special mission for you that should be top secret,” Twilight said.
The unicorn raised an eyebrow, giving a perplexed look. She asked in response, “What kind of mission?”
“I want you to get in contact with the Rebel Alliance. They can help free our world,” Twilight answered.
“Are you serious? That is incredibly risky,” she replied, then asked, “What about the other nations?”
“When we met with them for the United Equestrian Nations meetings, they expressed their frustrations with the Empire,” Twilight answered.
“No one knows where the rebels really are and there are only some rumors,” Tempest said.
“I know, but I have confidence in you that you can do it,” Twilight responded.
“I want you to take anypony that you believe could help you.” There was a long silence as they stared at each other, pondering over this request that the princess had given her.
Tempest let out a long sigh and said, “Alright, I’ll do it.”
“Excellent,” Twilight replied. “Go to the spaceport in Fau'lau City to get transport to the planet of Terminus.”
Tempest nodded her head, responding, “Why go there and how exactly do you expect me to get in contact with the rebels?”
Twilight answered, “I figured Terminus would be a good place to start since it is a crossroads of two major hyperspace lanes. There are rumors about an agent named Fulcrum that can get you in contact with the rebels.”
“How?” she asked.
“I don’t know. I want to give you this. If you or I need to contact each other, I have an encrypted channel set up for us,” Twilight told her as she gave her a comlink. “I wish you good luck. May the Force be with you,” Sparkle concluded. She left the room and trotted from the castle to the School of Friendship. She had a good idea of who she wanted to come with her on this journey.
As soon as she entered the front door, she bumped into Sunburst, nearly knocking down the stack of books he was levitating.
“Oh, sorry about that. I didn’t see you,” he said, apologizing.
“It’s ok.” She smiled, replying, “Have you seen Starlight?” He nodded his head.
“Yes, I think she is reading over some student papers with Sunset,” he answered. She nodded.
“Thanks,” she said and continued on her way. Sunset Shimmer had come back to live in Equestria after finishing her last year of school and then became a teacher at Twilight’s school. She knocked on the door as she was told to come in.
“Hello, girls,” she greeted them. The two unicorns looked up from the desk.
They both exclaimed, “Hi Fizzlepop!”
“What’s up?” Sunset asked.
“Can I talk to you about something?” She asked in response.
“Sure,” Starlight answered. She sat down in a seat.
“Well, Twilight has given me an assignment and I need somepony to come with me,” she replied. “I need to go off-world and search for the Rebel Alliance.”
“Wait, you mean the Rebellion?” Sunset inquired.
“Yes, she thinks it is the only way for us to be free,” Tempest said. Starlight shook her head.
“Doing that will only make the Empire enslave us. It will make King Sombra look like foal’s play.”
Sunset questioned, “Has she thought about what the other kingdoms and nations think?” “Twilight has indeed thought about that. UEN members are frustrated with them,” Tempest replied.
“Will you two join me?” The other two unicorns looked at each other.
“Well, neither of us have been off-world before,” Starlight said, “But I’m sure things will be in capable hooves with Sunburst.” “I’m in,” she declared. They looked at Sunset.
“I… um… think I’d better stay here,” she answered. “Alright, let us know if you change your mind,” Tempest said to Sunset. Tempest and Starlight got themselves ready for the journey. Twilight gave Tempest some supplies that she thought would help her. Even though ponies aren’t known for wearing clothes, they put some on. The two met outside Twilight’s castle. They were both wearing cloaks and had saddle bags on underneath them. Tempest was wearing a dark gray one while Starlight had on a medium-shaded violet cloak.
Fau'lau City was a town built at the close of the Clone Wars and then expanded after the rise of the Empire. Most of the residents were humans or alien species. It was located to the east of Ponyville, on the other side of Saddle Lake near the Rumbling Rock Ridge. They made their way across the bridge and around the lake.
The city felt like a different planet as they arrived and trotted on the outskirts of town. The buildings were rectangular with flat roofs, some including small central domes. Some of the buildings were two or three stories tall, with stepped pyramid floor levels. They watched as a YT-2400 freighter lifted off into the sky as a GX1 Short Hauler came in for a landing.
“So what’s the plan, Fizzlepop?” Starlight asked as they trotted through the streets.
“First off, it’s Tempest Shadow from now on,” she corrected her, talking in a hushed tone. “And to answer your question, we are going to the spaceport to find a pilot.” She briefly looked away as two stormtroopers went past them.
“Ohhh, should I have an alias too?” Starlight inquired and continued, “How about Gothlight? Or Shadow Star?”
Tempest sighed and suggested, “Umbra?”
“Oh, I like that,” she replied. Starlight kept glancing slowly around the streets, taking in the sights, nearly getting run over in the process by a passing landspeeder. She jumped out of its way. The driver yelled at her in an alien language, shaking his fist.
“May I ask why are we seeking transport here instead of Canterlot? I mean, it’s a lot bigger.” Starlight asked, quickly galloping to catch up with Tempest. “You have your own personal ship there, Shadow Huntress.”
“Exactly, it’s larger. Canterlot’s spaceport has more of an Imperial presence and is keeping a closer eye on us,” she explained to her. Starlight looked around. They were getting glances from the local residents around them.
“Are you sure about that?” she replied. They made it to their destination. Outside the cantina, a neon-lit sign reads in Aurebesh and High Galactic underneath, The Drunken Hutt. The building was a single-story and had some dark carbon scouring on the outer walls.
The sound of band music could be heard as the door whooshed open. The two ponies slowly trotted into the short entry hall, went down two short steps, then into the larger main room. It was crowded with a diversity of species. Despite being one of the world’s most populous species, ponies were rarely seen in this area. They were also one of the shorter species in the room. There were numerous tables spread throughout, with booths against the walls of the room. The bar was in the center of the room, a long oval shape with chairs surrounding it. There were a few tables with sabacc. The cantina band, G'hozia and the Cryohearts, were performing on a raised stage in the back.
The group consisted of six members. The band leader, a male Bith named G’hozia, was playing a synthesizer. A pale female Zabrak with brown hair and eyes was playing the kloo horn, while a blue female Twi'lek with white freckles and green eyes was playing the double viol. A green male Rodian with blue multifaceted eyes was playing the fanfar. A female Togruta with red skin and yellow/white striped lekku with blue eyes, was playing the mandoviol. A pale pink female Theelin with red hair and hazel eyes, was playing the drums.
“Do you even have any idea where we’re going or how to get a pilot?” She inquired softly, raising an eyebrow.
“Twilight told me where to go,” she answered back. The band finished playing their instrumental music piece.
The cantina was lively with chatter all around them. Tempest glanced over at a male Dug smoking a pipe sitting at a table alone.
He growled in Huttese, scowling, “Hi chuba da naga, schutta?” [What do you want, bitch?] She immediately looked away from the table as she went on her way. The band began playing a song as the Twi’lek and Togruta started singing. The two ponies made their way to an empty table and sat down.
“…Jee pushee noleeya ta manta an la sa du holo noleeya ma koga. Whee sa la du holo noleeya ma koga?…”
While making the rounds, a bronze-plated 3PO protocol droid carrying a silver tray peered down with its glowing blue sensors at the ponies.
“Hello there! I am J-3PO, a protocol droid and part of the waitstaff here at The Drunken Hutt cantina. How can I assist you?” The droid talked in a prissy feminine tone.
“The band, what are they singing about?” Starlight asked.
“Oh…” The droid glanced over at the band before returning her attention to the ponies. “It is a song about drinking in excess, blacking out and getting up the next morning to find there is a holo in bed with you,” the droid informed them. “Personally, I find it too risqué for my tastes. I prefer their song, Drive My Podracer.” They both exchanged glances with each other. “Is there anything else I can do for you?” the droid asked.
“We are looking for a pilot,” Starlight answered.
“There are many pilots that come through here,” J-3PO replied. “I don’t know any of them personally.” There was a figure hidden in the shadows in a nearby booth. There was a second figure sitting with them. The two were listening in on their conversation. Tempest seemed to notice them as the conversation was drowned out by the band’s music and other noises in the room. “— I wish you luck in your travels. I must get going.”
“Thanks for the help,” Starlight said politely.
“You are quite welcome,” J-3PO replied as the droid moved on from their table.
One of the figures moved from the booth. The figure was clearly a female. The woman walked up to their table. She appeared human except for her skin color, which was yellow-green, and the geometric tattoos on her face. She had deep blue eyes and brown hair in a topknot with hoops on the back. She was wearing a maroon vest, a long-sleeve white shirt, a brown belt with a 434 Deathhammer blaster pistol in her holster, reddish-brown pants and dark gray boots. The two ponies She took a seat in an empty chair. The female Mirialan smirked.
“So you ladies are looking for a ship? I’m Risvoa Quzoko,” she introduced herself. “It just depends on the destination and how much you are willing to pay.” The ponies gave each other brief side glances before focusing back on her.
“That depends on what you are flying,” Tempest answered back.
Risvoa put her hands together on the table. “I’m the captain and pilot of the Song of the Siren, a Corellian-built YU-410 light freighter. I modified her myself with updated engines and hyperdrive," she boasted. "She is now just as fast and maneuverable as any of CEC's YT-series vessels.” “Where are you going? How many are coming along for the ride?” she asked.
“We’re going to Terminus. It’s just us,” Tempest said.
“Just so you know, we need to make a quick stop at Veredusiko beforehand before leaving the system,” she informed the ponies.
“We’ll give you 12,000 credits for the trip,” Tempest offered.
“Alright, you got yourself a deal,” Risvoa said, shaking Tempest’s hoof. The second person from the booth came over. It was a female Rodian with turquoise skin, purple multifaceted eyes and an orange mohawk. She was wearing a high-collared brown jacket, a bandolier over her right shoulder, a tan shirt, blue pants and black boots. “This is Ziimnee. She is a part of my crew. You’ll meet the rest of them at the bay.” The band began playing their song, Take a Spin Around Bespin. “You got yourself a ship. It’ll be at Docking Bay 24.” The two walked out of the cantina. The ponies soon followed.
Anchormare Spaceport was quite different from the one at Canterlot; it was smaller with fewer docking bays than the capital city’s. Yes, they had both been around for almost the same amount of time, but Canterlot was kept spotless while this one was not. They made their way to Docking Bay 24, where a droid was carrying containers to the ship. The YU-410 freighter had blue stripes. When the pair entered the docking bay, they were greeted by a purple-skinned female Twi’lek with dark purple stripes and hazel eyes. She wore a green jacket, a dark green midriff top, black pants and brown boots. She had two DL-17 blaster pistols in holsters.
“Are you two the ponies that the captain said were hitching a ride?” She said, in a French accent.
“We are,” Tempest replied.
Risvoa walked up to them and said, “This is Shakka Freykaa, my navigator.” The Rodian walked past them to continue readying the ship for departure. “You met Ziimnee Plyoro, my co-pilot,” she mentioned. “What were your names again?”
“Tempest and this is Umbra,” Tempest answered.
“I thought you ponies had funnier sounding names like Silver Sunshine, Lillypad Love or Glimmering Starlight?” Shakka commented, giggling and shrugging her shoulders. Starlight’s face flushed slightly, letting out a few awkward laughs. A female Wookiee walked down the ship’s ramp. She had red and light brown fur and green eyes. She was wearing two bandoliers across both shoulders.
“This is Kuldawraanh, but call her Kulda,” she said.
The Wookiee growled a few times towards them as the droid brought the containers inside. [The ship is ready for takeoff at any time, Captain Risvoaquzoko.]
“Thanks, Kulda,” she replied. They walked up the landing ramp. The droid from earlier saw the ponies as they came in. He was a G2 repair droid.
“Hello there, I’m G2-K1, but everyone here calls me Geki,” he said. “I’m the engineer on this vessel.”
“You two take your seats; we’ll be leaving shortly,” Risvoa told them as she walked over to the front of the ship. Tempest and Starlight took a seat in the lounge. She sat down in the pilot’s seat in the cockpit. Ziimnee sat in the co-pilot’s seat. “Traffic control, this is Docking Bay 24, requesting clearance for departure,” she said.
A voice came on, “Copy that twenty-four, stand by.” Shakka sat down in the navigation chair. The voice returned, “Permission granted, you are cleared to depart.”
“Ramp is up,” Ziimnee said. Risvoa started up the engines as they roared to life. The Siren lifted off and out of the bay.
“Set course for Veredusiko,” Risvoa said. The landing gear closed as the ship hovered in midair before thrusting forward. It ascended high into the sky, through the clouds. After a short time, the blue of the atmosphere fell away into the blackness of space.
The Song of the Siren began its final approach to the planet Veredusiko. The trip was relatively short, just a few hours, going from the fourth planet to the second in the same system. The two ponies stared out the cockpit viewport.
“Veredusiko, I’m surprised that this planet isn’t more populated considering what a paradise it seems to be,” Risvoa commented. There was a Victory II-class star destroyer in orbit above the planet. She turned on the comms channel. “Vakkkgandava City Spaceport, this is Song of the Siren. We are requesting clearance for a hangar for landing,” she told the spaceport.
“Identified, Siren, your request for landing is granted. You are cleared for landing in Hangar 55,” a voice from the control terminal informed them. The YU-410 freighter slowly descended in attitude into the planet’s atmosphere.
Veredusiko was named after the Pony Latin word for swift-hunting horse. The planet itself had a tropical climate. The ocean covers the vast majority of the planet’s surface, with the only landmasses consisting of archipelagoes and islands covered in tropical rainforest, mountain ranges and sandy coastlines. Some of the islands were massive in size, with some being nine hundred thousand square miles. Many of them are still volcanically active, providing business opportunities for mining resources. Most of the population were humans and other species, but there were some ponies that called this place home. Vakkgandava City was the planet’s capital.
The larger sun was shining brightly in the clear blue sky as the ship landed in the hangar, touching down softly, gear down and ramp lowered. As Tempest and Starlight trotted down the ramp, they both looked around and took in the sights. They could smell the salty sea breeze, see the fresh sea spray as it crashed against the sand, and hear the calls of strange alien birds. The others came down the ramp behind them.
“So what exactly are you doing here?” Tempest asked as she turned around.
“Just dropping off some supplies for a job we got with Zoakkja the Hutt,” Risvoa answered.
“What’s a Hutt doing out here?” Starlight wondered aloud.
“I guess she wanted somewhere to get away,” Risvoa said. “Geki, stay here with the ship.” They walked out of the hangar and into the main central terminal of the spaceport. There were more ponies here than there were in all of Fau’lau City. All of whom were in clothes. “Our contact is supposed to meet us here with transport for the cargo,” she mentioned.
Shakka glanced and noticed a few stormtroopers, uttering, “Oh kunta! Bucket heads, coming from behind us.”
“We’re fine,” Risvoa told her. “Damp down your power core.” The Imperial troopers walked up to them, holding their E-11 blaster rifles against their chests.
“What do you have in those cargo containers?” the stormtrooper commander demanded. “No illegal contraband?”
“Just standard supplies,” Risvoa answered. She opened the first container and showed that it was just spare droid parts.
The stormtrooper glanced inside and said, “Alright, move along.” They closed the container and kept going.
A comlink call came in, “Squad 10, you are required in Hangar 19, Barloz-class freighter with suspicious cargo, over.” The squad about-faced and left the area. Of course, the droid parts were only a cover for the real cargo, a stockpile of hfredium, a mineral for starship construction.
There was a cantina nearby named The Three Nexu, with cantina band music playing inside. The cantina itself had a large main room with a few smaller private rooms off to the sides. The bar was circular in the center of the room. The band was playing in the back on a stage. It was full of red leather-backed booths and tables.
Starlight glanced at Shakka, who was talking with Kuldawraanh and asked, “How do you two know each other?”
Shakka smiled and replied, “Oh, we have known each other for years. We were both slaves and she saved my life back then by protecting me from some of our master’s pets. We later escaped from our master together.” “She is like an older sister to me. A much older, wiser sister, like 208 years old,” she added.
Kuldawraanh gave a roar in response, followed by a few solemn groans. [Life was painful and it was hard being forcefully taken from my homeworld. I am forever grateful to Shakkafreykaa and in her debt.] The group stayed there for a short time until their contact arrived.
Back in the Castle of Friendship, Twilight received a beeping communications signal from her communicator on her desk. She had a feeling that it wasn’t Tempest contacting her because she left a short time ago. She clicked the button and a hologram of Luna appeared.
“Oh, it’s you, Princess Luna,” she said, expressing some relief.
“Did you have any success with what we spoke about earlier?” She asked vaguely, clearly feeling like their conversation was being listened in on.
Twilight nodded her head, answering, “I did. I sent my loyal guard and former student to do the job.”
Luna smiled and responded, “A wise choice. I’m sure they will be successful.” Something happened on Luna’s end that made her glance to her left. Her expression changed to a serious one. “I must be going,” she said, hastily cutting the transmission. Twilight couldn’t help but wonder what that was about.
Shortly, an airspeeder and a repulsorlift skiff pulled up in front of the spaceport. The group came out with the cargo containers. Most of the city’s buildings were made from beige-colored stone with many windows and were a few stories tall. A Weequay male got out of the speeder.
He asked, “Are you Risvoa Quzoko?” His companions got off the skiff.
“I am and I have the cargo supplies Zoakkja requested,” she answered. The supplies were loaded onto the Bantha-II cargo skiff.
“Zoakkja would like to meet with you in person,” he told them.
“One should never refuse a Hutt’s invitation,” she replied. Half of the crew went into the Rian-327 airspeeder and Kuldawraanh with the ponies got onto the skiff. The transports made their way out of the bustling city streets and into the rainforest up a rough dirt path. The noise quickly drifted away from them; only the whining sound of the engines and the snapping of tree branches could be heard.
Starlight and Tempest couldn’t see where they were going until some of the brush and trees cleared for a moment. They were going up a mountain to a building. When they finally cleared the trees completely, they saw a palace on the north side of the mountain. It had several tall, rounded towers with domed tops. The largest of which was in the center. They entered the palace via a hangar in the back of the base of one of the towers. In the hangar there were several more skiffs, a Minstrel-class space yacht and a squadron of Skipray Blastboats. There was someone waiting for them when they arrived. The figure was a male blue-skinned Chagrian wearing fine black robes.
He introduced himself, “I am Jarro Halcorr, Zoakkja’s majordomo. You must be Risvoa, I presume.”
“I am,” she replied, leaving the speeder.
“Follow me,” he said. He led them through a curved corridor, then down a winding staircase to an expansive room. It had a dozen or so people, most of whom were seated at tables in the corners or back of the room. There was a band on the left side, mostly consisting of Rodians. There was a long platform throne on the right side. Sitting on it was a turquoise-colored Hutt with a cream-colored belly and yellow eyes. She had a hookah pipe next to her on the throne. Not far away, there was a blue-skinned female Togruta that had purple-white lekku and montrals. She was being held by a length of chain. Zoakkja glanced over at the entrance to the room. Seeing the visitors coming down the steps, she sighed and took the piece out of her mouth.
She greeted them, “Chowbaso! Niuta, be cotma!” A silver RA-7 protocol droid stood next to the Hutt.
“I present to you the honorable Zoakkja Vosadii Feth. The great Zoakkja welcomes you to her palace,” the droid said.
“It is an honor to be here,” Risvoa replied. The droid translated for the Hutt. It was then that she noticed the pair of ponies with the group.
“Ahhh, Jee neeja kickee do kankee noleeya ma bunko. Uba wa du grandio planeeto!” Zoakkja said directly to them.
The droid translated for them, saying, “The mighty Zoakkja says, 'she has never had any of your kind in her palace. You have a glorious planet.'”
“Oh, um, thank you,” Tempest answered rather quickly. She was taken aback by the sudden singling out of the two ponies. Then, Zoakkja brought the conversation back to Risvoa and her crew, which made Tempest breathe a sigh of relief. She was afraid to say the wrong thing.
In a slightly darkened, slate-gray room, sat a long black desk, the bluish light of a hologram bathing the space in its glow. There was a tall, slender woman in her mid-thirties wearing an olive green Imperial uniform sitting behind it. An Intelligence officer in a gray uniform came through the door, sliding open and closing behind him.
“Moff Bavindi,” he said. She glared at him with her piercing blue eyes.
“What is it?” Vera asked with her Coruscanti accent. She pressed a key on her board and the hologram disappeared and the light slowly came back on. Her wavy scarlet red hair shined in the light.
“We just intercepted a transmission from one of the princesses,” he answered. “It seemed like they might be up to something.”
She put her hands together, a small smile on her face. “Please, go on,” she said.
“Yes, it appears that they might have sent a couple of ponies out on an expedition mission of some kind,” he informed her. “I’m not certain what it is since they seemed to be using code or being vague on purpose.”
Vera raised her eyebrows, grinning a bit wider. “That’s fine because I have a good idea of what’s going on,” she said. “I want the record of every pony that has left this planet from every spaceport in the last forty-eight hours. You are dismissed.”
“Yes, sir. Right away,” he thanked her and left the Moff alone.
She took this position to simply further her career, being Planetary Governor of Equusi Prime and now Moff of this sector. She was one of the few female Moffs in the Empire, something she took pride in. She loathed the native inhabitants, the ponies, the most. Quadruple creatures like them shouldn’t have the intelligence of a human. They should be regulated to pack animals and nothing more. She had been waiting for an opportunity like this, for the rulers to finally slip up.
She pressed a key and a hologram came up again, this time of Canterlot. “You’re looking for the Rebels, aren’t you, you filthy equines?” She chuckled, adding, “Well, you’re going to pay dearly for it.” She growled, “Just you wait.”
Back at the palace’s throne room, the band was playing in the background. Zoakkja the Hutt finished her dealings with the crew.
“Uba bee bata wata, ma newpa pateesas,” the Hutt said.
The droid translated, “You get back here soon, my new friends.”
Tempest and Starlight nodded their heads and replied, “We will.” They then took a landspeeder back through the rainforest to the spaceport, where they returned to the hangar where G2-K1 was still present.
“I trust everything went satisfactorily with your meeting,” he said to Risvoa.
“It did,” she answered the droid. “We’re going to be dusting off soon,” Risvoa stated. “Prep the ship for takeoff.”
The droid replied, saluting her. “You got it, boss!”
“I’ve never been through hyperspace before,” Starlight commented, showing her excitement.
After a few minutes, the Siren was given clearance to depart and lifted off, retracting its landing gear and continuing up through the atmosphere. The ponies stood behind them in the cockpit. A light flashed, indicating that they were out of the planetary gravitational field and safe to make the jump to light speed. Risvoa grabbed the central throttle gear, thrusting it forward. There was a sudden jolt. The endless vacuum of stars gave way to flaring starlines and then into the swirling mottled blue of hyperspace.
The mottled blue enveloped the Siren as it moved through hyperspace. It was not very long after they entered light speed that Tempest and Starlight left the cockpit, the door sliding open and closed. They made their way through the ship and sat down in the lounge with the holochess board in front of them. Shakka followed the ponies out of the cockpit.
“Hey Shakka,” Starlight said before asking, “What’s the meaning of your name?” Shakka walked over to them.
“My name, Shakk'afreykaa, means lightning beloved in my native language of Twi’leki,” she answered. Now it was her turn to ask the two of them her own questions.
“So tell me, are the rumors true about you ponies?” Shakka asked as she sat down across from them.
“What do you mean, is it true?” Starlight asked back. The Twi’lek leaned forward, her large breasts bouncing.
“I mean, is it true your species has a larger ratio of females to males?” The two ponies started to feel uncomfortable with how close she was getting to them.
Starlight answered, “Yeah… it’s true.”
“Because of that, is it also true that you girls prefer the company of other females?” The Twi’lek had a seductive tone to her voice and smiled softly. She was clearly showing off her cleavage.
Starlight’s face flushed, looking away as she stated bluntly, “I don’t swing that way. Sorry.”
Tempest was also very red in the face. “Um… y-yeah… me too,” she answered.
“It’s going to be about a week or two until we get to our destination,” Shakka informed them. “On extended journeys through hyperspace, it can get quite lonely.” Slowly, she stroked down Tempest’s red mane and neck with her hand. “Don’t you want to know what you’re missing?” She flushed even more at the Twi’lek’s advances. “I like girls with scars. I’ll let you see mine,” she said softly. “Sotan kaa'lia plee.” [Do love with me.] Tempest gave in and nodded. She took the unicorn pony to her cabin quarters.
An intelligence officer walked into the doorway of the Moff’s office. Vera turned her chair towards him. “Come in, officer,” she said. He went up to her desk and handed her a datapad.
“The spaceport records you requested,” he said as she took the datapad from him.
“Thank you, that will be all,” she replied. He left the room. She swept through the logs. There were zero entries for the space station. She continued on with the others.
After Galactic Empire = A.G.E. Canterlot Royal Starport:
-------------- DATE ----------- TIME ------ SHIP NAME -------- SHIP MODEL ------------ MANIFEST-----------
Yesterday, 17 A.G.E. | 16:04:40 | Song of the Siren | YU-410 light freighter | 5 Crew, 2 Passengers ……
Vera stroked her chin as she looked at the data. She knew it wasn’t the latest freighter from Canterlot as it was after the transmission between the two princesses. “Intelligence, give me all of the information that you have on these two ships, in particular, the Song of the Siren and the Applebucker’s Pride,” she ordered from her communicator. “I want to know where they show up in port next.” She received the transmitted data.
Yesterday, 17 A.G.E. | 18:45:02 Equusi Prime Time | Applebucker’s Pride | YT-2400 light freighter | 2 Crew, 2 Passengers
Current Location: Gata Halsar Spaceport, Sorordor
Yesterday, 17 A.G.E. | 23:00:50 EPT | Song of the Siren | YU-410 light freighter | 5 Crew, 2 Passengers
Current Location: Vakkgandava City Spaceport, Veredusiko
Current Location: Anchormare Spaceport, Equusi Prime
Vera smirked, chuckling. Seeing as the other ship came back to Equusi Prime, there was only one option. “I got you now, my little ponies. You are on the Siren.”
It was about eight days into the journey when Starlight was sitting in the lounge playing a game of holochess with Ziimnee. They watched as the little alien creatures moved across the board. One of Starlight’s pieces picked up and threw down a nearby opponent creature onto the board. Ziimnee swore under her breath in an alien language.
Starlight grinned, exclaiming, “Hey, I’m getting better at this!” There were now only four pieces left, two each on the dejarik board. After the next three moves, Ziimnee’s piece was the last one standing. “Good game,” she said. Shakka moaned from her cabin. When Tempest trotted out naked into the lounge area, she was flushed and panting.
“Are you two having fun?” Starlight asked, giving her a little smirk. Tempest’s face blushed more, but she did not answer. “I’ve counted six times you’ve done it during this trip,” she commented, blushing slightly.
“Eight, eight times,” Tempest corrected her between pants. Starlight flushed more.
“Oh… I guess you girls got busy when we were all asleep,” she replied. The other unicorn nodded in agreement.
“It’s the most fun I’ve had in years,” Tempest remarked. “Hearing her talk to me in her native language is so hot to me.”
“Well, I’m happy for you,” Starlight commented, smiling.
“I know you are,” she chuckled. “I need some rest.” She trotted off to bed.
A continuous beeping sound came from the cockpit, alerting them that they were approaching their destination. “Good news, we were able to cut the trip time by twenty-four hours,” Risvoa informed them. They watched as the mottled sky of hyperspace faded away into starlines, then into an endless star field with a planet in the center of the viewport.
“There it is, Terminus, the intersection of the Hydrian Way and the Corellian Trade Spine,” Risvoa said as they approached the planet. Risvoa was given clearance by Control to land. They heard the subtle change in sound as the main sublight drive powered down and the repulsorlifts kicked in as they descended into the upper atmosphere of the ecumenopolis.
The city skyline was shimmering as the sun was fading over the horizon. The skyscrapers were miles tall and bathed in an orange glow. The YU-410 freighter circled the given landing platform. The ship’s landing gear extended as it touched down. The ramp was lowered shortly afterward. The passengers and crew got out of the freighter.
Shakka strutted up to Tempest, stroked her face and said to her, “You better get home soon. I want to pay you a personal visit.” Tempest nodded and smiled, flushed. The Twi’lek bent down and gave her a kiss.
Everyone watched it. “Alright, break it up, you two lovebirds,” Risvoa said to them.
“12,000 credits as promised,” Starlight said as she pulled it out of her bag and handed it to Risvoa with her magic. “Thank you for the ride.”
Risvoa took the credits and nodded. “Anytime. “Be safe now,” she told them. “There are many shady people around here.” The crew got back on the ship. The two ponies watched as the Song of the Siren lifted off slowly until it was out of sight.
It was dark and late at night when Twilight Sparkle heard a knock at her chamber door. She yawned, stretching her hooves and getting out of bed.
“Who could possibly need me at this hour?” she asked herself, rubbing her eyes. She opened the door. “Hello?” Princess Luna burst into the room and locked it. “Luna? Why are you here at this hour?”
“I fear our communications earlier were being listened to by the Empire. It was one of the reasons I cut our conversation short,” she explained. “Do you have a secured channel to reach them?”
Twilight nodded, responding, “I do, but they should be contacting me when they reach Terminus.”
Luna sighed, looking down slightly before looking back up. “Alright then, but I fear that the Empire might soon put a tighter grip on us. We must be cautious.” Twilight nodded in agreement. “Watch your back and sleep with one eye open,” she urged Twilight. Luna jumped out of the castle room’s window, disappearing into the moon. Twilight gasped as she suddenly awoke in her bed from her dream, realizing that it was all in her mind.
Tempest and Starlight trotted through the streets of bright lights at night. There was noise all around them, from the traffic above to the many people speaking in the crowds. Many of them were speaking languages they had never heard of before. The pair eventually found a place to stay, a tall apartment complex. A Besalisk at the front desk gave them their key and taking the lift up to the apartment. They went down the hallway until they reached their door.
“Here it is Floor 2010, Apartment number 10-10,” Starlight announced as she opened the door with the keycard. They trotted inside. The apartment was simple: it had two beds, a desk with a computer console and chair and a refresher. It had a window view of the city skyline.
They both stared out the window, watching the crisscrossing airspeeder traffic. “You know, I’m used to heights, but I’ve never been in a building that is this high before,” Tempest commented, looking at her companion. Starlight nodded her head, agreeing with her. “I should alert Twilight.” She turned on the comlink, putting it on the secure channel.
It was just after noon in Equestria. Twilight was checking up on things in the School of Friendship when her comlink began beeping. She entered a nearby room, retrieved her imagecaster and clicked on her comlink. A hologram of Tempest appeared.
“Hello, Twilight,” Tempest greeted her. “Starlight and I have made it to Terminus.” The princess sighed, being informed of some good news.
“Oh, it was good,alright,” Starlight commented. “I mean I had fun it being my first time through hyperspace. I don’t know what took me so long.” She put her hoof on her friend. “But Tempest here was the one that had a really good time.” Tempest nudged her.
“That’s great to hear,” she said, a tense sound in her voice. Tempest could hear something was wrong from her tone.
“What’s wrong?” she asked. Starlight was standing right beside her.
“The Empire might be aware of our activities,” Twilight told the duo.
“Great,” Starlight said sarcastically. “So what now?”
“Stay on your hooves,” the princess replied, “I’ll keep you informed about any updates here at home. I need to leave for a meeting.” Twilight disappeared from the transmission.
At a landing platform at Canterlot, a Lambda-class shuttle was coming in for a landing, folding up its wings. Its front landing ramp was lowered. Vera walked out of the ship, followed by a few elite death troopers and shadow troopers. They flanked her as she went to the castle and made her way to the throne room, where she had organized a meeting with the pony royals to discuss some recent matters.
The pony royal guards let her into the room. The princesses were seated in a semicircle. Princess Celestia was in the center, with Luna on her right, followed by Twilight. Cadance was to her left, followed by her daughter, Flurry. All of the princesses were physically there except for Cadance and Flurry Heart, who were still on their diplomatic mission. They were transmitting via hologram.
“Greetings Moff, you wanted to see us?” Celestia asked.
Vera didn’t bow to them as she thought it was beneath her. If anything, they should bow down to her because she had more power than they did. She could give the order to have entire cities leveled.
“Yes, there are some recent rumors that I want clarified,” she replied. “Are you sending your citizens out on missions to search for the Rebellion?” Celestia showed genuine surprise on her face.
“Excuse me? I let my loyal subjects go out and explore the galaxy on their own, but if any of them defected to the rebels, they have done so on their own. I personally have nothing to do with it.” Luna had an expressionless face while Twilight was trying her best to not show any emotion.
“And if you did have knowledge of such treason, you would inform me immediately?” Vera asked.
“Of course,” replied Celestia. “And I would never authorize such a thing myself.”
“Very well.” She walked out with her escort and back towards her ship. She didn’t believe her in the slightest.
She had received earlier confirmation from the Victory II-class star destroyer over Veredusiko that it had witnessed a YU-415 freighter with similar markings to the Song of the Siren entering hyperspace. She ordered fleets to be on the lookout for it when they entered the next spaceport.
The Moff’s shuttle circled and landed at the Imperial base. Vera walked down the ship’s ramp. An officer met her at the entrance of the base.
“Moff Bavindi, we have been notified that a ship matching that of the Song of the Siren was spotted in the Terminus system,” an officer informed her.
“Excellent, prepare a nearby cruiser to be sent to that system,” she ordered.
Despite everything that has happened to them so far, Starlight and Tempest decided to take a look around the city. Being in a planet-wide city was new for the both of them. They were trotting on the sidewalk as landspeeders and speeder bikes went past on the street. The ponies had a map so they wouldn’t get lost and to stay out of the seedier parts of town. Still, they noticed a few scantily clad women bringing male patrons into the private locations. They also saw a man holding something for sale.
“You want to buy some death sticks?” he said.
Starlight sighed and commented to Tempest, “Seems like this map hasn’t been updated recently.” Being a shorter species, they got separated from each other in the crowd. Starlight was pushed further away from her companion. She didn’t really want to attract attention by using magic. She decided to teleport herself to another part of the crowded street. It didn’t help her as she got knocked down.
A deep voice came from behind her, “Well well, what do we have here?” She glanced up to see a male Nikto staring down at her. A female voice spoke up next, “Aww, it looks like someone lost their pet.” Starlight looked for the source of the voice. There was a female Zeltron standing behind him.
“I’m not anybody’s pet,” she replied, furrowing her eyebrows into a scowl.
The Zeltron remarked, “She can talk and is cute too.” Starlight backed up into a male Ishi Tib and another Nikto. “My daughter would love to have a pet like you.”
“You’re a long way from home. Your royals might pay a pretty credit to get you back,” the other Nikto commented. Before Starlight was able to react, she felt a stinging sensation in her neck and blacked out. He picked her up from the ground and placed her in a nearby airspeeder. “She’s heavier than expected.”
Tempest was looking all over the street for Starlight when she witnessed her being put into a speeder. “Starlight!” She pushed through the crowd as fast as possible, but the speeder was already in the air making its getaway when she reached her. “No!” She picked up the map that Starlight dropped. She began galloping, glancing down every so often at the map to try to find the local authorities. She eventually bumped into someone, knocking herself to the ground. She looked up to see a Weequay male wearing a helmet and goggles.
He spun around, looking at her. “What’s the rush, my little friend?” he asked her.
She got on her hooves and apologized, “I’m sorry about that, but my friend was just taken and she—“
“Kidnapped!” He interjected. “Not to worry, I, Hondo Ohnaka, will help you get your friend back!”
Tempest said in reply, “Oh thank you.”
“Of course, the only problem is, do you know who took her?” Hondo asked.
“They had a skull with fangs over two crossed tridents on their jacket,” Tempest informed him.
He put his hand to his chin and said, “Ah yes, that would probably be the Black Blood Ravagers. They are a recently formed pirate gang that started up sometime after the war.”
“Do you know where they are located?” she asked.
“I do. Their base isn’t far from here in the Duhma system. They will be no problem for Hondo and it will be profitable,” he declared, folding his arms.
“Profitable?” Tempest asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Ah well, you see they took a few things that were originally mine and I’ve been meaning to get them back. Follow me!” Tempest Shadow followed after Hondo to where his ship’s hangar was.
