Chapter 12

'Mezorahimed dejan Forka imajors dejan bacarlam tarminan.'

She smiled and closed her eyes for a moment. Her thoughts reached out to the person who had given her the pendant.

"Luke?! Do you have time to talk again? It's past midnight here on Wegoyy. The lights in my cell are out. No one will notice what I'm doing; we can talk freely."

Like always Luke heard the hesitation in Liane's voice. He smiled, surrendered himself to the Force and let his powerful ally bring him to the cell block on Wegoyy, where Liane was sitting cross-legged on her bench. He walked up to her, and sat down.

'I always can talk with you, Liane. Don't ask, just use the pendant and I feel your presence through the Force wherever I am,' He said with a warm smile, 'You're really using my present as often as I hoped you would do'.

Liane looked into in his eyes. She warmed herself to the radiance of kindness she not only saw in his eyes, but also seemed to feel around her.

"It's still so puzzling that I can talk with you as often as I want. Where are you now, Luke?" She asked.

'On Tatooine. Within a week we're leaving for Tambrin. Leia wants to start diplomatic negotiations with the leaders on Tambrin to persuade them to join the New Republic. Those negotiations always take time, but after Tambrin we'll come to Wegoyy.'

Liane's eyes began to sparkle.

"I'm looking forward seeing you and Leia again. Did you find that friend of yours?"

'No, we haven't. On our trip to Tambrin we'll stop at Leathan. Maybe we find him there.'

"You really want to find him, don't you?

'Most certainly, Liane, especially Leia. His friendship is very important to her, but he's also one of my best friends.'

"Does Leia love him?" Liane asked.

'Yes, she loves him with all her heart, Liane.'

"Poor Leia, I pity her because her friend has left her and made her unhappy. Did they quarrel?"

Luke started to laugh.

'Han and Leia have always been bickering, as long as they know each other, but that's also the reason why they feel attracted to each other. Their affection is mutual. Bickering over trivial things is a way of life for both of them.'

Liane shook her head, but Luke's smile worked so contagious that she also gently started to laugh.

"That's a very funny way to express you love each other."

'I agree, Liane, but I'm sure you would agree if you knew them both.'

"I hope you will find him, Luke, and that Leia will be happy again."

'I will tell her what you said, Liane. They already will make her happy.'

Luke watched Liane. Her attitude was changing rapidly. Was it because of her captivity, or was there some other reason? He hoped that the talks they had together, were influencing her. He was sure she trusted him and he felt she was happy, while they were talking. Around her lips was a happy smile and her eyes shone.

"Luke, can you tell me more about Tatooine?" She suddenly asked. "It's a desert planet, isn't it? I can't imagine what your home planet looks like."

"There isn't much to tell about it, Liane. There's more sand than people."

"But your aunt and uncle were one of the colonists, weren't they? They ran that moisture farm, didn't they?"

"My uncle's father set up the moisture farm where I grew up. My uncle was born there. When his father died, he inherited the farm. It's a tough life living on a moisture farm. The harvest results fully depend on the working of vaporators, and most of the time my chores were to keep them up and running."

"Do you miss your old life on Tatooine, Luke? I mean, do you miss your life as a moisture farmer?"

"Yes and no. No, because I never wanted to become a moisture farmer like my uncle Owen, but Tatooine will always be the planet where I grew up. When I left with Ben Kenobi, I was sure I would never come back there. However, after having become a Jedi Knight, yes, I love to come back to the planet; I stay in Ben's old home in the Jundland Waste every now and then. The deserted environment and the loneliness are an ideal surrounding to perform a Jedi meditation. I made the Jedi-pendant in Ben's former house, Liane."

"Oh, I really would love to see that house and the rest of the planet," Liane mused.

"One day , I'll take you there, like I will take you to Dagobah where I got my Jedi training from Jedi Master Yoda."

Liane laughed carefully again.

"You told me about that funny teacher, Luke. It's incredible, that such a small creature could wield the power of the Force."

"Master Yoda was the greatest of the Jedi Masters."

Liane heard the unspoken admiration in Luke's voice for his former master.

"Luke, was it difficult for you to become a Jedi?" She suddenly asked.

Luke felt taken aback.

"Well, yes, it was. I had to forget everything I had learned. I had to learn to think in a very different way about myself, how I experienced my surrounding, the things around me, how I looked at reality. I especially had to forget all my prejudices and expectations. I had to unlearn all my old habits as master Yoda put it. I had to develop a full commitment to the Force, and learn to listen what the Force wanted of me. Learning a deep commitment to the Good Side of the Force was the most important and most difficult lesson master Yoda taught me, Liane. Not my wishes and desires which found their source in my deeper emotions should lead my actions, but the Force should be my guide to tell me how to act accordingly. Over and over again Master Yoda urged I had to be in control of my emotions and focus on where I was and what I was doing. I had to learn to trust the Force unconditionally. She had to become my ally, and show me how I could use her power, but I also had to learn that she is always influencing me and changing my way of life. I had to surrender and dedicate my life to the Force, and discard my own emotional expectations, ideals, and future plans. It wasn't easy, for during my youth I always had been dreaming about a future full of adventure and excitement and what I wanted to become."

"Can you do what you want, or does the Force control all your actions. I mean, can you follow your own decisions."

"I have learned to rely on the power of the Force to make my decisions. Partially the Force controls my actions, but she also obeys my commands. I can follow my own path, but I must constantly be aware of feelings and emotions that may draw me to the Dark Side of the Force. I must be aware of anger, jealousy, fear and hatred, in fact any feeling of passion can lead to the dark path. If I don't stay in control of these emotions I might become a follower of th Dark Side."

Liane had listened intently to Luke's explanation.

"If all feelings of passion might lead to the Dark Side of the Force, what kind of feelings are allowed for a Jedi Knight, Luke, for you clearly show me your friendship and compassion."

Luke laughed.

"There's a lot left, Liane. Compassion for all creatures, friendship, serenity of mind and unconditional love and care for all that lives and surrounds us are a Jedi Knight's important feelings."

"You really are a Jedi, Luke, for you radiate your friendship for me," Liane said thankful.

"Be sure, I am your friend, Liane." Luke said with a friendly smile.

"Our chats give me a lot to think about. I hope I won't ever disappoint you again, Luke. I have to go to sleep now, my friend. Within a few hours Ian will wake me up and bring me my breakfast."

"Pleasant dreams, Liane. Luke said with a smile while he rose.

Liane laid down and saw how Luke's apparition slowly vanishing, when her thoughts released the contact between them. He was such a good friend. His gift, the Jedi-pendant, and his warm friendship would help her to endure the eight years of detention that lay ahead. Luke would be with her, whenever she needed him and once in awhile he would come to Wegoyy and pay her a visit. With a happy smile around her lips she fell asleep. Her left hand clasped the pendant.

"Watch this, inmate Solichor!"

Commander Dendicott pressed the button of the device in front of him. Liane stood upright between two guards. She blinked when she saw herself and Luke on a big screen on the opposite wall. Luke was caressing her cheek.

"Don't you think this is a bit an odd behavior for a federal officer and an inmate of this prison, inmate Solichor. You even called him by his first name. Is he your lover?"

Liane silenced. She didn't know what to say. The images of the surveillance camera were clear evidence of Luke's friendship for her. She had to protect him; she wouldn't tell Dendicott anything about the friendship between them.

"What did you tell him, inmate Solichor?"

"I didn't tell him anything! He only asked me if I was alright."

"And I have to believe you? You have told that Jedi Knight how we keep the government's prisoners under control. You're spying on me. You're a spy from Irithim. Answer me, inmate Solichor!" Dendicott said in a loud angry voice.

Liane shrugged her shoulders and blanked her mind. One of the guards grabbed her arm and pushed her down on her knees. The other guard kicked her. Immediately Liane's aggressive feelings rose and furiously she used the Dark Side of the Force to punish her assaulters. The guards froze, grabbed their throats and started choking.

Dendicott furiously leaped towards her, pulled her to her feet again and slabbed her face several times, screaming and yelling at her.

"Quit your sorceries, you wicked hellcat. Release them, immediately. I'll have you punished for this."

Liane released the guards and cast a angry look at Dendicott.

"Commander Skywalker was trying to reassure me," she snarled, "His visits were private chats. It's forbidden to use surveillance cams during private visits."

"Forbidden! Nothing is forbidden here to keep you all under control. Do you think you have any rights here. You're an inmate of this prison. You're a threat to the New Republic. That's why they send you to me. You're convicted to stay here for eight years," Dendicott screamed near her face, "You're my convict! I can do with you what I want. I can treat you as I like. I should have used a surveillance cam during that Jedi's first visit. I shouldn't have trusted a Jedi Knight. They are sorcerers who manipulate at will. You're one of them. You're both spying on me. I'm sure you have told him about the regime here. My regime! Stun her!"

Liane looked at one of the guards who aimed his blaster at her.

"Don't you dare!" She screamed, raising her hand again, but it was too late. A blue flash hit her and everything in her mind became woozy. She collapsed and fell to the ground.

"Take her away to detention block 7735. "

Two other armed guards rushed in, grabbed Liane under her arms and dragged her with them.

"Prepare the SL-chamber. Make sure she won't get any sleep from now on. Use every two hours a high dose of the mind drug to weaken her resistance. I'll break her! She going to tell me everything she has told that Jedi Knight. I'm sure she's a spy for the Irithim government. "

When Liane had been brought away, Dendicott called for his second-in-command, captain Rand Phylotar.

"Sit down, Rand. We have a serious problem, and I want you to help me to find a adequate solution. Read this!"

Dendicott handed his second man the copy of the mandate of Master Sorjon Tyloban. Rand Phylotar read it carefully and put it back on Dendicott's desk.

"I have heard about that young commodore Skywalker. Did you know he is a Jedi Knight?!"

"Of course I know. He was proud enough to admit that on his first visit. That's my main concern, Rand. I think he has been questioning inmate Solichor about what's happening here. I've got already a message from a member of the High Council, a certain general Madine, that commodore Skywalker and the princess Leia Organa of Alderaan will come to visit inmate Solichor again. This warrant of the High Council allows them to come and see her whenever they wants."

Dendicott slapped his fist on his desk.

"I don't want that that far off government at Irithim will be informed about how we keep their prisoners under control. If we have a Jedi Knight running in and out, he might see and report what is happening here. To be true, Rand, I don't think the High Court has sentenced her for eight years. I suspect her to be a Jedi Knight too. Remember her use of those strange powers in the beginning of her detention. Well, she made use of them again during this interrogation."

"You think she is an intruder, an undercover agent. In that the case we must get rid of her immediately."

"I agree, but how. I have given the order to put her in the SL-chamber and mind drug her. I want to squeeze the truth out of her, but if we torture her to death, we surely will be interrogated."

"What do we know about her? Maybe we can find something in her past that would exculpate us, if she would die." Rand Phylotar said.

"The records in her file mention that she has planned to overthrow the government, but can we trust the information the government send us."

Dendicott entered a code on the screen before him. Rand Phylotar rose and walked over. He also read the screen.

"Look, they brought her to Dalmaran and put her in detention after the occupation of Darth Vader's stronghold on Morantan. She seems to have been a kind of leader there, for she is the daughter of that Dark Lord. Olon, I think you're right. As the daughter of Darth Vader she must have learned those sorcerer's ways from him. She's no Jedi Knight, she's Sith, even more dangerous than that Jedi Knight Skywalker. Could it be that he is teaming up with her? "

"During her first detention she managed to escape from the Irithim prison, and went to Ortel with a certain senator Zolgathrii. She has manipulated her guards and the princess of Alderaan with her Sith knowledge. The latter she took with her as a hostage. So it is not unlikely, that she is manipulating that Jedi Knight too. "

Rand Phylotar read further and started to grin when he opened the file with Daino Phylotar's testimony.

"Olon, look here. This testimony, given during the trial against her, comes from my younger brother Daino. If anyone would be able to see through her, then it's him. Look, he says, that she very dangerous to the safety of the New Republic and the future of the galaxy. He suggests, that she should be exiled to a planet in the Unknown Regions. Olon, maybe we should change the original verdict and carry out the conclusions of my brother. Let's exile her to a remote and deserted planet in the Unknown Territories, far beyond the Outer Rim, and leave her there."

Dendicott shook his head.

"All our transports are registered and information about them, is sent to the government. We can't send her to a planet outside the galaxy. The Supreme Chancellor would be notified immediately, if we put her on a off-planet transport. No, Rand, we'd better come up with another plan."

Rand Phylotar frowned, while he considered the commander's words. He nodded thoughtfully, before he talked again.

"So our off-planet transports are registered, but what about the on-planet ones. We've used that twice before. Let's leave her unconscious and tied up somewhere in the mountain desert, far enough from the prison building and a very long way from the spaceport of Tropass that she can't somehow leave Wegoyy. No water, no food to be found for miles. A place with ferocious predators too. If we also keep her drugged and blindfolded, she'll be dead within days."

Dendicott looked up with a nasty grin and nodded in agreement.

"Next we could tell the government that she has escaped again," Rand Phylotar continued. "We order a weeks' long, but superficial, formal search, before we report her disappearance at the government on Dalmaran, and we tell them that we have found her mutilated remains in the desert. We hand over those remains to that Jedi Knight and the case is closed."

"Do you think it will work again, Rand, if we do it this way?"

"Absolutely. We have solved the other two cases the same way, except that there wasn't a Jedi Knight involved."

"After I have interrogated her again, you can carry on with this plan, Rand. When this is over, I will personally inform that Jedi Skywalker, that his visits are no longer needed."

Liane pressed her arms around her head and screamed, but she didn't hear her own voice. She jumped to her feet and rushed to wall of the cell. She screamed again. She fell on her knees on the ground of the cell still covering her ears with her hands. The deafening sound was resonating against the cell walls and a stark flashing light gave the cell an eerie look.

A small hatch in the opposite wall slit open and a droid carrying a needle in one of its utensils drifted in. He hovered over Liane's huddled body and pressed the needle in her neck. Immediately her body relaxed; her arms and legs went limp, she rolled on her back and looked up to the maddening flashing lights in the ceiling with wide open eyes. The shrieking sound was deafening. All of a sudden she lost her consciousness. Immediately the lights and sounds stopped and an eerie silence ensued.

Through a transparisteel window Rand Phylotar was observing the motionless body. He beckoned Ian Tydon and pointed through the windowpane.

"We're finished with her. She keeps resisting the mind weakening drug. She's of no longer of any use for the commander. This last injection will wipe out all her memories for a long time, maybe even forever. She will never remember what has happened to her, nor what we have done to her. Take her to her cell and make sure that she gets a tube of fluid nutrition again, for she has to stay alive, before you'll have to take her outside these walls. We expect that you will leave her somewhere in the mountain desert far away from the prison building and the roads to Tropass." Rand Phylotar snarled at the young sergeant.

Ian Tydon saluted and entered the SL-chamber. Two guards put Liane on an anti-gravity stretcher and pushed her to the cell block. Ian ordered them to leave. He locked the cell block door, pushed the floating stretcher to Liane's cell and carried her inside. Carefully he put her on the bench. He switched off the control panel, before he kneeled next to the unconscious body. He slid up the sleeve of her prison suit, put a needle in her arm and connected a tube with fluid. He looked down at Liane's motionless body with compassion and wished that he knew a way to warn the young commodore who had been visiting her. His hand touched the inner pocket of his jacket and he felt the contours of a small box. How fortunate that she had told him about the gift her friend, Luke Skywalker, had given her. Immediately after she had been locked up in the SL-chamber, he had taken the box from its hiding place and had kept it among his private belongings.

Ian sighed. He knew what his superiors expected of him. He had read the instruction's details with disgust. Rand Phylotar demanded that he should take the girl deep into the desert region, far from Tropass, and leave her there at a completely deserted place, where she would die of exhaustion in a few days. Commander Dendicott even had pointed out some places on the maps of the mountainous area, where he had to leave her unconsious body. After a few weeks he would have to go back to collect her remains. There was no way he could ignore his superior's command and take the girl to some friends in Tropass instead. Two guards would accompany him, and Dendicott and Rand Phylotar probably would choose two of their loyal men to accompany him.

'Poor Liane, what will become of you! What can I do to save your life? You don't deserve to die in the desert.' He thought.

These illegal torture practices had to be stopped. Ian's conscience told him he unintentionally was participating in a crime which covered up a deliberate murder. Again he felt the contours of the small box. Suddenly an idea flashed through his mind. He had to carry out the order given, but if he could leave her at ... then he could secretly cut the ties around her wrists ... and place the box in one of her hands. If she would regain consciousness, she could use her boyfriend's gift to contact him, but to carry out that idea, he had to leave her behind in the area he knew like the back of his hand: the terroritory where his old friends the Draga lived. Their habitat was deep in the canyons of the mountainous desert region, far beyond the places marked on Dendicott's maps. If he would change Rand's command, he had to make sure that no one but he could find the place where he left Liane. That meant he would have to get a furlough immediately after his return at the Wegoyy prison and go into hiding in Tropass. Next he had to find a way to somehow notify Luke Skywalker. In the extreme case, if there was no way to inform him, he could pick up Liane at the Draga at a later time, and hide her with his friends in Tropass. Then he would look for a way to leave with her of Wegoyy. Pensively, Ian stared at Liane's unconscious body.

He bowed over to Liane's face and whispered some words in her ears.

"I will try to rescue you, Liane. I know a safe place for you. Temporarily, for if I can't contact your friend, I will bring you to some trustworthy friends, where you will be safe. I will leave you the little box, the present your friend gave you, for if you have recovered a bit, you might seek contact with him and tell what has happened. If he rescues you, before me, I hope you will remember the many nice chats we have had together. "

His fingers caressed her face and gently he put a kiss on her forehead, then he rose, switched on the control panel and left the cell block.

In the control room he informed Rand Phylotar.

"She's still alive?" rand asked.

"Yes, sir."

"Well done, sergeant. Prepare her transport. You're in charge. You know the spots where you can leave her and what the commander and I expect of you. Keep her blindfolded, drugged and stunned. We don't want her to find her way back. After you've returned I expect a report with the exact details where we will find her body."

A few hours later, a transport speeder left the gates of Wegoyy Prison. On board was a drugged, stunned and blindfolded Liane Solichor. The speeder sped on, avoiding the main roads leading to Tropass. Its speed increased as the distant mountain ridges became visible on the horizon.

In the rearview mirror Ian Tydon saw the Liane's nearly lifeless body lying in the backseat between two armed guards. He pursed his lips and looked at the navi-screen in front of him. In half an hour he would be approaching the ridge. At that moment he quickly had to change the desired route leading to one of the marked places on the navi-screen without the two guards getting suspicious. Fortunately, it was an advantage that he knew the area behind the ridge very well. So good that he could safely maneuver the transport at high speed through the narrow canyons. It would be impossible for the guards to follow the deviating route at that high speed. Ian's gloved hand touched the navigation screen and the overlay with the marked places disappeared. At the same time, he increased the speed of the transport speeder and steered toward a canyon between two towering mountain walls. The foothills of the ridge were now clearly visible. Ian increased the speed to top speed and passed a saddle between two ridges. Straight ahead he could see the canyon that was the entrance to a labyrinth of canyons that only he could navigate at this speed. A faint smile crossed his face as he remembered how he had come to know this mountainous region during his last survival training. With a steady hand and complete confidence in his actions, he dove into the narrow passage with the speeder. A sense of complete control over the situation began to dominate his actions.

An hour and a half later the high canyons walls surrounded the speeder on all sides. Deeper and deeper Ian Tydon steered the speeder through the towering canyons, taking numerous turns at top speed.

Finally he made a last steep turn and stopped. He inaudibly exhaled. This was the place he had had in mind. This part of the mountain area was part of the Draga territory. However, these humanoide mountain people seldom communicated with the outside world. Hopefully they would find Liane and give her shelter, before any predator would find and kill her.

He jumped out of the speeder and opened the back doors.

"We leave her here. Just lay her down near the wall," he ordered, "“Should she come to and be able to free herself, she will definitely not be able to find her way back. We're miles away from any inhabited part of Wegoyy. Get back inside and wait for me, while I'll check her fetters."

The guards dragged Liane from the back seat and dropped her near the canyon wall. Then they walked back to the speeder, entered and slammed the door. Ian watched them go, before before kneeling with his back to the speeder and turning Liane onto her left side.

Quickly he bent over her body and cut the ties around her wrists with his knife. He placed the small package with the green box in the palm her left hand, and pressed her fingers around it, then he turned her on her back again and rose. Slowly he walked back to speeder, opened the door and heard the two guards talking loudly about their experiences with some girls they had met in Tropass. They laughed loudly and had drinking cans containing hard liquor in their hands they secretly had taken with them.

"You've checked her shackles, sir, then she surely won't run away from here. Well then, mission completed. Always a nasty thing, to leave someone to perished of exhaustion. Here, sergeant, take one of our drinks then you will feel better".

They toasted and invitingly held up their cans. One of them threw him a can with a hard liquor drink. Ian catch it and sighed relieved. The two Wegoyy guards had paid absolutely no attention to what he had done. He had long noticed that the special Wegoyy guards were not always belonged to the real elite of the Wegoyy staff. Mostly they were the commander's yes men, his bootlickers and sycophants, only caring for their careers and promotion. He put the can behind the driver's seat.

"Later, guys, when we're back in the prison building. I want to get us back safely, before I'll join the party. After it's getting dark many predators are roaming these mountains, looking for prey. It'll still take us several hours before we're back home."

He took his seat; cast a last glance at the unconscious body laying on the ridge and pressed the controls.

'Let's hope the Draga will find her soon,' He thought as he turned the speeder and drove off.

One of Wegoyy's moons shone on Liane's body. Around the girl some fifteen humanoid creatures were sitting and chattering to each other.

"Human woman still doesn't move", One of them said.

"Dead?" asked another.

"Not yet, but almost," said a third.

But Liane suddenly started moaning and tried to free her hands. The bands on her wrists, though severed, still held her hands together. One of the creatures saw her struggling and rushed towards her. He took away the broken bands and fiddled with the knot of the blindfold that covered her eyes. A moment later, Liane looked at the humanoid's face in bewilderment. Slowly she sat up. One of the creatures with a beautiful dark blue velvet cloak around his shoulders walked up to her.

"Who are you? What are you doing here?" he asked sternly in fluent Basic.

Liane grab her head and moaned again. She felt dizzy and couldn't think of a proper answer. Who was she? Where was she? What had happened? She didn't remember anything. Her mind seemed blank, completely empty. All her memories seemed to have gone. With panic in her eyes she shook her head.

"I can't tell you, I can't remember what happened," She moaned.

"Why did that guy who has lived among us, leave you here?" The creature with the blue cloak asked.

Liane looked puzzled at her interrogator. One of the other creatures stepped forward.

"Does this belong to you?" He asked and handed her the package which had slipped from her hand.

"I don't know," Liane said and looked at the small package in the palm of her hand. Moaning once more she rubbed her head.

"Is your head aching?" The creature asked.

Liane nodded.

"Do you want a drink?"

One of the creatures handed her a small bottle. Liane took a mouthful and thanked the giver.

"Who are you?" She asked .

"We're Draga. We live here in these mountains. We saw the guy who once lived among us, bring you here? Why did he do that?"

Liane shook her head.

"I don't know what you're talking about," She whispered.

"Don't you really remember about what happened to you?"

Again Liane shook her head.

"I can't recall anything at the moment. You said some guy brought me here? You knew him?" She said looking frightened now.

Once again she looked at the small parcel in her hand and took off the dark grey wrapping. In her hand she held a flat green box. She opened it and saw the Jedi-pendant at its chain.

"It must be yours?" One of the creatures said

"Do you think it is? It's beautiful. Can I keep it?"

"You held it in your hand, when we found you. It probably does belong to you. Do you have a name?"

Liane shook her head once again. Her name? What was her name?

"I can't remember anything, I really can't. Yes, I must have a name, but everything I knew, seems gone. I don't remember anything. I really don't. Please, don't question me again. I won't bother you. When the night is over I will leave this place and leave you in peace."

Suddenly she felt lonely and tears welled up in her eyes.

"I beg you, please, let me stay here only for tonight. I didn't want to trespass your territory."

Reassuring the blue cloaked creature put a hand on her arm.

"You're in trouble. You suffer from a loss of your memory. You'd better come with us. Maybe your memories will come back when you have had a good sleep. You've lain here for three days. You must be very hungry and thirsty. We have food and drinks down at our caves."

He took her hand and forced her to rise. Liane followed her guide to the rim of a steep ravine.

"Mind your steps. It's rather small here. Stay close to the wall."

Slowly the group Draga with Liane in their midst, descended along a narrow path. At last they reached the bottom of the deep ravine. Liane looked up to spot where they had come from. She asked for another drink and followed her rescuers deeper between the steep walls until they reached a huge network of caves.

"Here we live. We will make a place where you can rest after you have had something to eat," The Draga with the blue cloak told her.

Very soon a narrow place was arranged for Liane. Some Draga females offered her some food and poured her a drink. Gratefully Liane thanked them. She still held the box with the pendant in her hand. Before started to eat she took the chain with the round pendant out of the box and put it around her neck. In a flash she saw a face, a young man's face. The image gave her a familiar feeling, but she couldn't recall if she had seen that face before. After having eating the food she laid down, feeling weary and downhearted. She didn't know who she was or what had happened to her. What had happened in her past seemed to have gone completely. She only knew, what was happening to her now. The Draga were friendly. Maybe they would let her stay for a while, until she would feel better. Tomorrow she would offer them her help, if they needed any. Tired Liane fell asleep.

On board the Astræga Luke had felt the slight tremor in the Force when Liane accidentally had touched the Jedi pendant. He turned inward to the Force, but the tremor didn't continue and stopped almost immediately.

'Liane, did you use the pendant?' Luke asked, but nothing happened. He frowned and a feeling of uneasiness crept up in his stomach. Why had she stopped, using his gift? Had the guards discovered the working of his gift and took it from her forcefully?

"Maybe she touched the pendant while sleeping. I'll ask her next time when she's using it. It's so amazing how she's using her Force potential. I'll have to show what more she can do with her abilities. "

Luke concentrated on his duties again and momentarily banned the thoughts on Liane and her strong sensitivity with the Force to the back of his mind.

Liane smiled at the female Draga with whom she was gathering berries, roots and leaves on the wide flat lands behind the mountain ridge.

"Look, Mantoa, again we have enough for our meal before the sun has set." The Draga female said. "You're a great help. It's such a pity you still can't remember who you are. Yet you have to belong to a family tribe which are wondering what has happened to you."

Liane looked up.

"Maybe I don't belong to a tribe, Mato."

"Everybody belongs to a family tribe." The wise old Draga lady uttered.

Liane shrugged her shoulders.

"Maybe, maybe I don't."

"Mantoa, I'm sure there are humans who are missing you. No one lives without a family tribe. Look at the Draga. We are a large family tribe. If one of us is missing, which happens every now and then our males are going to search for him. It must be the same for humans. There must be other humans who are missing you and are worrying about you."

"You're really convinced some one is worrying about me, don't you?" Liane said. She pondered on Mato's words and frowned.

"Why are you looking so concerned, Luke?" Leia asked.

Luke frowned.

"Again Liane didn't contact me last evening. I haven't heard from her since our last talk on Tatooine and that's more than four weeks ago. I fear something is wrong on Wegoyy."

Leia laughed reassuringly.

"Luke, my dear brother. Like every prisoner Liane has been put to work on Wegoyy. Maybe she has to work during night shifts at the moment and comes back in her cell early in the morning. She probably doesn't want to wake you up. Don't worry too much, Luke. Within a fortnight we're going to Wegoyy. "

"Can't we leave earlier, Leia? I need to see her and ask what's the matter."

Leia shook her head.

"I'm sorry, Luke, but I have to finish these negotiations with the leaders of Tambrin. If I can convince them to sign a provisionary treaty then we have another powerful ally at our side. Stop worrying about Liane. I'm sure she will contact you tonight."

Luke sighed. His sister's diplomatic powers were paying off. She had been able to establish several trade treaties and military aid for the New Republic.

Leia left the room to get dressed for an official meeting with the Tambrian leaders. Luke stayed behind, still frowning.

"I'm not so sure you're right this time, my dear Leia. I have a bad feeling about it ", he uttered.

Liane was working with some of the younger female Draga. They were polishing little stone statues which the male Draga carved from hard blue stones, with fine sand. The bluish pebbles were found next to the water flow that ran along one side of the ravine.

"Look, Mantoa, this one looks like a human, like you."

One of the Draga touched the sleeve of Liane's green tunic. Liane looked at the statue the young female held out in her hands. It was larger than the statues the older males normally made.

"We will get more goods from the traders for these larger ones," the young female continued.

"Are you trading these statues?" Liane asked surprised.

"The traders say they are good. They like them. They always take all the statues with them. The traders say that the humans buy our statues and put them in their houses to show them to their friends and family. I don't know what they mean by those words, do you? What are houses?"

They were sitting on the flat stones near the entrance of the cave dwelling. Liane took the little polished statue in her hand. It shone brightly and its surface felt smooth.

"Human live in houses," Liane said slowly, caressing the polished surface of the statue, "Like you, the Draga, live in these caves to keep warm and dry, when outside it's wet or cold, Muguro."

The young female, Muguro, looked puzzled.

"Did you live in a house, before you came here to live with us?" She asked.

Liane shook her head.

"I don't know. I still can't remember where I have lived before."

Suddenly Liane felt helpless. Again she was confronted with the loss of her memory. She shrugged her shoulders and felt downhearted and sad. Muguro felt her sadness and put her arm around Liane.

"Don't start crying, Mantoa. Do you like this statue. My father carved it. I'll ask him if you may keep it. He can carve a new one. Take it, you will remember me and the other Draga when you know again what has happened to you."

"I'd wish I could remember. You're kind, Muguro, but I fear I can't stay here forever. "

"Mintob, my father, says you can stay as long as necessary, but maybe you should go with him, when the traders come. Maybe they know what you should do. Maybe they even know who you are and who is looking for you. But you mustn't look so sad, Mantoa. You make me feel sad too."

Again Liane looked at the statue in her hand. Muguro saw how she caressed the soft polished smooth lines and started smiling again She pressed Liane's arm.

"Keep it, it makes you feel less lonely."

She gave Liane a hug, then she jumped of the flat stone and entered the cave.

Later that evening Liane recalled Muguro's words. She sat on the edge of her sleeping place. Around her all the Draga were sleeping.

She took the little figurine out of the little green box in which she had found the pendant she was wearing under her clothes. Were Muguro, Mato and the others right? Could it be that others were looking for her? She lay down in the darkness of the cave, caressing the figurine with her fingers. Careful she placed it upright next to her head. Tomorrow, when she would wake up, it would be the first thing she would see. With a vague smile she closed her eyes; by accident her fingers touched the pendant under her clothes and again she saw the face of the young man. He was sleeping. Who was he? Was he one of the people who were looking for her? Those images must mean something. Liane sighed, life had become difficult without memories.

On Tambrin Luke woke up with a start and sat upright in his bed.

'Liane! Do you need help!' He exclaimed softly and reached out to the Force.

There came no further response and slowly Luke sank back on his pillow. He was sure that once agaom he had felt the power of the pendant for a very short moment. He sighed and felt a knot twisting his stomach. Liane was in trouble and not able to contact him long enough through the Force to tell him what had happened to her.

A week later Mintob called Liane to join him at the meeting of the other elders. Ill at ease Liane sat down among the group elders who were leading this tribe.

"Tomorrow, you're going with Mintob to the place where we meet the traders, Mantoa," Magonato, the eldest said, "Mintob thinks it will do you good to meet your own kind. He also will ask them for help."

"Why do you want me to meet some strangers?"

"Because you need to find out who you are and where you come from", Magonato answered.

The next morning Liane followed Mintob and his men to a kind of meeting point, where the Draga traded the little stone statues together with the rough green and blue crystals they had dug up in the numerous caves. A big spaceship was already waiting when the group arrived at the top of the mesa. Six men came down the ramp and looked curiously at Liane.

"Hello Mintob. Where did you find a human tribe member? Who is she?"

In a few words Mintob explained Liane's story. Again the six men looked at her.

"Amnesia!" One of them said. "Poor girl. What has to become of her here in this wilderness? There will be no cure for her here."

"We know," Mintob said, "We want you to take her with you in your space ship. Maybe you come at places she recognizes."

The men started to laugh.

"We're traders, Mintob, we're not doctors. "

"She can help you. She is a very friendly and kind human. She has helped us with many of our daily chores. We can't help her. If you can't take her with you; she'll have to stay with us, but that won't help her, you know."

"Definitely not," The eldest man said. "What do we do, boys?"

"I think she's been an inmate of the Wegoyy prison. Look at her clothes. Could it be she has escaped?" A younger guy said.

The eldest trader shook his head.

"It's more likely that she has been left behind in this desert to perish. Remember what father told us about the Wegoyy prison. We can't bring her back to the prison either, for they probably will torture her, maybe they even will kill her, and if she stays with Mintob and his clan, they might come back to see what has become of her. If they find out that she is alive, she also is in danger."

"In that case we'd better take her with us and bring her to another planet so she can go undercover and start a new live," A third man remarked, "We might be her only chance to leave this dreadful place. "

The others looked at the leader. He called Liane over.

"What's your name?"

"Mantoa, but that's the name Mintob gave me," Liane answered.

"It's not your real name."

Liane shook her head.

"I can't recall my own name. I can't recall what has happened to me. All my old memories have gone."

"You suffer from a severe kind of amnesia. Have you been tortured in the Wegoyy prison?" One of the other man asked.

Liane shook her head.

"I can't remember anything about what happened, before I woke up in these mountains on a small ridge. I have been unconscious for days, Mintob told me. The Draga have been so friendly to let me live among them."

"You were unconscious and when you woke, you couldn't remember who you were? That's enough. Listen, Mantoa, if you want, you can come with us. We travel a lot and visit many planets. There must be places which will have a familiar look, or we might be able to find a cure for your problem."

"I would love to join you. I have done space traveling ..."

She looked up at the men.

"I think I have been traveling through space before, but I can't recall where and when."

All the six men grinned.

"Good, you see, this chat has brought back at least one of your memories. Let us help you to find out who you really are. "

"I would be very grateful, if you would accept me as a member of your crew. I will do my best to help on board your spacecraft." Liane said.

"That's settled then. Mintob, we'll take her with us. What more do you have to offer."

They traded for some time. Liane watched as Mintob give the traders the statues and the crystals in exchange for colorful textiles, extra food and a lot of boots.

At last the men prepared their departure. Liane said goodbye to Mintob. With a friendly hug he handed her a little bag. Surprised Liane looked at him.

"Don't forget your little green box. You should take it with you. It belongs to you as it contained the chain you're wearing. You do have the chain which was in the box?" He asked.

"I wear it, Mintob. Do you really still think the chain belongs to me?" Liane asked.

"I'm certain of that. Now follow our trader friends. Goodbye, Mantoa, and when you know who you are, tell them. They will let us know." The Draga said.

Hesitantly Liane hugged him and said goodbye. The youngest of the traders took her hand and brought her on board. He helped her to strap herself in. The engines whined and the spacecraft quickly rose. Wegoyy's surface fell behind and some minutes later the planet was a reddish globe drifting in a vast black area of stars.

An optical signal at the infocom device in their apartment flashed. Luke turned it on and looked surprise at the message which required a login for an urgent call-up for him via the secret procon connection on Quoith. He identified himself and almost immediately the holographic image of General Madine appeared on the display.

"Luke, where are you two?"

"Still on Tambrin, sir. Is anything wrong with... or do you have... "

"Come back to Irithim as soon as possible. There is a serious problem. Liane Solichor has escaped from the Wegoyy prison. She ran away six weeks ago. Commander Dendicott has informed the Supreme Chancellor this morning. "

"What! Liane has escaped! Why hasn't the commander informed the government earlier ...?!"

Luke stopped in mid sentence and stared at the image of general Madine.

"Commander Dendicott has told Mon Mothma that his men started a thorough investigation immediately after she had disappeared. At first they searched the areas in the desert lands around the prison but so far they haven't found her. Near the prison they found traces which lead to Tropass, but a sandstorm has wiped out most part of them. Mon Mothma has asked me to inform you and ask for your help, Luke. Maybe you can find out, where she's has gone, or where she is hiding."

"We can be back at Irithim in eight hours, sir. I will arrange my departure immediately. "

Luke switched off the infocom, jumped to his feet and bumped into his sister's quarters. In his hurry he almost tripped over one of the armchairs in the living.

"Leia, get packed! We're leaving Tambrin immediately! She is gone! "

"Who's gone, Luke?"

"Liane! She has escaped from the Wegoyy prison six weeks ago. That's why I have heard nothing anymore of her. Mon Mothma wants us to get back to Irithim immediately, Leia! We're leaving this afternoon, if possible!"

Luke rushed back to the living and activated an infocom connection with Tambrin space port.

"Officer, I want the Astræga ready for take off within an hour," He said, hardly able to suppress his impatience, after the answer of the briefing desk, "Yes, I know, I'd planned my departure for next week. I will be at the briefing desk within an hour."

He disconnected and looked up at Leia, who had followed him to the living.

"This is unbelievable, Leia. She has escaped again. What has happened that she ran away again? "

He closed his eyes and concentrate on Liane. He remembered the short tremors he had felt earlier. He looked at Leia.

"Those tremors I felt, Leia, they were a signal that something has gone wrong with her.

For a moment he felt silent, concentrating again on Liane, then he shook his head.

"I can't feel her presence through the Force at this moment. There's something amiss. This sounds not right at all. Leia, I'm not so sure, she really has escaped. Something else has happened. Commander Dendicott has reported Mon Mothma that her escape has been detected six weeks ago. Why hasn't he sent any earlier information to Irithim? Is he telling the truth about what has happened?

Leia felt his uneasiness. She put her hand at his shoulder.

"I will inform the leaders of Tambrin, that a delegation of the New Republic will come back as soon as possible."

At the Tambrin space port everything was ready for their quick departure and within moments they were on their way home through hyperspace.

Leia sat in the pilot's chair, handling the shuttle. She was an excellent pilot herself, but during their travels she only acted as her brother's co-pilot. The ship was Luke's pride and passion, but this time he showed no interest to take over the command. Impatiently he watched the synchron that controlled their flight, whilepacing up and down the control room. In his own quarters he took several sessions of deep Jedi meditation, using the Force to find out what had happened to Liane and where she had gone.

When they came out of hyperspace and were orbiting Dalmaran, Leia prepared the shuttle for landing on De'olon space port. Before the ramp came down, Luke already jumped off. Impatiently he looked back for his sister.

"Wait, Luke! I'm coming with you. You get us a transport; I have to inform the officials about our arrival."

Luke ran to the gate and ordered a fast speeder. Within minutes Leia joined him and the speeder rushed over the highway to Irithim. A turmoil of old memories pushed forward in Luke's mind. He clearly felt how his emotional feelings began to dominate his thoughts and actions. He took a deep breath and reached to the Force to find his Jedi composure again.

On the parking lot for the military staff Luke stopped the speeder and quickly walked up to the building. He took another deep breath before he asked the desk officer to inform general Madine about their arrival. Madine came down personally to take them to his office.

"Princess Leia, Luke, I didn't expect you back so ..."

"What do we know about Liane's escape, sir? Can I see the report commander Dendicott has sent to the Supreme Chancellor?" Luke asked composed, yet still feeling slightly out of balance.

"Luke, sit down and take it easy. Liane Solichor has already gone for more than six weeks. I really couldn't inform you earlier. The Wegoyy commander has waited for the results of his own investigations, before he informed Mon Mothma."

Madine handed the Skywalkers a datapad and told them everything he knew about Liane's escape.

"She seems to have disappeared completely and the only traces commander Dendicott's men have found are a mix of leads. Some of those leads went in the direction of Tropass, others partly to the Wegoyy desert, but the many sandstorms on Wegoyy have wiped out most of the traces. We've already checked all possible suspected figures who could have helped her, but it looks like she ran off alone. She took an enormous risk jumping off the prison wall."

Luke, now in control of his feelings, flipped calmly through the pages on the datapad. Leia was looking over his shoulder. Where could they start looking for Liane?

"The commander assumes, that she is still on Wegoyy, isn't he?" Luke asked.

"Where else could she be? There are no indications that she has tried to leave on a space ship. Of course it might be that some space traders have given her a ride. At least that's a suggestion from the commander," Madine remarked.

"Did Mon Mothma sent out a wanted notice for her?" Leia asked.

"All federal officers on Wegoyy have one, including the staff of the Wegoyy space port. They are now investigating the mountain areas behind Tropass. Next they will extend the search to the mountain areas which lead to the Wegoyy desert. The mountain area is a dangerous terrain with deep canyons without water or vegetation. We must find her back quickly. If she is wandering into that desert area she might perish from thirst or starvation."

Luke felt his old worries about Liane, creeping up in his stomach again.

"May I use your infocom, sir?"

"Sure, go ahead."

Luke made a command to the ground staff of the spaceport to have the Astræga ready for take off.

"General..." Luke's voice showed some hesitation, after he switched off the infocom. "...could you give me a special warrant? Will you assign me as the only federal officer who may arrest Liane and take her back to the Wegoyy prison."

Luke walked over to his sister. He sensed Madine's hesitation.

"I'm leaving for Wegoyy immediately, sir. What I'm asking you, might be highly important."

The general was silent, then he rosed to and accompanied Luke and Leia to the door.

"I will make sure you get that warrant before you leave, Luke. I will convince the Supreme Chancellor to withdraw all other warrants immediately."

"Thank you, sir."

Luke saluted.

In the quietness of their own apartment Leia and Luke once more read the information on the datapad Madine had given them. They discussed the evidence the commander of the Wegoyy prison had provided.

"I wonder, if she's still on Wegoyy?" Luke mused.

He activated their info com system and requested a holographic star map of the galaxy. He zoomed in on Wegoyy. Together with Leia he studied the planet and the area around the prison building in detail.

"Look here, that's the prison building. And there's Tropass' space port. It takes eight hours with a speeder to cover that distance," Luke said as he drew a line between the two locations, "Liane never could have covered that distance on foot. It's a complete deserted waste land, like the Jundland Waste on Tatooine."

Leia pointed at the location of Tropass space port, "Even if she has been able to reach Tropass, how could she get away. She has no credits, no ID card. There is no way she could leave the planet."

"Space traders might have given her free travel to another planet in exchange for some extra hands on board, Leia."

"Luke, Liane only knows the stronghold on Morantan. She never has traveled through space before. No, I think, that she is still hiding somewhere on Wegoyy."

Luke looked at the map of Wegoyy, using his Force skills to show him what had happened on the planet. The images he saw, were blurred and unstable, but he thought he saw a Corellian space craft rising from a sandy plateau. He shook his head.

"No, Leia, Liane is no longer on Wegoyy. One way or the other she has left the planet on board a Corellian freighter, I'm almost sure of that. I also have a bad feeling about commander Dendicott's report. He is masking most of the evidence about her escape."

"It seems that the problems with Darth Vader's daughter aren't over yet. We thought that she was serving eight years in the Wegoyy prison, but our intelligence agent in Irithim reports that there are very strong indications that something is amiss on Wegoyy. She seems to have managed to escape again," Jerno said, looking very concerned at his two co-leaders Valann and Kalip, "

"Escaped again? From a heavily guarded prison as the one on Wegoyy?" Valann asked.

Jerno nodded, "The report mentions an unexpected return of Jedi Skywalker and his sister. It is said that they were demanded to break off a diplomatic mission at Tambrin immediately. Shortly after their arrival on De'olon space port, they had a short meeting with one of the New Republic's generals. Shortly before midnight Jedi Skywalker has left again. Upon inquiry a HOLO Net reporter mentioned that Skywalker's destination briefing mentioned Wegoyy."

"I thought, that Jedi Skywalker had taken some responsibility for the woman. In our last contact with Irithim it was said that he would be her guard?" Valann commented.

"After she had been brought to the Wegoyy prison, that task probably has been suspended," Jerno said, before he addressed Kalip Ru'undo, "Is there already more known about those strange connections established from Irithim and Ortel which are targeted at the Outer Rim, Kalip? "

"My men have been able to decrypt the messages partially. Their content isn't reassuring, not to say alarming. They also have tracked a new connection which has sent several different messages, using the same encryption method. This time from Tropass, the only town and the unofficial capital of Wegoyy. Like in the other messages send from Irithim and Ortel, there is talk about a woman or a girl who needs to be brought to the Outer Rim. After the assault on Ortel, I'm almost certainly that these secrets encrypted talks are about the daughter of Darth Vader. In the recordings sent from Wegoyy there is also talk of bribing, blackmailing and putting some guards and staff members of the prison at Wegoyy under pressure to assist in an escape plan."

"Which leaves only one conclusion: some one indeed wants the daughter of Darth Vader to be brought to an yet unknown location in the Outer Rim Territories," Valann said.

"Could it be," Kalip said cautiously, "that those who sent those messages, have somehow managed to contact the daughter of Darth Vader; have helped her to escape and already have brought her to that unknown location? I suggest we need to inform our contact in the New Republic's government about these contacts from Irithim, Ortel, and now from Wegoyy, which are aimed at the Outer Rim. It's time we'll join forces with the New Republic's administration to find the daughter of Darth Vader."

"I agree, with Kalip, Jerno," Valann said, "Although the evidence we have isn't yet complete the New Republic needs to know what our intelligence force has discovered. Of course, it could be that they already have been alerted too, but in case they can't decrypt those messages, we could provide them with valuable information. They don't have access to the millions of codes the imperial government has used in the past."

"I'll send them a procon message, but I'll leave it up to them if they want to make use of the information we've discovered," Jerno said, "I don't want to leave the impression, that the Provisional Coruscant Council is meddling in their business.

"In my opinion, they will be very grateful, after they have read part of the message's content. It saves them a lot of investigation at their side. Maybe we could suggest that if we find out more, for instance about the exact location, that their fleet will take action and uncover what person or group is behind the receiver, who ever that might be, and what plans they have with Darth Vader's daughter," Valann said cautiously.