Chapter 3

"There she is, the Crimson Osprey." Yang said as the quartet entered the docking bay. The ship was red and silver, and shaped like a disc with a quarter cut out. In the missing quarter a conical glass cockpit jutted out from the structure. Various sensors and instruments poked out of the ship, and a ramp lead to a hatch between the landing legs. Four huge circular engines poked out the back. Atop the center of the ship was a gun turret and torpedo tubes aimed forward beside the cockpit. Judging by the scorch marks on its surface, it had seen battle and come out on top. "The fastest ship on Remnant." Yang added proudly.

"Wow, it's so cool." Ruby said in awe.

"It looks like it belongs in a scrap heap." Weiss said. "I don't think the parts even match correctly."

"As much as I hate to agree with the Imp, I think I have to." Blake sighed. "This ship looks like its falling apart. When I die I want it to be in combat, not when my ship disintegrates."

"Don't be so pessimistic." Yang said. "It's not the looks that matter. This ship punches way above its weight. It's got a Class 0.8 Hyperdrive and it's battle tested. It has run Imperial and Republic blockades without any trouble. It only looks bad because of all the modifications. Almost everything you can see is an upgrade."

"How do you know so much about it?" Weiss asked.

"I was a passenger once." Yang replied. "I was onboard for a smuggling run. I didn't really care about the credits; I was in it for the adventure. I promise it's a great ship."

Weiss and Blake were unconvinced by Ruby was exuberant. "This is so awesome!" Ruby exclaimed, already inside the ship. Her voice echoed through the docking bay. "It's even got turbolasers hidden behind a retracting panel!" Accompanied by a grinding a screeching, a portion of the front of the ship pivoted away to reveal four massive cannons.

"It certainly has enough armament." Blake said. "Well, it's the only chance we have."

"I suppose we should get going." Weiss sighed. Trading in a state-of-the-art Imperial ship for this piece of scrap seemed like a horrible deal, but Blake was right. They did not really have an alternative. "It won't take long for Imperial Intelligence to figure out something is wrong. We need to be long gone before they do."

The group climbed the ramp, and Weiss and Blake seemed pleasantly surprised by what they found inside. The interior looked modern and well-maintained, and though much of the ships mechanical workings were left exposed, they all seemed to be in good order. They joined Ruby in the cockpit and prepared to depart. "Can I fly?" Ruby asked. "Please."

"How can I say no to that face?" Yang laughed. "Go ahead." Ruby slipped into the pilot's seat and put on a headset.

"Wait, you're letting a child fly the ship?" Weiss was indignant. "I'm a professional!"

"Our father ensured we received a well-rounded, if a little unorthodox, education." Yang explained. "We're both great pilots. Besides, I doubt Blake would accept that arrangement."

"Crimson Osprey to Vale Control, requesting departure vector." Ruby radioed, not wasting any time. She nodded as control gave her instructions. "Repeating, Crimson Osprey cleared for departure, standard course." She received confirmation. Ruby punched the relevant coordinates into the flight computer, lit the engines and they were off.

"Set a course for Agamar." Blake said. "That's where we'll find the first map."

"What do you mean the first map?" Weiss asked. "I thought you knew where we needed to go."

"The temple here only provided the first step." Blake said. "The Rakata were very careful with their technology."

"Just how many maps are we looking for?" Yang asked.

"Maybe half a dozen, I don't know for sure." Blake replied. "I know the story about Revan and the Star Forge. He had to find several maps before the Star Forge could be located. According to the inscriptions in the temple, the first is in a temple on Agamar, along with the location of the next map. When the maps are combined, they will reveal the location of whatever it is the Rakata hid."

"This is insane." Weiss said. "It's bad enough we're chasing after a legend, but we don't even know where it is. I just…I need some time to myself. I'm picking a compartment and making it mine." She stormed out of the cockpit.

"That could have gone better." Yang sighed.

"What do you expect from an Imperial?" Blake said.

"Maybe if you were a bit more understanding, we could all get along better." Yang suggested. "Not all Imperials are evil."

"Says you." Blake growled. "I'm taking a compartment too, and I'll be locking the doors. I don't want her to slit my throat while I sleep." Blake stomped off as well.

"Looks like it's just us for now." Yang said, taking the seat beside Ruby. "How long to Agamar?"

"It'll be at least six hours." Ruby replied. "Maybe we should talk to them. We should really be on the same page when we arrive, just in case."

"Agent Mercury reporting in." The Chiss radioed. His encrypted radio would keep his transmissions hidden from prying ears.

"Go ahead agent." His controller replied.

"There has been a major development on Remnant." Mercury said. "Our suspicions seem to be confirmed. A disgraced Imperial Agent, Schnee, has joined an outlaw and two locals and departed the planet on a smuggler's ship."

"Is the ship being tracked?" The controller asked.

"Of course." Mercury answered. "As soon as it drops out of Hyperspace I'll have a location."

"Good, continue the investigation." The controller ordered.

"I recommend keeping this from the Empire." Mercury said. "If my hunch is correct, the technology they are pursuing could be of great value to the Ascendancy. Perhaps we can even supplant the Empire."

"Noted." The controller said. "If the Empire becomes an issue, be sure to deal with them in a plausibly deniable manner."

"I hope you have a damn good reason for disturbing me." The Minister of Intelligence growled. "I'm very busy and I don't have time to deal with trivial matters."

"Agent Schnee has gone rogue." The Imperial agent reported. "She murdered the agent leading our mission on Remnant, abandoned her personal belongings, pawned her ship, and disappeared."

There was an ominous pause on the minister's end. "This was not unforeseen." The Minister of Intelligence lied. "Is Schnee being tracked?"

"No, she was gone by the time her betrayal was uncovered." The agent admitted. The agent was worried, knowing the price of failure.

The minister knew the price of failure too. "We have agents across the galaxy." The Minister of Intelligence said. "If Schnee shows her face on any settled world, we'll know." It was hard to tell if he was trying to reassure the agent or himself. "Continue your mission on Remnant. The new archaeological team is on the way with the appropriate translator."

"Blake, please come open the door." Yang said as she knocked on the hatch. Blake had taken over the crew compartment nearest the engines. It was usually used by maintenance crew. She had locked herself in and refused to come out. Weiss had taken over the captain's quarters and done much the same. "I just want to talk." Yang implored.

With a click the hatch unlocked, followed by a whoosh as it slid open. "What do you want?" Blake asked, standing in the doorway. Yang pushed past her and sat on one of the bunks. "I know you don't trust Weiss, or anyone for that matter, but if we're going to save the galaxy we need to work together. With all we're facing we can't afford to be divided."

"I agree." Blake said. "That is why I suggest we throw Weiss out the airlock and do this with just the three of us."

"Why do you hate her so much?" Yang asked.

"Any representative of the Empire is an enemy of mine." Blake replied. "Given her father's exalted position…"

"I don't want to hear about her father." Yang cut Blake off. "I only care about you and her. Why do you hate the Empire so much?"

"Do you really want to know?" Blake asked. Yang nodded. "I suppose it's the only way you'll let this drop. The Empire enslaved my species, the Faunus. They took over our planet and set us to work mining materials to feed their war machine. Aside from the slavery, they've repeatedly carried out massacres against us. So few of us remain. When they found out I was force sensitive, they tried to take me to Korriban to brainwash me into being a Sith. Luckily I was able to escape. Ever since, I've dedicated myself to the destruction of the Empire."

"Why not join the Jedi and the Republic?" Yang asked.

"They're little better." Blake replied.

"You'll have to explain that too." Yang said.

"Just before I was taken, the Republic encouraged the Faunus to revolt." Blake said. "They promised they would send troops to assist us so we could free ourselves from the Empire. They lied. We were just a distraction, a ploy to draw Imperial soldiers away from the front. The support never came, and once the Empire got around to it, they crushed the revolt. Then they massacred us in reprisal. They killed almost three quarters of all Faunus, and the Republic just watched."

"That's horrible." Weiss said, standing in the doorway. Tellingly, she had changed out of her uniform and into a white dress with red and blue accents.

"How long have you been there?" Blake demanded. "What did you hear?"

"I heard that you have a damn good reason to hate me." Weiss answered. "I'm sure no apology I can offer would be enough, but know that I'm truly sorry for what the Empire did to your people. Their cruelty knows no bounds, and that is why I'm here, actively defying them."

"If the Empire finds what we're looking for before we do, imagine the atrocities they'll commit." Yang said. "We need to work together, and we need all the help we can get. I'm not asking you to trust her; I'm just asking the both of you to be civil."

Blake sighed and looked at her feet. "Please leave." Blake requested. "I need to do some thinking. Alone."

"There are an awful lot of Republic ships here." Ruby said as she piloted the Crimson Osprey to Agamar. The ship dipped into the atmosphere and headed for the spaceport.

"It's technically a Republic world, but this seems a bit much." Weiss said. Her anxiety was clear. "What are they up to?"

"Maybe they're looking for the same thing we are." Yang suggested.

"I doubt it." Blake said. "The Republic has never had a presence on Remnant. There must be something else."

"Let's just try to steer clear of them, okay?" Weiss said. "I might be on the run from the Empire but that won't stop them from using me if they get the chance."

"Don't land at the spaceport." Blake said. "We're heading for ruins in the forest to the west of Calna Munn. We would need additional transportation to get there, and landing directly at the site will keep us clear of the Republic as well."

"Alright, just tell me where to go and find a good landing stop." Ruby said, focused on guiding the ship.

"Blake, I never asked, why can you read the map in the temple?" Yang asked. "It seems like no one can but you."

"The Faunus were once subject to the Infinite Empire." Blake explained. "At the end, when they were losing their connection to the force, the Rakata language began to change to the point that few today can understand it. As one of the last species under their rule, many Faunus can still understand that lost dialect."

"So if the Empire brought a Faunus to the temple on Remnant, he could read the inscription for them?" Yang asked.

"In all likelihood, yes." Blake admitted. "Not all understand the language, and I would hope that he would refuse to assist the Empire, but it is a concern. That is why we must hurry." Blake looked out the window, squinting for a good view of the ground. "There." She pointed. "There are the ruins."

"There's an open field not too far away." Ruby said as she banked the ship toward the ground. "I'll put down there." The Osprey swept down and settled into a hover a few meters above the grassy field. Ruby lowered the landing gear and set the ship down with a light touch. She flipped a series of switches to shut down the engines and took off her headset, placing it on the control panel. The group disembarked and Yang hit a button to retract the ramp, locking the ship in the process.

"Now as long as we can get in and out unseen, we'll be in good shape." Blake said as the group advanced to the edge of the forest.

"Woohoo!" A woman's shout shattered the silence of the forest. It was soon joined by the whine of an approaching speeder bike.

"Who would be out here?" Yang asked.

"There are a few villages scattered around, but none of them are near here." Blake said.

"Wheee!" The voice and the bike were getting louder.

"Please slow down!" A man's voice countered.

A speeder bike, piloted by a woman with a man on the back holding on for dear life, weaved through the trees at incredible speed, heading straight for the group. At the last moment, the bike spun around 180 degrees, and the whine picked up to indicate the application of full throttle. It slid to a stop just beside them. "That was awesome!" The woman laughed as she climbed off. She wore a fighter-pilot's helmet and goggles, a white sleeveless top with a black vest over it, and a pink skirt.

The man, wearing a similar helmet and a green shirt accented with black and gold, was physically shaking as he hopped off. "Nora, please, don't ever do that again." He said.

"Aw, but it was fun." The girl, Nora apparently, sighed. She took off her helmet to reveal shockingly orange hair.

"What are you two doing out here?" Weiss asked incredulously.

"We could ask you the same." The man replied in a quiet, emotionless tone that was completely at odds with his companion. He took off his helmet to reveal messy black hair with a streak of pink.

"We asked first." Ruby said.

"We were going to visit some relatives in another village but…" The man started.

"But I decided to take a shortcut through the forest." Nora cut him off. "Wasn't it exciting?"

"It wasn't a shortcut." The man countered. "If we stuck to the road we would have been there already. Maybe I should drive from now on."

"So why are you guys here?" Nora asked. "Is that your ship? Where are you from? Are you smugglers? Or pirates?" Her excitement mounted and the speed of her speech increased with every question.

"Nora, let them answer." The man said as he laid a hand on her shoulder.

"Sorry." Nora said.

"We're archaeologists." Blake lied. "We heard there were some interesting ruins nearby, and we were hoping to study them."

"Oh, you must mean the ruins where that crazy cult lives." Nora said.

"Crazy cult?" Yang asked.

"Yeah, so crazy guys with lightsabers hang out in the ruins." Nora explained. "If you get close they start shouting gibberish at you."

"And if you attempt to enter they'll try to kill you." The man added.

"I don't like the sound of that." Ruby said.

"Don't worry, Ren and I know a secret way in." Nora said. Her unbridled excitement was tempered by mischievous sneakiness. "Don't we Ren?"

"We do." Ren admitted.

"It gets you past most of the cultists." Nora said. "When we were kids we would sneak in and explore. It was really exciting."

"There are many ancient artifacts inside." Ren said. "I think the cultists worship them. Unfortunately, all the inscriptions are in a language I don't understand, so I can't give you more information."

"Could you tell us about the secret entrance?" Yang requested.

"It's easier to just show you." Nora said. Ren rolled his eyes but did not protest. "Follow us." She retrieved a staff tied to the side of the speeder bike and slung it across her back. "Just in case we get caught." She explained.

"They've landed on Agamar." Mercury reported to his Chiss controller.

"That doesn't make sense." The controller said. "There's nothing there but farms. It's only a good option if they're trying to hide."

"It was part of the Infinite Empire." Mercury reminded him. "It hasn't been extensively explored, so there might be something there we don't know about."

"Keep an eye on them, but do not confront them." The controller ordered. "We only need to know their ultimate destination and we don't want them to know they're being followed."

"There is a complication." Mercury warned. "A sizable Republic Fleet is currently in orbit around the planet. It could be a coincidence, but if they're after the same thing it could lead to a confrontation."

"We'll worry about that if it becomes an issue." The controller said. "Just track the targets and keep track of Republic comms traffic."

"Understood." Mercury said.

"Just so you're aware, the Ascendancy has decided to keep you mission secret from the Empire for the time being." The controller informed him. "You are not to disclose your mission or assist Imperial forces in any way."

Back in the temple on Remnant, the Imperial research team had arrived with their translator. "What does it say?" The lead Imperial researcher asked.

"It speaks of a map." The Faunus man replied. "Since it was left by the Rakata, I suspect it is only part of a larger map, like the one that led to the Star Forge. We're dealing with a power that may be on that level."

"Does it say where we can find the parts?" The researcher asked.

"The first part is on Agamar." The Faunus answered. "Information there should lead us to subsequent parts."

"Thank you Adam." The researcher said. "You've been an asset to the Empire, as always. It's clear why they trust you with such an exalted position among your people. It's unfortunate that others of your species are not so helpful."

"They will come around eventually." Adam said. "Or we will make them."