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Synopsis:
Dair Haslip is more than ready for the shuttle that will
take him off Garos IV and on to the Raithal Academy. He
chats with Assistant Minister of Commerce Magir Paca
about many things - his late father West, Minister Tork
Winger's attempts to end the violence between Garos IV
and Sundari, his grandmother Keriin's recent sale of the
family mines to the Empire (unbeknownst to him, she was
forced to). An Imperial shuttle arrives, and Senior
Lieutenant Brandei steps out, ordering an immediate
meeting with Winger and his wife Sali at the medical
center. There, Brandei presents them with a battered
young girl they pulled from the wreckage of Sreina of
Janara III. It's Alex Turhaya, whom Brandei offers to
sell to Winger as his foster daughter. They privately
hear from a shaken lieutenant Chancellor the truth of
what happened - how half the city was wiped out to
capture Rebels that weren't there. They tearfully accept
custody of young Alex.
A few nights later, Dair and his friend Jos go out for
one last hike on the old mine mountains. Jos is
conflicted by the fact that his father has joined a
rebel group. Suddenly, they are set upon by scout
troopers looking for Chancellor (who has gone AWOL). The
scouts declare the two young men spies despite their
protests, and Jos is murdered - shot in the back,
unarmed. Dair is forced to attack and kill the two scout
troopers. He staggers back home, where he tearfully
reveals all to Keriin. She decides it's time to reveal a
secret to Dair - she is a rebel. She brings the shaken
young man to meet with the local underground and tell
his story. He is stunned to find Paca among their
number. He is surprised when they tell him he should
join the Academy after all - as a rebel working
undercover in the Empire, he can do a lot of damage. He
agrees.
Synopsis taken from Christopher
G. McElroy's Time Tales, www.theforce.net/timetales.
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