Notes: I promised ya'll I'd be back with another Thrawn/Riyo fic for 2018... it's finally here! Expect updates roughly every Tuesday. Thank you to all my regular readers who have been patient with me, I sincerely hope you all enjoy the story.

INTERNET HUGS TO MY BEAUTIFUL BETA READERS: Ao3 user FeartheTalon (Sick Games is a fantastic read if you're looking for more Thrawn content!), FFN user EverandeverGreen (check out her Thrawn/OFC fic, it's been making me gigglesnort for weeks now), and FFN user alloztome!

Seemingly trivial incidents of my childhood often led me to form some of my most deeply held beliefs and attitudes, such as of my approach to fighting monsters. I was so young I can barely remember how it started. It must have been a bump or some strange noise that caught my attention while lying in bed at night. My imagination ran away with it, growing a little noise into a fearsome creature I was entirely certain lurked under my bed. Every night I would lay in bed, staring up at the dark ceiling, my childish mind conjuring up images of the horrific thing that might be the end of me.

I hid my suspicions of the ominous presence for what felt like an eternity but was eventually so overcome with terror I knew I needed help. The most obvious solution came to mind: my father. Among many things — a politician, a philanthropist, a writer — my father was a proud outdoorsman, familiar with the variety of species inhabiting wilderness of Pantora. Given his extensive knowledge of wild creatures and how to hunt them, and the fact that he was simply the bravest person I could think of, it seemed entirely logical he would be my best ally in the situation.

I explained everything to him in tears, and begged for his help. He was a patient man, and always very good with me when I was a girl. I don't remember him laughing or even smiling as I sobbed my situation to him. He waited for me to finish before calmly giving me his answer: "No."

Monsters, he said, could only be vanquished by the people they appeared to, which meant I had to take care of my problem by myself. He did, however, give me some advice: The only sure way to defeat a monster was to be courageous and direct when confronting them.

I was well into adulthood before I realized my father meant to teach me something valuable at that moment. Given my career choice, I was fated to encounter monsters much more difficult to recognize because they don't have fangs or talons. Much to the contrary, they frequently have a seductive appeal. They masquerade as someone you feel compelled to respect and trust, or as someone who fulfills an unmet need in your life, while they slowly eat away at your independence or prosperity.

That is what makes these monsters so dangerous — they work in slow, insidious ways that are difficult to detect until it's too late, and they are masterful at twisting people's perception of their transgressions into something that seems acceptable or even necessary.

But my father's wisdom held true no matter how terrible the monster I faced: If you're bold, if you stand your ground and refuse to show your fear, even the worst of monsters can be defeated.

"You'd think the man was carved from ice."

Riyo had to remind herself she was sitting at her holodesk, so Senator Roig could see her reaction to the statement. She didn't want to appear ungrateful for the information her fellow Senator shared, but it was completely useless. Carved from ice… what was that even supposed to mean?

She contacted Roig for information after receiving an unpleasant message from an Imperial official informing her that due to Imperial interests in the area, a Star Destroyer would be temporarily stationed in Pantoran space. That, very literally, was the extent of the message. There was no question if their presence would have the approval of Pantora, and there was no contact information for her to obtain more information. It was simply: we're coming into your home for however long we see fit, and there is nothing you can do about it.

Naturally, she didn't take the lack of contact information as an excuse to not give them her opinion on the matter. She happened to be on Pantora for a short visit home, so while it was more difficult to contact officials on Coruscant, she could at least deal with the Destroyer in person when it arrived. After a few hours of contacting various officials and giving them a piece of her mind in regard to the matter, she was directed to someone who reluctantly gave her the name of the individual in command of the Star Destroyer: Admiral Thrawn.

Her focus quickly turned to finding any information she could on the Admiral, which proved significantly more difficult than anticipated. The man was nearly a ghost. Nobody she contacted knew who this mystery Admiral was. Roig, a Senator who Riyo wasn't particularly fond of but who knew everyone who was someone in the Empire, was the 7th or 8th person Riyo contacted and the first who was even familiar with his name.

She forced a polite smile, running her fingers over the smooth corner of her work desk to keep herself from snapping at the air-headed woman. "Carved from ice? I'm afraid I don't know what that means. Can you elaborate?"

"I met him once, years ago at a party. He was only a Lieutenant at the time, so he must have worked his way up the ranks pretty quickly if he's an Admiral now. Wullf Yularen was carting him around, touting the man like he was the best thing to happen to the Empire since Palpatine."

It took everything in her to not laugh at the statement. What in the name of the Force had the galaxy come to that such a statement meant positive thing?

But the fact that Yularen was familiar with the man gave her the tiniest bit of faith. If he was fond of this Admiral maybe this whole ordeal wouldn't be a complete disaster. She hadn't spoken to Yularen in years, but she would have to reach out to him to feel out this situation further.

"Did you speak with this — Thrawn — much?" She looked at the man's full name, typed out on a message she received on her datapad. Mitth'raw'nuruodo. The Imperial who finally gave her his name stumbled through trying to pronounce it a few times before giving up and resorting to a shortened version also indicated in the personnel profile.

"Unfortunately I didn't talk with him enough to give you much advice on his character. He's fascinating but… But have you ever had a conversation with someone and suddenly felt you were being observed like a specimen in some bizarre experiment?" She shook her head. "He's strange; it's hard to describe him. He was polite — very polite, in fact. My memory could be off. I may have been a little… inebriated. You know how those parties go. But in the ten or fifteen minutes I spoke with him, I got the impression I was conversing with a glacier. A tall, intelligent, well-mannered glacier."

Riyo wasn't sure how to make sense of such a description. Roig wouldn't be much help beyond referring her to Wullf. "Well, thank you. I'm sure Yularen can help me as well. It will be a nice excuse to catch up with him."

"Oh!" Roig's eyes lit up like she struck gold among her alcohol-hazed memories. "He's Pantoran. Did you know that? That's probably why he was assigned a mission in your area."

Riyo paused. "That can't be right. There isn't a Pantoran Admiral in the Imperial Navy. I would certainly know if there were."

Roig shrugged. "He had a thick accent, but I couldn't place where it was from. Maybe he's not from Pantora, but he sure looked like he was."

Riyo met Wullf Yularen in her early days as a Senator, and quickly added him to her small list of "good officers". Always polite and reasonable, he stood in sharp contrast to the other Imperial military leaders she'd interacted with, who had only grown more aggressive and domineering since the fall of the Republic. Yularen was a man of classical values and good taste, and an advocate of efficiency and order but never of abuse of power. Speaking with him made her miss the days when her interactions with galactic military forces meant working with people such as Kenobi, a time when those in power believed reason triumphed over might and peaceful resolutions were preferable to quick ones.

"It's been too long, Senator. How have you been?" His white mustache shifted with a slight smile, and she was overcome with a strange sense of sadness. The last time they spoke his mustache was dark gray. Had that much time really passed since she saw him last?

She kept her posture straight, sitting in her high-backed desk chair as she studied the projection of the aging man hovering above her desk. "I'm very well, Colonel. Busy, much like yourself. I'm glad I was able to contact you."

"You reached out at just the right time. I'm actually in my office today, by chance. What can I help you with?"

"I just received word Pantora is expected to host a Star Destroyer that will be stationed in our area for a mission. I believe you may be familiar with the commanding officer — an Admiral Thrawn?"

She watched his reaction closely, hoping his initial expression would give away anything he might attempt to hide when he spoke. His eyebrows rose in surprise, but there was no hint of a frown or any concern. She trusted Yularen enough to believe he held a genuine concern for the well being of Imperial citizens and knew he was not blind to the corruption of certain naval officials. If he wasn't concerned, she didn't have nearly as much to worry about. "Ah, yes, Thrawn. You can trust the mission is in good hands, and that Pantora won't see any misbehavior from him or his crew. The man runs a tight ship."

So she was dealing with a well-mannered iceman who ran a tight ship. The lack of concrete information was maddening, but Yularen's faith in him did bode well. "That's reassuring. As you know Pantora prefers to operate in a very autonomous manner. We aren't used to having any sort of military presence other than our own. The presence of an Imperial military force will make the people here nervous."

"You and your people have no reason to worry, Senator. I'm surprised nobody set up a meeting between the two of you prior to this. Are you expecting him to arrive soon?"

"Unfortunately it hasn't been deemed necessary for me to have much information at all in this matter. All I know is that they should arrive in a few days."

"I'll let him know he should see you as soon as he arrives. I'm sure a meeting with him will help quell your concerns."

If the Imperial Navy were run by individuals with half the sense and a quarter of the morality of Yularen, she might actually be fond of the institution. "Yes, I think that would be appropriate. Please do." She paused, wondering if her next question was so improbable she shouldn't even ask. "I've heard the Admiral is Pantoran. Is that correct?"

"I'm afraid not, in fact, I doubt he's even met a Pantoran before. He seems to be mistaken for one quite frequently, though." His white mustache twitched as he tried to hide a laugh. "Between you and me, I think he's slightly irritated by it."

Her third transmission in regard to the Star Destroyer's presence was a fine glaze of chaos to coat the situation. Ardella Seccom was maybe 20 years Riyo's senior and looked like she'd lived through a great deal of trauma, most likely because she had. She was a veteran of the Clone Wars and had seen more than her fair share of combat. She was also the leader of the Rebel cell located in Pantoran space, which Riyo had been secretly aiding for years.

They'd been lucky enough to see little to no Imperial presence in the area thus far, so the cell primarily focused on accumulating resources. As it stood, many small Rebel cells were secretly scattered across the galaxy. But recent conversations with Bail and Mon led Riyo to think the time would come — possibly very soon — to unite all those scattered pieces. When that time came, the Pantoran cell would serve as a major source of supplies and munitions simply because they'd been able to fly under the Empire's radar for so long.

Riyo's contact with the cell was extremely limited for security purposes. Her role was to make sure they were funded, to help find covert ways to send them supplies, and to keep her finger on the pulse of any Imperial activity in the area. Ardella was the only member who was even aware Riyo was directly involved with them.

"A Star Destroyer?" Ardella's flickering projection frowned deeply.

"I'm afraid so."

"Do you have any information on the Admiral in charge?"

"Very little, but I'm meeting with him in person as soon as he arrives. His name is Admiral Thrawn."

She shook her head. "I don't think I've heard of him."

"It seems not many have. I'll be sure to send you any information I find. Do you plan to confront his forces?"

"We can't allow the Empire to set up any operation close to our base, but I'm afraid we don't have the means to fight a Star Destroyer." She paused, chewing her lip as she thought. "I think we can do some damage."

"I hope you understand my priorities in this situation, Ardella. I know you want to slow down whatever they're doing so close to your base, but I want the Star Destroyer out of Pantoran space as soon as possible. I'm certainly willing to do what I can to help sabotage their work, but they need to be gone from Pantoran space before I'll do anything."

"I understand that Senator, but right now what we need more than anything is information. I won't send any of my people in to fight them without having a clue what we're fighting. Details about their mission, their ship, anything would be immensely helpful."

She sat back in her chair, mulling over the situation. "It benefits everyone for me to form something of a false alliance with them. They'll give me information I can feed to you, and they'll be more cooperative when it comes to moving them out of Pantoran space quickly."

"The most helpful thing you could do is get us information."

"I can manage that. The Department of Starship Regulations will send them a demand to inspect all the ships they have in Pantoran space after they arrive. I planned to excuse them from it in order to expedite their departure, but maybe I won't. It should at least slow them by a few days. That should be enough time for me to work my way in with them, and for you to prepare anything you need on your end." She nodded, "That is the absolute most I'm willing to delay them from leaving our space. I can't compromise the Pantoran people any further."

"Understood. Your help is appreciated, as always."

"I trust you'll keep our agreement in mind, Ardella?"

"Of course. We'll keep all conflict off Pantora and its protectorates."

It was her one and only condition for helping the Rebels. Pantora was lucky enough to not have seen any conflict in a very long time, and as a representative of the people there, she was obligated to ensure it remained that way. They had her aid as long as her involvement with the cell didn't interfere with her duties to protect her own people.

"Admiral, I hear you're on your way to Pantora." Yularen's holo image looked mildly amused, probably because of the irony - Thrawn, being sent on a mission to a moon full of people he was consistently mistaken for.

Eli hadn't ever been to Pantora, nor had he ever met a Pantoran, so he really wasn't sure what to expect other than blue people. He stood next to Thrawn, wondering how Yularen found out about their mission. Maybe he was contacting them to offer friendly advice.

"I am," Thrawn said. "But I am curious to know how you found out? Are you keeping that close an eye on my career?"

"I wish I had the time for such things." Yularen laughed. "Senator Riyo Chuchi of Pantora contacted me, I guess she hasn't been given much information about your intentions near her home. Naturally, she's concerned. When you arrive I suggest you make a point to visit her."

"Our business in the area does not concern Pantora. She has no reason to worry."

Yularen's mustache tilted downward, "It may not, but Riyo has been a Senator for quite some time and holds a great deal of influence. If you don't have her support, she can make things incredibly difficult for you in that area of space."

"That would be counter to her best interests."

"Good, now go reassure her of that," Yularen said shortly. "Frankly, Admiral, the Senator is one of the few good ones we have left. All you need to do to win her favor is respect her wishes and reassure her you won't misbehave on Pantora. Honestly, you could use a few good political allies if you're going to keep getting court-martialed as often as you do. So I highly suggest you speak with her upon your arrival, and try to be nice."

Thrawn nodded, "The suggestion is appreciated. I will visit the Senator once we have reached Pantora."

When the transmission ended, he turned to Eli, "Are you at all familiar with this Senator?"

Eli shook his head, "Not really. I've heard her name a few times before; they say she's pretty outspoken."

Thrawn nodded slowly, sinking back into his seat with his fingertips pressed together. "Commander Vanto, please gather any information you're able to find on the Senator. I would like to know more about her prior to our meeting."