Chapter Text
"Theron, THERON! We need to talk, NOW." Lana entered the war room, her usual calm demeanor replaced by a poorly disguised apprehension.
"Is everything alright? What's the emergency?" he stepped out of the console and looked at the blonde with a worried expression. It was not normal to see the Alliance's intelligence leader lose her composure; when that happened, it usually meant that something bad had happened to the Commander or the galaxy.
"Not here, come." The Sith's voice had a contained urgency.
The blonde motioned for Theron to follow her as she opened one of the side doors of the war room. It was one of the smallest conference rooms, and no one ever used it. Inside were mainly empty boxes of supplies stacked next to the walls.
Theron's expression was of concern. What could be so serious that it required so much secrecy from Lana? She was always poised, controlled, and full of herself. Seeing her confused was... new.
Meanwhile, Lana walked erratically around the room, muttering things to herself.
"Lana, you are acting strange and scaring me; please tell me what is going on."
"Yes, yes, I'm sorry, it's just that ... this is all new, and for the first time in my life, I don't know what to do. I don't have a plan."
Theron raised an eyebrow. Lana was flustered, but war, battles, and strategy did not make her flustered. He crossed his arms and leaned against one of the boxes while studying the woman with semi-closed eyes. Lana stopped walking, turned to him, and sighed.
"I need help, your help, to pick a wedding gift."
Theron was dumbfounded. He was sure his implants had just malfunctioned, and this was not what he heard.
"Wait, what? You need what?"
"I'm serious, Theron." Lana was recovering her usual composure. "Long story short, Rhiavi proposed out of nowhere, and I was unprepared. I have no idea what to give her."
"Let me get this straight . You are telling me all this drama," Theron gestured with his finger, mockingly pointing at the Sith. "Was just a Gay Panic?"
Of course, Theron wouldn't miss the opportunity to make a bad joke. For a second, Lana seriously considered all the possible ways to kill the agent. Still, with a sly smile on his face, he kept speaking.
"Ok, joke aside. Isn't the one who proposes the one supposed to give the gift? Usually a ring with a super big and expensive rock on it?"
Lana made a face of frustration and let out a growl.
"Right, sorry. Sometimes, I forget that you are not Imperial." She ran a hand over her face, trying to calm herself, and took a deep breath. "At Sith weddings, the tradition is that the couple exchange gifts that symbolize the value of their union. The monetary value, size, or object itself are not limited. The only condition is that it has to be somewhat meaningful."
Theron raised his shoulders.
"You are loaded. Your family has more money than you can count, so why not just buy something you Siths consider cool, like those crazy big statues?"
"I can't do that!" she was scandalized. "Yeah, that's a usual gift, but it's mostly used in political alliances. This is not a power play or an arranged marriage."
Theron sat at the table in the room and looked at her friend.
"She is the Commander of the Alliance, and you are an extremely wealthy imperial high on the Sith ladder. That's a power play,— " he said in his usual mocking tone; however, Lana only gave him an exasperated and threatening look. "—But I know you are marrying her for love. " he finished cautiously.
"Yes, I want something that shows my commitment, that I would rip the galaxy apart for her."
He stood up and walked around the room, hand to his chin, deep in thought.
"Why not ask her crew? You don't go and say what for, but... Just what she likes and stuff."
"Because her crew aren't idiots, they'll immediately get suspicious and tell her something. No, they're out of the question."
Theron remained silent for a while, then answered with a friendly smile. "Ok, fine. Deal, only if I get to be the best man... or whatever you Siths have as equivalent," Theron said with a friendly smile.
Lana shook his hand dismissively but returned the smile.
***
Ashara was meditating in the force-sensitive enclave when her old holocom started beeping. She opened her eyes and looked at the old device. It was the one she had years ago when she began traveling with Rhiavi as her apprentice. She always hoped that one day, it would beep again and she could return to her master, but this was the first time that thing activated in years.
The intermittent red light meant she should go to the ship for a meeting. They used it whenever there was a mission or a ghost situation they needed to short out.
She left the room, giving a slight bow to Sana-Rae, and went to the hangar where Rhiavis' ship was.
She was about to take the elevator when a voice called her.
"Ashara, please wait for me!"
She looked behind her and saw Talos Drelik running towards her.
"Did you receive the call, too?" He asked
"Yes, I was just going to the ship."
The elevator opened, and they went inside. "What is it about?"
"I'm not sure; let's hope it's nothing too serious." He said.
Inside the ship, Rhiavi was walking like a caged lion. What was she thinking at the moment? Nothing! She was not thinking. She let her brain talk on autopilot, and now she was calling her crew for an emergency meeting because this was worse than any ghost-sith issues they had in the past.
The ship's door opened with a hiss. Rihavi had installed a DNA check on it so only registered people could get in, and the only ones authorized were her crew. She had temporarily blocked Lana and Theron's access, just in case.
"Hey, my Lord, we are here," Talos said. Behind him were Andronikos and Ashara.
"Boss, I hope this one is good. I was about to clean that bastard Gault of his credit. He would have never recovered from it." Andronikos said.
"As much as I will enjoy that... This is a matter of utmost importance." Rhiavi answered.
Andronikos rested himself against a wall and looked at Rhiavi with a smug expression.
"Oh! This may be good. What did you do now?"
"Why do you think I did something?"
"Because you usually hold these meetings whenever you need a ghost power up... Or you fucked up."
Rhiavi looked annoyed but said nothing and took her seat, signaling her crew to sit. At that moment, Xelek came in.
"I'm here, my Lord."
"Well, we are all here." She started, "What I'm going to tell you must remain a secret."
The group looked at each other, and their expressions turned serious. The crew was used to dangerous adventures and near-suicidal missions. They were all used to danger. They were ready for everything the Sith threw at them—well, almost everything.
"I accidentally got engaged," Rhiavi told them, face serious and tone neutral like a news reporter.
"You WHAT?" Andronikos' eyes were about to pop out of his head while traying to hard not to laugh.
"How do you do that "accidentally "?" Ashara asked.
"I let my head wander, talking to Lana, and kind of asked her to marry me. I was half serious, half joking. She said I had to ask seriously, and I did," Rhiavi explained.
"That sounds like you... So what's the problem then? I'm pretty sure it is not your soon-to-be wife." Andronikos replied, still trying hard to contain his laughter.
He was having a blast. He remembered making fun of his boss after meeting the blonde Sith for the first time and the absolutely stupid face the pureblood had after meeting Darth Arkous's advisor. He had joked about them getting married before; now Asharaa owed him so many credits.
"No, she's not the problem. The problem is that, since this wasn't planned, I don't have a gift and almost no time to find one."
"A gift?" Ashara asked.
"The master means a wedding gift. Sith gives their spouse a wedding gift as a symbol of their relationship. Anything can be a gift, even the blood of their enemies." Xelek explained.
"Oh... You are not thinking of killing all Lanas' enemies, right?" She asked nervously, looking at the Pureblood.
"No, Lana doesn't need me to kill for her. It is not a suitable gift for her. That's the problem; I have no idea what to give her."
"Money or treasures are always welcome." Suggested Andronikos.
"The Benikos are absurdly rich. She doesn't need money; it's like giving a glass of water to the sea."
"What about antiques? She is pretty well-versed in imperial and Sith history... She probably would like something like that." Talos commented.
"Man, that's the most stup—" Andronikos started, but was interrupted by Rhiavi
"That's not a bad idea. She mentioned once that she was a knowledge seeker before becoming an strategy advisor." The pureblood's tone was meditative.
Rhiavi remained silent for a couple of seconds, thinking carefully, then in a commanding tonesi taked to her crew.
"Talos, look for a collection of lost holocrons or important books or relics. You have a week. We need to get them as soon as possible. You can use help from any of the crew, but no outside help. Not a word to other Alliance archaeologists."
"Yes, my Lord," the archaeologist replied.
"Same to all of you, use any method to find useful information, but with discretion, not a word about this to anyone. Is that clear?"
"Yes, My Lord."
***
Hours later, Avol Rhiavi found Lana sitting alone at the cantina at their usual table. She was distracted by something on a data pad. Rhiavi came close and faked a voice as close as she could to Gault.
"Hey, want some company, gorgeous?"
"I think it is pretty clear for everyone I'm take—" she lifted her vision and saw Rhiavi's wicked smile. She relaxed in her seat and smiled at her girlfriend. "You are insufferable."
"Yet, you said yes." Rhiavi took the seat in front of the woman.
"I did. And I'm not backing up."
Rhiavi gestured to the keeper for a bottle of Whyren's Reserve and two glasses. The keeper came and left the glasses and a bottle in front of them. Rhiavi took the bottle and poured a drink for Lana and another for herself.
Lana looked at her and took a sip from her glass with a pleased expression.
"This is the really good stuff, you know?"
"I do; we gotta celebrate or something."
"Rhiavi, are we keeping this-" Lana's tone was a bit more serious now.
Theron's voice came from behind the pureblood.
"What are we keeping secret? Because your relationship is not. The whole galaxy knows about you, you got a ship name, and fanfiction written all over the holonet. Some are actually pretty on point."
"It can't be that bad, Theron." Rhiavi laughed
"No? Let me remind you that you two are Darth Nox, an ex-Dark Council member and the former minister of intelligence and heir of the Beniko family. You are space big shots."
"Ok, point taken." Rhiavi conceded. "But, fanfiction? seriously?"
He shrugged and gave them a knowing smile and served himself a glass of the liquor while sitting beside Rhiavi.
Rhiavi looked at Lana apologetically, and Lana responded with a slight shake of her head, dismissing the interruption in their conversation.
Theron continued speaking, but Rhiavi only heard the end of it.
"- what about a round of pazaak? I wanted to suggest Phrenbi, but Lana will obliterate us in a second." The agent said.
At that moment Kaliyo, Kerdank Loyd and Jorgan were aproaching the table.
"If you are playing Phrenbi, I'm in." said the ex Cipher Agnet.
"Don't you nerds have enough strategy in the meetings? Do you really need to play war, too?" Kliyo was unimpressed.
The Rattataki didnt ask for permision and stright up sat on the table. The agent followed.
Rhiavi was already used to Kaliyos antics, after her solo mision with Lana to recruit the agent she saterted to spend a lot of time with them, or she was probably tired of clearing Koth's crew of their credits.
"I go with Pazaak; at least I have a chance with cards. Lana will sweep the floor with us at any strategy game." the Commander said activating the holo table and setting the game.
Jorgan took a seat reluctanly, He rarly tooked free time, and a table full of Imperials and spies wasn't his cup of tea, but Kaliyo's not-so-friendly teasing got him angrily seated at the table.
The group looked at each other while the holocards appeared in front of them.
The first hands were pretty straightforward, testing the waters, but when the game started in earnest,Rhiavi and Jorgan learned pretty fast that playing cards against intelligence agents and spies was a terrible idea.