killed, leaving only the most lethal of each force to stalk each other.
"Nothing we've doneincluding the conquest of Coruscantwill be compared
favorably with the destruction of the Death Stars and Palpatine's death, yet as
I look back on what we've done, I feel a greater sense of accomplishment now
than I ever have before. Yavin and Endor were battles we had to fight and had to
win because if we did not our movement would be exterminated. We fought with the
abandon of people who knew, either way, they were dead; and desperation, while
not pretty, can often be very potent and deadly."
He glanced down for a second, then looked back up.
"Our missions have been no less critical in the destruction of the Empire than
those that went before, but they were differ-ent. We took the war to the Empire.
We made plans and successfully improvised when those plans fell apart. We did
things that no onenot even the seemingly prescient Talon Karrdecould have
expected us to do.
"And we did things no one could have ordered us to do. We accepted the burden of
responsibility thrust upon us and overcame the obstacles in our way. That has
always been the Rogue Squadron tradition, but you've added a new layer to it
You survived those missions. For that I'm most thankful, because I did not join
Rogue Squadron to lose friends."
He reached down, accepted a tumbler of Corellian whisky from a serving droid,
then raised it on high in his left hand. "I would ask all of you to lift your
glasses and join me in a toast. To Rogue Squadronpast, present, and future.
Those who oppose freedom and liberty oppose us. Let that fact give them pause to
think and encouragement to travel the path of peace."
Star Wars - X-Wing - The Bacta War Page 40
