XXXIII: Retribution

(Reader's discretion advised.) 

"It's about time you two got here." Commander Desro said as he rushed Admiral Okins and Aria Brisard through the winding corridors of the naval base. "We were beginning to get worried."

"Coruscant isn't exactly a small jump away." Okins said. "I thought Rebecca would have clued you in on our arrival."

Desro shook his head. "She hasn't said a word."

"Where is Becky? Is she ok?" Aria asked, worried. "We were able to hear some sketchy audio on our flight from her com-link. Reception wasn't too good. She must've left it on during...whatever happened."

"Relax, Commander, for the most part, she's alright." Desro said. As they entered the medical wing, he stopped them in front of one of the patient rooms. The door had a fairly large window, and once they approached, Aria and Okins were able to see Rebecca lying on the medical bed inside.

"Can we go in?" Aria asked.

Desro nodded and opened the door. "She's resting for now. We gave her some pain medication so she should be out for another hour or so."

Aria walked over to the bed and sat down on the edge. She looked over at Rebecca and saw a bandage over the side of her friend's face. She gently put her hand over it, and turned back to Desro. "She hit her head?"

Desro nodded. "Either she was struck with something hard by her assailant or she just hit the ground. She was down when we found her."

Okins picked up his daughter's hand and grasped it tightly. When her arm moved, the sleeve of her medical shift slid down her arm revealing a large bruise just below her wrist. He motioned to Aria to check her other arm. An identical marking was visible. "She's all bruised..." He spun around to Desro. "Are these the only ones?"

Desro shook his head. "There's some lighter ones at her shoulders and legs and..." he slid his finger along his neck to demonstrate, "a slight cut on her neck...wasn't deep enough to make her bleed, thank the maker for that. Whatever was pressing there wasn't there for long."

Okins placed her hand back down on the bed and pulled Desro out into the hall. "What exactly happened here? Tell me everything."

Desro shrugged. "To be honest, we're not exactly sure. She rung the gate for entry. The trooper on duty then commed back to the central office for a confirmation. By the time they opened the gate, she was gone. They called me down to the gate, we heard a scream and then there she was in the alley at the end of the road."

Okins rubbed his forehead. "The local authorities need to nab this bastard."

"We've detained him, sir."

Aria stood and joined the men in the hall. "Wait...you have him? He wasn't gone when you arrived?"

Desro shook his head. "No, the man was on top of her when we got there."

Okins flexed his fingers, angry. "Who did this?"

"I believe his name is Jeref Ulmeran." Desro said, scratching the back of his head, "At least...that's what the guard said.

"Ulmeran?" Aria asked. Who's that?"

"A dead man." Okins growled as he started towards the detention wing. Aria quickly ran up and stood in his path.

"What do you think you're doing?"

"I'm going to teach this bastard a lesson." He said, removing his blaster from his holster.

"You can't just go shooting people!" She exclaimed.

"Watch me."

Desro stepped forward. "I'm afraid she's right, Admiral. His lawyers were already called...he's the local authority's problem.

"Not anymore he isn't." Okins turned halfway to look Desro in the eye. "That man assaulted my daughter, he's my problem; and now he's going to pay for it."

"Let me come with you." Aria said.

"NO. You stay here with Becky. She needs you."

"But sir..."

"That's an order, Brisard! Now step aside!" He pushed Aria out of the way and stalked towards the brig.

Aria sighed and returned to Rebecca's room. She stopped next to Desro and patted his shoulder. "I hope you've got a body bag ready."

~~**~~ 

Admiral Okins stood at the doorway to Jeref Ulmeran's cell and waved the trooper on watch to open the hatch. The door then slid open and he stepped inside. Jeref was lying on the bench with his eyes closed. His hands, bound by restraints, were resting on his stomach. As the door closed behind him, he started to get a strong whiff of alcohol coming from Jeref. When Okins got close, Jeref opened his eyes and sat up. He eyed the admiral and scoffed.

"What, the Empire not have enough for you to do or something? They have to send an admiral down to interrogate me?"

"No, I'm here on my own. Don't let the uniform fool you."

"Well I should warn you..." Jeref smirked. "You can't hold me here for long. I've called the best lawyers in the city. They're no doubt working on my release now."

Okins ran a hand over his blaster slowly, trying to keep his temper in check. "Well, let me break it to you this way. I wouldn't count on your fancy lawyers to do any good, not after what you've done."

"Why don't you refresh my memory, pops."

"Why don't you wipe that smirk off your face before I shoot it off." Okins snapped. "And lose the attitude. You really think this is funny? I'm not at all laughing."

"What, so I got a little over-excited with a girl. There's no harm in that, right?"

The little restraint that Okins had left snapped. He reached forward and grabbed Jeref by the front of the shirt, then hurled him across the room. Jeref struck the opposite wall and as he slid down to the floor his head struck a bolt on the wall. The cut started a small stream of blood trickling down the side of his face.

"What in kark's name do you think gave you the right to go around attacking ladies off the street?"

Ariam rubbed his face, smearing blood onto his hands. "She was promised to me. Her...grandmother and I had an agreement."

Okins grabbed the front of the man's tunic again and slammed him into the wall a second time, holding him in place. "What kind of agreement?" When Jeref wouldn't speak, Okins shook him violently. "Answer me!"

Jeref swallowed. "Elsa...told me about Ariam Vorru's plans. She said if Ariam couldn't have her, I could." He coughed. "Vorru's...rejection was broadcasted all over the INN a few hours ago. That makes her mine now. Just taking what belonged to me." He tried to wrestle himself from Okins' grip. "And get your hands off me, old man. I'm not your problem."

Okins pressed him tighter, circling his fingers closer to Jeref's throat. "That's where you're wrong," he growled. "That girl you assaulted tonight was my daughter; that means you are my problem. Your ass is mine..."

"I'm not afraid of you, pops."

"Not yet," Okins growled and glared down at Jeref, his eyes full of anger. "Now you get to suffer twice the pain you just put my daughter through." Using his free hand, Okins snatched up his blaster and pressed it to Jeref's head, right between the eyes. "I hope you've made peace with your maker...by the time I'm done with you, you'll be dreading the day you were born."

Screams were heard in the brig corridor for several minutes followed by two blaster shots. Finally, Okins stepped out of the cell, the front of his uniform covered in blood. As he passed the trooper standing watch,  he pointed back to the cell.

"Bag, tag, and trash him. That's an order."

XXXII: Emergency Call

(Younger/sensitive readers may not wish to read past the divider.)

Rebecca rushed about her bedroom trying to pack as quickly as she could. She feared her grandmother would have left the gala almost as soon as she herself did and would be arriving home any minute, and worse, possibly bringing both Ariam and Moff Vorru with her. Rebecca tore through her closet, throwing the dresses and gowns she was planning on taking onto the bed and purposefully leaving anything Ariam had gifted to her behind.  Next came the letters she had been receiving from Aria and her father. She opened her nightstand drawer and took out the giant stacks. Once those were packed, she moved on to the silver jewelry box given to her by her father on her birthday. She opened the box and packed all of its contents. Finally, she removed the bottom layer revealing the hidden comm unit. The original note was still attached:

Becky, 
You're twenty-one now! Congrats! You reached a great milestone, it's just unfortunate our circumstances prevent me from spending this day with you. 

I'm sure Granny-Goodness hasn't yet given you one of these, so let me be the first. It's a comm unit. But don't get too excited...I'm giving this to you for emergency uses only. There's two frequencies programed into it: the first is mine. The second goes to Aria. One of us will answer. And if we don't? You have permission to knock our heads in when we see you. That's a promise. When things get truly unbearable where you are, I WANT you to call. I'll come get you and you can stay with me on Coruscant, guardian-ship be damned.

I'm sorry this needs to have limited use, but it's for the best. The last thing you need is Granny destroying it for "fraternizing with the enemy", as we military folk call it. I look forward to hearing your voice, no matter the circumstance of the call. 

Happy Birthday, 
Dad 

The time read 2200 hours, not too late to make a call. She tore the paper off and dialed with shaky fingers. Static was heard as she waited for an answer on the other end.

"Okins here." 

"Daddy?" Rebecca asked, her voice stressed. "I need your help..."

~~**~~ 

Coronet City's streets were nearly empty as the time drew closer to midnight. Rebecca walked briskly towards the central naval base on the edge of the city. Every few steps she stumbled slightly from being weighed down by her travel bags. She stopped at one of the street corners for a quick break and to check the time. 2430 hours. Taking a deep breath, she pressed forward, starting to avoid the main roads as she passed by the Vorru estate. From the distance, she could see several speeders still parked in the front and was surprised the gala was still going on so late, especially since she had fueled the flames by departing so unexpectedly. She did feel relieved upon seeing her grandmother's speeder still there, meaning she hadn't been home. Rebecca felt a small twinge of guilt not saying goodbye to her, but pressed onward anyway, knowing all too well that her grandmother would use every bit of persuasion to keep her from leaving.

As she turned another corner, she smiled, seeing the base's armored gate in the distance. Almost there. Her father assured her over the comm that the base never closed. An officer was always on duty, and they were awaiting her there. Because of this, she slowed her pace down. Her feet were hurting thanks to her heeled shoes and her arms were tired from carrying the heavy bags.

Halfway to the base, she felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. Something isn't right... She turned her head slightly and noticed a male figure stumbling down the sidewalk behind her. Getting nervous, she quickened her pace. He quickened his.  As she continued walking, she grabbed the comm from her pocket and dialed.

"Brisard here." 

"Aria?? Are you guys here yet?"

"We're on route, Becky. We'll need another three hours. We were coming from Coruscant."

"Can you get here any faster?" She asked, clear fear in her voice.

"Becky, what's wrong?" her father asked.  

"I think I'm being followed..." she replied, quickly stowing the comm back in her pocket and leaving the connection going.  

She hurried as fast as she could to the gate and upon arriving hit the comm button requesting entry. As she waited, she heard the footsteps get louder and louder. Her heart racing, she fled down the nearest street in hopes of losing her stalker. Not sure where she was headed, she made an error and took an immediate right turn into a dead end.

"Great..." she mumbled. Wondering if she was able to lose her stalker, she turned around slowly and froze upon seeing the man's silhouette standing in the entrance to the alley. He stood there for several minutes staring off in her direction. Suddenly he started stumbling his way into the alley. As he drew closer, she started to back up and search for a way past him.

"Well, well, well..." he said. His speech was slightly uneven and slurred. "What a coincidence it is, finding you here."

"Who are you?" she asked, "What do you want with me?"

"You know, I was sitting at the bar downtown, drinking to the worst misfortune for our mutual friend Ariam Vorru...when lo and behold; the holo broadcasts live from some lavish, gaudy party he's throwing and there you two are, front and center."

"What about it?" she asked, backing further away as he advanced.

"I was...a little surprised to see him shove that ring in your face." He smirked. "No matter. His loss...."

Rebecca shot him an angry look. "I'm waiting for someone. If you don't mind," she said, trying to shove her way past him. Before she could get very far, he grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed her back against the alley wall. As he leaned his head close to hers, she turned her nose away, trying to avoid getting a good whiff of his strong alcoholic breath.

The man eyed her from head to toe and grinned. "It appears that fodder Ariam was too good for you, eh? I guess that means you're all mine." He yanked her forward and planted his mouth on hers.

Rebecca immediately began to struggle against his grip. When she finally broke free, she once again tried to get out of the alley, this time crying out for help. She made it a few feet before tripping over her heels. On the way down, she hit her head on the ground, dazing her. Her assailant took this opportunity to pin her to the ground, and as she lay there she felt a sharp object press into her neck a little.

"Don't struggle, Rebecca. It'll only make it worse for you..." He grinned deviously at her and whispered into her ear. "You know, I could have us wait this off until we're both official...but why? I couldn't bear waste this perfect opportunity."

Horrified and frightened, she made one last-ditch effort and used her free hand to slap the man as hard as she could across the face, hoping it would loosen his hold on her long enough. To her dismay, it did little damage.

"I guess you want it rough then. Alright, I'll play your game." He grinned and swung, striking her in the head. Rebecca cried out in pain as everything went black.