K a l a r ' s  S t a r  D e s t r o y e r

"Now," Kalar began, facing Tristan and Ketsu on the floor. "I know what you're here for."

"Doubt it," Ketsu spat. Tristan stayed quiet.

"You're here for Ezra Bridger," Kalar said, ignoring the look of shock on Ketsu's face. "You think I haven't done my research? Your leader, Sabine Wren, has been looking for him for quite a while. It just so happens that we're keeping him in my prison. I don't believe in coincidences, Miss Onyo, do you?"

Ketsu didn't give him the satisfaction of an answer.

"Now," Kalar went on. "Assuming Wren knows we are keeping Bridger on the third floor, why stage a massive prison break? That leads me to believe that you're attempting to cover your tracks. As there are three levels of the prison, that would mean one man working on each floor. Those three plus you two would make five, but that's not everybody in your little crew, is it?"

"You're just so smart, aren't you?" Tristan spoke up, sarcasm lacing his voice.

"You have a slicer," Kalar smiled, "One who knows their way around Imperial tech. Someone who was able to rewire our master switch and release the prisoners. That makes six for your little group, unless you have a getaway driver somewhere, though I doubt it."

He leaned forward at his desk. "The rebellion has no idea you're here, do they?"

Tristan tried not to react but Kalar only smiled wider. "They're not coming for you. They have no clue what you're attempting. You're stuck here. No one is coming to help you."

"Okay, genius," Ketsu snapped, anger piling up. "What are you going to do with all this information?"

"Simple," Kalar drummed his fingers on his desk. "I know the identity of four of your group so far. Sabine Wren, her companion Ahsoka Tano, and you two. That leaves two mystery foes, but no matter. My friends will find out soon enough. Your slicer should be heading for a terminal room, yes?"

"You want to stop him?" Ketsu laughed. "Go ahead and try."

"Well, now I know its a him," Kalar just kept that agitating smile on his face, "And on the contrary, I'll let him get there."

*

I m p e r i a l  P r i s o n  2 2 3 , h a n g a r  f l o o r 

Vyi reached the terminal room miraculously without running into any trouble. It was as if the prison had gone silent, which was odd. That should be a good thing, he thought. So why was there a such horrible pit in his stomach?

He slipped quietly into the terminal room. There were no guards. His bad feeling rose but he ignored it and crouched by one of the terminals, ready to get to work.

"That's a nice cylinder you have there," a voice said. Vyi shot to his feet and whirled around to see a girl leaning against the wall. Half Pantoran, half human, wearing a dark grey Imperial uniform. A halfbreed, like me.

"Former Imperial?" she asked. There was nothing malicious in her voice or body movement, but Vyi was still cautious. "Defected when the Death Star II went up in flames? Decided it wasn't worth serving a cause that hated you because of the color of your skin?"

"Why are you working with them, then?" Vyi's voice sounded small and weak to him and he hated it.

A small smile fluttered on her lips, a wistful expression appeared on her face. "I used to be a janitor. I was top of my class at the Academy, but they made me a janitor because I was a halfbreed. I worked mopping floors on a Star Destroyer and cleaning up the mess of humans who thought they were better than me. Where'd they put you?"

Vyi wasn't sure he should answer, but he found himself doing so anyways. "I worked under my father as a secretary and technicians. Secretly. Nobody knew I existed. Illegitimate child and all that. He didn't want to admit he had slept with an alien, but he didn't want to cast me out. I've been hiding all my life, ashamed of my existence, so yeah, I defected first chance I got."

"The Empire was weak because they refused to see the potential in other races," she moved away from the wall but only a little as if not to spook him. "I was ready to defect myself, but that's when I met Kalar."

"Kalar?" Vyi felt his blood go cold. She works for Kalar?!

"He had been appointed to take over the Star Destroyer I was serving on. He found my records and sought me out first thing. Bumped me right up to Admiral, second only to him," she went on, now approaching him, "Kalar is rebuilding the Empire to the way it should have been. Nobody will be oppressed because of their species ever again. I owe Kalar my life, my everything, but I understand your pain, so I'll give you one chance to surrender."

Vyi began backing up.

"I'll take that as a no," she looked sad for a moment, then lunged forward, quick as a whip, and yanked his code cylinder right off his neck. His mouth dropped as she held it up, studying it.

"I'm sorry you can't understand," she said. 

Vyi felt panic overwhelming him. She had his code cylinder. She had the virus. The others would be trapped on this prison like sitting ducks. 

Something told him that that was Kalar's plan all along.