Ahsoka, Daughter of the Light, Book 7: Hunt

Chapter 3: The Royal Child

SHEVA YERO

Sheva and Astaro Yero, a happy wife and husband (respectively), had just welcomed their new child, Aro, into the galaxy. They were red Togrutas of Shili's royal family, and they hoped they could raise their daughter in a life of luxury.

Key word: hoped.

The reality was much harsher. While the Empire had allowed the royal family to exist, provided they remained loyal, there was some fear that the Empire could suddenly seize their wealth, assets, and power at any given moment for some arbitrary reason. And, given the rising unrest amongst Togruta populations, that reason seemed like it was about to present itself.

For now, Sheva and Astaro were on a luxurious private estate on the hilly, tropical coast. They had been staying here for about a month, after they had sought to isolate themselves from the political struggles in their family. They had grown tired of the constant tension, negotiations, and sometimes arguments that her family had with Imperial diplomats (or sometimes, within both parties themselves). As such, Sheva and Astaro had asked to stay on a family-owned estate along with their newborn daughter, in order to avoid the constant bickering. The request was granted, and now they were here.

Of course, they were far from immune to the political realities that grasped their world. Their estate was guarded by Togruta royal guards, but forceful seizure of this property by Imperial (or maybe rebellious) forces was still a possibility, even though it had little in the way of strategic advantage. Every now and then, there were reports from the guards of unidentified scouts or Imperial probe droids just over some hills at the edge of the horizon.

Still, this was one of the safest places on the planet, and in the event of a worst-case scenario, they could always just hole up in the emergency bunker, which could hold them for upwards of a month.

Still, they loved basking in the sun and enjoying the peace... at least, while there was still peace, if it would soon be shattered.

Sheva walked into the estate after taking a little stroll. The entrance was one of those large, open rooms with a large staircase that served no purpose other than to look nice.

She walked up the stairs as Togruta guardsmen and assistants bowed to her.

She opened the door to see her husband Astaro playing with Aro.

"Well, look who's finally back," Astaro said, turning away from the baby. "Do you really think you should be going outside so much? After all, I'm certain some no-good smuggler or even the Imps or rebels could take you and hold you for some kind of ransom."

"Honey, we're miles away from the nearest village or town, and there's sensor nodes surrounding this whole estate," Sheva replied. "We'll see something coming if it tries to sneak up on us. And besides, you know me. I can hardly last a day without fresh air."

"Sure missing those mountain hikes, huh?"

"Yes. In fact, I would have asked to stay in the mountain estate further north if those regions weren't reported to be crawling with illegal activity and the resulting high amount of Imperial patrols."

"Can't blame you. During the days I used to work on that luxury yacht, and I saw, like, two different planets a week, at least. Got to meet all kinds of people. It's never been this quiet in my life before, and I wanna go out and do something too, but I'm not gonna put myself at risk."

"I wonder how my life would be different had I not met you on that one flight to Alderaan."

"It would probably be a lot worse, heh." Astaro joked.

"As far as I know, you're entirely correct," Sheva replied with a grin.

Aro made a cooing noise. Sheva reached into the crib and picked her up and began rocking her side to side.

"She's so precious," Sheva said.

"Honey, you've said that, like..." Astaro trailed off, presumably trying to count. "Oh who am I kidding," he conceded, "you're not wrong."

Sheva giggled.

"I hope it's always like this," she continued.

"I don't know if the Empire will let that happen. For all we know, the platoon is already en route to evict us."

"Not out loud, 'Staro!" Sheva whispered. "You don't know who might be listening."

Personally, Sheva had her reservations with the empire, but obviously she wasn't stupid enough to voice them. Astaro, on the other hand, seemed to bring it up more and more. Perhaps the seemingly inevitable revolt has made him bold. Sheva found herself cutting him off more and more.

"You're right," Astaro murmured back.

"Look, whatever you say about the Empire, if we turn against them, we lose everything. Including our lives, and our daughter. We can get by remaining loyal to them."

Astaro seemed frustrated, as if he wanted to provide a counter-argument, but he knew he wouldn't be able to get away with it.

He sighed.

"You watch over the kid for a while," he finished. "I'm gonna go grab a bite to eat."