The Republic has fallen.
In the final days of the Clone Wars, Chancellor Palpatine died under mysterious circumstances. With the Senate struggling to retain a sense of unity, it was the perfect time for the Separatists to strike. And strike they did...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Word came from Kuro that afternoon.
Alynna––
A friend of a friend in the kitchens managed to get me the comm code you asked for. She passed my name and yours along to our allies, and when they got in touch with me, I told them of your plans – nothing specific, I promise, and certainly not the history you told Ashalla and me not to speak of. Just enough to give you a chit of admittance.
I hope you're not angry with me for that; I know I'm walking a line, but I would so hate to anger you when you take such risks as it is. I only thought you'd do better with them if you had someone to make an introduction.
They told me they'll meet with you, and asked me tell you to go to the Moonspinner Inn tomorrow morning or afternoon and ask for Ludda. The address is attached, and the owner and staff can be trusted. No one will ask questions.
If your absence tomorrow would be noticed by the wrong people or you think someone reduced the range of your tracker again, I'm to pass along the comm code so you can find a better time together. Since you aren't known to them, our friends would prefer to risk a meeting than a comm code that could be used to track them. I'm sure you can understand that, of course.
I hope this helps.
Kuro.
Ahsoka reread the message projected above her transmitter one last time as she belted a traditional Onderonian peasant's tunic over her pants. Once she felt certain she'd committed the address of the inn to memory, she dismissed the hologram and put the device back in its new hiding spot: the hollow base of a small metal sculpture adorning the low table by the couch that had become Lux's sleeping place. Then, draping a gauzy maroon shawl over her shoulders, she left the suite.
Word from Kuro less than three days after she'd asked him to get into contact with the Amavikkas had been a surprise, to be sure, but a welcome one. Even more welcome was further news that Lux would be in meetings with his father's officials all through the morning, giving her plenty of time to get to the inn, meet with Ludda, and get back. With the gala only two days away and all of Noreino House's denizens – both noble and common – in an uproar, she definitely wouldn't be missed.
Unless Lux came after her with another request like the dancing practice. But he'd retreated even farther behind his walls since then, so she doubted it.
She'd have to find Kuro once the chaos died down and make sure he knew how thankful she was he'd taken the initiative and gotten her this meeting, as well. He was so meek and apologetic, always expecting retribution even when he'd done well... But there was a time not far into the past when she'd been like that, too.
Ahsoka took the stairs down to the ground floor, following the smell of day-old booze until she reached the cool, dim hallways near the slave quarters where the brigands lurked – the same place she'd nearly been cornered a month before. Then, wrapping her shawl around her head to keep eyes off her face, she adopted the overconfident predator's gait of the extremely well-armed and joined them.
