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MAU: Trek Wars Synopsis: Further adventures of Seven as she and her Trekkie friends confront their ultimate challenge - Star Wars fans. Note: This tale contains numerous characters from both the Star Trek and Star Wars universes. If a reader is unfamiliar with the Star Wars characters, the official Star Wars databank can provide more information than I can include in this tale. I am trying to not clutter the story with too much detail on the characters, but to provide enough to identify most of the characters... www.starwars.com/databank/ [email protected] ********************************************************************** MAU: Trek Wars *** Prologue *** Danni bolted upright, her eyes open and tightly focused. She forced herself to take a deep breath so she could concentrate on what had so disturbed her regeneration cycle. After a few moments, she swung her legs off the steel platform and stood. The swirling tendrils of energy which had animated the head rest of the unit faded into nothingness, leaving the room mostly dark. That fact, however, didn't bother Danni. Her Borg eye implant amplified the light, making the room appear to her as if bathed in sunlight. Softly, she padded across the room and gracefully eased her curvy feminine body, clad as always in a silvery cat suit, into a chair at a desk. From old habit, she glanced needlessly at a glowing digital clock; her Borg chronometer implants made external clocks totally unnecessary. 'Six fifty-two a.m. Darla is certainly awake by now,' she muttered to herself. She picked up the phone, and after thinking for a moment, she manually pushed the buttons. For a moment or two, she held the receiver to her ear, waiting, and judging from her expression, it was not patient waiting. "Darla?" she asked aloud. "Danni. I think we need to go to the con next week." She frowned. "No, nothing ... solid. Call it a hunch." "Yes, I know. But I really got this sudden sense that we're going to be needed." "Yeah, I guess _you_ would call it woman's intuition. But _I_ wouldn't." "Okay. You call a few people, and I'll talk to the Klingons." "Right. Bye." Danni hung up the phone and stared at it for a few moments. She couldn't shake the feeling that had awakened her and caused her to make the call. Something was going to happen. Something big. ********** As soon as he'd shut his pickup door behind him, Sean Lowell wiped his brow with his sleeve - again. "I can't wait to get changed," he muttered. His hair was nearly soaked with sweat, and if not for the black color of the one-piece jumpsuit he wore, it would be showing massive sweat spots. He leaned heavily against the truck for a moment to rest, seemingly oblivious to how he might appear to the neighbors. After all, it wasn't every day one saw a man in a black body suit leaning against a pickup truck in his driveway - not in most neighborhoods, anyway. On the other side of the truck, his wife Emily smiled, clad in a T- shirt and pants. "Yeah," she said, sounding sympathetic. "But the kids loved it." Her T-shirt was simple black, with a Star Wars Imperial Stormtrooper helmet superimposed over an Imperial logo. Beneath that were the simple words 'Got Armor?' Sean nodded slowly. Like the other members of the 501st Legion, Sean and Emily supported many charitable events, like the appearance at the Children's Hospital earlier that afternoon. "Yeah, I know," he said, sounding just a little sheepish. For many of the children, a chance to see Stormtroopers, Boba or Jango Fett, or even Darth Vader, was a huge thrill. Sean and Emily were happy to participate. "But I've got to figure out a way to stay cool in the armor." With fatigue in his step, he started walking toward the door to their house. "You going to get your armor?" Emily asked as she glanced at the large trunk in the rear of the truck. With the camper shell, it was safe from theft, but that apparently wasn't her concern. The hot sun would make an oven out of the back of the pickup. Sean sighed. "As soon as I change." He'd put way too much time and money into the costume to let the white ABS plastic Stormtrooper armor be ruined in the hot sun. Emily nodded and closed her door. With her purse in one hand and her digital camera in the other, she followed Sean up the walk. "Too bad you don't have a real suit," she mused. "With a built-in cooling unit." Sean laughed. "Yeah. That'd be cool. Or to actually be a Jedi or Sith? Or an alien? I bet you'd ..." His words cut off abruptly. "What?" Emily asked almost immediately. She saw Sean reading a note that had been taped on the door. Sean sighed. "Probably nothing," he sighed, "but then again, it might be." He handed the note to Emily and got out his keys to unlock the door. Emily scanned the note. "Len said a meteorite hit our backyard?" she asked incredulously. "Is this another one of his jokes?" Sean shook his head as he opened the door, basking for a moment in the cool air-conditioned breeze wafting around him. Knowing he was wasting energy, he stepped inside and closed the door after Emily, too, was out of the bright afternoon sun. "Doesn't sound like one of his gags," Sean said as he began to strip from his body suit. "He doesn't have that much imagination." Emily frowned. "I'll go out back and have a look while you shower, okay?" She stepped to the kitchen, set her purse and camera on the table, and opened the patio door to their backyard. She had a feeling of dread as she stepped out to the patio. Slowly, she scanned the yard, fearing she'd find a smoking crater or something similar. But she didn't see anything. Emily felt herself relax a bit. It _had_ been a gag. Then she spotted something in one of her flowerbeds. Her eyes narrowed as she peered. It looked like the neighbor's dog had been in her flowers again! She glanced, and frowned. The gate was still shut. So what had happened to her flowers? Puzzled, she walked briskly to the damaged bed. Emily surveyed the damage. Something had blasted through one corner of her garden, taking out a rose bush and some assorted bedding plants, and even tearing up a bit of sod in the adjoining grass. She knelt down beside the dirt and looked more closely. She couldn't see anything that looked like it could have caused this. No lumps, no smoking rocks, nothing. Just like something had hit the flowerbed with destructive force as it passed through their back yard. She stood. If so, where was it? She scanned the yard again, and still she saw nothing. Sighing to herself yet again, Emily trudged back to the house, skirting the edge of the pool as she did so. If something _had_ hit, it wasn't serious. Just a little touch-up on the garden and the lawn, and it'd look perfect. It could even wait. From the corner of her eye, she glanced at the pool. That was what Sean needed to cool off - a dip in the pool. Especially after standing all day in his hot armor. Emily did a double-take. She peered again, then moved around the corner of the pool to avoid the reflected sun glare. The frown returned. There was something floating in the pool. ********** "Holy shit!" Emily poked her head into the living room, alarmed by her husband's outburst. "What?" she asked. She found herself staring, with Sean, at a large rectangular gray mass. "What ...?" she stammered. "Is it ... growing?" Sean nodded. "I just rubbed the symbols on the face," he added, his eyes still riveted to the box. When it reached the size of a telephone booth, the box stopped growing. It just sat there, plain and gray and looking completely out of place. "You got any idea what it is?" Emily asked softly. Her hands still held the makings of another costume she was creating. Sean stared at the gray box. "Not a clue," he replied just as softly. Emily suppressed a shudder. "This is _weird_! I think we ought to leave it alone," she whispered. Sean hadn't heard her as he moved quickly to the box. He walked around two plain gray sides, then he stopped. "I wonder if these are the controls," he asked as he stared at a black panel, a red crystalline three-fingered plate, and a purple knob. "Sean," Emily pleaded softly, "let's leave it alone." Once she realized that he wasn't listening, she decided to change her course. "Did you get your armor out of the car yet?" "What?" Sean swore under his breath. "No. I forgot." He glanced once more at the box, then he trudged slowly toward the door. His curiosity wasn't as strong as his sense of duty toward his precious Stormtrooper armor. Emily sighed with relief as her ruse distracted Sean from the box - even if it was a brief victory. When she thought about the strange gray box, she felt a sense of foreboding. ********** "You going to come to bed?" Emily's weary voice startled Sean. "In a couple of minutes," he answered quickly. "What time is it, anyway?" Emily sighed. "It's nearly eleven." "Huh?" Sean glanced at the clock to confirm her answer. "I didn't realize it was this late." Emily sighed again. "Well, it is. Now would you _please_ leave that thing alone and come to bed? Before something happens?" "Too late," Sean answered with a grin. "Look at this!" He grabbed Emily's hand and pulled her to his side. "I think this thing reads minds." Emily looked at the box, at the display. "What ... how?" she stammered. "That looks like ... Aayla Secura." She stared at the image of the sexy blue-skinned Twilek Jedi. Sean smiled. "Yup. All I had to do was touch the red plate here while I was thinking of her. The box made the picture show up on the display." Emily's eyes widened. "Is this some kind of computer graphics display?" Her mouth dropped open. "Maybe this is some secret Air Force technology or something! We shouldn't be messing with it!" Sean shook his head. "You know what those symbols on top looked like?" She nodded slowly. "The display had screens and screens full of them when I started." He pressed his lips together and shook his head more. "This isn't Air Force technology," he said firmly. "It's more like ... something alien." Emily's eyes narrowed as she considered his words. "But ... that means ..." Sean nodded, smiling. "We're not alone. UFOs are real. All kinds of neat things." He took Emily's hand and pressed it to the red plate. "Here. You try." Emily frowned. "What do I do?" Sean smiled. "Just think of one person or thing. You have to concentrate, but it'll show up on the display in a few seconds." Emily turned her attention to the display. For a few seconds, nothing happened, then a figure began to materialize as if from a fog. Slowly, the figure took shape and definition, until Emily dropped her hand from the plate. The cone-headed Jedi master Ki Adi Mundi was clearly displayed on the screen. "Wow! It really works!" Sean let her look for a bit before he put his hand on the red pad. In moments, the slave-girl version of Princess Leia was displayed. Still, Sean wasn't done. For a few more seconds, he concentrated, and then the display changed until Leia had very large breasts. Emily slapped his arm. "Hey!" she objected in feigned protest. "What is it with you guys that every time you can, you exaggerate a girl's breasts?" Sean laughed. "Just trying to see what she'd look like if she had your magnificent rack," he said playfully. Emily was sufficiently endowed that she would never take his playing as a threat or insult. "My turn," Emily said again, pushing Sean aside by playfully bumping him with her chest. She put her hand on the red plate, and soon, a stern Grand Moff Tarkin showed on the display. Sean countered quickly with Aurra Sing, the white-skinned bounty hunter from The Phantom Menace. Emily smiled. "You know, the guys would have a lot of fun with this. Maybe we should take it with us?" Sean nodded. "Yeah," he commented, suppressing a yawn as he tried to agree. "But right now, I'm getting tired. It's a long drive to the con, and if we're going to make the Garrison meeting before the convention opens, we'll have to leave early." He glanced once more at the screen before turning reluctantly away. If Sean hadn't been so tired, he probably wouldn't have stumbled trying to get around Emily, the box, and the coffee table. Then again, if he hadn't bumped the purple knob then, eventually curiosity would have caused him to try touching it. In any event, when he touched the knob, half of the side of the box simply vanished. There was no sliding, no opening, no motion or sound. One moment, the box had only the display panel, the red paw- shaped crystal, and the purple knob. The next, half of the side was missing. Emily jumped back from the box in surprise and fear. She'd overcome her initial hesitancy about the alien technology, but it had returned with a vengeance when the side disappeared. Sean, too, started at the sudden change in the box, but he recovered quickly and peered inside. "Hey, there's another control inside," he said. Drawn by his seemingly insatiable curiosity, he stepped through the opening. Even before Emily could open her mouth to protest, Sean touched the inner knob. The side of the box disappeared. Emily, her mouth already opening to speak, screamed. She pushed the purple knob and banged on the metal where the opening had been. In a few seconds that seemed like hours to Emily, the side of the box reappeared. Emily started to sigh with relief. Then Aurra Sing stepped out. Emily screamed again, then she looked around Aurra to the inside of the now-empty box. Aurra Sing looked stunned. She glanced up and down her chalk- white arms, from the extra-long fingers to her bare shoulders, and then down her rust-colored jumpsuit to the orbs on her chest. She swatted at the single ponytail of red hair dangling around her face as she leaned forward. The hair came from a single clump of hair on her otherwise chalk-white bald head, adding to her alien appearance. "What the hell?" she asked, and her eyes widened even more at the sound of her voice. Emily fought the panic threatening to overcome her. "Where's Sean?" she demanded, glancing once more into the empty box. "What have you done with my husband?" Aurra Sing looked at Emily. "It's me," she said, still amazed at the sound coming from her throat. "I'm Sean." She looked down at herself again, then at the figure displayed on the control panel. "The box ... changed me!" Emily glanced at the display panel and then at Aurra Sing. She frowned. "Sean? Is that really you?" she asked nervously. She saw the display, the empty box, and what appeared to be Aurra Sing standing before her. Though it seemed impossible, Emily was convinced beyond words that Sean had been changed by the mysterious alien box. Aurra Sing nodded, wincing again at the bobbing ponytail. "Yeah." Emily lunged at the control panel and pressed her hand against the red plate. In seconds, she'd called up an image of her husband. "Change back," she prompted with a sense of urgency in her voice. "Hurry!" Sean needed no further prompting. He ducked back inside the box and touched the purple crystal. Again, the door vanished, and after a few seconds, the opening reappeared. This time, Sean stepped out. He patted his body as if to reassure himself that he was all present. He stepped back away from the box and flopped back into a chair. "Wow!" he said, his voice carrying both the joy of a new discovery and fear at what had happened. Emily sat down beside him. "That's ... spooky," she said softly, her eyes fixed on the alien device. Sean thought for a moment. "I've got an idea," he suddenly announced. Again, he sprang to the control plate. As he worked, Emily joined him, warily watching what he did. Slowly, another figure formed, and with a quick grin to Emily, Sean pressed the purple knob and stepped into the cabinet. A few seconds later, he emerged, this time clad in white armor over a black body suit and carrying a helmet under his arm. "What do you think?" he asked. Emily glanced at the image on the display. "A little heavy for a clone, aren't you?" Sean put the clone trooper helmet on. "This is cool!" he exclaimed in a heavily muffled voice. Emily started to relax. "Now I _know_ the guys would love this box," she said with a grin. Then she yawned. "But it's late. I think you ought to change back so we can get some sleep. We're leaving pretty early tomorrow, remember?" Sean nodded. Reluctantly, he stepped to the control and recalled his original body. As he was about to press the purple button, Emily grabbed his hand. "Just a sec," she said before she touched the red plate. With a grin, she touched the purple knob, opening the device. "Okay." Sean glanced at Emily, then he tried to see the display, which she was conveniently blocking. When she wouldn't move, he snorted and stepped into the box. A few seconds later, Sean emerged. He glanced down, then at Emily. "I thought you said you wanted to sleep," he said in a gruff voice. Emily raised her eyebrows and grinned. "Eventually," she said playfully as she took Sean's hand and led him back toward their bedroom. ********** "So what is it?" 'It' referred to the plain gray attache-case sized box on top of the pile of luggage. Sean grinned at his friend. "I told you once, Len, I'll show you when we get checked in and get our gear stored. "But..." Sean shook his head. "It'll go faster if you help carry the stuff up to the lobby." Sean closed the back of the camper shell and twisted the handles to secure it. He picked up two armloads of suitcases, pausing to get the gray box balanced under his arm, and then he started trudging toward the elevators. Nearly an hour later, mostly delayed because of the long check-in line at the hotel desk, Sean, Emily, and Len trudged off the elevator and down the hall to their room. As they walked, a girl dressed as a Vulcan paused and stared at the box with one raised eyebrow. "Do you mind if I ask where you obtained that ... device?" she asked in a curious tone of voice. Sean frowned. It seemed that she recognized the box. Which was, of course, impossible. "I found it," he said with a shrug. "Does it have any ... unusual ... properties?" she asked with one raised eyebrow. Sean glanced at Emily, then he shook his head. "Nope. It's just an attache case." "Fascinating." The girl turned and continued down the hall. Emily glanced at Sean, who had turned toward her. Both had expressions of curiosity. "What was _that_ about?" Emily asked, unable to contain her bewilderment. Sean shook his head. "I don't know," he answered softly. He dropped one armload of gear and opened the door, then helped get the gear inside. "Okay, now what is it?" Len asked again. Sean put the box on the floor and rubbed the symbols. Immediately, the box grew until it was once more full sized. Len was watching with a mixture of shock and awe. "Cool!" he said finally as the box finished growing. Sean grinned. "It gets better. Think of a character." Emily smiled. "The more unique, the better," she added. Len glanced at them both. "Oola. The Twilek dancer from Jabba's palace," he finally said. Sean's grin grew. "Okay." He turned to the box and placed his hand on the control plate, using his body to shield the display plate from Len's view. He glanced over his shoulder. "Okay, touch that purple knob," he directed. Len flinched when the side disappeared. Emily and Sean exchanged knowing glances. "Okay," Len answered hesitantly. "Now step inside and touch the purple knob on the inside." Sean smiled at Emily. Immediately, the opening disappeared. A few moments later, when the side again opened, a very surprised and green Twilek dancing girl emerged, her hands cupped over her breasts and her mouth open in shock. "What ...? she started to ask. Sean grinned. "It's some kind of alien technology that changes you to match whatever you want to be." He stepped aside so Len could see the display. "But ..." Len protested in a sultry voice, "but ... you made me a ... a ... a girl!" Emily took Len's elbow and led him toward the mirror hanging over the dresser. "No, the box made you into a Twilek dancing girl," she said. Then she grinned. "Besides, it was _your_ idea to be Oola!" Len stared wide-eyed at the image in the mirror. "I'm ... I'm ... her!" he exclaimed softly. "It ... it really ... changed me!" Mesmerized by the image in the mirror, he slowly moved his hands over his breasts, down past his waist, and down around his rounder hips. "I'm ... this is ... it's real!" he stammered. His lekku, the Twilek 'brain tails' seemed to twitch nervously. Emily led him back to the control panel. "Let's get you changed back." She suppressed a shudder. "Before you do something ... weird." She pushed the image from her mind. "And then I've got an idea for the opening ceremony tonight." ********** "Okay, so you all _claim_ it's some kind of alien technology that can change you," Dave Johnston, a heavy-set young man with a dark beard and mustache, scowled from his perch on the edge of the dresser. His girlfriend Anne, a short stout woman, leaned against the dresser beside him. The room was crowded with almost two dozen people, and the few spaces left to sit were taken, leaving some to lean or stand. "I don't get what ..." Sean interrupted the beginning of one of Dave's long-winded soliloquies. "I know you're skeptical," he said calmly. "So was Len. But it _works_." He smiled. "And I can prove it. Since you're the biggest skeptic, I want you to think of the most _unlikely_ costume a _man_ could wear for an appearance." He gave a sideways glance at Len, knowing that the same line had tricked Len into becoming Oola. He saw Len's answering - but nervous - grin. Dave glared at Sean. He was going to end this farce now so they could get back to the convention. "Okay," he said with a determined expression as he stepped to the side of the box. "How does this work?" Sean smiled warmly. "Just touch the red plate, and then think of what you want to be. Once you have the image formed, touch the purple knob and step inside, where you'll touch another purple knob to make the change." Dave glanced at the controls, then he nodded. "Sounds simple enough." He touched the plate, and with his body shielding the view of the display, he set to work. In only a few seconds, he finished, and still blocking the display, he touched the purple knob. A collective gasp sounded from those who could see as half the side simply disappeared. Dave gulped nervously - so far, this was far more than he'd expected, but he'd gotten himself into it, so ... With a deep breath, Dave stepped boldly into the box, and as he touched the control inside, the opening vanished. A hushed murmur echoed through the gathered crowd as they watched. The strange box was unlike anything they'd ever experienced. It _was_ doing what Sean had claimed, but that still wasn't proof for them. In mere seconds, the opening reappeared. A gasp rippled through the room. Anne screamed. Out of the box oozed ... Jabba the Hutt. Sean tilted his head - he hadn't quite expected _this_! He glanced at Len, who seemed a little disappointed himself. Sean also noted that even though Jabba was much larger than the box, _somehow_ he fit! Perhaps the box had some kind of dimensional shifting properties as well, especially since Jabba seemed to slide out so easily and without even touching the sides of the opening! Jabba glanced down at himself, and his eyes widened. "This is ... impossible!" he exclaimed in a deep, echoing voice. He looked up, scanning the room full of astonished friends and co-members of their 501st garrison. "It ... it really works!" "I wanna try!" "Me next!" As the enthusiastic clamoring for turns grew louder and more frantic, Sean held up his hands in a weak gesture for silence, but no one seemed to notice. "Dave!" he called loudly, to be heard over the commotion. "Silence!" Jabba boomed in a loud, deep, echoing voice. Instantly, the room was hushed. Jabba smiled. "First, I'm going to change back," he announced. With a couple of ungraceful lurches, Jabba turned to the control panel, oblivious to the fact that his tail had knocked over a chair and two people. As the assembled group watched in suspense, Jabba worked the control panel. He hesitated, however, at the opening, his eyes turning to Sean. "I don't think I'm gonna fit!" he said nervously. Sean frowned, then he shrugged. "You fit coming out, so you _have_ to fit going back in." He tried to sound reassuring, but in fact, he was as nervous about Dave getting back into the box as Dave was. If Dave couldn't get back in, Dave would be stuck - as a Hutt. With a worried look in his eyes, Dave lurched toward the opening. Sean understood Dave's worry - he was easily three times as wide as the opening. And yet, as he approached and started to push into the narrow opening, it seemed that he shimmered around the edges, and Sean got the impression that Dave got much narrower, though in the same proportions, as he scooted forward. Where he could see past the 'opening', Jabba's body _inside_ the box was in the same proportions as that part outside. The opening vanished as Jabba touched the controls, and a few moments later, it reappeared. Dave emerged, seemingly unscathed by his brief conversion to Jabba. He visually inspected his body as he patted himself, checking to ensure that he was properly restored. Even though Sean and Len had claimed that the box worked for them, Dave shuddered when he thought that it might not have worked _perfectly_ and that he might be missing some parts. "Me next!" A tall slender man near the front of the group pressed to the control panel. Sean held up his arms, trying to hold back the surging crowd. Everyone wanted to try the box, and he realized that keeping order, holding them back away from the box, would be like holding back the sea. "One at a time!" Dave boomed, adding his voice to Sean's efforts at crowd control. "You'll all have a turn." The guy grinned and darted between them. In a few moments, a tall figure in black cape and a shiny black helmet emerged. A rhythmic mechanical breathing sound emerged from behind the faceplate of the helmet. "Whoa!" one guy called in admiration. "Cool!" "I find your lack of faith disturbing!" the figure in black boomed. "Wow! I even _sound_ like Vader! This is _so_ cool!" Dave turned to Sean. "You said you had something planned for the opening ceremonies tonight?" he asked curiously, suddenly oblivious to the group in the room. Sean grinned. "We can let the box make our costumes. Dave frowned. "But we all have costumes..." Sean's grin spread. "But if we go as something totally wild, something unexpected, something no one has _ever_ done as a costume ..." Dave's eyes widened, then he nodded. "Like when I did Jabba the Hutt?" He grinned as he turned to the assembled Garrison. "Guys, I've got a great idea...." ********** A disturbance in the rear of the hall interrupted the emcee, and he tried to stare past the lights. He couldn't really see, but judging from the noise, whatever was interrupting his program was big. Low murmurs grew louder, then shouts of amazement and cheering rippled outward from the open rear doors. Cameras started to flash in an ever-widening circle, like the rings of a target centered on the cause of the disturbance. The emcee frowned, wondering what was causing this major interruption to his program. Even though science fiction conventions were organized and run by amateurs, these types of disturbances _didn't_ happen. "What's going on back there?" he finally demanded in frustration when he realized that not a soul in the hall was paying him any mind. The spotlight swung from the emcee back to the center of the disturbance. The emcee gasped as he recognized Jabba the Hutt flanked by two pig-like Gamorrean guards. Egged on by the crowd, Jabba oozed and slid and lurched forward, followed by his retinue. As the applause continued unabated, Jabba halted at the foot of the stage, and his guards flanked him. Next came Bib Fortuna, his Twilek majordomo. Then came Boba Fett, the blue elephantine band leader Max Reebo, the Bith wind player D'an Barquin, a figure that appeared to be Lando Calrissian in his guard disguise, Jabba's elephantine friend and confidant Ephant Mon, the green Twilek dancer Oola, the white Twilek Lyn Me, Rystall with her flaming red hair, the green-skinned Rodian dancer Greeta, skiff guards Klaatu and Nikto, the Boush bounty hunter, and finally, tethered to a chain held by Jabba, Princess Leia in her metallic slave bikini. The group stood for several long minutes, bathed in a near constant flash as it seemed that everyone in the hall snapped photo after photo. Finally, as the flash died down a bit, Jabba turned to the emcee. "Start this convention," he ordered in a booming voice. "There are parties to attend, and I will not be late!" The crowd erupted in a new round of applause. Eventually, however, the crowd quieted sufficiently for the emcee to continue, and the convention was officially opened. ********** Sean grinned at Dave as the group slowly changed back to their normal forms. "Did you see the look on that guy's face?" Dave, rid of the enormous bulk of Jabba and back to being human, laughed in reply. "That's one for the books," he agreed. "But I'm glad I don't have to slog around as Jabba for too long. That's hard work!" Emily smiled as she wrapped her arm around Sean's waist. "Did you hear how many people were asking how we all made the costumes? Especially the Jabba?" Sean nodded. "I told them it was a trade secret." Dave laughed. "I bet that didn't convince many people." Just then, a knock sounded at the door. Emily glanced nervously at the box, then back to Sean. "Should we answer it?" The message was clear, if implied. They felt a need to protect the secret of the box from strangers. Sean frowned as the knock sounded again. "Hold it, guys," he said to those still unchanged. "Let's see who this is." He strode quickly to the box and placed his hand on the red crystal, and almost immediately, the box shrank to briefcase size. "We'll finish changing in a minute or so," he reassured those still in 'costume', including slave Leia, Lyn Me, Boba Fett, and Nikto. As Sean kicked the metal box behind the bed, Emily opened the door. "Can I help you?" she asked slowly as she scanned the two men standing in the hall. Both were of average height, and both wore the 'Got Armor?' T-shirts that seemed so common to members of the 501st Legion. One of the men looked at Emily, then he smiled. "Emily Lowell?" he asked with confidence. Emily frowned. "Do I ... " Her question cut off as a look of recognition dawned on her features. "Kent Myers?" she asked uncertainly. She saw his smile and nod, and she turned back to the room. "Honey, it's Kent Myers. You remember, we met him at StellerCon last year?" She opened the door wide and gestured for the two men to come in. Kent smiled at Sean. "Hey, Sean!" He glanced at the people still 'in costume' and he shook his head, still smiling. "Figures you guys would be behind that stunt!" His voice carried admiration for what they'd done. "This is Rich Stevens." "Hey Rich," Sean said in a simple greeting. He turned back to Kent. "You still with the Tyrannus Garrison?" Kent smiled. "Yup. We did quite a turnout here. In fact, the entire legion has a pretty good turnout. About two hundred members." Dave whistled. "Wow! That's a pretty good showing." Kent nodded. "And some of the other members think we ought to do something special for David Prowse." Dave nodded. "Like the Death Star arrival scene in Return?" He referred, in their particular shorthand, to Return of the Jedi. Kent nodded. "That would be fantastic. The problem is, a lot of the guys who flew in, like the guys from Titan, the UK Garrison, and the California Garrisons, didn't bring their costumes. Did you guys bring yours?" Sean shot Dave a knowing glance. "Maybe even better," he said with a grin. Emily's eyebrows raised. "If you're thinking what I think you're thinking," she started, "then count me in." "But ... there weren't any female troopers," Sean protested. "And you don't have any ..." He halted mid-sentence when he saw Emily's grin. "It changed you and Dave ... to Aurra and Oola. Why couldn't it change me? _And_ into costume?" Emily asked cautiously. Sean frowned, then he slowly nodded. He knew better than to argue with Emily when she made up her mind. "Hey, we could even do David in Vader costume!" Dave wrinkled his nose and frowned. "Too hot, remember?" "Oh, yeah." "But if he did the entrance in costume, then changed ...?" Emily interjected. "We could keep the box off-stage, and it would only take a few seconds for him to change out of the costume." Kent finally gave up. "What the hell are you guys talking about?" he demanded. Dave and Sean exchanged glances again, then Sean retrieved the box and activated it. In seconds, it grew back to telephone- booth size. Kent and Rich stood in silence, gawking at the sight. "You haven't seen anything yet," Sean grinned. ********** Sean strolled casually through the tables in the main hall, where conventioneers took a moment to sprawl and rest. He laughed to himself as he saw the people staring in wonder at him. So far, the box was making this a fun convention. The "Jabba's palace retinue" still had people talking, mostly about who had pulled it off. And then, to top that, all the 501st members present used the box to create costumes. When David Prowse, Vader himself and honorary commander of the entire 501st Legion, made his entrance, the 501st Legion recreated Vader's entrance to the second Death Star. And though they couldn't persuade Prowse to make an entrance in costume, one of the 501st members did the entrance scene, then ducked offstage, ostensibly to change. David Prowse came from behind the curtain, as if he'd just quickly changed from his costume to his normal clothing. It was another smash hit, and everyone was talking about it. Sean glanced at his watch, an odd maneuver since the watch was almost lost among the long fur on his body. Emily was in a workshop on Jedi costuming for another half hour. He wondered if he should use the box to change back. Walking around as Chewbacca was starting to get boring. "Hey!" Sean ignored the voice; already, he'd been accosted for pictures by many fans, and though the 501st considered it one of the necessary evils of appearing in costume, he was weary of it. Changing back was starting to become even more appealing. "Hey!" the voice boomed again. "Walking carpet!" Sean halted, took a deep breath, and turned. He reared his head back. "Grrrrrarrarrr!" he roared at the person who'd just insulted him. His voice halted midway through the second roar. The man facing him was a Klingon in full battle armor. "I would speak with you," the Klingon demanded. From the tone of voice, it sounded like he was used to getting his way. Sean briefly considered his options. He could walk away, in which case the Klingon might get even more insulting or attempt to start a fight; or he could stay and talk. Sean nodded slowly. "What do you want?" he asked cautiously. "You have used a gray metal box that grows from a briefcase to a telephone booth? That is how you made your changes?" the Klingon demanded. Sean's heart skipped. He scanned the Klingon, from the bony ridges on his forehead to the armor on his feet. He slowly realized that the man wasn't wearing a costume. Which meant that the girl from the hall the previous day who looked very Vulcan ... Sean gulped ... probably was. He felt his hands tremble as he realized that the Klingon and the Vulcan woman knew about the box, and had probably been changed by one. "I ... I don't understand. Gray box?" he stammered. The Klingon frowned. "You do not wear a costume, Wookie. We have learned to recognize the effects of a box," he snarled. "And you have no idea what you are dealing with." Sean straightened. He wasn't used to feeling this threatened. "I have to meet my wife," he said stiffly. "After I change out of my costume." He turned a walked away, wondering if the Klingon was going to do something rash. Instead, as he glanced over his shoulder, he saw the Klingon roaring with laughter, his head tilted back, and holding his sides. ********** A knock on the door awakened Sean. He sat up, and despite feeling a bit tired and hung over from the partying the night before, he instantly remembered. The combination of weights bobbing on his chest, the strange sensations of the lekku attached to his head, and the other strange feelings. He shook his head lightly to clear his thoughts. The knock sounded again. "Who is it?" he shouted, cringing from the soft alto voice he possessed. "A ... friend." The voice sounded somewhat familiar, but Sean couldn't place why. "Uh," he said, "Can you come back later?" "It is a matter of some urgency," the voice replied. Something about the tone let Sean know that he probably _should_ talk to the person. "I've got to get decent." He shook Emily, still looking like Han Solo. "We've got company," he whispered as he woke her. Emily groaned slightly. "Uh, who is it?" she asked softly. Sean shook his head. "I don't know. But they said it's important." Emily winced. "But ..." Her mind raced. "Quick - we can use the box to freshen up." She stood quickly and touched the controls, then emerged from the box in her own body - and fresh clothes. Then Sean's changed back, and he looked more than a bit relieved to be back in his own body. Emily started for the door, but Sean put his hand on her arm. "Just a sec." He touched the controls again, and in moments, the box had shrunk to its original briefcase size. Sean scooted the box behind the curtains. Then he nodded to Emily. "Can I help you?" Emily asked politely as she opened the door. The Klingon Sean had seen earlier that day pushed brusquely past Emily. Behind him, Seven of Nine strutted sexily into the room. "You are Sean and Emily Lowell," she asked in a tone that seemed less question than statement of fact. Emily glanced at Sean, then she nodded. "But what ...?" "Where is it?" the Klingon demanded of Sean. "What?" Sean asked after a quick glance at Emily. The Klingon frowned, but Seven put her hand on his arm. "Easy, Mike," she chided. She smiled at Sean and Emily. "Klingons can be a bit ... impatient," she explained. Mike frowned. "Bah! At least we don't waste time with _diplomatic_ nonsense!" "What is it you're looking for?" Emily asked of Seven, working hard to keep her voice neutral and free of the nervousness she was suddenly feeling. Seven smiled. "You have been observed with a gray metal box, about the size of an attache case." Sean glanced at Emily. "I believe you are mistaken," he said hesitantly. Seven shook her head. "You have _no_ idea what you are dealing with." She glanced around the room. "Based on the changes and _creative_ costumes that your group has displayed so far, there is no doubt you possess such a box." She looked directly at Emily. "You _must_ stop using the device. It is far too powerful, and it can be dangerous." Emily thought for a moment. "If we see this device," she said, "we'll keep your warnings in mind." Her hesitation in answering belied her words. Mike glared at Emily and Sean, then he turned and stormed out of the room. "Damned fools!" he muttered as he left. Seven frowned, then she nodded. "If you find the device, please call me. It is _very_ important. Especially given the ... extreme nature of some of your group's changes." She handed Emily a card, then she too strode from the room. ********** "Well?" Len sat in one chair, looking around the room at the other members of the Garrison. Sean shook his head. "I ... I don't know," he answered. "She ... they ... seemed pretty serious." "You suppose they found one?" one of the women conjectured. "And they don't want any competition for the costume contests?" "Maybe," Emily said. "Maybe not. I don't know." Len frowned. "Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but this thing is _way_ too cool to stop using!" Sean and Dave nodded. "Len's right. This is too good to stop using." Nods and murmuring indicated that most of the group agreed with the two. "I guess you're right," Emily conceded. "But there's one condition," Emily added in a stern voice. The room hushed. "No one, and I mean no one, is to enter the costume contest if he or she uses the box. Got it?" Dave and Sean exchanged a quick glance - they hadn't thought of using the box for creating costumes. "Emily's right," Dave chimed in. "It wouldn't be fair to others if anyone were to use the box to enter the contest. Agreed?" Slowly, murmurs of agreement circulated through the room. Emily nodded and retrieved the box. After opening it, she turned. "Who's first?" "We are!" a young woman called out. She stepped forward with her hand firmly clutching a man. "We want to be Han and Leia." Emily shrugged. "Your choice." She saw the man looking a bit pale at her suggestion, and she realized with a start that _she_ intended to be Han. "Do we have to?" the young man asked. "It just seems ... weird!" The young woman scowled at him. "You promised me, remember?" The man gulped. Sensing that she'd won, the girl sprang to the side of the box and touched the keypad. Once she was done, she touched the purple knob and opened the device. She gestured, and with a visible gulp, the young man stepped in. After the change cycle finished, the door reappeared, and Princess Leia, in her long white dress and her hair in the signature braided buns from A New Hope, stepped into view. She looked very unhappy. "Remember, this is only for a little bit," she said, flinching at the sound of her voice. The girl giggled with delight, then turned her attention back to the control pad. She emerged as Han Solo, complete with his blaster pistol at his side. "This is going to be _so_ cool!" she said confidently. Leia frowned. "But it's only for a little while, right?" she protested. Han took her arm and, with a huge grin, led her out of the room. The former man scowled at the laughter rippling around the room. The changes went quickly - it was obvious that members had already spent time thinking of who - or what - they wanted to be. Several seemed unchanged, except for the Jedi robes and lightsaber handles. Two guys emerged as Clone Troopers - one a plain trooper, and one with the green decorations of a sergeant trooper. Both had the imposing blaster rifles of the clone army. Len changed into Darth Vader, then as the group watched, he peeled off an ultra-realistic costume. With a grin, he stepped to the box again, only to emerge in an X-wing fighter pilot costume. "Wait a sec," Dave cautioned as he saw Len peeling off that costume as well. "Give others a chance." "Yeah," a girl protested. She pushed Len aside and stepped to the box, emerging a few moments later as Barriss Offee, a Jedi Master. With a grin and a flourish, she grasped her lightsaber, pretended to give it a couple of swings, then clipped it to her belt. One woman emerged as the armored bounty hunter Boba Fett. A guy came out as Jango Fett. Darth Maul came next, followed by the old Obi-Wan Kenobi. A girl changed into Mace Windu. Another changed herself into Oola, the green Twilek dancer. One guy changed into Chewbacca, while another became Nien Nunb, the jowled, mouse-eyed Sullestan alien who'd co-piloted the Millennium Falcon with Lando during the battle of the second Death Star. One older heavyset woman changed into Luke Skywalker. Finally, everyone had changed except Dave, Sean, and Emily. "Okay, Len," Emily spoke, "go ahead and finish." With a grin, Len went back to the machine. In a matter of minutes, he'd created a clonetrooper costume. As he took it off, Sean and Dave started doing the same, since two could change while the third removed a costume. By the time he was done, Len had costumes for Vader, X-wing and Tie pilots, a Tusken Raider, a Clone Trooper and a Clone Trooper pilot, a snow trooper, a storm trooper, and a sand trooper, an Imperial admiral, and a Jedi. Even though they had a few costumes themselves, neither Dave nor Sean were as prolific at costume creation as Len. Emily shook her head as Len peeled off his Jedi robes. "You've got quite a haul here," she observed. Len grinned. "Yeah. I figure, might as well make good use of the box." Sean smiled. "Clever. But how are you going to haul this stuff home in your car?" Len opened his mouth to answer, then he frowned. "I'll ... " His frown deepened. "Well, maybe you can help ...." He stopped again as he looked at Sean's pile of costumes. "Rent a U-haul?" Dave laughed. Len scowled at him. "I guess I'll have to," he finally agreed. "I hadn't thought of that." Dave laughed again. "Or you can ship it." He looked over the piles of costumes. "Let's get this up to our rooms." As the two trudged out the door, their arms overflowing with bits and pieces of costumes, Emily shook her head as she observed Sean's pile. "Since we've got the box, you didn't have to make all those costumes right now!" she scolded him. Sean grinned sheepishly. "I guess I got a bit carried away," he answered. "Yeah, as soon as Len and Dave started, you had to join in, didn't you." She sat down, still shaking her head. "Don't tell me - it's a guy thing that I just wouldn't understand, right?" ********** Sean led the weary retinue into his room, flopping heavily into a chair. Emily took the other chair, and an assortment of others wordlessly filed in and sat down on the beds, the dresser, and the floor. "Long day," Dave said simply. "Yup." "Where should we go for dinner?" Emily asked as she glanced around the room. Len looked thoughtfully at the box, still full-sized in one corner of the room. "I want to try something first." He levered himself up from the bed and worked the controls. After a bit, he opened the door, stepped in, and the side vanished. Moments later, a sand trooper, clad in perfect armor, stepped from the box. The large backpack seemed to be perfectly detailed. Sean snorted. "At least if you're going to make a costume, make it a good one," he chided Len. "You've got one of the best sets of sand trooper armor in the entire Legion!" Len drew his blaster. "Maybe," he said, his voice sounding far off and just a touch electronically distorted. Just like the movie. Len walked to a window and opened it. He pointed the blaster into the air, and after glancing around the room, he pulled the trigger. Len and the others recoiled at the sharp sound of a blaster firing into the sky. "Holy shit!" Len cried as he stepped away from the window, staring at the blaster. "It really works!" Sean jumped up and grabbed the blaster. "Let me see that," he said sternly. He looked at the device, then he looked out the window again. He saw a neat hole in the screen where the blaster bolt had pierced it. "Hmmm," he said. He glanced around, then he pointed the blaster down toward the ground. He pulled the trigger, and another bolt shot out of the gun. Sean and the others winced as they saw shards of concrete blast free of a concrete column of a building under construction next door. "Damn!" Sean said as he gingerly handed the device back to Len. "That thing really _does_ work!" Len gingerly holstered the weapon. "Yeah. Just like I was thinking when I made the suit." For a few seconds, there was silence as the Garrison members considered the power the box had just demonstrated. "Hey!" Len interrupted. "You know how fast these costumes get hot?" Sean and the others nodded. "Yeah. So?" he asked. Len shook his head. "I'm not getting hot at all. It's like this thing is air conditioned or something!" Sean stepped closer to Len and bent over to study Len's armor. He even rapped the chest plate a couple of times. "Hey, this isn't like plastic," he reported, surprised. "It's feels like some kind of composite or something." Len peeled off his helmet. "Yeah, and the helmet is a little heavier, too. I was thinking of the way it's described in the 'Star Wars Encyclopedia'. And the box made it!" He grinned. "Cool!" "I wonder ...." Dave mused as he strode to the controls. He frowned as he thought, and the box was obviously having some trouble with his request. Several long minutes later, just as Dave was about to give up, the door opened. Dave stepped in. Out stepped the spitting image of Obi-Wan Kenobi from Attack of the Clones, clad in his Jedi robes. He hefted the lightsaber from his belt, and with a flick of the controls, it hissed to life. Gasps of astonishment coursed through the room. Not only could the box make a functional set of sand trooper armor and blaster, but it could also make a fictional weapon like a light saber. Dave swung the blade easily, then he shut it off. When everyone looked at him, he frowned. "Look," he said, "if it can make a real blaster, then this thing," he indicated his now inactive lightsaber, "could be really nasty." A college-age girl named Jenny moved to the control panel. "Hmmm ..." she mumbled half to herself. She touched the plate, her brow furrowed in concentration. Almost immediately, a familiar image appeared. But Jenny wasn't done. She closed her eyes to better focus, and the room got strangely silent as she concentrated. Finally, she took a deep breath and let it out heavily. She glanced over her shoulder at the rest of the gang, then she touched the purple knob. When Jenny emerged, she was Shaak Ti, clad in dark robes with large horns and striped lekku. In her hands, she carried the handle of a lightsaber. "Whoa!" Len said in admiration. "Pretty cool Shaak Ti!" Jenny smiled. "If it can make lightsabers, I wanted to see what else it can do." Emily's eyes widened. "You trying for force powers, maybe?" she asked hesitantly. Jenny grinned. "Yup." She closed her eyes, and at first, she seemed to be intensely concentrating. As she relaxed her intense focus, though, it seemed that something startled her, and she visibly flinched. Emily and Sean frowned. "What was that?" they asked almost in unison. Jenny opened her eyes wide with surprise. "It ... it works!" she said in astonishment. "How?" Jenny shook her head. "I don't know. Nothing was happening when I was concentrating, but when I relaxed, I could picture every one of you in my mind!" Emily's eyes widened. "Let's try something. We'll blindfold you, and then you describe who's behind you and what they're holding." Jenny nodded. After a lengthy and thorough test, Emily sank back onto the bed as Jenny took off the blindfold. "Wow!" she said in amazement. "It really _does_ work!" "What else can you do?" Len asked eagerly. "Levitate? Force push? Visions?" Jenny shook her head. "I ... I don't know." She sat down. "I was _thinking_ of all those things, but I really don't know what I got." She focused on a table. For a few moments, she seemed to be deeply concentrating, but finally, abruptly, she let out a sharp breath and sat back. "It's no use. I can't levitate things." From behind her, Sean tossed a rolled up sock. Almost before it was out of his hand, she had moved her hand and body to block it. And her lightsaber was drawn and ready. "Wow!" came a chorus of awed responses. "That's incredible!" Emily thought for a second. "Faster reflexes. Enhanced non- visual senses. It looks like it gave you what you were thinking of!" Jenny laughed. "And you can be sure I wasn't thinking of that midichlorian bullshit!" Dave scratched his chin as he walked back to the box. After a bit of concentration, he re-entered the device, emerging a few seconds later looking unchanged. "Want to try something?" he asked Jenny as he took his lightsaber from his belt. Everyone knew instantly that he'd used the device to acquire force powers, just like Jenny. Jenny nodded and stood, drawing her own lightsaber. The spectators drew back to give them as much space as possible. For several seconds, the two sparred ferociously, their blades flashing green and blue, with bright sparks as the blades touched. A lamp was sliced neatly in two and one drape was slashed before the two stopped and turned off their lightsabers. "Well, that's going to cost a little bit," Sean said dryly as he looked at the pieces of the lamp. Dave winced. "Oops," he said meekly. "Sorry." Emily laughed. "Don't worry about it. We'll take it out of the garrison funds." Jenny glanced around the room. "If you're all done playing, can we go get something to eat?" she asked. "I'm getting awfully hungry." Dave smiled. "Yeah. And let's go in costume." Emily glanced at Sean, and he could tell that she was thinking of something unusual. "Not like we are now. Let's make the costumes ... unique," she suggested. "Everyone pick a character. We'll put the names in a hat. And everyone will draw a character to become for the night." "Including the party circuit?" one guy asked, sounding a bit uneasy. Emily nodded. "Including the party circuit." Dave nodded, then he scratched his chin as he thought for a moment. "Human or humanoid. No Hutts. No B'Omarr monks. It has to be something that _you_ would be comfortable being all evening." He grinned. "Because _you_ might just draw the name and end up being that ... character!" One guy tilted his head. "Yoda?" Dave wrinkled his eyebrows, then he glanced around the room. "What do you think?" Everyone nodded or shrugged their assent. Then one guy spoke up. "If we draw, we might get stuck as a female character?" Dave glanced at Emily and Sean, who both nodded. "Yeah. That might happen." The guy shook his head. "Nope. Count me out." "Chicken!" "Candy ass!" "No curiosity?" The guy stared down his taunters, then he shut up and sat down, knowing he'd been dared and shamed into playing along. Emily passed out slips of paper, and each of the sixteen members wrote a character's name on the paper. As Emily collected them, her eyebrows raised. "Okay. Everyone draw a paper. I'll take the last one, just to be fair." As the slips were drawn, audible groans and moans indicated that some of the people were unhappy. Finally, Emily took the last one. "Interestingly, there are eight guys and eight girls, but there are nine female characters." Everyone glanced around, wondering the same thing - who had 'crossed over'? Chuck, the same guy who'd protested the potential for cross- gender costumes, scowled as the other garrison members stared at him. "Okay," he admitted harshly. "I figured if we were going to play this and I might get stuck, I might as well make sure I'm not the only one!" Sean had drawn Mara Jade, the red-haired former Emperor's Hand and force-using wife of Luke Skywalker, who'd appeared in numerous novels. Len drew Wedge Antilles, the X-wing pilot from both movies and novels. Dave got Aayla Secura, the blue- skinned Twilek Jedi woman. The other guys drew Admiral Daala, an attractive Imperial admiral from the Star Wars novels; Grand Admiral Thrawn, a chalky white-skinned red-eyed master Imperial admiral, again from the novels; Count Dooku, the Sith apprentice from Attack of the Clones; Jaina Solo, daughter of Han and Leia and a Jedi from the novels. As he'd feared, Chuck drew a female character - Padme Amidala in her white jumpsuit. Things were equally interesting for the women. Emily drew Corran Horn, a Jedi from the Star Wars novels. Dave's girlfriend Anne drew Asajj Ventress, a dark-side apprentice to Count Dooku from the animated Clone Wars series. Jenny, by strange coincidence, drew Shaak Ti, the exotic Jedi master, and thus didn't have to change. The other ladies drew Darth Vader; Darth Maul; Ysanne Isard, a strikingly beautiful Imperial Intelligence officer with one blue eye and one red eye, from the novels; Lyn Me, the white-skinned Twilek dancer; and finally, Kir Kanos, a member of the Emperor's Royal Guard in his classic red helmet and robes. Emily glanced around the group. Some of the people, especially those who'd swapped genders, seemed highly uncomfortable. Chuck, for example, was staring down at his breasts as if he didn't know whether to feel himself up or to cover them with his hands to hide them. "Ready?" "Yup," Len - Corran Horn - quickly answered. "Not really," the guys who'd become Padme and Jaina Solo rebutted quickly. Anne grinned. "Past time to chicken out." Since she was closest to the door, she turned to open it so the group could leave. Instead, she was interrupted by a knock. She glanced at Emily and Sean. "Who is it?" "Kent Myers," came the muffled answer through the door. Emily nodded to Anne, who opened the door. She started at the sizable contingent standing outside the room, filling the hallway. "Uh, can we, uh, like, borrow ...?" Kent started to ask, not sure who was whom. Emily laughed. "I'm over here," she answered in her Wedge Antilles voice. "And no, you can't borrow it. But I can help you guys change - I _assume_ that's what you're here for, right?" Kent glanced at Rich, then around the group. "Uh, yeah. I wasn't ... you know." "I mean," Rich blurted out, "it _is_ your box. But we'd like to change for the night." Emily and the others laughed aloud. "Yeah, I think we understand." Emily glanced around the room. "It's a bit crowded in here, so why don't you guys wait on the mezzanine. Sean and I will be down in a few minutes." A _few_ minutes took nearly half an hour. There were almost forty changes, and the list read like a "Who's Who" of Star Wars. One guy became Luke Skywalker, with the blast helmet and a training droid hovering obediently at his shoulder. Emily had to warn him that his lightsaber actually worked, lest he injure someone accidentally. A husband and wife turned into the Tonnika sisters, a pair of twin con artists who'd appeared in the Mos Eisley cantina. Another pair switched roles as he became Winter, Leia's assistant and friend, while she became Tycho Celchu, the rebel and eventual husband to Winter. One girl became Guri, the stunningly beautiful 'enforcer' for Prince Xizor's criminal enterprise, and her boyfriend became the reptilian-looking green-skinned Prince Xizor himself. There was a Mace Windu, an Adi Gallia, and a father-son team became Jango and Boba Fett. Admiral Motti, Ki-Adi-Mundi, C3PO, Rhystall, the white- skinned bounty hunter Aurra Sing, Luke Skywalker in the red armor of the Imperial Guards from the "Shadows of the Empire" novel. A few simply changed their clothes into costumes like Jedi robes, stormtrooper and clone trooper armor, and X-wing and TIE fighter pilots. The costumes and characters were from both the movies and the 'Expanded Universe', or novels and graphic novels which supplemented the Star Wars universe. Just as they were finishing, one guy burst into the room out of breath. "Oh good," he panted. "It's not too late." Emily and Sean looked over the newcomer, then Sean gestured to Kent. "Who's he? I don't recognize him," Emily whispered. Kent looked over the young man. "Mark Westin. I think he's from Orlando. I bumped into him last night. He just joined the Legion last month." Sean looked over the man carefully as he operated the controls. Around twenty-eight, trim to the point of looking athletic, he seemed - somehow - to be out of place. But anxious to get to dinner with their friends, Emily and Sean merely shrugged and let the guy finish his changes. When everyone had left, Emily collapsed the box, hid it behind the curtains, and followed Sean. ********** As the elevator doors closed, Emily couldn't hold her snickering any longer. She still appeared as Corran Horn, and her chuckles turned to outright laughter. "That was so fun!" she exclaimed as tears of mirth ran down her cheeks. She glanced at Darth Maul. "You scared the pants off that poor waiter!" The girl who'd become Darth Maul for the evening grinned wickedly. "Serves him right! Serving me lukewarm soup, and then serving a burned steak! Poor bastard probably had to change his shorts!" The steak really wasn't burned, but well done. Len laughed. "And all the people who thought you guys were really the major stars!" He laughed. "As if real stars would eat at a place like that!" Sean, feeling the effects of two glasses of wine, leaned against Emily. "Just as long as no one tries to pretend that they really _are_ a star," he said slowly. It was an easy statement for him to make. His character, Mara Jade, had never been portrayed by an actress. She existed only in novels and in some drawings. All of the drawings featured her as a curvy attractive redhead, a description that now fit Sean. Dave frowned. "I'm not thrilled with all the guys trying to hit on me," he complained. He saw Chuck's glare. "At least everyone recognizes Natalie Portman, and since they think you're her, they leave you alone." He laughed. "You're out of their league!" He put his arm around Sean's shoulder. "Not so for us less _well- known_ women!" Chuck took a deep breath, puffing out his chest in a manly display of defiance. Unfortunately for him, in the tight white jumpsuit, it just accentuated his bust line and made him look like he was jealous of the other female bodies. "Well, that's just _one_ of the benefits of being famous," he said with mock condescension. Sean slapped him. "You're so bad!" "Indeed," the man who appeared as Count Dooku said simply. "Bad enough to turn to the Dark Side, perhaps?" Anne turned to face Dooku. "You already _have_ an apprentice, my master!" she hissed with feigned menace. "Or have you forgotten?" By the time the elevator stopped, everyone was holding his or her sides from laughing too hard and the seemingly unending stream of Star Wars-related inside jokes. "Which party first?" the girl costumed as Isard asked. Emily put her arm around Sean to steady him, since he was a bit tipsy. "Follow the noise. We'll go to the loudest one first." She glanced around. "Where's Jenny?" Sean shrugged. "She went back - to change again." Emily frowned. "We were going to stay in costume all evening." Dave laughed. "Become Yoda, she wished to. Change her mind, we could not," he said in his best imitation of Yoda's voice and strange grammar. Sean's eyes widened