The Renegade: Episode I: The Compliant

Prologue

"Open up. Open up in there."

They had finally come. Riv Tersu peered through the peephole and saw what he had been dreading for months. On the other side of the door: two stormtroopers waiting to evict his family from their farm on Lothal.

The farm belonged to his wife Prisa. They had met in the capital at her produce stand. Her father Aler Matno usually ran the stand, but he had broken his wrist the day before. Unable to lift much, Prisa, who had just turned eighteen, was more than ready to run the family business.

Riv was twenty, handsome, and charming. He had knocked over her display of crops and ruined most of what she had to sell. She was angry with him at first, but Riv had a way with words. He helped clean up the mess and paid for the damage. It would be the first and only time Riv took responsibility for his actions.

The following weeks, she became smitten with the young outsider. Prisa had never met anyone beyond Lothal. Most Lothalites were skeptical about outsiders, especially since the Empire had occupied the planet. He captivated her with his adventures across the galaxy and spoke of his ambitions for the future. For the most part, Riv did all the talking and Prisa listened. She was quieter than most girls he had met, but he liked how attentively she listened. The two married the next harvest and moved into a small apartment in the capital.

The first year of their marriage was promising. Riv had several business contracts with the new Imperial Capital Departments. Riv found the Empire's presence in Lothal a blessing for jobs and security, which had been non-existent during the Republic. But Prisa sensed the Empire, despite all its promises, was not to be trusted.

After a year, the hardship of living in the capital began to set in. Their debt was growing and none of Riv's business contracts had panned out. She missed the farm. She longed to feel the earth beneath her feet and to hold fresh produce in her hands. She had grown lonely in the capital. But she wouldn't be lonely for long. The arrival of twins made it clear to Prisa they couldn't go on living in debt. She decided they would go back to the farm and that she would name the twins: Lee and Lenore. Riv had no say in the matter.

"Lee, take your sister and hide in your room. Don't come out until I say." Riv told his son. Lee took his sister's hand but Lenore yanked it back.

"Why don't you just open the door?" Lenore asked.

"Be quiet Lenore. Go with your brother." He was trying to sound brave but he could not hide the quiver in his voice.

Lee and Lenore had been on the farm for the last eight years and the life they had once known in the capital was nothing but a faint memory. Lee adapted to farm life immediately. He followed his mother and grandfather around everywhere. He was fascinated by farming and strived to learn the best way to ensure a good harvest. He began experimenting with different pollination techniques at such a young age it brought joy and relief to his grandfather. There was more Matno than Tersu in him.

Lenore on the other hand had neither characteristics in her. She was just as curious as her brother but questioned others to the point of annoyance. She was honest and outspoken, nothing like either of her parents. She said what she felt and stuck by it. But as annoying as some found her, she was always willing to help.

Once Lee had broken some of Aler's old farming equipment. He was terrified of what his grandfather and mother would say, especially since he had not asked for permission. Lenore saw what he had done and assured him all would be ok. She immediately began to tinker with the equipment and fixed it in no time. The next day, Aler was surprised to find the old equipment worked faster and more efficient than when he had first bought it. "They sure don't make these the way they used to," he said bewildered. Lenore bursted into laughter and Lee elbowed her in the side as they watched from around the corner of the garage.