The Adventures of Nomi Darklighter

Chapter 62 - Secretiveness

Dash Rendar opened his eyes after a restful night's sleep. Rain was pouring outside but he didn't care. He smiled when he saw his wife lying next to him. The blanket had slipped, revealing Nomi's stomach where his daughter was growing. Dash leaned in, kissed his wife and placed his hand on her stomach.

Nomi woke up from the gentle touch and opened her eyes.
"Good morning, you two," her husband smiled at her, his hand still resting on her stomach where he felt Tasherit move. "How are you?"
"We're fine, Dash," his wife replied, but instead of returning the kiss she pushed her husband's hand aside. "No, Dash, not now. I need to talk to you."
She sat up and pulled up the blanket.
Rendar looked at her in disappointment and sat up as well. He had no idea why his wife was so dismissive.
"Hey, what's wrong with you? I just wanted to feel our daughter," he said with a frown. "What do you want to talk about with me? Did I do something wrong?"
Nomi couldn't believe her husband didn't know why she was angry with him.
"Yes, you did something wrong, Dash," she began, trying to stay as calm as possible. "You lied to me. Yesterday I got the impression that you know very well what Luke foresaw. Why don't you tell me the truth?"
Dash frantically thought about how to reply to his disgruntled wife. Being bound by the promise he made to Luke didn't make it any easier for him. He took his wife's hand, glad she let him, and sighed.
"You're right, I know what Luke saw as a possible future. I had to promise him that I wouldn't tell you. Please understand, I am bound by this promise."
"No, I don't understand. Damn it, I'm your wife and I have a right to know what could be threatening our family," Nomi said in a sharp tone, still letting him hold her hand. "Apparently Luke thinks I'm the only one capable of protecting us. But to protect us, I need to know what to expect."
Her husband gave her a sad look as he stroked her hand.
"Please, Nomi, don't ask any more. Don't make it so hard for me. All I'm asking of you is to trust Luke and me. If you keep training, you can face the challenges that come your way. Also, it's not certain if what Luke saw will happen. I hope so, darling. But c'mon, we have to get up now."
He let go of his wife's hand and got out of bed.
"Wedge has a combat exercise scheduled for this morning. I'm sure you'll want to eat something beforehand and our children still need to be fed."
Nomi also got out of bed and sighed. Her husband enjoyed the sight as she went towards the bathroom.
"With all these combat drills and now lightsaber training, I don't have much time for our children," said Nomi, opening the door and entering the bathroom, followed by Dash. "I'm afraid if this continues, they'll see Leebo as their mother. If only this war were over.
Sometimes I wish I had never heard of the rebellion against the Empire and I was still a smuggler. Or I'd still be on Tatooine at my parents' moisture farm."
Dash grinned at her and activated the shower.
"In the latter case, you would probably have died of boredom," he said and started lathering his body. "And most importantly, we might never have met again. You would have married a boring moisture farmer instead of me. No, Nomi Darklighter, you can't tell me that you long for such a life."
The ex-mercenary was glad that Nomi had calmed down and began lathering his wife's body while he continued talking.
"I know you too well. You need the adventure and challenge of battle. Admit it, sweetheart."
Nomi nodded reluctantly. Her husband was right, although she hated to admit it.

After they had breakfast and looked after their offspring, they went to the hangar. The rain had finally stopped. When they reached the hangar, Wedge Antilles and the other members of Rogue Squadron were already there.
The commander climbed onto a crate and cleared his throat to get his pilots' attention.
"We must prepare for a crucial mission. I know it will take some time before we're ready. Therefore we will train with a new simulator program."
There was a murmur among those gathered in the hangar.
Wedge motioned for silence.
"I want you to take the training seriously because success depends on it. Once you see the simulation you will understand why it's so important. The simulators are linked so we are able to simulate a full-fledged battle."
He jumped down from the crate, went to the first simulator pod, opened it and entered. The Rogue Squadron pilots followed his lead and entered the other simulator pods.

Nomi climbed into the simulator, closed the hatch and buckled up. When the program started, she couldn't believe her eyes. But she wasn't the only one who gasped at the sight of Coruscant, or Imperial Center as the Imps called the capital planet. The young woman heard the reaction of her comrades in her headset before hearing Wedge Antilles' voice.
"Cut the chatter and concentrate on the task at hand."
Seeing the incoming TIEs she danced her fingers across the console, directing all power to the front shield. When she got a lock, she fired and the TIE exploded. But there was more to come. It wasn't just squadrons defending an Imperial Star Destroyer, it was the Coruscant Defense Fleet they faced. And that was only the first obstacle on the way to conquering the galaxy's capital planet. The pilots of Rogue Squadron fought valiantly alongside other simulated Alliance fighter squadrons, but they quickly learned that bravery isn't enough. One by one, the dots representing the Alliance fighters disappeared. They weren't even able to break through the outer perimeter defenses.
Nomi cursed and slammed her fist on the console as her X-wing was hit. The monitor went dark. She unbuckled, opened the hatch and climbed out of the simulator. As she turned and removed her helmet, she realized she was the last to lose the fight.

Wedge leaned against one of the simulator pods, arms crossed. He looked more than disappointed.
"All Alliance forces were wiped out before we even reached the inner perimeter," the commander began with a scowl. "If we attack Coruscant, I don't want a result like the simulation. High Command gave us half a standard year to prepare for this mission. We will
train until the attack no longer looks like a mass suicide. Got it, Rogues?"
The affirmative answer from the pilots came in unison.
Antilles nodded his head.
"I didn't expect anything else...dismissed," he said and left the hangar.

One by one, the Rogue Squadron pilots left the hangar and discussed the last simulation session and the upcoming mission. Like their commander, they were disappointed, but they would do their best to live up to his expectations and theirs. They knew very well that taking Coruscant would be a major step in liberating the galaxy from Imperial oppression.