"Starlight, Part One: Go Together" by Charles Soule

"Starlight, Part One: Go Together" by Charles Soule

This sucker was not easy to find at all!! It is a short story that was exclusively published in Issue #199 of the "Star Wars Insider" magazine. And let me tell you what...that issue sold like hot cakes! I managed to find a way to purchase a digital copy of the issue through Zinio, a company I had never heard of before. I'm just super thankful I was able to snag my own copy so I wouldn't be left in the dark on part of the High Republic storyline!! And apparently there's a part 2 in Issue #200...which I also have to locate...

While a very simple and straightforward story plot-wise, the characters of Joss and Pikka Adren (from the adult novel Light of the Jedi) are deepened and made more complex in this 3-page tale. You'll recall these two characters from my review of Light of the Jedi as contractors from Starlight Beacon who just so happened to get tangled up in the Hetzal System disaster, causing them to miss out on a fancy, secret vacation Pikka had planned for her and her husband. 

I was a bit disappointed at how incredibly short this story was as I've read some "Star Wars Insider" tales that are many pages long, but the plot was succinct and contained and it didn't feel like anything was left out...so honestly, it worked as is and quite well at that!

In Light of the Jedi we learned about the various Outer Rim biomes that were to be represented at the Starlight Beacon station to celebrate the variety of life found in this frontier part of the galaxy. In this story we additionally learn that the canteens serve dishes from all over the Outer Rim, the station's structure used metallic ores from many different worlds, and people living and working on the station were purposefully people from myriad different Outer Rim locations.

On to the plot...So Joss and Pikka are packing up to leave Starlight Beacon after having worked on it for several months. According to Joss, "He and Pikka were project managers, specialists in bringing large-scale construction jobs to completion. They worked out last-minute bugs in the code, silenced rattling pipes, dealt with coolant leaks." Well, they're supposed to be going on a super secret vacation courtesy of Pikka, but her nose is in her datapad with a concerned look on her face. She's noticed an energy spike just outside of the Starlight Beacon's Jedi Temple and the two head off to investigate. They run into Shai Tennem, the Bith construction overseer for the Beacon, some Jedi, and Admiral Kronara (another major player in Light of the Jedi!...which makes sense as it is the capital ship that Pikka and Joss are traveling on to Coruscant that gets diverted to the Hetzal system to deal with The Great Disaster). After worming their way away from the tour group, Pikka and Joss set off to figure out the mystery of the energy spike. The actual explanation for what's wrong with the wiring is quite complex, but I'll just leave it at "a resistor hub had burned out. It was acting like a dam within the power distributors, not letting energy past, just collecting it and boosting it." With some finesse and the use of Pikka's smaller arms, they fix the problem and manage to make it just in time to catch their ship for their vacation...a vacation which we all know never happens because of The Great Disaster.

The character building present in this story was what really stood out. We learn that Pikka absolutely loves solving puzzles and that this energy spike is to her indeed a puzzle. On Joss's end, "Joss kept maps in his head; one reason he was so good at his job. He studied worksites until he had the systems and sub-systems memorized".  As for their relationship with each other, Joss thinks, "He was crazy about this woman. It was mostly her mind--she saw the galaxy in a way he didn't, which meant she constantly surprised and delighted him--but he loved her small-but-not-delicate body too, and her weird curly hair. Pikka was just...home. No matter where they were, she was home." And Pikka feels much the same way about him, "She always knew when her husband was near--either she felt good, warm and strong, or she didn't. That simple." I really love how this short story is able to further flesh out two fairly important characters from Light of the Jedi. Stellar work by Charles Soule!! I'm definitely excited to see what more is added to their development in "Part 2"!

One ridiculous bit of trivia: the part of the station that contains the burned out resistor hub is Conduit 398-GX14.

Looking forward to seeing how they continue this story in Part 2. Since we already know what happens in regards to The Great Disaster, perhaps it'll give us some details on what happens to Joss and Pikka post-helping out?? A story taking the plot beyond the dedication of Starlight Beacon would be quite welcome at this point. I get setting up the story, but goodness have they set up the story in a variety of different formats without moving forward really at all. Don't get me wrong, all the stories have been fabulous...I'm just still wanting the plot to advance... Regardless, this was definitely a fun tale and Charles Soule continues to be amazing!!