Single-ship Mission (Star Wars)

Force Profiling

Alderaan System

Leia stood looking through the glass of her quarters on The Enlightener. The asteroid field was gone. Where once a magnificent blue planet was, apart from barely visible residual dust, all there remained was empty space. And the former Rebel Alliance freighter, now marked with the crest of the New Republic, was flying right through it.

Alderaan was where Leia had been raised. As a prisoner on the first Death Star, she had witnessed the destruction of the planet and of its entire population at the hands of the Empire. The Rebel leader knew that one day her travels in the galaxy would bring her back to this very spot. Right now, she wished they hadn't.

The sound of C3PO coming in from the corridor forced her out of the painful flow of memories. The Empire's backbone was broken, but not all systems had been fully liberated. The scarce army of the newly re-established Republic was faced with numerous challenges. And Leia, although no longer commander-in-chief, remained a general and had a job to perform.

"Yes, Threepio?", she said, her eyes still on the void outside.

"Princess Leia, the ship just received an encrypted message from Master Luke. In the transmission header he insists I am to deliver it to you personally."

Leia turned around with a grim look on her face. This had to be serious. Luke was supervising a reconnaissance mission in a remote system of the Outer Rim. Hitting a button on the remote control unit she carried attached to her belt, she shut the heavy bulkhead door Threepio had come in through, and walked up to the droid.

"Tell me."

"Master Luke's message is written in a battle code from the days of the Old Republic. It is lucky I happen to know the language, the ship's calculator cannot read it."

"Are you certain it originates from Luke?"

"Yes, your Highness, R2's communications watermark is encapsulated in the file."

"Let me hear Luke's message, then."

"Master Luke says the following: I am feeling something I have not felt since Endor. A Force-sensitive is active in the Eumond system. It's not a Jedi, it's definitely dark, though I can't say for sure it's a Sith. The Force flows very inconsistently from the sentient in question, it's very strange. Although you are far away, I was wondering had you felt anything. I will shortly be on my way to check it out. I am taking a few men. May the Force be with you."

"Is that all?"

"Yes, Your Highness."

"Thank you Threepio."

"Is there anything else I can do for you?"

"Not for now. You had better get back to the command deck."

"Certainly, Your Highness. We should be ready to jump to hyperspace in a bit."

Threepio opened the door and the princess heard him make his way to the lift.

Eumond is close enough to the core. Luke must have designated a new commander for his Outer Rim task force. It's never over, is it? 

Leia sighed, as she closed the entrance door again. She took a few steps into the room and sat down in a lotus position on the cold floor, at a right angle from the window. 

Closing her eyes, the princess took a deep breath, and worked to empty her mind of all pending issues. Several minutes passed as she focused solely on her breathing, gradually restoring inner peace and receptivity to the Force.

Then, on the surface of still water her mind had become, little waves began to appear, at first of almost insignificant amplitude, but there it was: the dark side of the Force was toying with a subject who had some of the ability, but failed to fully embrace its calling. A male... a human male, and not a noble soul either.

Yes... he had been part of the Imperial Navy, his own choice... happy to don the uniform... though his superiors, for the most part, didn't think much of the man. And there, aboard the star destroyer he was posted on, the Dark Side had suddenly spoken in him, through him, revealing itself in its fierceness... nearly costing the admiral and two stormtroopers their lives. He had enjoyed it... immensely.

But there was more hubris than hatred in the lieutenant. He was reckless, to the point of being occasionally intrepid; yet at the core an individualist, prone to listen to his pride, but above all seeking his pleasure. Power-and the freedom that came with it-was a nice thing, self-sacrifice not so much.

Not a leader of men, this one, Leia concluded to herself. More like a loose canon, and a fire within it that needed to be put out, before innocent beings suffered or wound up dead.

As the general opened her eyes, her mind gravitated towards Luke, sending a wave of worry through her. She hoped her brother would not be overly merciful or idealistic. Individuals like this lieutenant needed to be shown a strong hand, if any reform was to be envisaged. Luke was well able to be ruthless if needed, but he was also prone to placing excessive hope in people. That could get him in trouble, even now.

"All crew and passengers, please fasten your seatbelts, hyperspace jump in five minutes!" said an officer's voice over the PA.

Leia glanced once more at the star field, before going to her desk, where she sat down and strapped herself in, her mind deep in thought.

She was grateful to be alone. As the hyperdrive ignited and the ship leaped from the Alderaan system into the blue maze of hyperspace, tears silently rolled down the cheeks of the princess.