The Republic light cruiser traveled through hyperspace.
Blue light moved across the bridge windows while the vessel followed the route contained within Beacon's encrypted navigation cylinder. Kit Fisto and Aayla Secura had delivered it after returning from Rishi Moon. Since then, the cruiser had completed four short jumps through systems containing little traffic and fewer inhabited worlds. Each new set of coordinates had appeared only after the previous jump ended, preventing the crew from identifying their final destination.
Master Soon Bayts stood near the forward windows as the blue currents of hyperspace passed beyond them. He had spent much of the journey studying the conditions Beacon placed upon the meeting. Their caution did not surprise him. An organization that survived by remaining beyond the Republic's attention would not expose its leaders merely because one Jedi Master requested a conversation.
A crew member turned from the navigation station. "Master Jedi, we are approaching what appears to be the final jump."
Soon looked toward the route displayed above the console. The cruiser would emerge inside an uninhabited waiting system. From there, the delegation would continue aboard a shuttle while the larger vessel remained behind.
"Thank you," Soon said. "Maintain our position once we arrive. I will prepare the others."
He left the bridge and followed the central corridor toward the cruiser's smaller hangar. The crew had already prepared a diplomatic shuttle near the atmospheric barrier. Its systems remained active while two maintenance officers completed the final inspection.
Kit Fisto and Aayla Secura waited beside the boarding ramp. Padmé Amidala stood with them, dressed in practical traveling clothes beneath a pale cloak. She carried no Senate crest and had left her usual security personnel aboard the cruiser. Beacon had agreed to receive Padmé Amidala, not a delegation arriving beneath the symbols of Republic authority.
"We are approaching the final coordinates," Soon said as he joined them. "The cruiser will remain in that next system. From there, the four of us will continue aboard the shuttle."
Padmé looked toward the hangar's external display. No unidentified vessels had appeared during any part of their journey. "It has been quiet since we left Ryloth."
"Beacon may have cleared the route before transmitting it," Aayla said. "They possess enough patrols to watch several surrounding systems without bringing their heavy cruisers near the meeting."
"That is reassuring," Padmé replied. "It also shows how much control they have established in the Outer Rim."
Kit watched her. "I would choose a different way to phrase that once we arrive."
"I did not say their control was hostile."
"They may hear the concern before they hear the distinction."
Padmé met his gaze. "If I avoid every difficult question, they will know I am doing it. That would not create trust either."
"She is correct," Soon said. "We are not going there to ignore what concerns us. We are going to ask without deciding the answer before they give it."
Kit inclined his head. "Then I will trust the senator to choose her words."
"A generous risk," Padmé said.
A trace of Kit's smile appeared. "I have recently become more willing to take those."
The cruiser left hyperspace before Padmé could answer. A low vibration passed through the hangar, followed by the steady sound of the engines reducing power. Soon's wrist communicator activated.
"Bridge to Master Bayts. We have reached the waiting system. No other vessels are present."
"Hold this position," Soon replied. "Do not attempt to follow the shuttle or scan beyond the system's outer boundary unless we request assistance."
"Understood."
The transmission ended. Soon gestured toward the boarding ramp, and the four entered the shuttle.
Aayla took the pilot's seat while Kit settled beside her. Soon and Padmé occupied the rear section of the cockpit. The encrypted cylinder was connected to the navigation computer, and the final set of coordinates appeared for the first time.
One short jump remained.
The shuttle left the cruiser and crossed the empty system before entering hyperspace. Its final journey lasted less than half an hour.
Stars returned around them.
An asteroid field spread across the system. Broken stone surrounded the remains of an old mining operation built into one of the largest bodies. Several communications towers extended from its surface, and faded landing lights marked a hangar cut beneath the rock. The station showed no signs of permanent traffic. One Beacon shuttle rested upon the sensors, positioned close to the asteroid without moving.
No capital ships waited nearby.
No fighters approached.
An incoming transmission reached the cockpit.
Kit accepted it. "This is Kit Fisto aboard the Republic shuttle."
A man's voice answered. "Welcome, Jedi. This is Captain Kirr with Beacon security. Our representatives have already arrived. I am transmitting your landing clearance and the route through the asteroid field."
The navigation display updated. A narrow approach appeared between the surrounding rocks.
"Thank you, Captain," Kit said. "We will be there shortly."
"Remain within the marked route. Several of the mining company's old navigation beacons are no longer reliable."
The transmission ended.
Aayla guided the shuttle toward the asteroid. "At least he did not warn us about defensive cannons."
"That does not mean there are none," Kit said.
Padmé looked toward the dark mining station. "You are very reassuring."
"I have been told it is one of my strengths."
Soon rose from his seat as the hangar entrance grew larger. "Let us not keep our hosts waiting."
The shuttle passed through the atmospheric field and entered a hangar built directly into the asteroid. Temporary lights illuminated the landing platforms. Most of the mining equipment had been pushed against the walls, leaving enough room for two vessels. A dark Beacon shuttle occupied the platform opposite them.
Aayla lowered their ship beside it.
The four left the cockpit once the engines became quiet. Cold air entered when the boarding ramp opened, carrying the scent of old machinery and mineral dust. The station's atmospheric systems worked, but not well enough to remove the traces of the mines that once passed through it.
A short human man waited at the bottom of the ramp. He wore a gray Beacon uniform beneath a reinforced work coat, and a compact blaster remained secured at his side.
"Welcome," he said. "The meeting chamber is prepared. Please follow me."
The group crossed the hangar behind him. Fresh power cables ran along the floor between old conduits, while portable emitters provided light where the station's original systems had failed. Beacon had repaired enough of the facility to make it usable without attempting to hide its age.
Their guide led them into a corridor cut through the asteroid. Exposed stone surrounded sections of metal support while old mining symbols remained painted along the walls. Several Beacon guards watched the intersections, but none moved to search the Jedi or Padmé.
The meeting room occupied what had once been an administrative chamber. Dust had been cleared from the floor, and portable heaters warmed the air. A long table stood beneath newly installed lights. Five places waited upon the far side, although only three were occupied.
Vania sat at the center.
The green-skinned Twi'lek wore dark clothing beneath a long black coat. Her lekku rested behind her shoulders while her attention moved across each member of the arriving delegation. Nothing in her expression suggested surprise, but Padmé had the uncomfortable sense that Vania had already gathered more information about them than anything the Republic possessed about her.
Sion Halcard sat to Vania's right. The older human's broad frame remained protected by the worn armor Kit and Aayla had described. Short ginger hair showed more gray beneath the chamber lights, and a scruffy beard covered his jaw. He carried himself with the stillness of someone accustomed to giving orders while others prepared for battle.
The final representative was a Duros.
Blue skin covered his narrow face, and large red eyes watched the Jedi from beneath a weathered brown hat. A matching cloak rested around his shoulders, concealing most of the equipment worn beneath it. He did not rise when the delegation entered.
Vania stood. "Master Soon Bayts, Beacon welcomes you and your companions."
Soon inclined his head. "Thank you for agreeing to meet with us. I assume you are Vania."
"Your Knights have spoken about me."
"They described you as direct."
Kit glanced toward Aayla. Neither offered a correction.
Vania gestured toward Sion. "This is Sion Halcard. He commands our fleet operations and oversees Beacon's larger strategic decisions."
Sion rose and gave the guests a brief nod. "Master Bayts. Senator Amidala."
Vania turned toward the Duros. "This is Colby. He commands our ground forces and the teams responsible for defending settlements once our ships have reached them."
Colby remained seated. "Ships can end a blockade. They cannot hold a street."
His voice was low and rougher than Padmé expected.
"It is a pleasure to meet all of you," Soon said.
Colby's red eyes remained upon him. "We will see."
Sion looked toward the Duros but did not correct him.
Vania shifted her attention to Padmé. "Senator Amidala. You understood the condition placed upon your attendance?"
"I did." Padmé unclasped her cloak and placed it across the back of an empty chair. "I came to listen and speak. I did not come to claim authority over Beacon."
"Then you are welcome."
Vania invited the delegation to sit.
Once everyone had taken a place, she activated two emitters at the far end of the table. Holographic light rose from them, forming a pair of humanoid outlines. Layers of encryption shifted constantly across the projections, concealing faces, bodies, and every feature that might identify their species. Their voices would pass through the same protection.
"Two members of our leadership are attending remotely," Vania said. "One oversees Beacon's protected trade and supply network. The other represents the civilian settlements that have joined our organization. Their identities and locations will remain concealed."
Soon looked toward the encrypted figures. "I understand."
The first hologram inclined its featureless head. "Then we may begin."
Soon rested his hands upon the table. "Before we discuss cooperation, I would like to understand what Beacon considers itself to be. The information available to the Jedi described defended trade routes, relief operations, and military action against pirate groups. None of it explained who gave Beacon that authority or what limits it places upon itself."
Sion answered first. "Beacon is a defense coalition. The settlements, crews, and businesses protected by us participate voluntarily. Their governments remain their own. We do not claim their worlds, remove their leaders, or collect taxes from their people."
"You maintain capital ships and armed ground forces," Soon said. "How are they supported?"
The first encrypted hologram responded. "Protected trade routes produce membership contributions. Beacon-owned repair yards, freight companies, mining operations, and agricultural settlements provide the remainder. No system is required to surrender its resources to receive protection."
"And if one refuses membership?"
"We leave its government alone," Sion said. "Beacon does not force a world to accept permanent forces."
Colby leaned forward. "That does not mean we ignore slavery, piracy, or a syndicate holding a population beneath weapons because the people controlling the government ask us to leave."
Soon turned toward him. "Who decides when a government's refusal should be disregarded?"
"I do not," Colby said. "Neither does Sion."
Vania activated a smaller display above the table. Five lights appeared around the Beacon emblem. "Long-term intervention requires the approval of three members of our leadership and a request from representatives within the affected population. Those representatives do not need to belong to the recognized government, but their claims must be verified through our information network."
"And urgent situations?" Kit asked.
"Field commanders may act to protect lives," Sion replied. "Their actions are reviewed afterward. If they used Beacon's name to settle a personal dispute or seize something for themselves, they lose their command."
"Has that happened?" Padmé asked.
"Yes," Sion said.
The answer came without hesitation.
"What happened to them?"
"One was removed and returned what he took. Another refused." Sion's expression remained still. "Colby brought him back."
Padmé looked toward the Duros.
"He came back alive," Colby said. "He simply did not enjoy the journey."
Kit's mouth curved slightly, but the seriousness in Colby's face kept him from responding.
Soon studied the five lights. "No single leader can deploy the entire organization."
"That was one of our founder's first rules," the second encrypted hologram said. "Beacon was created to help people stand without him. Replacing one distant authority with another would have defeated its purpose."
"Does your founder retain command authority?" Soon asked.
"No," Vania answered. "He stepped away from Beacon before beginning the investigation that brought him to Serenno."
"Could he reclaim it?"
Sion looked toward Vania before responding. "People would listen if he returned. That is different from command."
Soon accepted the distinction. "Then what is Beacon's purpose now that he is gone?"
Sion rested one armored hand upon the table. "The same as before. Keep trade moving without paying criminal syndicates for permission. Protect settlements whose distress calls no government answers. Train people to defend themselves so our ships do not need to remain above them forever."
Colby's red eyes moved toward Soon. "We do not build dependent worlds. If a settlement still requires our soldiers after several years, then we failed to leave it stronger than we found it."
The first hologram shifted. "Our businesses follow the same principle. We purchase locally where possible, establish routes owned by those using them, and prevent one corporation from controlling the food, medicine, or transportation of an entire region."
Padmé listened as the leaders spoke. The cruisers had been the first evidence that alarmed her aboard the Republic ship, but they were not the center of Beacon's structure. Routes, repair yards, settlements, and locally trained defenders connected everything. The fleet existed above that network, not in place of it.
Soon looked toward Vania. "Your goals overlap with many responsibilities of the Jedi Order."
"They overlap with responsibilities the Order cannot always fulfill," she replied.
"That is one reason I requested this meeting. Beacon receives information from regions where the Jedi possess little reliable contact. We may be able to respond sooner if that information is shared."
"And what does the Republic receive?" Colby asked.
Soon turned toward him. "The Jedi Order and the Republic have worked together for thousands of years. I will not pretend that cooperation with us can remain completely separate from Coruscant."
"Then you cannot promise that our information will remain with the Jedi."
"I can promise that information given beneath an agreement will not be distributed without considering the risk to those who provided it. I cannot promise that the Council will conceal evidence of an immediate threat to the Republic."
Colby leaned back. "There it is."
"There what is?" Aayla asked.
"The moment the Jedi decide the Republic matters more than the people who trusted them."
Kit's expression tightened. "That is not what Master Bayts said."
"It is what reaches us."
Soon raised one hand before the exchange hardened. "Colby is correct about one part. Conflicting responsibilities may arise. Any agreement that depends upon pretending otherwise will fail the first time they do."
Vania watched him. "Then why should we accept the risk?"
"Because refusing every imperfect ally leaves both of us weaker while the people we oppose continue cooperating without such concerns."
The chamber became quiet.
Soon continued. "I cannot offer Beacon recognition from the Republic. I cannot approve your fleet or bind the Senate to your conditions. Those decisions do not belong to me. I can bring what I learn before the Jedi Council and argue for a direct channel between the Order and your leadership."
"What would pass through that channel?" the first hologram asked.
"Warnings concerning piracy, slavery, armed movements, missing vessels, and disputes likely to become violent. Beacon could request Jedi assistance without sending information through Republic offices that may not answer in time. The Order could warn you when its investigations reveal danger moving toward one of your regions."
"And our locations?" Sion asked.
"Would remain yours unless withholding one placed lives in immediate danger."
Colby's red eyes narrowed. "That condition can become very wide."
"It can," Soon admitted. "Which is why both sides would need a representative capable of speaking before either acts upon an assumption."
Vania considered him. "A liaison."
"Yes."
"A Jedi stationed at Rishi Moon?" Sion asked.
"No. Asking for access to your primary base before trust exists would be unreasonable. Communication can begin through encrypted relays. Meetings can occur upon neutral ground."
The second hologram turned toward the others. "A limited exchange would allow us to test whether the Order honors those limits."
"It would also allow the Order to judge whether Beacon's reports are reliable," Aayla said.
Sion looked toward her. "You still believe we may be the threat."
"I believe anyone commanding this much force should expect their intentions to be examined. That includes the Jedi."
Colby studied her for several moments. "That answer I can respect."
Soon looked toward Vania. "Based upon everything my Knights witnessed and what I have heard here, I do not consider Beacon an enemy. I will tell the Council that directly."
"You do not consider us a threat?" the first hologram asked.
"A threat and an enemy are not the same. Your fleet gives Beacon the ability to cause considerable harm. That ability should not be ignored." Soon glanced toward Sion. "The same is true of the Jedi Order."
Sion's expression changed slightly. "You are more careful with your words than most officials."
"I have had longer to regret the careless ones."
Padmé had remained silent through most of the exchange. The discussion had defined authority, operations, military safeguards, and possible cooperation. Everyone at the table now understood how Beacon functioned.
She still did not understand the people who had chosen to build it.
"You have explained what Beacon does," Padmé said. "I would like to ask something different."
Every face turned toward her.
Vania folded her hands. "What do you wish to know?"
"Why are each of you here?"
Colby's brow shifted beneath the edge of his hat. "We have spent the last hour answering that."
"No. You have explained your organization's purpose." Padmé looked from Sion to Colby and then Vania. "I want to know why five people with enough influence to command ships, armies, trade routes, and settlements chose this purpose instead of another."
Neither encrypted hologram moved.
Padmé continued before anyone could dismiss the question. "Principles are easy to place inside a charter. They become more difficult when following them costs something. If the Republic is going to misunderstand Beacon, it will begin by treating you as vessels and numbers rather than people. I would prefer not to make the same mistake while sitting across from you."
Sion studied her. The hard lines around his face did not disappear, but something in his posture became less guarded. "I commanded security for several mining settlements before Beacon existed. When pirates entered the system, the company controlling those settlements ordered us to protect its refinery and abandon the outer camps."
"What did you do?" Padmé asked.
"I disobeyed."
Colby looked toward him. The story was clearly familiar, but he did not interrupt.
"We evacuated as many people as our transports could carry," Sion continued. "The company called it theft. The pirates called it an invitation. By the time the first ships reached the evacuation route, half my people had already been killed."
His fingers rested against the worn armor covering his chest.
"Our founder arrived in one damaged starfighter. He could have destroyed several pirate vessels and left. Instead, he remained until every transport crossed the system. Afterward, he helped us take the ships the pirates no longer needed."
Kit's attention sharpened, but he said nothing.
Sion looked toward Padmé. "I joined Beacon because someone decided the outer camps were not an acceptable loss. I command the fleet so no one serving beneath me forgets that."
Padmé turned toward Colby. "And you?"
The Duros's large red eyes gave little away. For several moments, he appeared prepared to refuse. Then he removed his hat and placed it upon the table.
"I grew up beneath a syndicate that owned the landing fields, the water processors, and most of the weapons upon my world. We removed its leaders ourselves."
"You led the uprising," Soon said.
"I survived it." Colby rested both hands around the hat. "Winning was easier than what came afterward. We had no food routes, no medicine, and no one who understood how to keep the old generators working. The syndicate returned before the first season ended because it knew hunger would make people accept the same chains."
"What did Beacon do?" Padmé asked.
"There was no Beacon yet. Only its founder and those foolish enough to follow him." Colby glanced toward Sion. "He did not take command of our settlement. He brought technicians, protected our first supply ships, and trained people who had never held weapons before. Then he left before anyone could begin treating him like their new ruler."
Colby placed the hat back upon his head. "I lead ground operations because fleets do not see what happens after they win. Someone must enter the streets, listen to the people living there, and know when our presence has lasted too long."
Padmé looked toward Vania.
The Twi'lek met her gaze. "You expect another story."
"I expect only what you choose to give."
Vania's expression remained unreadable. "I learned that information reaches powerful people much faster than help reaches those who need it. I joined because Beacon gave me somewhere useful to send what I found."
It was less than Sion or Colby had offered.
Padmé did not press.
The first encrypted hologram spoke. "You asked why we chose this purpose, Senator. Why did you choose to come here after learning we possessed three heavy cruisers?"
The question carried no accusation, but everyone waited for her answer.
Padmé looked toward the featureless projection. "When Naboo was occupied, my people suffered while representatives debated whether their suffering had been described through the correct procedures. I learned that institutions can believe they are acting responsibly while the people waiting for them experience only silence."
"You still serve that institution," Colby said.
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Because leaving it to those who benefit from that silence would not help anyone." Padmé rested her hands upon the table. "I do not know whether the Republic will accept Beacon. Some senators will see your fleet and refuse to look beyond it. Others will attempt to use you against their political opponents. I cannot promise to prevent either."
Sion watched her carefully. "What can you promise?"
"That when the report reaches Coruscant, it will contain more than images of your ships. It will explain what you protect, how you make decisions, and what limits you claim upon your own power." Padmé glanced toward Soon. "I can also argue that opening communication is safer than forcing Beacon to choose between secrecy and surrender."
"You speak as Padmé Amidala," Vania said. "Not as the Chancellor's representative."
"In this room, yes."
"And outside it?"
Padmé did not answer immediately. "Outside it, I will still be a senator. I will still have responsibilities to the Republic. Trusting you does not require me to forget them any more than trusting me requires you to forget Beacon."
Vania held her gaze.
"That is an answer I can work with," she said.
Soon returned the conversation toward the first steps of cooperation. "Then we begin narrowly. One encrypted channel between Beacon and the Jedi Council. Information concerning immediate threats may be shared through it. Neither side acts inside territory protected by the other without making contact first, unless delay would place lives in danger."
Sion nodded slowly. "Beacon can accept that as a trial."
"Any Republic involvement will be discussed separately," Vania added.
"I will make that distinction clear to the Council."
Colby looked toward the holograms. "And when we send the first distress call?"
"If Jedi are available, they will answer," Soon said.
"If they are not?"
"Then we will tell you the truth rather than promise help that will never arrive."
That response appeared to matter more to Colby than an assurance would have.
The second hologram shifted. "A trial period should last long enough to include more than one successful exchange."
"Six months," Sion suggested.
"Three," Colby said. "If the channel fails, I do not want dangerous information continuing to pass through it."
Vania's wrist communicator vibrated.
The signal was silent, but the code displayed across its surface belonged to Travis. He had been instructed to contact her only after leaving the system containing Plagueis's suspected facility.
Vania closed her hand over the device.
"Sion can continue discussing the trial period," she said as she rose. "I must receive a field report."
Soon inclined his head. "Of course."
Vania left the meeting chamber and closed the door behind her. She continued along the corridor until the station's thick walls blocked the voices inside, then activated the encrypted channel.
Travis appeared above her wrist. His hologram flickered beneath interference, and the lighting behind him had changed to the red glow of emergency systems.
"The probe was delivered," he said before she could ask. "It entered the atmosphere along the route you provided."
"What happened?"
"Three ships appeared before we completed the pass. No transponders and no warning. They came from behind one of the planet's moons with weapons already active."
"Did they identify you?"
"They tried. We altered our signature before entering the system, but they did not appear interested in asking questions." Travis glanced toward something outside the transmission. "The first shot passed close enough to damage our port shield emitter. After that, they attempted to cut off our jump route."
Vania looked at the emergency light moving across his face. "How badly were you hit?"
"Scoring along the rear armor and one damaged emitter. Nothing we cannot repair."
"Were you followed?"
"We completed two false jumps and remained under passive scans afterward. Nothing followed us beyond the second system."
"And the probe?"
"Released before the ships reached us. They were focused upon the freighter and never altered course toward it."
Vania allowed herself one quiet breath. "Then it should begin transmitting once its survey is complete."
"If it survives." Travis's expression became serious. "Those ships were waiting, Vania. They did not behave like pirates protecting a route or smugglers afraid of witnesses. Someone placed them there to keep every unknown vessel away from that planet."
"You were instructed to make a pass because I expected resistance."
"You expected guards. This was closer to a blockade." A faint vibration moved through his hologram as his damaged ship continued through hyperspace. "If we had slowed to perform a normal survey, we would not have escaped with one damaged shield emitter."
"Return to Rishi through the secondary route. Do not place the encounter in Beacon's general records."
"Understood."
"Travis."
He waited.
"You followed the instructions exactly."
A tired smile appeared. "You sound surprised."
"I am acknowledging improvement."
"I will try not to become accustomed to it."
The transmission ended.
Vania lowered her wrist.
Beyond the closed meeting-room door, the Jedi and Beacon's leaders continued discussing the first information they might trust one another to share. Upon her darkened communicator remained the coordinates of a world protected by ships willing to fire before identifying their target.
She cleared the display and returned to the meeting without mentioning them.