Face stared in shock at Zatt's lifeless body.
'That was for Fenn,' said Ka'iulani, and as Face turned to her, he saw her satisfied smile, and his dismay turned to anger.
'What the hell did you do?' he yelled.
She shrugged, unconcerned. 'What you couldn't,' and turned to walk out of the door like she had not a care in the galaxy.
Face stood on shaky legs and chased after her. 'You had no right!'
'I had every right!' she yelled, turning to face him. Behind her, Vix bounded up the stairs, blaster in hand.
'Vix,' Face ordered, 'arrest her! She just shot Zatt!'
Vix looked from Face to Ka'iulani, then back, and for one horrible moment Face thought that Vix would do nothing. But at last, his training won out, and Face nodded, relieved. 'We're not savages,' said Face. 'We don't shoot unarmed prisoners.'
'I'm not New Republic,' said Ka'iulani, pulling her arm out of Vix's tentative grip. 'And neither are you. None of you are, anymore.'
'That doesn't make it okay,' he said, almost pleading. 'We're not like the First Order.'
'No, they just shoot their friends,' Ka'iulani replied scornfully. 'She got what's coming to her.'
'Ka'iulani,' said Face, then raised his voice as he noticed the others were huddled at the bottom of the steps. 'They have her family. She's not First Order. She was coerced, she was forced to work for them.'
Ka'iulani's anger gave way, first to confusion, and then to despair as the words sunk in. 'No,' she said, horrified.
'Yes,' he said, stepping towards her. Even Vix had stopped his less than enthusiastic attempts to take her into custody to listen. 'They had infiltrated the New Republic, positioned her into this squadron, then threatened to kill her family if she didn't do what she was told. And,' he paused, thinking over his next few words. 'They forced her to shoot Fenn. She didn't want to,' she had, of course, said no such thing, but he needed as much behind him as possible. 'Think, Ka'iulani. You knew her. We all did. Do you really think she could shoot someone in cold blood?'
'I- I don't know,' she hesitated. Her hands hung limp by her side, all energy drained out of her. She looked wildly about her. She was the next oldest Nexu, after Face, but she looked like a lost child. 'That doesn't excuse what she did.'
'It doesn't,' Face shook his head. 'And she knew that. She hated herself for doing it. She was scared. She had no idea what to do. She was just a kid, trying to help her family. She was in way over her head and no idea how to get out,' Face knew he shouldn't be speaking for her, but he felt that that his words were authentic, though perhaps not entirely true. It was a distinction he had long ago learned as an actor, and he hoped it helped him now. 'She did a horrible thing, but she was a victim, too.'
That destroyed her. She let out a feral scream of rage and grief as tears poured from her, and Vix took her in her arms. He was just as shaken as her - as shaken as Face, even.
'Vix,' he said softly, 'take her to the salon, get her some refreshments. Then I want you to,' he paused, not sure what he wanted to say next. She had done something terrible, and by rights she should be locked up. But so had Zatt, and he was ready to - what? Forgive her? Let her go free? Be part of the crew again? He shook his head. He hadn't had time to process his thoughts, let alone imagine what the future would hold for her. All he knew, all he had promised, was to help her parents, a promise he intended to keep, but as for Zatt herself? That, he didn't know. And what of Ka'iulani? He could understand why she had done what she did, had even feared that she would, but the fact that she had done so right in front of him, and given how raw he felt from hearing her testimony, all made him feel like this was just so much worse than what Zatt had done. And then, over all that, the voice in his head, the one that made the cold calculations that he needed to make, that helped him see the bigger picture, that helped him be an effective leader - up until this mission, he mentally castigated himself - reminded him that he couldn't afford to lose yet another member of his squadron. They needed her. Fenn needed her. He looked beyond Vix and Ka'iulani, over at the others huddled at the bottom of the stairs. How would they feel about all this? Could they work with her? 'Take her to the salon,' he said again to Vix, 'then take her to her room, and lock her in. She's not under arrest, but she cannot continue as an active member of this squadron - for the time being,' there. That gave him some breathing room. Vix nodded and gently pulled an unresisting Ka'iulani away. The crowd parted for them.
Face walked to the top of the stairs and looked down at them. Ro'vena, Kai, Twitch, Garan and Tarrik all huddled together, all looking fearfully up at him. Even Garan seemed shaken. 'I owe you all a longer explanation,' Face said apologetically, 'but time is against us, so for now I can only tell you this: We will help Fenn, get the supplies they need. And after, we're going to look for Zatt's parents. We're going to rescue them, because I meant what I said: she was guilty, but she was a victim, too, and one of us. No more people are going to die because of us. Because of me. Is that understood?' he watched Garan carefully as he said this. He expected, and received, Twitch's nod of assent quickly. He was a career soldier who would do what he was told. Ro'vena and Kai were a bit more difficult. Ro'vena was very empathetic towards others, and Kai had, Face knew, bonded with Zatt over their shared interest in the more bombastic genres of Nautolan music. 'For Zatt,' he said, by way of a gentle prompt. That got them to agree. Only Garan held out, but eventually he grunted, which Face took for agreement.
'Then let's not waste any more time,' Face said. 'Time to get back to work.'
