Star Wars: The Lord in Exile

The Lost Commanders

The Ghost crew were gathered on one of the rebel ships, speaking to Commander Sato who was broadcasting from another vessel. Vader's attack was only a few days ago and the fleet was still recovering. Sabine had redecorated herself since the attack, her hair was now a mix of dark blue and aqua. The armor's chestplate was now a mix of orange and purple with a white with a dark blue circle on the right side and a white 'U' shaped design inside of it; making the flag of Ultramar. Aurelian liked the addition, Sabine had done it as a surprise for him so she could honour his homeland. The symbol of Ultramar had stood for over ten thousand years, it meant a lot to the prince to see his lover wear it on her armor with pride.

"The destruction of our command ship has severely limited our ability to fight the Empire in this sector," Commander Sato said through his hologram projection.

"So maybe we don't fight." Ezra chimed in. "Uh, Commander Sato, sir. When things got tough for me on Lothal, I'd go find some place to hide."

The Commander smiled at the boy. "You are never shy with your opinions, Ezra Bridger, but establishing a base is a good idea."

"Problem is, none of the potential bases we know of have the tactical advantage we need to protect what's left of our fleet." Hera explained.

Kanan walked into the room and joined the discussion. "Or aid the nearby systems suffering from Imperial oppression."

"We lack the resources and size to even help ourselves, Kanan." Aurelian replied. "If only we had more allies."

"Maybe we could ask Cicero for some help? See if he can buy a moon or something for us?" Sabine theorized.

"Too risky. If the base is discovered, so too will Cicero's true loyalty." Ahsoka explained. "But I know someone who might be able to help us. A great military commander with a vast knowledge of the Outer Rim. He could assist us in finding a base, and his experienced leadership would make him a powerful ally."

"I assume there's a catch to all this." Aurelian wondered.

"You'd be right. I lost track of him a long time ago, and all my transmissions have gone unanswered."

"We can find him." Ezra promised. "Let us try."

Ahsoka smiled at the boy, "Well, there is one option I've not yet attempted."

Aboard the Ghost, Ahsoka walked into the cockpit carrying the head of a Separatist droid. A tactical droid that was often used as frontline commanders for simpler droids. The orange Tortuga placed it down in Sabine's hands. Alpha-117 came to life and examined the droid with a disappointed look.

"Is that the head of an old tactical droid?" Kanan asked.

"This thing's processor is so under-developed for its position as a commander." she noted. "Here I thought I'd meet a Machine Spirit as advanced as me, guess they're only found beyond the Divide."

Ahsoka turned to Kanan and replied, "These droids were great at finding things, calculating. Found my master and I a few times when we didn't want to be found."

"How in all the galaxy is that droid gonna find your friend?" Ezra asked as the astromechs chirped in offense.

"Well, I heard he was last seen in the Seelos system. Alpha-117 can download the tactical droid's data into her mind and use it to help your search." Ahsoka explained.

"Alright," the Machine Spirit sighed. "But I will not enjoy having that thing inside my head."

"You're not coming with us? I thought you'd want to see your friend first." the prince wondered.

"Yes, but unfortunately I have something else to attend to."

"The Sith Lord." the brown-haired Jedi realized.