The New Adventures of Nomi Darklighter

Chapter 94 - Caught in the Trap

Nomi stared at the First Order officer, who tossed Draco a purse as stormtroopers emerged from the room where they were hiding until the secret signal was issued.
"Thank you for your cooperation, captain," the man said before turning to the Resistance fighter. "At last... you rebel scum are more slippery than fleek eels."
He beckoned one of the troopers closer.
"Cuff her."
Nomi was still unable to use the Force and had a numb feeling, as if a part of her was missing. She remembered having this feeling before. The feeling as if there was a void in the Force. Then the realization hit her like a punch.
"You brought ysalamiri," she blurted out as the trooper handcuffed her as ordered.
"That's the best way to deal with a Jedi, commander," the First Order officer smirked. "My late father served under Grand Admiral Thrawn in the glory days of the Empire. He told me about these special animals and where to find them. And now the knowledge came in handy. Now I can take revenge on you pesky rebels."
He glared at his prisoner.
"Revenge? Revenge for what?" The Jedi Master asked in an even voice. She didn't want to give him the satisfaction of seeing her tremble in fear.
"You dare ask for what? I will avenge my father's death at D'Qar when the Fulminatrix was destroyed!" The man lost his temper and Dracon glanced at Nomi.
"You should calm down, Canady," the pirate said and tried to put a hand on the officer's arm, but the man pushed him aside.
"Take her to the ship," he barked his order before storming to the part of the Draco's Pride where the small freighter with the ysalamiri on board had just landed.
Nearby was the shuttle Canady had come on. He walked up the ramp and the hatch closed behind him.
In the meantime, the troopers dragged Nomi to the freighter. She didn't put up much resistance as she was in shock.
Betrayed by the man she had thought was an ally, a man who was a friend of her children. How could this have happened? She stopped for a moment, and the trooper behind her jammed the muzzle of his blaster rifle into her back.
"Move!"
The commander moved forward and entered the freighter. There she saw the ysalamiri hanging from racks. After she sat down on a bench, a trooper shackled her feet to the floor.
It didn't take long for the freighter to take off.

Back at the Resistance base, Tasherit wondered why her mother wasn't making contact as promised. She looked at Dash Jr. who was listening to the known First Order frequencies for possible targets and cleared her throat.
"Huh?" He turned his attention to his sister.
"Mama must be at Draco's already. Why doesn't she call us? She promised," Tasherit said worriedly.
Her brother shrugged his shoulders.
"Maybe she's busy dividing up the loot."
"That doesn't sound like her, Dash," Tasherit replied, pulling out her comlink. Then she called her father.
Dash Rendar took his comlink as it went off.
"Yes?" He asked crisply, frowning at two young men who had just dropped a crate.
"Hey, more careful, if those had been explosives, you would have blown us up."
Then he spoke into the comlink.
"Sorry..."
"It's me, Papa, we're still waiting for Mama's call. It's overdue and I'm worried," he heard his daughter's voice.
"Maybe she's busy and hasn't found time to call us. You know how that can be," Dash said, but his daughter could tell that there was a hint of worry in her father's voice.
"Maybe we should call Draco," he suggested, turning his attention back to the two men who were now busy repacking the items that had fallen out of the crate.
Tasherit cut the connection to her father and walked over to the nearest comm unit and settled down in front of it.
She called Draco and then waited for an answer. It was a while before she heard the pirate speak.
"Hello, Tash. Why are you calling?"
There was a hint of stress in the man's voice.
"I want to ask if my mother has arrived yet. She promised to get in touch when she arrived, but she hasn't," the young Jedi said.
The man on the other end of the connection hesitated for a split second, which Tasherit registered very well. She wasn't stupid and knew immediately that Draco was hiding something. The young woman frowned.
"The commander has already left. She said she had seen enough and that she was needed on base," finally came the reply.
"She's already left without calling us? That doesn't sound like her."
Tash was pretty sure the pirate was lying to her. The realization hurt.
"Okay, I think she'll be arriving soon. Thank you, Draco."
Tasherit broke the connection, jumped up from her seat and went to her father.
"Mama's in danger!"
Her father looked up from his work.
"How do you know?"
She hurriedly told Dash about her conversation with Draco and the feeling she had. The former mercenary looked at his daughter thoughtfully.
"We should pay Draco a visit, Tash," he finally said, pulling out his comlink to call his sons.

Meanwhile, the transport landed on Commodore Canady's dreadnought. One of the troopers undid Nomi's shackles and pulled her up.
"Move, rebel scum," he barked, pushing her forward to the hatch and down the ramp. The commander moved slowly, not too thrilled to find herself in a cell soon.
There was still a void in the Force, and it was sickening. She was pretty sure that ysalamiri were on board here too. This minimized her chances of escape immensely. She cursed inwardly. Canady really meant business.
The man wasn't stupid and was driven by a desire for revenge, which made him a dangerous opponent.
Deep inside the First Order dreadnought, they reached the detention area. A guard opened a cell door and Nomi was dragged there. As she hesitated to enter the cell, the muzzle of a blaster rifle was rammed into her back.
"Enter!" She heard the trooper's voice behind her and took a step forward.
Apparently she wasn't fast enough for his taste, because he rammed the blaster rifle muzzle into her back again with full force, causing her to fall to her knees. The man laughed and walked away while the guard closed and locked the door.

After the door was closed, the Jedi Master rose and walked over to the cot that stood against the opposite wall. There she curled up and wondered if and when she would see Canady again.