Chapter 1: A Possible Opportunity

Red letters flashed harshly across the computer screen, as Elara Dorne’s proposal was once again rejected. She let out an irritated sigh, running a tanned hand through her short black hair. This was the third proposal this week that she’d submitted to her commanders on Taris, who were determined to do their best to ignore her efforts. Elara had hoped that since she’d been promoted to sergeant and assigned to Republic Search and Rescue Unit 204, she’d actually be given more opportunity to help out in the field, put her medic skills to use. 

Unfortunately, Colonel Gaff seemed to be one of the officers that just wasn’t able to see past her previous service in the Sith Empire. It had been a mixed bag since she’d defected; half of the troops she served with were impressed by her tenacity and competency in her field, while the other half were suspicious and untrusting, certain that she was a double agent, just waiting for the right moment to run back to the Empire and reveal all of the Republic’s secrets.

Elara read through the reason for rejection, seeing if there was anything of substance that she could possibly use for her resubmission. As with the previous rejections, there was nothing concrete, just a bunch of military jargon and buzzwords that boiled down to: we don’t like you. She closed out of the notes and reopened her proposal, wondering if there was any other chain of command she could appeal to that wouldn’t be breaking the rules.

The heavy footsteps of Colonel Gaff caught her ear and she locked up her workstation, preparing for the colonel’s arrival. His gait sounded more hurried than usual, which either meant he was excited about something or annoyed about something. Either way, he’d be giving her orders.

As soon as Colonel Goff entered the building, it was obvious to see he was in a downright irritable mood. The bags under his eyes were more pronounced, and his lips were twisted down into a frown. Catching sight of Elara, he made a beeline toward her. She prepared herself for a rant.

“Sergeant Dorne, have you read the briefing on our incoming visitors?” The inflection that the colonel put on the word ‘visitors’ made it abundantly clear how pleased he was that said visitors were arriving. Elara frowned. She hadn’t received any briefing, but unfortunately that wasn’t uncommon. Whether through laziness, incompetence, or malice, Gaff would often neglect to forward along information to her, using it as another excuse to complain about her being assigned to his staff.

“No, sir, I haven’t.” It wasn’t worth bringing up that she didn’t even have said briefing.

Gaff pinched the bridge of his rather wide nose. “Of course you haven’t. I’ll keep it short. General Garza of Republic Special Forces has notified me that Lieutenant Lacroix of Havoc Squad is arriving on Taris on some top-secret mission. We’re to assist her and her squad with whatever they need, blah blah.” Gaff waved his hand in the air mockingly. “I don’t care who this woman is, I won’t have some egotistical spec ops soldier upsetting my operation.”

It took a great deal of effort for Elara to restrain from commenting that Gaff’s so-called operation had been dragging on far longer than it should have, with no end in sight.

“We’ll provide help if it doesn’t interfere with our own mission. Otherwise, Lacroix is on her own.”

“Sir, if this is by request of Republic High Command, is it not our duty to assist however possible?”

Gaff shot Elara a withering look. “Sergeant, I don’t know how much clearer I can make myself. Our operation is vital to the Republic, and I am not going to see it compromised for some covert agenda that I am not privy to. Understood?”

Elara pursed her lips. “Yes sir.”

“Good.” Gaff ran a hand over his balding head. “They should be here any minute. Get back to work.”

Elara turned back to her work station. It was going to be difficult for her to deny any help from the incoming Lieutenant if she asked, but she was fairly certain she could help and continue her normal work without falling behind. Maybe this covert mission would be something of actual importance to the Republic.

—

“Welcome to Taris, Lieutenant.” Elara heard Colonel Gaff greet the leader of Havoc Squad, only a touch of mockery in his voice. She turned and saw two soldiers, both kitted out in white armor with dark red accents. The armor showed a good amount of wear, scuffs and pockmarks across it, but was in good condition apart from that. The soldier standing slightly behind the other was a male Cathar, his feline features prominent given the open face helmet he was wearing. He stood tall, his hands clasped at the small of his back in parade rest.

The other soldier, who must have been the Lieutenant, still had her helmet on. It was similar to a standard Republic helmet, but the visor was a shimmering blue instead of the usual black. The Lieutenant also had a shemagh scarf around her neck, another small detail that made her stand out from the rank and file.

“Thank you Colonel.” The leader of Havoc Squad had a steady voice, one that held a suitable amount of commanding presence. It seemed a bit deeper than Elara would have expected, but it may have been due to the fact that the lieutenant was speaking through her helmet. “I hope to be in and out quickly, disrupting your operation as little as possible.”

Elara was surprised. Most special forces soldiers she had dealt with had a suffocating air of self-importance, and usually cared little for the military outside spec ops. Perhaps the lieutenant was attempting to placate the bristly Colonel, a clever move.

Clever though it may be, it was not successful. “I’d prefer if you didn’t disrupt my operation at all, Lieutenant, but here we are. Now, tell me what your mission is so I can help you finish it and get you off of my planet.” Elara really wanted to apologize for her superior’s attitude, but instead turned back to her workstation. They’d let her know if she was needed.

“I’m sure you’re aware I can’t tell you what my mission is, Colonel-” Elara could sense Gaff raising his hackles even more “-but I can tell you that I am looking for a dangerous man who is working with the Imperials on Taris.”

“Thank you for being so forthcoming,” Gaff said, voice dripping with sarcasm. “I’m afraid we can’t help you there. We don’t have the resources to spare to help you track down one man.”

This time she couldn’t help but interject. “If they’re working with the Imperials, I can help you track them down.” Three heads turned toward her, one of them significantly more displeased than the others. She took a step forward and saluted. “Sergeant Elara Dorne, ma’am. I have experience with Imperial codes and frequencies.”

“Is that so, Sergeant?” The Lieutenant appeared to be mulling over the decision. “Colonel, if you’ll allow Sergeant Dorne to assist me, it would be much appreciated.”

Gaff grumbled under his breath, but relented. “Fine. Dorne can help. But if it starts impacting her duties for my operation, she’s done.” Turning gruffly on his heel, the Colonel strode out of the building.

“I apologize for Colonel Gaff, sir,” Elara said. She would’ve loved to say more, but it was not in her best interest to bad-mouth her commanding officer.

“No apology necessary, Sergeant. You’re not responsible for your superior’s shortcomings.” Lieutenant Lacroix removed her helmet, and Elara was surprised to see the telltale blue skin of a Chiss underneath. “If you have a moment, I would like to brief you on who we’re tracking and what we know about them. Some information I will be unable to share, though.”

Elara took a moment to respond. The lieutenant’s voice was a bit deeper and a bit gravelly even without the helmet on, but that wasn’t what had given her pause. She was still getting over the fact that there was a Chiss standing in front of her, who was leader of one of the Republic’s special forces teams at that. It was exceptionally rare to see a Chiss outside of their territory, or territory that belonged to the Sith Empire. Although they were still considered an independent power, the Chiss Ascendancy had many dealings with the Empire, and often provided spies and agents to further the Empire’s objectives. Elara didn’t think she’d ever seen a Chiss in Republic territory, much less in the military. She wondered if the woman had to go through some of the same troubles she’d been dealing with. She’d obviously been much more successful.

“Of course, ma’am. I’d be happy to lend my expertise.”

The next ten minutes were spent with Lieutenant Lacroix bringing Elara up to speed, with the Cathar (who Elara learned was Sergeant Jorgen) occasionally adding bits of intel. They were on the trail of a combat medic who had defected and was potentially aiding the Sith Empire in developing some sort of poison or virus. They had tracked him to Taris, and were hoping that Elara could help narrow down their search area in any way.

“That’s what we’ve got. Do you think you can assist?”

Tapping a finger against her lips, Elara looked at the data she’d been provided, meager as it was. “Yes, I think I can. I’ve got a couple of areas that would be a good place to start your investigation, and I’ll continue to monitor Imperial transmissions from here. I think based upon your previous tracking I should be able to eliminate some of the frequencies, which should narrow our possible locations.”

“I appreciate it, Sergeant Dorne. And I mean that, not like when I said it to Colonel Gaff.” A smile flickered across Lieutenant Lacroix’s face so quickly Elara thought she may have imagined it. She locked her pupil-less red eyes with Elara’s own blue ones and nodded, slipping her helmet back on. “Alright Jorgen, let’s move out.”

“Yes ma’am.”

The two members of Havoc Squad strode out of the building, with an air of confidence that Elara was envious of. She knew that she was good at her job, and was a good soldier, but it must be nice to be part of a group that respected that. Returning to her workstation, she sat down and fired up a few monitoring programs. Maybe if she proved her worth to the leader of Havoc Squad, she’d put in a good word for her.