Ambassador

Chapter 27: No Rest in War

Bleary eye-ed, Alanja awoke to a repeating beep from Rov's office. Pulling her robe around her, she left her bedroom and crossed the sitting room to look in on Rov. He was alone, staring bitterly at the blinking light on his desk console, the source of the feverish warning.

"Rov?" she called.

He seethed. "Come over here," he ordered.

Cautious, Alanja approached.

"Remember I showed you my spare pistol." He nodded at the underside of his desk.Her heart skipped a beat. The man before her was only Admiral Rampart; her brother Rov was buried beneath a coming storm. She had seen their father look that way in the weeks leading up to his death. He was cold and often lost in thought. Alanja's last message between her and her husband had been much the same. He didn't have to say anything more for her to know that the end of their mortal days could be this very night, and he was setting his face like flint.

"Alanja," he snapped. "Answer me."

Stunned by his hardness, she gave him a jittering nod that she remembered the gun.

"Good." His tone was black and eerily calm as he continued monitoring the messages. His face darkened as the storm rolled towards them. Without warning, Rov shot to his feet and marched for the door.

Alanja hopped back to the threshold between the office and the sitting room. "Rov?" she called for an explanation.

"Get dressed, Alanja."

Where was he going? What was happening?

Before she could say anything more, the door slid open, and Captain Howzer rushed in. "The refinery is under attack."

Alanja gasped, but neither of the men noticed. Rov's outrage felt like the air in the room was boiling. His voice was too calm. "I'll handle it." Then his voice raised in a bark of pure, bitter authority as he ordered Howzer, "Stay here and guard the Capitol."

Terror gripped Alanja as Rov shoved Captain Howzer aside with his shoulder as if the clone was not even standing there. "Don't go out there, Rov." But her brother did not turn back.

Rov's anger vexed Howzer, but Alanja's desperation shook him. Alanja stepped out into the room, hugging her robe around her shoulders. Howzer's gaze was drawn to the scope ring on her left middle finger, his countenance troubled.

"Captain?" Alanja called Howzer. "What's happening? Are we under attack here?"

He raised his hands to calm her. "Ma'am. I don't know what is going on. None of this makes any sense. Teller. Gimbal. Get in here."

Panic seared her senses. Whatever was happening was Howzer's fault, just like she told him that morning. Incompetence! "You have to protect, Rov," she cried out. "Please."

Firm, Howzer replied in a way that should have been reassuring, but it was not. "You'll be safe here, Ma'am."

Her entire body quaked as two troopers entered Rov's office. Teller and Gimbal had been part of Rov's security detail since she arrived. They were there with her when Rov stepped out on the balcony that morning, too. Why weren't they with him now? Instantly, she made for the door to follow after her brother, but Howzer snatched her arm. She violently wriggled against his grip. "Let me go!"

"Miss Rampart! You have to calm down."

Teller and Gimbal braced to help contain her.

"It's Syndulla's men, isn't it!" she yelled at Howzer. "The war with the separatists killed my husband; I won't let these insurgents kill my brother because you refuse to do your job!"Alanja jerked her arm. She had to get free. The captain's grip on her never faltered, and her resistance didn't even move him an inch. Howzer grabbed her other arm and pulled her to him in a firm bear hug to keep her from getting past him. His armor pinched her and soiled her nightgown and robe when she flailed helplessly against him.

"Listen to me, Miss Rampart," he pleaded, his deep voice firm but oddly desperate. No. Not desperation. Love like he was saving a treasure from itself. "We can't let you go out there."

"I'll scream! Let me go!" That threat shook the Teller and Gimbal. They glanced at each other and then at Howzer, unsure what their next move should be.

"Close the door," Howzer ordered Teller. The trooper swiveled and punched the lock, the door sliding shut, sealing her inside with the three clones. "Ma'am," Howzer barked, his tone meant to break her mania before transitioning into a softer appeal. "You mean too much to us. Please. We're going to keep you safe."

Alanja stiffened in horror, Howzer's powerful arms still ensnaring her. Important to them? Pressed to his chest, her head craned back. From that angle, the scars on his face told his story to her for the first time. This battle-hardened man had earned them like metals of honor. He was a man of great esteem, and she wanted to believe him, that he could protect her and Rov.Howzer looked down at her like she was precious to him and gently put her feet back on the floor when she stopped fighting him. He drew her left hand up between them and showed her the scope ring. "Your death would burn Ryloth to cinders, ma'am. Have mercy. Let us protect you."

She gasped. "Crosshair?"

"No." He motioned to his men. "All of us. You have to stay safe."

Howzer let her go. She shivered before him, her eyes darting between him, Teller, and Gimbal in confusion. "What are you saying?"

Howzer put his fist over his chest. "My men adore you, Miss Rampart. They see you as a beacon of hope. What you did for our brothers in the infirmary. You saved them. You didn't have to do that. We know how you saved Commander Crosshair, too."

The words, "I did," stammered past her panting lips. How much more had they heard, though? Did they know about the inhibitor chip she had removed from him too? Bile rose in her throat, and she backed away from Howzer.

Captain Howzer held his hands out wide in surrender to her. "You have to understand. No one has shown them the sort of love and acceptance you have, not even the Jedi, and we spent years fighting beside them before they betrayed us."

He was trying to comfort her, but she knew the real reason the clones turned on the Jedi. They were ordered to by the pre-planning of the Kaminoans. What else had those monsters programmed into these poor children without anyone knowing? Emperor Palpatine had the foresight to be prepared for the Jedi to turn against him and betray everyone, but could the Kaminoans have pre-planned a similar order to protect themselves the same way from the Republic and now the Galactic Empire? There was no way to know for sure, just deadly uncertainty.

Alanja drew three deep breaths, letting them out slowly, calming her pounding heart. "I see."Howzer's boyish smile was meant to comfort her as he rubbed her shoulders with his big, gloved hands. "Thank you, Miss Rampart," he said warmly. "Let us do our job now."

Alanja swallowed hard, her pulse quickening again.

"We'll take good care of you, ma'am," offered Teller with his hand over his heart.

"Thank you, Teller," she replied in the smoothest way she could muster. When he heard her say his name, his broad shoulders rolled back, and he inhaled deeply of satisfaction.

Beside him, Gimbal, constantly wary, turned to address Howzer. "Captain. Orders?"

"Stay here and guard the ambassador. Only three people are allowed through that door. Admiral Rampart. Commander Crosshair. And me. Got it?"

"Yes, sir," replied both troopers with a salute.

Alanja grabbed Howzer by the arm when he began to leave. "Captain," she said. "Take care of my brother."

His warm demeanor comforted her this time. He really did care for her. She hated that he was a clone. Men like him were so rare. "Ma'am. Commander Crosshair and his squad will be at his side. Nothing will get past them. You can be sure of that."

Biting her bottom lip, she stepped close and tentatively put her arms around Howzer and embraced him. "Come back safe too, captain."

When she stepped back from him, his reaction surprised her. Captain Howzer sniffed, and his caring eyes were a little wet. "Yes, ma'am."