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IT DOESN'T TAKE LONG for the entirety of the base to learn of the general's upcoming plans. One by one, General Leia Organa summons her chosen operatives to her office and meets with them, selecting pilots from all of the different squadrons — black, blue, cobalt, crimson, green, rapier, red, and stiletto. She stops at a total of sixteen; each assigned a partner in order to split them up into teams of two. The teams are given assignments in different corners of the galaxy, spread thin across the cosmos. Some are assigned to strictly diplomatic missions, whilst others are given more covert and combative assignments. None of them are allowed to share anything more than that with those on the outside — much to the frustration of a certain commander.
Even so, the news leaves the base buzzing with a nervous sort of anticipation. There's excitement, yes, but also an underlying sense of anxiety; one that leaves everyone jittery and filled with restless energy. Small arguments break out amongst the troops, none of the trainees are able to focus, and even Indira finds herself distracted while working on repairs in the hangar. By the end of the day, nearly everyone on the base is tense, stressed, and uneasy — which, naturally, leads to one of the cadets suggesting the idea of a "farewell kickback" to help everyone blow off some steam and to give the pilots a proper sendoff. And once they garner approval for their half-baked plan to get drunk, everything sort of snowballs from there.
It's a fairly chaotic function; one held outside underneath D'Qar's two moons and all of its stars. There's dancing and music and lots of alcohol. Yet no matter how much fun everyone else is having, Indira Beren is definitely not in the mood to party. Both Kali and Jess will be leaving her — Snap and Karé, too — and there's one more person Indira knows will be leaving with them that makes her heart ache even more.
Both she and the general had agreed that it would be best for her mother — for the sake of her safety and her health — to be moved to a location off base that isn't part of an active war zone; somewhere she'd be able to fully recover without the threat of war hanging over her head. Indira knows that sending her mother away is the right thing to do — no matter how much it might hurt. She hadn't discussed it with her her, but she knows it's a conversation that has to be had sooner rather than later.
