- "Mon Mothma can't actually see the future. She used to know people who could, but the last of them is dead now, too."
- ―Excerpt from "Contingency Plan"
"Contingency Plan" is a short story in the anthology From a Certain Point of View. The story, written by Alexander Freed, focuses on the point of view of Mon Mothma during the Battle of Yavin.
Plot summary[]
Prior to the Battle of Yavin, the Rebel Alliance's leader, Mon Mothma, grapples with her fear that the rebel assault on the Death Star would end in defeat. In the event that the rebels lose the battle, Mon Mothma has compiled a list of rebel cells, coded contact frequencies, safe houses, and stolen Imperial documents. General Jan Dodonna warns that even if the rebels win, they would still need to dismantle the whole base. If things don't go well, he warns that Mon Mothma would be all that is left of the Rebellion.
In anticipation of Princess Leia Organa's arrival, Mothma orders every droid in the base to analyze the Death Star plans for weaknesses in the superweapon since she is certain that the Death Star is on its way. Her aide Cianne arrives with a pair of duffels containing fresh clothes, small arms, and some mementos. As a contingency plan in the event of a rebel defeat, Mothma and Cianne depart on a shuttle. Before leaving, she tells General Dodonna to give thanks to Princess Leia.
During the journey, Mothma imagines a worst case scenario where the Empire hunt down and slaughter the scattered remnants of the Rebel Alliance. She fears that a death squad will one day find her and Cianne hiding in their shuttle in the radiation belt of a black hole. She fears that the Rebellion she built will be erased from history. During the journey, Cianne identifies at least five safe houses and two remote planets. However, she warns that they cannot count on the mobile squadrons since they have not managed to regroup yet.
Rejecting the idea of safe houses and the Outer Rim worlds, Mon Mothma advocates that they travel to Coruscant, the heart of the Empire, in the event that the rebels lose the Battle of Yavin. She rationalizes that she is unwilling to risk the further destruction of other rebellious worlds including Mon Cala, Menthusa, and Denon. While she has learned to stomach sending children into battle, Mothma is unwilling to abide with the loss of whole planets. While bidding their time waiting, Mon suggests that they should have waited for the Princess. Cianne disagrees and says that Leia would never have come. When Mon says that she owes Leia's father, Cianne responds that Bail owed her and that Leia is paying off that debt now.
While writing up her surrender speech to Emperor Palpatine, Mothma imagines the worst case scenario of her surrendering to the Empire in order to prevent the destruction of further planets. As Mothma wrestles with her worst fears, she hears laughter from the cockpit. Cianne soon enters the passenger lounge and informs the rebel leader that the Death Star has been destroyed and that the rebels have won. As the shuttle adjusts course, Mon Mothma resolves not to speak of her contingency plan again. While confident of victory, Mothma realizes that the conflict will not end swiftly and that many more children will die in combat.
Appearances[]
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Sources[]
How The Last Jedi Novelization Connects to A Galaxy of Star Wars Books and Comics on StarWars.com (backup link)
