Old Friends, Once Foes (Pentastar Alignment)

Dantooine, far from Dantoo Town.

Dantooine's long grasses waved in the wind. A narrow path, carved out with flagstone and metal plates, trailed through the middle of the olive green sea, finally reaching its end at a small gray hut. It was a farmer's house, no different from the thousands of others that dotted the planet's surface. But this one was special because of who lived there.
The figure in white armor strode across the boundary of Dr. Tuu’s property in a way that tempted him to grab the rifle, which he kept locked in the pantry. The temptation passed as soon as it had arrived. Groaning, he tore himself away from his chair and his beloved book to venture outside to meet his guest.
 

                “Greetings!” he called, while the figure was still a ways off. He noticed they had removed their helmet. “I should tell you now, I have nothing of value. Is there something I can help you with?”
                “Dr. Tuu, I presume?”
                “Yes, retired doctor.” Peacefully so, until right now.
                “You really are Yvin Tuu. Heading off everything I could say with a reason not to say it. Disarming your attackers before they even know they’re attacking you. So…full of protests.”
                Dr. Tuu squinted. The voice sounded familiar…and that face…           

The realization hit him like a burst of sunlight. He forgot all about the white armor.
“Tomas?" Yvin shouted. "I don’t believe it—Tomas Harlan? Tomas! My goodness—“
                Tomas dropped his helmet and rushed forward to envelop his much-smaller friend in his arms. Tuu grinned beneath his breather, hugging the human in return.
 

                “My dear friend, it’s been so long! Stop squeezing me, I’ll burst.”
                Tomas bust out laughing, his eyes bright with joy.
                “It’s so good to see you, Yvin,” he said. “I’ve missed having a true friend to rely on, more than you can know. Shall we go inside? I want to see your collection! I want to see what you’ve been reading.”
                “Yes, yes! Come in!” Yvin replied, practically leaping with joy. He guided his friend into his home, rushing to put the kettle on the ion-plate.       “Tomas,” he kept saying. “I can’t believe you’re here!”

Five Years Ago, Dantooine.
                The Streets of Dantoo Town.
                Another successful night of R&R, thought Lt. Tomas Harlan as he stumbled out of the cantina and into the road.
                Morale lifted. Tension relieved. Drinks drunk. Soldiers drunk, too. The worst had already been sent back to the Defense Post. Some questioned his willingness to drink with the enlisted, but he saw it differently. If he would die with them, he should be willing to join them in the cantina.
                “Yes, but Yot’Carai never once touched on whether a people have the right to rebellion, to topple an oppressor to claim rule over themselves. Don’t you think he should have? Wasn’t it his responsibility, considering his subject matter?”
                The voice came from someone nearby, sitting at a table outside. A green-skinned alien, a breather on, talking to a human. Even though his haze, the name and the words lit up Tomas’ brain. He knew Yot’Carai; he had read his books for years. And this alien obviously did not know what he was talking about. Yot’Carai, he knew well, wrote beautifully of pride and service, of duty. His words had moved Tomas to tears more than once. No one dragged his name through the mud while he was there to defend it, he thought.
                “What did you say?” Tomas heard himself slur.
                “Excuse me, sir?” replied the alien, looking at him carefully.
                “Yot’Carai? You think Yot’Carai, of all people, failed at some…some…responsibility?”
                Recognizing another combatant had joined the conversation, even a very tipsy one, the alien pounced. “He’s hardly known for wisdom or prudence, he’s only steps away from being an Imperialist himself.”
                “Shocking!”
                “What’s shocking, friend, is that you are still standing.”
                What nerve! He may have had a few drinks, but he still deserved respect. Especially from the likes of this creature!
                “Watch who you’re mouthing…off to. I’m a Lieutenant! A Lieutenant in…the Imperial Dan-Dantooine Defense Force.”
                “Ah, that’s the real shocking news, isn’t it,” said the alien dryly. The other man at the table, wisely, kept silent.
                “Enough out of you!” spat Tomas.
                Three diminutive aliens walked out of the Cantina. Sensing the temperature, their eyes widened and they scurried on their way.
                The alien stood up, tensing. Should a fight start, he wasn’t about to back down. “Indeed? Does the Defense Force jail those who mock its drunkards? What does it defend, I wonder, if not the freedom of its people?”
                “What is your name?”
                “Doctor Yvin Tuu,” said the alien proudly. “What is your ID number, Lieutenant?”
                Tomas couldn’t believe the creature’s nerve. “I am Tomas Harlan. Stationed at Defense Point Peth. DF-2591, if you want to file a report.”
                “Wonderful, I’ll remember it. I can be found at this very Cantina, at least for the time being. I’m starting a job soon. If you’d like to arrest me, you can find me here. I suggest you get a good night’s rest, first.”
                “Ha! I suspect we will meet again, Doctor Duu.”
                “Tuu. Doctor Tuu.”
                “Indeed,” growled Tomas, and he made his way into the night, working hard to maintain a posture of power and grace. He didn’t quite manage it, despite what he thought.
                Tuu watched him go, before saying, “What a fool,” idly to himself, and returning to his conversation.
 
 

Defense Post Peth. The next day.

                “Curse that doctor!” shouted the sergeant, stomping through the halls. “I’ll shoot him myself if he’s going to bring in riff-raff!”
                Passing by this man was his superior officer, Lt. Tomas Harlan. Harlan, appropriately disturbed by this outburst, stopped him in his tracks. “Sergeant? What’s the meaning of this?”
                The sergeant blanched, apparently trying to decide if it was worth saying anything. His anger won out. “That blasted Kyuzo doctor has brought some injured civilian into the base!”
                Curious, Lt. Harlan made his way to the medical wing. Outside the office were several boxes, as though someone were moving in. Tomas noticed, with interest, a stack of books. Many were classics, many that he loved himself. He hoped to meet their owner; he would very much like to have a fellow enthusiast around the post.
                Entering the door, he stopped in his tracks: there, the same alien he had been drunkenly arguing with outside the cantina the night before, now wearing medical fatigues and helping a bedraggled man in field robes.
                Once he regained his faculties and swallowed his shame, Tomas cleared his throat. “What is the meaning of this?”
                The Doctor looked up, and recognition passed over his face, followed swiftly by a darkly-humored raise of his eye ridge. When he spoke, his words were carefully formed. “Ah, Lieutenant. I am Doctor Yvin Tuu, I believe we’ve met.”
                “I believe we have,” replied the Lieutenant, still bewildered. “You are…staff, here?”
                “Newly appointed chief medical officer of Joint Defense Force Post Peth. Hired by the Dantooinians. I look forward to our collaboration.”
                “Are those your books, outside?”
                “They are. You are interested in literature?”
                Eager to pretend as though the night before had not happened, the Lieutenant gave him a dignified nod. “I am. You have good taste.”
                The Doctor tilted his head. “Some don’t think so.”
                Tomas ignored the comment. “We’ll have to talk, sometime. But for now…who is this man? Why is this civilian in the base?”
                “He staggered in, after suffering an injury in his fields. Your stormtroopers threatened him with their weapons.”
                Tomas frowned. “Why did you not send him to the local clinic?”
                “His wounds were serious, the clinic is a klick away. He risked death.”
                “Nonetheless, he is not our responsibility. This is a military post.”
                “If I have it in my power to save his life, then he is my responsibility. I am a Doctor, Lieutenant. Regardless, he is now stable, and the clinic will do from here.” Tuu turned to the man, speaking gently but firmly. “Do not tell anyone else to come here, I cannot help them. Go to the clinic. If they aren’t equipped to help, I will look into improving their situation personally.”
                The man thanked him, and was escorted out by two of the post guards.
                Impressed by both his competency and mercy, Tomas watched the Doctor curiously. The Doctor mistook this for intimidation.
                “Now, would you like to try dismissing me from service, Lieutenant?”
                “What? No, no. You seem capable and good-mannered. I’m glad to have you here. I hope you’ll forgive my behavior last night.”
                Now it was the Doctor’s turn to be surprised. “It is done.”
                “Thank you. Now, as I said before, I’d welcome the chance to talk about your collection of books. Please, let me know about a suitable time.”
                “I…will do so,” replied Tuu.
                “And Doctor, let me know if anyone gives you any trouble. I’ll see to their discipline. You are an important part of this post and I won’t have you treated as though you’re not.”
                Tuu raised an eye ridge once again, this time because he found the Lieutenant unpredictable. “I…will.”
                “Good,” said Tomas, satisfied.
                “Yes. Now, if you don’t mind,” Tuu said as he turned to the disorganized medical bay. “I have only just arrived and the state of this stock is terrible. I have inventory to do.”
                “Of course,” Tomas nodded. “Good day, Doctor.”
                “Farewell, Lieutenant.”
                Tomas left curiously uplifted. The Doctor had shown himself to be both irritable and idealistic, like any philosopher, but Tomas could not help but admire him, and wonder if they shouldn’t one day be friends.

The Present,
Yvin Tuu’s homestead.

"So," said Tuu, as they settled into their tea in his cushioned den. "What brings you back to Dantooine, my friend?"

"I'm sure you noticed my armor. Perhaps even mistook me for an enemy."

"Well, its armor with a…complex set of associations. It has been for many years."

"Yes," said Tomas quickly. "And in some cases, still is. Many Imperial Remnants exist, but I like to think the source of my new commission is a very different sort of government."

"What sort is that?"

"One that fights for order, for the safety of its people," Tomas said, full of conviction. "The Pentastar Alignment has some good men in leadership, the sort of men I trust to do what is right. They plan to deploy to Mygeeto, Yvin. the planet's natives have been refugees for years, but the Alignment has made a deal to win back their home."

Tuu's manner became colder. "And will the natives be in charge of their liberated homeworld...?" He asked idly.

Tomas knew what he was pressing at. He sighed. "I know your game, Yvin. It's the Alignment's soldiers who will free the planet, so Mygeeto will be governed by the Alignment, of course." He saw Tuu's expression grow hard, and said hurriedly, "But peacefully! They will be helped to prosper, not oppressed."

"I've heard this before. Read it, too. You sound like Yot'Carai."

"Indeed," Tomas said, with dark humor. "My friend, the planet is currently controlled by pirates, the ruthless sort who kill merchants and raze cities. They may not be an Empire, but do you think they govern fairly? With justice? You don't really think Mygeeto is better off with them than the Alignment?"

"I'd have to see for myself," Tuu replied.

"Well, that's...actually why I've come."

Tuu raised an eyebrow.

"My dear friend," Tomas said, leaning forward. "I know you don't agree with my loyalties, but I'm about to embark on a campaign, and I very much want to have you by my side, as my medical officer. I'll be in leadership, and responsibility weighs on my soul. I need your mind, your compassion, your ideals, to balance me. I need your friendship to lift my spirits. I need someone I can trust, if I'm to involve myself with the quagmire of an occupation. I would feel unprepared without it. Please, consider accompanying my Company."

"I see," Yvin sighed. "I know how battles go. I could alleviate suffering. But...the suffering of stormtroopers..."

"Young men, boys, many of them. And many of them good-hearted. You know things are more complicated than just the armor."

"Yes, but the armor does mean something...Tomas, you want me to work for the Empire, again?"

"Not the old Empire. I would never ask you to work for the people who carried out Cinder. No. The Alignment, Yvin...the Alignment could be the Empire as it should have been! I know you think I'm naive, but that is my desperate hope."

Yvin narrowed his eyes. "You know why I'm skeptical, yes? When has such a thing ever existed? And isn't that what the New Republic is trying to do, to varying degrees of success? Empires and governments...the ideals I hold that you so value wither in arenas such as that."

Tomas nodded, his expression solemn. "It's complicated, I know. Think of it as working for me, if it makes it any easier."

"That, I'm much more comfortable with. But it's not an easy thing that you ask, Tomas. I'm sure you know that. I'm happy here. Retired."

"Yes, I know. I don't ask lightly. I know what you would be sacrificing. But there will be lives that need saving, Yvin. You'd have full authority over your area of expertise. This, I can promise."

Tuu was quiet for a long time, thinking troubled thoughts and trying to puzzle out his answer. Finally, he said, "Stay tonight. You can join me in a riveting meal of unseasoned rice. And I'll have my answer for you tomorrow."

Tomas agreed. With the matter having passed, for now, they returned to the warmth and tone of companionship. "It really is a relief to see you, Yvin. Shall we play?"

                In the morning Yvin gave his answer. While going into battle is always a somber affair, Yvin and Tomas were at least cheered that once again they would be doing it side-by-side.

When I'm developing a storyline I almost always go straight to character dynamics. When I was developing what kind of story I could tell while doing a few posts for the Pentastar Alignment, the Aubrey and Maturin novels by Patrick O'Brian came to mind (you might have seen Master and Commander, the movie). I've always loved genuine, affectionate male friendship in stories, probably from growing up on Lord of the Rings, and Aubrey and Maturin--a military man and a doctor who become close friends--has a really good example. So that was my kick off point. I'm glad to explore moral complications and anti-heroes, but I've never loved writing straight up villain protagonists, which made an Imperial story tricky for me. Making the story about one of the Empire's most honorable soldiers and a cynic who owes them no loyalty sounded like a good way for me to examine the authoritarian thing and critique it in-character, while also looking at what sometimes makes it useful or even noble. So that's my way going forward.