Six Sentence Sunday: Star Wars: Sororal Lineality: Plans and High Command

Star Wars: Sororal Lineality: Plans and High Command

BookWorm's Library | Ao3

The comm connected to the bunk was chirping for attention. Luke blinked his eyes once before squeezing them shut again. That sound reminded him strongly of Medical, and he remembered leaving Medical to get some sleep. Making that chirp stop took more concentration than he had right now.

The warmth against his back shifted away, and the chirp finally stopped. Biggs’ voice rumbled into the comm. “Darklighter.”

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Summary: Luke wakes up and plans must be made and High Command must be briefed about what happened on Bespin and what Luke and Leia are planning to do next.

How to tell me you haven't done any research into military service or organization without telling me you haven't researched or lived it: write a Star Wars story and ignore the chain of command. I'm not expecting a lot but some reference is nice while Luke and eventually Han are still in service, so the bulk of Legends is off the hook after Luke and Han have resigned their commissions. The first time I found a military-adjacent error was in Splinter of the Mind's Eye. The book opens with an internal monologue from Luke and he muses

When the Rebel leaders offered him any reward within their ability to grant, he had asked only to be permitted to continue piloting a fighter in the Alliance's service. Some thought his request unduly modest, but one shrewd general disagreed, explaining how Luke might be more valuable to the Rebellion without a title or commission which, the veteran pointed out to his colleagues, would serve only to make the youth a prime target for Imperial assassination.

I can (and have) get behind the X-wing is Luke's personal reward for rescuing Princess Leia since he kept it for the rest of his life (no matter which continuity you follow) but there is no way you are getting into a fighter squadron without getting a rank and a slot into the hierarchy.

In Shadows of the Empire, Leia promises that she can scramble the Rogue Squadron because

The Alliance's chain of command is a lot looser than the Empire's. We have to be more flexible, given the numbers. The Rogues don't have any permanent assignment, and I'm sure I can convince the Alliance that Captain Solo is worth rescuing. He was instrumental in the destruction of the Death Star, plus we need all the good pilots we can get.

We've got a few things going on here in this story. Leia is still processing how she feels about Han and wants a handy denial to anyone assuming that she's wasting resources for personal reasons. Shadows of the Empire was also a multimedia project in 1996 including the novel I just quoted, a comic series that covered more of what Boba Fett was up to, a video game in which Dash Rendar is the player character, a soundtrack, trading cards, and a toy line. So plot needs of probably the video game means we have to give the Rogue Squadron presence in the narrative.

I agree with the Rebel Alliance must have a loose chain of command because of their numbers, but they still have one. And Luke went AWOL right after the Battle of Hoth, so of course they have questions. I thought that it will make things more interesting to take away any Alliance support that our heroes could call on. I hope you enjoy this series.

Six Sentence Sunday: Star Wars: Interrogation Room

Star Wars: Interrogation Room

BookWorm's Library | Ao3

The Imperial guard dropped Mara onto a metal, waist-high table. Luke locked his teeth around his protest over his roughness. Her body settled limply on the surface, but her chest moved. The binders on her wrists clunked against the table.

The captain of Midnight Omen glanced over at her, but didn’t take his hands out of the case that also rested on the table. “It’ll be some time before she joins us.”

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Summary: Luke and Mara share a midnight kiss.

This short story was the answer to yet another 2019 challenge issued from the Star Wars Fic Whining Circle: to have Luke and Mara share a kiss at midnight for celebrating the upcoming New Year. There is no reason why the Galaxy Far, Far Away has New Year's traditions like we do so I had to come up with a twist to it. Everything is all Wes Janson’s fault. Honestly stop protesting, we all know it is your fault.

Since I was writing Unexpected Consequences (BookWorm's Library | Ao3) at the time, this idea is an AU, branching off after Mara has given birth to Lucinda and is on the run from the Emperor but before the Battle of Hoth. The Rogue Squadron have ended up on this planet and in a Rebel friendly skin club/brothel. It is supposed to be a little R and R before heading back to base. Wes, remembering Luke’s fixation on red-haired women, gets some credits from everybody else and approaches the management about a session with a red-haired human for their commander.

Management agrees and goes backstage to make arrangements. Mara Jade is their only red-haired human on staff and she hasn’t gone on stage for her performance yet. She disagrees about trading duties because she only dances, that was the employment agreement. Management doses her with pleaz-mo, an illegal aphrodisiac that will kill her if goes without kriffing and puts her in a room for the client. Mara manages to give him a black eye despite the drug kicking in.

So the Rogues do go up with Luke and a lot of friendly ribbing only to be confronted with Luke knows the sex worker and she’s drugged for this and not consenting to sex despite being very glad to see Luke. Wedge takes the lead with the management over drugging the lady. While Management is whining about his black eye and losing the credits, another dancer comes upstairs to tell the Rogues that a bounty hunter identified them. Dancer 1: “Dancer 2 has got him occupied with a lap dance but that only lasts so long.”

Luke decides it is time to leave and Mara is coming with them. One of the prostitutes says they have to take Mara’s things with her and dumps a go-bag and a sleepy red-haired human toddler in Wedge’s arms. She also explains that Mara has only ever been a dancer and they helped her out with the child sleeping here because Mara couldn’t find any overnight child care.

The Rogues plus Mara and Lucinda leave the skin club and something happens between that and getting to their ride, and they are scooped up by the crew of the Midnight Omen. Luke and Mara are taken together to the interrogation room, the rest of the Rogues are taken to the brig with Wedge continuing to hold the baby while they are locked up. I’m not sure what happens to draw the Imperial attention, but it is something Wes did.

Yes, this clusterkriff is your fault, Wes. Stop trying to make it better for yourself by pointing out “but the Commander found his girlfriend.” I hope you enjoy this AU story.

Six Sentence Sunday: Star Wars: Unexpected Consequences

Star Wars: Unexpected Consequences

BookWorm's Library | Ao3

Lucinda lay on the trimmed grass between the main building and the base's storage sheds, and she pointed her macrobinoculars at the darkening sky. They were a present Mommy had bought with her first bonus working for Captain Karrde. Lucinda wasn't an official lookout—they manned the sensors inside—but it was fun to watch the ships take off and arrive. All the ships were on base, so that wasn't her current aim. She fine-tuned the scopes to see the visible stars before sunset. Then she'd have a visual for when she pretend-piloted off-planet.

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Summary: Mara Jade returns to Luke Skywalker's life with a child who needs protection from the Imperial Remnant.

Also known as “What happens to the Thrawn Trilogy if I throw a kid in it?!” I started writing the first draft on September 8, 2018 after I had finished writing "Forsaken No Longer, Outcast No More" and was working on outlining Mission on Mimban and editing Rescue the Farmboy: Liberation. Too many projects at the same time. So I didn't finish the first draft of Unexpected Consequences until July 13, 2020. I finished edits and published it on Ao3 in 2021 and at the Library in 2022. I hope you enjoy this Legends AU.

Six Sentence Sunday: Star Wars: Sororal Lineality: Miha

Star Wars: Sororal Lineality: Miha

BookWorm's Library | Ao3

Biggs Darklighter pushed the hyperdrive lever back to the sublight setting and the blue mottled sky around his cockpit shifted to starlines and then pinpricks of light. The Rebel Fleet hung on the edge of the galaxy, relieving his uneasy stomach. It was bad enough that Luke hadn’t turned up and he hadn’t found his storm-brother; if the Fleet had moved while he was on Tatooine, he would be totally lost right now. Thank the Force that hadn’t happened.

The comm chimed. He gave out the correct codes to be readmitted back to the Fleet. That officer signed off, and Commander Wedge Antilles, acting commander of the Rogue Squadron when Biggs left, replaced her voice. “Your trip to Tatooine was a bust.”

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Summary: Biggs Darklighter arrives back at the Fleet and finds out what happened to Luke Skywalker from a new defector, Mara Jade.

So this story sets up the major change that happened in the Sororal Lineality's A New Hope: that Han Solo turned around faster and knocked Vader and his TIE fighter wingmen out of the trench before Vader shot Biggs Darklighter dead. Biggs also survived the Battle of Hoth and took a sabbatical of his own before showing up now to have his meet cute with Mara Jade. Biggs is the oldest in this trio and also the only one raised with younger siblings, so he slots into protecting Luke and Mara so easily.

One of the biggest surprises out of writing Rescue the Farmboy: Liberation (BookWorm's Library | Ao3) was how much I liked expanding Biggs and giving him a connection to both Skywalker twins. It hurt to kill him off when I could see how to save him. Sororal Lineality gave me a chance to put that idea in action, albeit in the history of the characters that I'm not planning on writing again. Biggs does owe Han. It's not the same level of bonding that Han and Luke got on board the Death Star and later the saving on Hoth, but just try to leave Biggs out of saving Han fun. Luke knows better.

I hope you enjoy this story and this series.

Six Sentence Sunday: Star Wars: Sororal Lineality: Aftermath

Star Wars: Sororal Lineality: Aftermath

BookWorm's Library | Ao3

“Come with me. It is the only way.”

Luke had rejected that offer of aggression, fear, and anger. The Dark Side was easier and seductive, like Master Yoda had warned. But Luke had seized on his sense of justice that led him to join the Rebel Alliance. He would never rule anything as evil as the Empire even with his father. A father alive? A monster that had stalked him for years.

He let go of his rage and his fear and his despair and the pipe he had gripped with his remaining hand.

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Summary: As Luke struggles to hang on under Cloud City, someone besides Leia answers his call for help.

This is the story that firmly establishes the time frame Sororal Lineality is taking place in the Original Trilogy. Most of A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back takes place, but there are a few changes to those stories too. I hope you enjoy this series.