( 30 BBY )
The capital's space port was abuzz with activity when Dooku landed, so much so his arrival hasn't been noticed by the scurrying workers. What looked like canisters of tibanna gas were wheeled about, being loaded into the three parked Hammerheads, while mechanics clambered over their hulls searching for damage. Besides them, the pair of saucer-like Coronas, the trophies of the battle over Serenno's orbit, were also being worked on, seeming to take up the bulk of the spaceport staff's attention.
Amidst all the chaos, only Dooku's daughter Tan'ya and a handful of her own personal guards came over to greet him.
"Father." She bowed low.
"Daughter." He greeted, gesturing for her to rise. He surveyed the organized chaos about him, ignoring the eager gleam in his daughter's eye as she gazed upon the undignified means he had been forced to fly in. Most of the paint had been scraped off the battered old Correlian freighter at one point, leaving the ship looking like someone had started to sandblast it clean, only to give up part way through. There were distinct plasma scores on the ship's underside as well, indicating someone had tried to shoot it with a hand blaster as it was taking off sometime in the past.
Behind his daughter, her bodyguards bristled. An affront to their lord's honor was an insult to their own, after all.
"Father, do you intend to use that again?"
Dooku shook his head once, firmly.
"May I have it?" Tan'ya asked, grinning viciously. "For the upcoming operation."
Perplexed, Dooku nodded once.
Immediately, Tan'ya raised her comms device to her lips, and started issuing orders in Serennoan. It wasn't long until a handful of men came over in greasy jumpsuits and ascended the loading ramp. Dooku watched the vehicle fly away, glad to be rid of it, as his daughter turned back towards him.
"We were able to retrieve the enemy's flight computers intact." Tan'ya explained. "In addition, we've sent the captured crews off for interrogation. We've identified who's attacking us and their forward operating base."
"You're already planning a counter-attack," Dooku observed dryly. If he had taken such actions onto himself as a padawan, Yoda would have been in his ear for days. If he had done such a thing as heir to Count Gora, he probably would have been shot.
"Of course!" Tan'ya smiled brightly, and Dooku felt his lips twitching slightly as well. "Our pirates were Black Sun. The fleets that attacked us and our allies were berthed at a space station called Deep Space Demolition and Removal; it's currently parked in orbit over Phindar."
There were more than fifty thousand worlds in the Republic, and Phindar wasn't one of the scant few among their number Dooku recognized by name. He took a moment to quickly search that up on his holocom, as Tan'ya continued to talk.
"Launching an invasion of another system would of course be fraught with political risks, so I didn't give the order yet, but I thought it best to have the option available as soon as possible." Tan'ya looked up at Dooku, seeking his approval.
"Well done, daughter." He told her, while quickly reading over planet Phindar.
Ah, yes, now he remembered. Qui-Gon and Obi-wan Kenobi had a mission there at some point. Unfortunately, it was a pirate state located right in the middle of the Salin Corridor. Until recently, it had been ruled by some criminal syndicate or other, until his former padawan had overthrown them.
Dooku frowned.
The new government was supposedly republican, and represented the small Demetras sector in the Galactic Senate, but was struggling with deep corruption and was clearly still unable to shake off the influence of the pirates that dominated it openly just a few years back. Once upon a time it was a part of Mandalorian Space, but since the decline of that power it had really become nothing but a flyover for anyone traveling the Salin Corridor. Ship captains avoided Phindar if they had any other choice.
Looking at it, there was an opportunity here, though not one without risks. Securing the Salin Corridor would be invaluable to Dooku's alliance, whose members were mostly located on the Perlemian and the Hydian. The well charted route that connected the two Great Hyperspace Lanes could allow a much greater bulk of trade to flow between them, without any fear of interference from the Republic.
However, Phindar was merely one world on the Salin Corridor, and a relatively unimportant one at that. If Dooku were to invade it suddenly, it could provoke the greater power of Botajef, who controlled the west entrance to the Corridor. If Dooku wanted to control that hyperlane, an alliance with Botajef would be essential…
"Continue to make preparations for the counter attack." Dooku informed his daughter. "And continue to gather information on the target. But do not launch unless I give permission."
"Yes, Father!" Tan'ya hurried away happily.
Botajef was once part of Mandalorian space, and was still trading with Mandalore, though the scales of power had tipped in that relationship over the last thousand years. Even with Botajef's massive shipyards not being nearly as productive as they once were, they still brought far more wealth to the planet than Mandalore's blasted, irradiated surface ever could.
Still, perhaps Duchess Satine would be able to help with introductions…
...
Tan'ya surveyed her father's battered freighter with a deep sense of satisfaction. The grimy, scored surface looked exactly like the kind of vessel a smuggler would operate. In fact, it almost definitely was a smuggler's vessel in its recent history, given that the mechanics had discovered two transponders aboard, both with a convenient off switch, and both broadcasting different registrations.
Tan'ya didn't have permission to launch her attack on Deep Space Demolition and Removal yet, but she wanted to be as ready as possible for when her father secured the political coverage they needed. This plausible smuggling vessel would be perfect for scouting out the enemy's precise location, without drawing the ire of Botajef or the authorities on Phindar.
Obviously, none of her Serrenoans would be suitable for this work, but a pair of sharp eyed Coruscanti with undercity accents wouldn't look out of place at all.
Tan'ya dispatched the ship with her pair of handpicked Guards as soon as her mechanics confirmed it was spaceworthy and ready to fly.
The next part of her plan involved collaborating with Asajj. Tan'ya's father had appointed his former apprentice to be the head of the New Temple's Quick Reaction Team, meaning Asajj had direct control over the New Temple's shiny new fleet of long range patrol fighters and armored freighters. With the New Temple and Raxus on the Perlemian, and Serenno and Mandalore on the Hydian, they were in a pretty good position to pincer the Black Sun fleet between them.
Of course, that was easier said than done. Intuitively, hitting the Black Sun with the largest possible armada would be most likely to succeed, but in reality the issue was more complicated. Coordinating the movement of two coalition fleets drawn together from navies unused to working with each other was difficult at the best of times, let alone trying to do so across such vast differences.
Tan'ya didn't quite have enough information to draw up a detailed plan yet, nor a ready solution to deal with the logistical headache the operation was shaping up to be. Questions like "how many of her father's allies she could rely on", or "who would be in command of the overall operation" had yet to be answered, let alone the relative strength and disposition of the enemy. For now, Tan'ya made due by drawing up a preliminary plan with Asajj, and wrote down their recommendations.
At first Asajj had seemed a touch overwhelmed, but had quickly gathered her bearings, and listened closely to Tan'ya's advice. Though obviously a beginner in the field of military affairs, Asajj had shown the most important quality of any burgeoning professional, by learning as much as she could from those with more experience than her.
Tan'ya finished her day satisfied, looking forward to what was to come. As she lay in bed, she couldn't help smiling to herself. At last, she was being given a real chance to do what she was good at. No more being treated like a child or spoken down to. In these matters she had authority, and would soon earn respect.
Finally, after years of frustration, she was taking back control. Ever since the battle over Serenno's orbit, her mind felt sharper, more focused, the annoying buzz of childish emotions of a spoiled princess having grown just a bit fainter, drowned out by the aftermath of her first real battle's adrenaline high.
Tan'ya smirked, the irony of celebrating putting herself in danger not escaping her. She didn't miss many things about her second life, but the military rigor that gave her complete control over her child self's body and instincts was one of them. It was almost funny when she thought about it.
Throughout her whole life as Tanya von Degurechaff, she was trying to escape from war to enjoy wealth and comfort. Now, with both in abundance, she was crawling back to it, to re-earn the respect she deserved and put an end to the infuriating internal tantrums.
Across from her, the egg started to rattle in its incubator.
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Apparently, chapters write themselves faster when Power Stones are involved. Who knew? Feel free to test the theory go ahead, toss a few my way.
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