Trooper

Signaling Disaster

Outer Rim: 12 BBY
"Profundity"
Jess

Jess raised a hand to his chin, studying the holomaps being projected. Azie whistled beside him. He glanced up as Admiral Raddus and Lieutenant Reese entered the command center. They joined him at the holotable.

"Have you figured out where they came from?" Reese asked.

Jess shook his head. "They had to be close since they came up so fast but there's a number of Imperial planets in the sector. They could've come from any of them."

"How many ships did we lose?" Admiral Raddus asked.

Jess pressed a few buttons and schematics of the fleet appeared. One Alderaanian cruiser and several X-wings blinked red. "If we keep losing ships at this rate, we won't have any fighters left to protect us," Reese growled.

"Did the Senators say anything?" Jess asked.

"They're sending us ten new X-wings," Raddus replied.

"When will they be here?"

"Soon. We have to send the carrier to the meeting point to pick them up."

Reese rubbed his temples briefly. "Who's going to command the new squadron? We've lost a lot of pilots."

Admiral Raddus turned to Jess. "Captain Alera. She has experience and knows how to keep people alive. Do you think she'll accept?"

"She won't say no," Jess replied. "I can talk to her about it."

The two officers nodded and changed the holotable's projection again. "Admiral, there's an incoming transmission from Senator Organa," someone called. "It's marked as a private message."

"Send it into one of these rooms," Admiral Raddus replied. "Come on. Let's see what the Senator has to say." Jess followed him and Lieutenant Reese into one of the adjoining rooms. Azie stopped beside the door and chirped. Jess motioned for him to stay behind.

Inside the room, the holotable lit up with a hologram of Senator Organa. "Admiral, thank you for answering so quickly," he said.

"Of course, Senator. How can we help you?"

"You can't, I'm afraid. I'm here for Commander Jess."

Jess's eyes widened in surprise. "Me, Senator?"

"Yes, Senator Mon Mothma and I have an assignment for you. One of our most important informants has disappeared. We think they were taken to an Inquisitor's Fortress. We are assigning you to track them down and bring them back. You'll have help from someone else. Take your droid and the medic, Arwen."

"Where will we meet this other person?" Jess asked. The Senator's vagueness was only increasing his curiosity.

"I'll send you the coordinates when you're ready to leave," Senator Organa said. "This informant's identity must be kept secret. I trust you can handle that?"

"Yes, Sir. I'll leave soon."

"Good. The sooner we find them, the better." The transmission ended abruptly. Admiral Raddus and Lieutenant Reese looked at him, surprised.

"Best of luck, Commander," Admiral Raddus said at last.

Jess inclined his head and backed out of the room. Azie rolled along behind him and whistled. "We have a mission," he said, still not quite believing it. "We need to find Arwen though."

The boarded a shuttle that was leaving for the medical frigate. The entire ship was in chaos when they arrived. Repair crews were running around trying to fix the damaged parts of the ship. Injured pilots were being wheeled towards exam rooms.