moving target: a princess leia...
TRANSCRIPT
Contents
TitlePageCopyrightProloguePartOneChapter01:ImperialAttackChapter02:TheCostofDutyChapter03:AFamiliarFaceChapter 04: Resurrection ofEvilChapter05:AJediinWaiting
Chapter 06: OperationYellowMoonChapter07:TheChancellor’sCounselChapter 08: The TeamAssembledPartTwoChapter 09: Life DuringWartimeChapter 10: Mission toBasteelChapter 11: Dwellers in theDark
Chapter12:BrokenCodesChapter13:TheIslesofSesidChapter 14: AquaticPredatorsChapter 15: The DraedanPiratesChapter16:IntheFieldsPartThreeChapter 17: A RoyalDecisionChapter18:WaronJareshChapter 19: Wrath of theShieldmaiden
Chapter 20: Rendezvous atYellowMoonChapter 21: Belly of theBeastChapter 22: Heroes of theRebellionChapter 23: Honoring theLostEpilogueAbouttheAuthors
©&TM2015LucasfilmLtd.Allrightsreserved.PublishedbyDisney•
LucasfilmPress,animprintofDisneyBookGroup.Nopartofthisbookmaybereproducedortransmittedinanyformorbyanymeans,electronicormechanical,includingphotocopying,recording,orbyanyinformation
storageandretrievalsystem,withoutwrittenpermissionfromthepublisher.ForinformationaddressDisney•
LucasfilmPress,1101FlowerStreet,Glendale,California91201.
DesignedbyJasonWojtowicz
Alongtimeagoinagalaxyfar,faraway.…
ReelingfromtheirdisastrousdefeatonHoth,theheroicfreedomfightersofthe
REBELALLIANCEhavescatteredthroughoutspace,pursuedbytheagentsofthe
sinisterGALACTICEMPIRE.
OnerebeltaskforceprotectsPRINCESSLEIA,bearingherinsecrecyfromstartostar.AsthelastsurvivorofAlderaan’sHouseofOrgana,Leiaisasymboloffreedom,huntedbytheEmpireshehas
opposedforsolong.
ThestruggleagainstImperialtyrannyhasclaimedmanyrebellives.AstheEmpireclosesin,Leiaresolvesto
makeasacrificeofherown,lestthecauseoffreedombeextinguishedfromthegalaxy.
…
PZ-4CO WAS BACK, andthistimeLeiaOrganawastooweary to come up with agood excuse thatwould sendheraway.
“General Organa, I havebeen requested to assist youin recording your memoirs,”the tall, blue-plated protocol
droid said. “I have madeseven previous requests.WhenImademyfirstrequestforty-four days ago, you said—”
“I rememberwhat I said,Peazy,” Leia interrupted,leaning against the doorwaythatledintoherquarters.Thedroid looked at heruncertainly, clearly havingexpectedtobeinvitedinside.
“WhenImadethesecond
request thirty-eight days ago,yourstatedreason—”
“We’renotgoingoverallseven requests and how Iresponded to them,” Leiasaid, folding her arms.Suddenly,C-3PO’smanyoddhabits didn’t seem so bad.“Now remind me again whythisissoimportant?”
The droid cocked herhead at Leia, who allowedherselfaslightsmile.Peazy’s
programming hadn’tanticipatedthatquestion.
“I would imagine thereason is obvious,” PZ-4COsaid. “You were a criticallyimportant member of theRebel Alliance during theGalacticCivilWar,aveteranofkeybattles suchasYavin,Hoth,andEndor—”
“That was a long timeago,” Leia said, her eyesturning cold. “We’re on the
brink of war again—one wemay not survive. In whichcasenoneofthosethingswillmatter.”
“Those things areessential,”thedroidobjected.“You are the leader of theResistance,acriticalcheckonthedesignsoftheFirstOrder.You are a symbol of theResistance and an inspirationtoallsoldierswhofollowourcause and do their duty in
hardtimes.”“Duty,”Leiasaid,smiling
sadly,thenshookherhead.“I have given offense
somehow,” the droid saidtentatively.
“You haven’t. But thoseare someone else’s words.Who have you been talkingto,Peazy?”
“Major Ematt has beenvery helpful in preparingmeto interview you,” the droid
said.“I might have known,”
Leia said, smiling at themention of the man she hadfoughtalongsideforsomanyyears.
“Very well, I surrender,”she said, indicating that thedroid should come inside.“Where would you like tobegin? No, never mind. Youmentioned duty. As ithappens, I’ve been thinking
about that, too—about alesson I learned many yearsago. It’s one I think everymember of the Resistancewoulddowelltomaster.”
BYTHETIMEtheysawtheTIEfighters,itwastoolate.
Princess Leia Organadidn’tevenknowthenameofthe system they were flyingthrough—it was little morethan a small dim sun, a palepurple gas giant, and a vastfield of rocks and dust that
gravityhadn’tquitemanagedtosqueezeintoaplanet.
Sensor operators aboardLeia’sNebulon-Bfrigate, theRemembrance, had spottedthe Imperial fighterswingingthroughthetumblingrocks—which meant the TIEs hadalso spotted the rebels. Theywheeled out of the asteroidsand bore down on the smallrebel convoy: theRemembrance, two GR-75
transports, and a quartet ofblockaderunners.
Asklaxonsbegan tohootaboard the Remembrance,Leia crossed the bridge tostand beside Captain VolkAymeric. The green-skinnedIshi Tib stared up at aholographic representation ofthe system, the locations ofthe rebel and Imperial shipsmarked by arrows andcrosses. Aymeric held his
armscalmlybehindhisback,but his eyestalks werequiveringfaintly.
Leia forcedherself tosaynothing. She was one of theprincipal leaders of theRebellion, but Aymericcommandedtheship.Itmadefor an awkward relationship.Leia didn’t want Aymeric’screw to think shewas tellingtheir captainwhat to do, andsheknew the IshiTibofficer
felt the same way abouthaving an important rebelleader aboard his ship. Theywerealwayssayingtoomuchtoeachother,ortoolittle.
“Send our starfighterpicketstointercept—andstepup your scans,” Aymericordered.
“Those are short-rangefighters,” Leia said. “Andthere are no known bases inthis system. That’s why we
took this course throughhyperspace.”
Aymeric’s left eyestalkswiveledinherdirection,andhe opened his beak in whatshe’dlearnedwashisspecies’versionofafrown.
“Exactly,” he said.“Which means there’s acarrier out there. Patch theaudio from the fighters into—”
“Captain!”yelledasensor
officer. “Three ships comingout of hyperspace in sectorthree-F!”
“Pull the fighters back todefendtheconvoy,”Aymericsaid.
Thebridgewasaflurryofactivity. Sensors painted thenew arrivals as a trio ofArquitens-class light cruisers—an identification quicklyconfirmedbyabridgeofficer.Leia could picture them
hurtling through space—elongated triangles withforked snouts, attached tothreecylindricalengines.
Someone fed thetransmissions sent by the sixX-wing pilots on patrol intothe bridge comm system,filling thespacearound themwith chatter. Aymeric’seyestalks pivotedindependently to look at theholographicdisplayandfocus
on members of the bridgecrew calling out newinformation.
“The cruisers arescrambling fighters!” a crewmemberwarned.
“Fire at will,” Aymericsaid. “Order all craft tocalculate the jump intohyperspace—we’ll regroupatthe rendezvous pointdetermined by scatterprotocolBesh.”
The Remembrance’sturbolasersbegan to fire, andthe deck beneath their feetshookslightlywitheachblastofenergysentoutintospace.
At Aymeric’s side, Leiaclenchedherhands into fists.She was useless there. Shefelt like she was standingalongside her adoptiveparents, Bail and Breha,waiting through one ofAlderaan’s endless royal
ceremonies andknowing thatshe could let no emotionshowonherface—becauseitwould be seen and talkedabout. She’d oncecomplained to one of heraunts that being a princesshad to be about more thansilently doing one’s duty—only to have her aunt reply,with a sad smile, that she’djust described most of aprincess’sjob.
“Arethereanyotherrebelunits within hailing range?”Leiaasked,hatingtheideaofbeing chased off by three ofthe Empire’s smallerwarships.
“Negative,” Aymericsaid. “With the Empirelooking for us everywhere,the fleet is completelyscattered—broken into smallconvoys like ours. It’s saferthatway.”
Exceptwhenweneedhelpand there’s none to be had,Leiathought.
She saw flashes of lightthrough the broad viewportsof theRemembrance’sbridgeandfeltthefrigateshudderaslaser fire splashed across itsshields.
They heard an X-wingpilot howl, his voice risingand then vanishing in static.One of the crosses on
Aymeric’s holographicdisplayblinkedandvanished.Another rebel had lost hislife, meaning another grimmessage sent to fall like alightning strike on the heartof a parent or sweetheart.How many was that now?She shied away from evenattempting such a terriblecalculation.
Three of the blockaderunners jumped into the
safetyof hyperspace.TheX-wings were streaking forsafety, as well. Leia couldhear their pilots urging theirastromechdroidstomakethenavigational calculationsmorequickly.
“Captain,Ihaveaprioritysignal from the Ranolfo,” ayoung lieutenant called,identifying one of theblockade runners. “They’velosttheirstarboardshields.”
“How long till they canmake the jump intohyperspace?”Aymericasked.
The lieutenant spokeurgentlyintohisheadset,thenshook his head. “At leastthreeminutes.”
“Captain, our course islocked in andwe’re ready tojump,”thehelmsmancalled.
“We’re leaving them?”Leiaasked.
Heads turned on the
bridge and Aymeric’s beakopened. “Turn to oh-thirty-eighttocoverthem,”hesaid,notlookingatLeia.
The Remembrancebanked to starboard,turbolasers spitting fire in aneffort to keep the swarmingTIEs away from thevulnerable blockade runner.Leia stared grimly at thedisplay hanging in the air infront of her—three crosses
andfartoomanyarrowheads.Then the Remembrance
lurched and a shudder rolledthrough it, followed by agroanandthewailofalarms.
“Damage report!”Aymericbarked.
“Hullbreach just forwardof the connecting spar—andsecondaryshieldsaredowntofifteenpercent!”
The Ishi Tib’s shouldersslumped. “Make the jump to
hyperspace on mycommand.”
“Captain—” Leia began,butAymericturnedtoher,hisvoicequietsoonlyshecouldhear.
“I won’t let the men andwomen aboard the Ranolfodieinvain,Princess,”hesaid.“Theyhavethesamemissionaseverybeinginthisconvoy—and that’s to keep yousafe.”
Leialookedaway,forcingherself to unclench her fists,to breathe. Her face wasimpassive when she lookedbackatAymericandnodded.She barely registered thesound of the command hebarkedatthenavigatororthesight of the stars elongatinginto streaks as theRemembrance vanished intohyperspace, leaving thedoomed blockade runner
behind.
WHEN LEIA LEFT theRemembrance’s bridge, afamiliar figure was waitingon the other side of the door—a protocol droid withgoldenplating.
C-3PO started to saysomething, but she keptwalking,forcinghimtohurry
along beside her, hisservomotors whining. She’dordered him to stay off thebridge—their situation wasstressful enough withoutThreepio’s incessant frettingandcomplaining.
The droid belonged toLukeSkywalkerbuthadbeenlent to Leia to assist withetiquette and protocol whenshe met with secretdelegations from planets that
couldaid theRebellion in itswartooverthrowtheEmpire.As the former senator fromAlderaan,Leiawasateaseinsuchmeetings,abletocallona lifetime of diplomatictraining.
But there had been nosuch meetings recently—justendless flight through spacein an effort to stay one stepahead of Imperial patrols.After the Alliance’s
disastrous defeat on the iceplanet Hoth, Mon Mothmaand the rebel leadership hadorderedthefleettobreakintosmall task forces that wereconstantly jumping from starsystemtostarsystem.
Mothma had explainedthat the safeguards weredesigned to prevent anotherdefeat for Imperialpropagandists to celebrate.But Leia worried that the
constant flight made theAlliance look weak when itneeded to convince peoplethattheEmperor’sgripcouldbe broken. The Alliance hadto gather its forces again—and win victories on thebattlefield.
“MistressLeia,whereareyou going?” C-3PO askedplaintively,shufflingalonginher wake as quickly as hecould.
“To my quarters,” Leiasaid without turning. “Iassumeyou rememberwheretheyare?”
“Of course I do,” saidThreepio, whose knowledgeof etiquette somehow didn’tinclude recognizing sarcasm.“My memory banks containschematics of every ship towhich I’ve been assignedwhileservingtheAlliance.”
“That’s an excellent use
of your memory banks,considering how many ofthose ships are now spacedust.”
RebelssalutedLeiaasshepassed.Shewanted to cringeeach time someone did thatbut forced herself to nod inreturn.Itwasasignofrespectfor her as their superior, buttheywerenotherfriends.
She had never had manyfriends. She’d been too
focused on the mission forwhich Bail Organa hadtrained her practically sincebirth—the overthrow of theEmpire thathaddestroyedsomuch.But thenLukeenteredher life—along with HanSoloandChewbacca.
Threepio said somethingthat didn’t register, becauseshe was thinking of the lasttime she’d seen Han—of hiseyes as he’d stared up at her
from inside Cloud City’scarbon-freezing chamber.And then of everything elsethey’d shared in the fewweeksbeforethat.Howshe’dbegun to tremble when he’dtaken her hand aboard theMillennium Falcon, drawingsteadily closer until he’dfinally kissed her.He’d beenrightabouther—shedidneeda scoundrel in her life,someonewhowouldn’tsalute
her,whodidn’tcareabouthertitle or her role in theAlliance.
Shewanted that someoneto be him, but he’d beentaken from her—like heradoptive father and motherhad been, along witheveryone else on herhomeworld of Alderaan.She’d seen them die,incinerated by the DeathStar’ssuperlaserwhileGrand
MoffTarkinandDarthVaderforcedhertowatch.AndnowHan was gone, beyond herreach. All she could do waswait—in quiet desperation—for word from LandoCalrissianorChewbacca.
Leia passed a cluster ofrebel personnel crouched infrontofanopendoorandhadgone two steps past themwhensherealizednoneoftherebels had saluted—or even
lookedupather.She stopped, silencingC-
3PO’scomplaints.Oneoftherebelslookedupandshesawhis face change as herecognized her.He started tocome to attention, but sheshookherhead,staringdownat the young woman on therepulsorcartinthecorridor,ather shredded and blackeneduniform.
“Oh,”Threepiosaid.“Oh,
my.”“What happened?” Leia
asked.“She was caught in the
blastwhentheTIEsbreachedthe hull, ma’am,” the officersaid. “We’re stabilizing herherewhilethemedicaldroidsdealwiththosewhoaremorebadlywounded.”
Morebadlywoundedthanthis?Leia thought indismay,lookingatthegauzecovering
half the woman’s face. Theinjured rebel saw who waslooking at her and shakilylifted one bandaged arm,tryingtosalute.
“That’s not…” Leiabegan, then stopped,remembering what Aymerichad said. The duty of thewoman on the repulsorcartwas to protect Leia, and shehad paid a terrible priceperforming that duty. Leia
could resent the specialtreatment, even find itappalling,butshecouldn’tletthe injured young rebel seethat. To make her think hersacrifice had beenpurposeless would dishonorher.
Leiafixedhereyesontheinjured rebel’s face. Thewoman grimaced, bringingherarmupfarther, thenlet itfall, pain etched on her face.
Leia nodded gravely at her,then at those around her.Then she hurried down thecorridor and didn’t stop untilshe was at the door to herquarters.
“Ikeeptryingtotellyou,Mistress Leia,” C-3PO said.“I have a prioritycommunication from MonMothma. We are torendezvous with her and therestoftheAllianceleadership
immediately.”“What? Why didn’t you
say so? Never mind. What’shappened?”
“I’mafraid Idon’tknow,Mistress Leia,” C-3PO said.“AllIknowiswearetoawaittransport once we come outofhyperspace.”
TO HER SURPRISE, Leiarecognized the transportpilotwaiting for her and theyoung, lean-faced rebelofficerstandingnexttohim.
“Nien!” she said, smilingat the dark-eyed Sullustan.NienNunbhadpinnedarebelinsignia to his worn flight
jacket at a cockeyed angle,somehow finding a place forit amid the riot of patchesalreadythere.
Nienputhisglovedhandson his hips in mockindignation.
“Escorting royalty!” heburbled in Sullustese. “If I’dknown, I’d have charged theAlliance twice what I did.LieutenantEmatt,Iinsistyouget Mon Mothma on the
comm.…”“What nerve,” sniffed C-
3PO,standingbehindLeia inthe Remembrance’s airlockwith her duffel bag. “Musteveryone in this galaxy be amercenary?”
“He’s joking, Threepio,”Leia said. Yes, Nien was aformer smuggler—and talkedas though he hadn’t left thatprofession entirely behind—but he had risked his life to
help Leia save Alderaanianexiles and preserve thedestroyedplanet’scultureandheritage. She trusted him—andwasgladtoseehim.
Her eyes turned to theofficer next to Nien. Sheknew Ematt, as well—she’doncesentHanandChewietorescue him from the planetCyrkon.
“Are you here to briefme?”sheaskedasthefourof
themcrossedthedockingbayto the Mellcrawler, Nien’scobbled-together star yacht.The chaos and clutter insidemade theMillenniumFalconlook like a spit-and-polishshipofftheline.
“Afraid not, Princess,”Ematt said. “The purpose ofthistripisclassified.”
“Classified?” C-3PO saidin disbelief, throwing hishead back in a fashion that
Leia knew all too well. “I’llhave you know, sir, thatPrincessLeiasafeguardedtheplanstotheDeath—”
“Technically, Threepio,that information remainsclassified,aswell,”Leiasaidwith a smile, enjoying thegolden droid’s horrifiedreaction. “Lieutenant Ematt’ssaying he doesn’t know thereasonforourtriphimself.”
“That’sright,”Emattsaid.
“Can I at least knowwhere we’re going?” Leiaasked, lookingfromEmatt towhere Nien was scrutinizingareadoutattheMellcrawler’sengineeringstation.
“That’s classified, too,”Nien said, one corner of hismouth crooking upward.“Can’tbe toocarefulhaulingaroundknownrevolutionariesandblabbermouthdroids.”
ThatsetoffC-3POagain.
As the droid began lecturingNien, the Sullustan lockeddown his engineering stationand led them forward,chuckling at Threepio’slengthyobjectionstothetermblabbermouth.
Leia smiled, too. Nienknew who she was, but hedidn’ttreatherlikeaprincessorasenatororarebelleader.To him, she was just Leia—anditwasareliefnottohave
to be more than that. Nienwas odd in a way she liked,and encounters with odd butlovely people were too briefinthatterriblewar.
Ematt settled himself inthe cockpit’s navigator’schair,shakinghisheadat themaze of circuitry overhead.Leiasawthelookandsmiled,remembering how manytimes she’d been convincedtheFalconwasheld together
with bonding tape andprayers.
Nien turned and stoppedC-3PO before he entered thecockpit.
“Afraidthere’sonlyroomfor three,” he said, spreadinghisarmsapologetically.“Youcanplugintotheengineeringstation and keep theMellcrawler’s droid braincompany.”
“Unless my
photoreceptors aremalfunctioning, this cockpitappearstocontainfourchairs,Captain Nunb,” said apuzzledThreepio.
“Right,” Nien said. “But,um, that chair isn’t properlygrounded. Gives me a nastyshock every time I touch it.With your high-qualityplating, we could have asuperconductingevent—blowuptheship.AndIdon’tthink
you’d want that on yourconscience,wouldyou?”
“Oh! If you don’t mindme saying so, Captain, amalfunction of that sortsounds like something aqualified starship engineershould investigateimmediately.”
“Excellent advice,Threepio—I’ll do just thatwhen we reach ourdestination,” Nien said. “But
for now, I’d suggest theengineering station. Hopeyou’ve got some good jokesfor the Mellcrawler—shelikes those. But keep ’emclean,okay?”
“I regret to inform youthatIamnotprogrammedforjokes,”Threepiosaid.
“Truly? I never wouldhaveguessed.”
“Don’t be too hard onThreepio,”Leiasaidafter the
droid had departed. “Hemeanswell.”
“I’ll make it up to himwith the best oil bath theAlliance has to offer,” Nienpromised, strapping himselfin to the pilot’s seat andwarminguptheengines.
“At the risk of pullingrank,now can I knowwherewe’regoing?”Leiaasked.
“Zastiga,”Niensaid.“Forwhat I gather is a very
importantmeeting.”Leia glanced at Ematt,
who nodded. Zastiga was atumbledowntradeworldneartheedgeoftheOuterRim,onthe fringes of the galaxy andrarelyvisitedbytheEmpire.
As the Mellcrawlersoared away from theRemembrance, Leia felt anodd tingling she’dexperiencedbeforeandcometo trust. It meant that she’d
soon find herself doingsomething of criticalimportancefortheRebellion.
That meant no morestanding around feelinguseless on the bridge of afrigate. It meant action. Andthatwasanevenbiggerreliefthan getting to talk with heroldfriendNien.
THE JOURNEY TOZASTIGA was a long one,during which Leia’seagernessforactiongavewayto impatience and anxiety.Every hour the MellcrawlerspenthurtlingdeeperintotheOuter Rim felt full of peril.She pictured Imperial Star
Destroyers descendingthrough the skies of worldswith rebel sympathies,bringingfireanddeath.
Lying in her bunk, shewould imagine Han free ofhiscarboniteprison,tryingtosummonalastbraveshowofdefiance as the crime lordJabbatheHuttsentencedhimtodeath.Thoughofcoursehemight already be dead. Orcastadriftinspace,aspeckof
carbonite never to be found.Orworse.NocrueltywastooinventiveforJabba.
As she stared into thegloom, other faces wouldcome to her. She thought oftheyoungwomanlyinginthecorridoroftheRemembrance.Where was she? Beingtreated in bacta? Or had shebeenmorebadlyinjuredthanher rebel comrades hadthought? When the medical
droidfinallyreachedher,haditbeentoolate?
She remembered thepilots she’d briefed back onHoth,youngmenandwomensentuptwoatatimeintotheteeth of lurking StarDestroyers. How many ofthem had died beforereaching the rendezvouspoint?
She remembered thetroopers aboard her blockade
runner above Tatooine,hurryingtotakeupdefensivepositions against DarthVader’s stormtroopers.They’d had the grim, emptyeyes ofmenwho knew theirliveshaddwindledtothelastfewminutes.
And always there werethe faces of her adoptiveparents,BailandBreha.Theymusthavehadsomewarningof the Death Star’s arrival
above Alderaan. The battlestation hadn’t firedimmediately but had waited—waitedsoGovernorTarkincould try to extractinformation from Leia andtorment her with her ownhelplessness.
What had her parentsseen? A screen imagecaptured by a defensivesatellite? A fixed, bright starin the sky where no star
shouldbe?Andwhat had they done,
there before the end? Hadthey tried to escape? Orsimply waited, as bravely asthey could, for theunimaginable to becomereality?
Zastiga’s heyday hadcome and gone when theRepublicwasyoung, and theplanet was covered witherodedruins,interruptedhere
and there by modernconstruction. Nien Nunbbrought theMellcrawler intothe atmosphere, following asignal transmitted on anencryptedchannel,andsetthecraftdownwithafinalstutterofretrorockets.
In the docking bay, LukeSkywalker stood next to thebarrel-shaped astromechdroid R2-D2. Luke waswearing a rebel flight jacket
over a black shirt and pants.HesmiledatLeia,embracingher, but his eyes were grimand there were lines aroundhiseyesandmouththatshe’dneverseenbefore.Notforthefirsttime,shewonderedwhathadhappenedtohiminCloudCity,whenhehadconfrontedDarth Vader. Luke had losthis hand and his father’slightsaber, but she sensed hehad lost more than that.
Something had changed him,somethinghewaskeeping tohimself.
“The others areassembled,” Luke said,smilingasC-3POandR2-D2renewed their decades-longargument behind him andLeia.“Themeetingcanbeginassoonaswearrive.”
“Do you know what thisisabout?”Leiaasked.
Lukeshookhishead.“All
I know is it’s something big.But I have the latestintelligencereportonHan.”
Leia looked eagerly athim,thenaway.
“Whatisit?”Lukeasked,and she had a funny feelingthat he was in her head,somehow—where she didn’twanthimtoberightthen.
“It’s nothing,” she said,not wanting to explain whatshe’dbeenwrestlingwith,the
argument she’d been havingwith herself in the nightsaboard theMellcrawler. “SowhatisthenewsaboutHan?”
“It’s from GeneralCracken’speople,”Lukesaid,referring to the intelligencechief’s operatives, whoworked in the galacticshadows to obtaininformation. “They have aconfirmed sighting of BobaFett’sshipoverTatooine,and
supposedly Fett’s been paidand is doing more work forJabba.”
“AndisHan…?”“Unclear,” Luke said.
“Lando is trying to gainaccess to Jabba’s palace sowecanknowforsure.”
Leia scowled at themention of Lando. He’dbetrayed them when she andHan had sought refuge onCloudCity,turningthemover
toVader as part of a plan totrap Luke. Lando hadexplained that he’d had nochoice—Vader had arrivedbefore the Falcon andimperiled the freedom ofBespin’s people. In the end,Lando had been pushed toofar and riskedhis life to freeLeia and Chewie from theEmpire, but that had cometoolatetosaveHan.
“Lando’s trying to make
amends,” Luke said gently.“You have to believe there’sgoodinpeople.”
“And what will thatmatter if Han is dead?” Leiasnapped.
In the silence she wasaware of Nien and Emattbehind them, trying not tolisten.
“But we can’t dwell onour personal sorrows,” shesaid.“Myduty—ourduty—is
totheAlliance.Thathastobemoreimportantthananythingelserightnow.”
She felt Luke’s eyes onher and could almost sensehis surprise. She picked upher pace, putting distancebetween the two of them asthey emerged from thedocking-bay complex andinto the forlorn streets ofZastiga.
“Leia, wait,” Luke said,
and she turned impatiently,hands on hips. She didn’twant to talk about it. Shewasn’tgoingtotalkaboutit.
“It’sthisway,”Lukesaid,pointing and smilingapologetically.
The safe house was at thecenter of a warren of alleys,andnofewerthanthreeteamsofrebeloperativeschallenged
them as they moved deeperintothemaze.Leianoddedinapprovalwhen theoperativesdemanded passwords insteadof assuming everything wasall right because theyrecognized her and Luke.That way, if there was somethreat the operatives couldn’tsee—suchasahiddenblasteror hovering drone—Luke orLeia could signal the dangerby giving an incorrect
password.Theinnermostchamberof
the safe house was protectedby massive walls and meter-thick doors that couldwithstand anything short ofan orbital bombardment, yetswung open smoothly andsilently. Luke, Ematt, Nien,and thedroidscame toahaltatthedoorway.
Leia turned to Luke,puzzled.
“This is far as I go,” hesaid. “The meeting’s topclearanceonly.”
“What? That’sridiculous.”
“It’sallright,”Lukesaid.“ItoldWedgethatNienandIwould meet him for adiscussion of reconnaissancetactics.”
“Tactics, hah,” sputteredNien. “Antilles owes me adrink for saving his tail at
Hagar Secundus. I’ve chasedhim halfway across thegalaxytocollect.Youcanuseone of those mind tricks incase he tries to wiggle freeagain.”
“You see?” Luke askedLeia. “We have a lot todiscuss.I’llseeyoulater.”
The second Leia steppedinside the room, she knewwhatever had brought herthere was of the utmost
importance. On one side ofthe space stood a number oftop admirals and generals—she recognized the grim,hatchet-faced Admiral Nantzand the green-skinned DurosAdmiral Vassa, along withGeneralVeertag andGeneralTantor.
On the other side of theroom, the Alliance’s topleaders were standingtogether in an arc. General
Cracken, the intelligencechief, was standing next tothe careworn General CarlistRieekan, who’d been incharge of the rebel defenseson Hoth—and whoseimmediate evacuation orderhadsavedmanylives.NexttoRieekan stood GeneralMadine,acocksureCorellianfrom the Alliance’s special-operationswing.Besidethemstood Admiral Ackbar, the
salmon-colored, goggle-eyedMonCalamari strategistwhocommandedthefleet.
And in the center of thearc of rebel leaders stoodMon Mothma herself—theslim, regal Alliancechancellor.Herservicetothegalaxy dated back to theRepublic, when she’d beenthe senator from the CoreWorld of Chandrila and anally and friend of Bail
Organa’s. Mothma hadcontinued toopposeEmperorPalpatine in the ImperialSenate while working insecretwithBailandothers toforge scattered cells ofresistanceintoaunifiedrebelmovement.
Mothma greeted Leiawith a smile. She held herhead high and proud, andtherewas a deep intelligencebehind her eyes.But sadness
was etched in her face—theproduct of too many evilsenduredandfriendslost.
“Admiral Ackbar,” shesaid,“I’llletyoubegin.”
Ackbar signaled to atechnicianinthecorneroftheroom.Thelightsdimmedandahologramshimmeredtolife.Leia stared at it inpuzzlement. Itwas theDeathStar, complete with thesuperlaserdish that reminded
Leia of a vast, baleful eye.Buthugechunksofthebattlestation were missing, withskeletal fingers of metaloutliningthefullsphere.
“Idon’tunderstand,”Leiasaid.“IsthisfromYavin?”
That was the site of therebels’ now-abandoned base.Had the Empire somehowrebuilt thebattlestationfromthefragmentsleftbehind?
“It can’t be,” Admiral
Massa said from where hestood on her left.“Commander Skywalkerblew that thing tobitswithaproton torpedo. It’s spacedust.”
“An old holo, then,” saidGeneral Madine. Leianodded, annoyed that shecouldn’t figure out what shewas looking at. Perhaps theEmpirewastryingonceagainto resurrect the superlaser
technology, to build a newkind of planet-killingweapon?
She scanned the otherrebelleaders’faces.Fromherexperienceasadiplomatandpolitician, she couldimmediately tell who hadseenthatholobeforeandwhohadn’t. Madine lookedshocked,andRieekanhadhischincuppedinonehand.ButMothma, Ackbar, and
Crackenwerequietlywaitingfortheotherstogetovertheirsurprise at what they wereseeing.
“This footage wasobtained by Bothanoperatives less than a weekago,”Ackbarsaid.“It’s fromEndor—on the edge ofcivilized space. The Empirehas begun construction on asecondDeathStar.”
Leia looked at the
military leaders around her.Theirfacesweregrimmasks.She felt like she was in awakingnightmare and barelyregistered the details Ackbarwasproviding.
Larger diameter. Morepowerful superlaser.Advancedspecifications.
Leia knew the Alliancewas in no shape to take onanother Death Star. Yes, therebelshadgainedalliesinthe
fight against the Empire, butthe fleet was dispersed—rather than battling theEmpire for control of thegalaxy’s star systems, therebels were simply trying tostayalive.
The first Death Star hadtaken decades to build, atastronomical cost in creditsand resources and lives. Bydestroying it, the rebels hadstruck a powerful blow
against the Imperial warmachine. But the Emperorhad simply constructedanotherone.
Against such enormouspower and wealth, whatchancedidtheyhave?
“So we destroy this one,too,”Madinesaid.
“It won’t be that easy,”Cracken said, beginning topacetheroom.ApartofLeiawanted to laugh at the idea
that what Luke had done atYavinwaseasy.“TheEmpirewillhaveeliminated theflawthat allowed Skywalker todestroy the first battlestation.”
“Agreed,” Ackbar said.“If this new battle station iscompleted, it will beinvulnerable to externalattack.”
“An infiltration team,then,” Madine said. “My
commandos are the best inthegalaxy.”
“I have no doubt that’strue, Crix,” said Mothma,then looked at Leia, herexpressionalmostapologetic.“Butevenifwesucceed,howmany worlds will die beforewedo?”
Nobodywantedtoanswerthat terrible question. Leiacrossed her arms over herchest and closed her eyes.
She felt cold and like shecouldn’tcatchherbreath,andfor a moment she was backon the Death Star, peeringoverTarkin’s shoulderatherhomeworld. She’d tried tolungeatTarkin,only tohaveDarth Vader grab hershoulder and yank her back.He had held her pinnedagainsthisarmor, theghastlynoiseofhis ironmask fillingherearswhileherworlddied.
Mothma let the silencehang over the room forseveral moments, staring upat the half-completed battlestation.Thensheheldeachoftheminturnwithhereyes.
“Admiral Ackbar isright,” she said. “The DeathStar isn’t our only enemy—time is, as well. Our attackmust come before the battlestation is operational—or allwillbelost.”
MON MOTHMA ENDEDthemeetingafterswearingallthe rebel leaders to secrecy,saying they would return thenext day to review theirstrategicoptions.
Luke had returned fromhis tactics discussion andjoined her for the walk back
to their quarters. She foundhis presence reassuring, eventhough she knew he wasworried by her grimexpression. Leiawondered ifhe’d ask her what she’dlearned, then realized heknewbetter.Hewoulddohisdutyandwait tobe informedbytheAlliance’sleadership.
Or maybe that wasn’t it.Maybe Luke was stillstruggling with whatever
happened to him on CloudCity.
Glancingathim,Leiafeltsomething stir inside her. Itwasconfusing—whatshefeltfor Luke was so differentfrom what she felt for Han.But it was powerfulnonetheless—a connectionshe could sense somehow.Shewondered ifLuke felt it,too.Hehadoncehadfeelingsforher—attimes,ithadbeen
painfully obvious—but shedidn’t sense that from himanymore. That was a relief,but she hoped he felt whatshedid—becausehewasoneofherveryfewfriendsinthegalaxy.
Andyet theywould soonbe parted, too—returned totheir respective ships to runandhidefromtheEmpirethatwantedthembothdead.Deador in captivity, tobeparaded
ontheHolonetandderidedasSeparatistsandcriminals.
We’ll see about that, shethought.
Luketurnedatthedoortohisownquarterstosaygood-bye.ButLeiaputherhandonhisshoulder.
“What are your orders?After this, I mean?” Leiaasked.
“IexpectI’llreturntotheRedemption,” Luke said, and
ashadowseemedtocrosshisface. “Bound for nowhere inparticular.”
“Bound for nowhere atall,” she said, her frustrationboilingover.
“Mon Mothma’s positionisthat—”
“I’m more than familiarwith Mon Mothma’sposition,” Leia snapped. “Idon’t need it explained tome.”
She looked away,embarrassed by the hurtsurprise on Luke’s face. Buthesimplynoddedandwaited,and she was grateful to himfor forgivingherwith simplesilence.
“I thought you’d sayyou’ve gone back to flyingwith theRed Squadron,” shesaidafteramoment.
Lukeshookhishead.“It’s Wedge’s squadron
now,”hesaid.“Itwouldn’tberight to swoop in and takethatawayfromhim.”
“But if you’re not flying,then what are you doing?”Leia asked. The questioncame out more harshly thanshe’d intended, but Lukedidn’t take offense. Still, helookeduncomfortable.
“What I’m asked to do,”Luke said. “But I need toreturn to my Jedi training. I
haveapromisetokeep.”After Cloud City, Luke
had toldherofhis timeon astrangeswampworldandtheteacher he’d found there. Ithad sounded like somethingout of a fairy tale, a story agovernessonAlderaanmighthavereadherlongbefore.
“Without yourlightsaber?” Leia asked,wondering how he wouldtrainwithouttheweaponofa
Jedi.Lukesmiled,abitsadly.“Weapons and war don’t
makeyouaJedi,”hesaid.“Iknowthatnow.”
“But we need you here,”shesaid.
“I know,” Luke said.“AndI’vekeptputtingoffmydeparture because I washoping for news ofHan.Butnow I suppose we have towait a little longer, until we
know what’s happening onTatooine.”
“Right,” Leia said, notwanting toexplain that she’dbeen talking about theAlliance,notHan.
“I’m trying to be morepatient—that was part ofmytraining,” Luke said, thensmiled. “I wouldn’t exactlysayI’vemasteredit.”
She smiled back at him,thinking that patience had
never been one of herstrengths, either. But thenLuke’s expression turnedseriousagain.
“What we all need is alittlemoretime,”hesaid.
“We’llneverhaveenoughof that—no one ever does,”Leiasaid.“And theEmpire’strying to take away the littletime we do have by nevergivingusamoment’srest.”
Shepaused.
“Butmaybe we can stealsome.”
“What do you mean?”Lukeasked.
“Idon’tquiteknowyet—but I’m thinking,” she said,thensmiledathisexpression.“Patience,remember?”
LEIA SPENT THEEVENING poring over starcharts and cross-referencingthemwithAlliance intel.Sheread reports about theEmpire’s fleet movementsandeconomicinterests,aboutdemonstrations and anti-Imperial activities, sifting
throughpossibilitiesuntil hermindwasmadeup.
And then,mercifully, sheslept more soundly than shehadinweeks.
She woke up to C-3PO’sfamiliar chatter, and for amoment she didn’t knowwhere she was—her earsmissed the familiar hum ofthe various systems that keptastarshiprunning.Thenitallcame back: the new Death
Starand theplanshe’dcomeupwith,theonesheintendedto present to Mon Mothmaandherfellowrebelleaders.
WhenLeiareturnedtothebriefing room, Mothmalooked regal in a beautifulpaledress,withasilverbandaround her hair. But theothers looked exhausted—Madine was clutching a cupofcaf,Ackbar’sskinwasdullandsplotchy,and thebuttons
on Cracken’s tunic weremisaligned.
It had obviously been along night. She wondered ifanyofthemhadslept.
Mothma nodded, andAckbar brought up the holooftheDeathStar.
“While this secondDeathStar’s main reactor isexposed, the battle station isvulnerable—no matter whatstructuralchangestheEmpire
has implemented,” he said.“We’re still analyzing thetechnical specifications, buteitheroursmallattackcraftorfighters shouldbe able to flyinto the superstructure whileour warships provideprotection.”
“TheEmpirewillhaveitsown defenses—we’ll need aconsiderable taskforce,”saidAdmiralNantz.
Before Ackbar could
speak, Admiral Massa wasshakinghishead.
“We could bring everycapitalshipwehavetoEndorand still not have theresources to defeat theImperialstarfleet,”hesaid.
“That’s not theobjective,” Ackbar growled.“Wewon’twinthebattleshipto ship. We’ll win it bybuyingtimeforourfighters.”
There it was again, Leia
thought—time.Itcouldbethemostpreciousresourceinthegalaxy—often unobtainableatanyprice.
“We’ve confirmedsomethingelse,”Ackbarsaid.“The battle station isprotectedbyanenergyshieldgeneratedfromthesurfaceofthemoon.”
Heswiveledonelargeeyein Madine’s direction.“We’veselectedastriketeam
ofcommandos.Theirmissionwill be to knock out thegenerator so our attack canproceed.”
“They’ll need to begintheir operation before ourfleet arrives,” GeneralVeertag said. “How will wegetthemthereundetected?”
“We’re looking to securean Imperial transport,”Madinesaid,andLeiahadtheimpression the two were
continuing a long-runningargument. “As well asgathering intel on theEmpire’ssecuritymeasures.”
AMon Calamari admiralLeia didn’t know raised herhand. “Endor is so far fromthemaintraderoutes—wherewill our fleet assemble?Andhow do we keep the Empirefrom knowing we’recoming?”
“Tothatquestion,atleast,
we have an answer,”Ackbarsaid.
The Death Stardisappeared, replaced by amapofthegalaxy.Asalways,Leiawasstruckbythebeautyof its spiral arms, brilliantwhite but shot through withblooms and tendrils of color,thesignaturesofnebulaeanddust clouds where new starswerebeingborn.
Redlinesappearedonthe
spiral arms—the great traderoutes that connected thegalaxy’sstarsystems.Ackbargestured,andareddotspranginto existence in a locationLeia recognized: Sullust, thehomeworld of Nien Nunb.Then another dot appeared,on the edge of the galaxy.Adotted blue line stretchedbetweenthem.
“The Empire has used S-thread boosters to create and
maintain a secret hyperspacerouterunningfromSullustallthewaytothegalacticedge,”Ackbar said. “It’s called theSanctuaryPipelineandisoneof the Empire’s mostimportant military secrets.Fortunately, our agentsdiscovered the navigationaldata thatwill allowus touseit,too.”
The admirals weremuttering. Leia knew what
they were thinking. The costofsuchaprojectwasenoughto bankrupt whole starsystems.
Butthenwhatwasmoneyto a regime that could buildmultipleDeathStars?
“Sullust is anopportunityfor us—we have contactswith its underground,”Ackbar said. “Our armadawill gather there. Thecommandoteamwillgofirst,
to bring down the battlestation’s shields. Then thefleet will travel down theSanctuary Pipeline to Endor.Questions?”
“With the fleet soscattered, itwill take time togather enough capital shipsand starfighter squadrons,”Nantz said. “And during thattimetheEmpiremaydiscoverwhatwe’reupto.”
“What we need is a
distraction,”Leiasaid.“AndIknowwhatwecanuse.”
“I was just thinking thesame thing,” Veertag saideagerly. “We plant falseinformation about a newprincipalbase—”
“Actually, that wasn’twhat I was thinking,General,”Leiasaid.“Atall.”
“It’s been a successfulgambit before,” Veertagobjected.
“It won’t be this time.The Empire would simplyaddwhateverplanetwechosetothelistofplacesforitsnewDeath Star to destroy. Andwe have to assume theEmpirewill hear rumors thatwe’re gathering our forces.Our distraction should fitwith that scenario and leadthem to make the wrongconclusion.”
Theadmiralsandgenerals
exchanged looks, and shecould guess what they werethinking: Who is thispolitician to tell us how torunawar?
“I for one would like tohear what Princess Leia hasin mind,” General Rieekansaid.
That quieted the others.Leia stepped up to theholoprojector.
“I’ll take a ship and a
small crew,” she said,inputting commands. “We’llgo here—the Corva sector.It’s about as far away fromEndorandSullustasyoucanget without falling off thegalacticdisk.”
Awideswathofspace inthe Outer Rim, on the othersideofthegalaxyfromEndorand Sullust, began to blink.Leia tagged four stars withreddots.
“We’llmakeitlooklikearecruiting mission but dropbeacons along the way,withmessages sending any shipsthat respond to a rendezvouspoint,” she said. “We’ll startat Basteel and continue toSesid and Jaresh, with thesupposed rendezvous pointhere,atGalaan.”
She tapped on theholoprojector and the fourthreddotswelledintoanimage
ofagreenishgasgiantwithalargeyellowmoonorbitingit.
“We’ll use codes thatweknow the Empire’s brokenbutthatitthinkswethinkarestillsafe.Meanwhile,ourrealfleetwillbeassemblingasfaraway from Corva sector aspossible.”
“Operation YellowMoon,”musedRieekan.
“You see?We even haveaname.”
“TheEmpirehasalimitedpresence in Corva sector,”Cracken said. “After Yavinwe considered that area forpotential bases of operationandfleetrendezvouspoints.”
“Which is exactly why Ichose it,” Leia said, andsmiled when Cracken raisedhis eyebrows. “It makes theEmpiremorelikelytobelieveOperation Yellow Moon isreal.”
“Any ships that didrespond to the beaconwouldbe in terrible danger,”Mothma said. “How wouldwewarnthem?”
“We wouldn’t,” Crackensaid, hismouth set in a grimline. “We couldn’t. ForPrincessLeia’splan towork,its true naturewouldhave tobekept secret fromeveryoneexcept the people in thisroom.”
“We’d sacrifice them?”Mothmaasked.
“We’re at war,” Crackensaid apologetically, aware ofthechancellor’sdispleasure.
“Isee,”Mothmasaid.“I think Princess Leia’s
plan could work,” he said.“Anyadvantagewecanseizeis worth taking. And if onesmallshipcan tieupsectors’worth of Imperial warships,I’llmakethattrade.”
“I’lladmittheplanhasitsmerits,” Mothma said. “Butsending you, Leia, is out ofthequestion.”
“Why’sthat?”Leiaasked,puttingherhandsonherhips.
“You’re too valuable anassettotheAllianceforustoriskyoursafety.”
“MyvaluetotheAllianceis what will attract theEmpire’s attention,” Leiasaid. “Palpatine wants me in
prison or dead, and I’veslipped through his agents’fingersmore than once. Thatmakes me a prize worthhunting.”
“At the risk of losingyou?”Mothma asked. “It’s adesperatemove.”
“These are desperatetimes,” Leia said, looking atthe facesof the admirals andgenerals,determined tomakethem see things her way.
“Perhaps the most desperatewe’veeverfaced.Riskingmeis what will make the planwork.”
Mothma looked fromAckbar to Madine toCracken. Leia watched theglances pass among them.The four of them knew oneanotherwellenoughthattheycould tell what the otherswerethinking.
Eventually, all eyes
turnedthechancellor’sway.“Ineedtothinkaboutthis
more,”Mothmasaid.“Idon’tlike the idea of attractingpeople to our cause underfalse pretenses—or puttingPrincessLeia indanger for awild bantha chase. But asGeneral Cracken says, weshould use every advantagewe can get. I’ll decide bymorning;inthemeantime,weneed to plan the Endor
mission.”Leia wanted to scream
that they had to decide now.But she’d seen too manydiplomatic agreements lost atthe very end becausesomeone pushed too hard.She forced herself to turn toCracken,faceimpassive.
“What did you have inmind for your team,Princess?”heasked.
“A pilot, of course. Nien
Nunb, if he’ll go—and lendushisship.”
“A wise choice,” Ackbarsaid.“Nunbcanflyanything,inanyconditions.”
“I’ll need acommunications specialist,”Leiasaid.
“I’d recommend KidiAleri,” Cracken said. “She’sadept at ferreting out signalsand hiding messages withincommloops.”
Leianodded.“I’dalsosuggestyoutake
a tech specialist—a tinkerer,someonewhocankeep thosebeacons running. They’refickle pieces of machinery.I’mthinkingAntrot,frommyshop. He can hot-wireanything and is handy withdemolitions.”
“Sounds like I’ve got acrew,” Leia said. Theyweren’t there yet, but
Cracken’s approval clearlymeant a lot to Mothma, andAckbar would have saidsomething if he disagreedwithherplan.
“If we go ahead, I insiston one more addition to thecrew,” Mothma said. “Acommando, for protection.Someone who’ll get youhomesafeifallelsefails.”
“This isn’t a combatmission,”Leiasaid.
“You don’t knowwhat itmay become. It’s notnegotiable,Leia.”
LeiasawimmediatelythatifshefoughtMothmaonthatpointshe’dlose.
“Verywell.”“General Madine?”
Mothma asked. “Whowouldyourecommend?”
“I’ll go myself,” theCorellian general said. “I’djustworryanyway.”
But Ackbar shook hissalmon-colored head, hiswattles wiggling. “We needyou here to plan the Endorinfiltration mission. Andbefore you suggest it, thatgoesforGeneralTantor,too.”
“Major Lokmarcha,then,” Madine said, “aveteranDressellianresistancefighter.He’ssavedmylifeonseveraloccasions.”
“Here’s hoping he won’t
havetosavemine,”Leiasaid.“Ideally, he’ll go out of hismind with boredom aboardtheMellcrawler.”
Shewasalreadymakingachecklist in her head ofeverything she had to do tobegin Operation YellowMoon. Itwas adaunting list,but she welcomed the workahead.Shedidn’tknowifhermission would succeed, butshedidknowshewouldn’tbe
standing on a bridge feelinguseless. She’d be takingaction—actionthatjustmightsavetheAlliance.
All she needed was forMonMothmatosayyes.
LEIA HAD JUSTFINISHEDasimpledinnerinher quarters when her doorchime sounded. She wasn’tsurprised to find Mothmastandinginthecorridor.
“IhopeI’mnotdisturbingyou,”thechancellorsaid.
“Of course not. I was
expectingyou,infact.Wouldyou like something? I’ll getThreepio—”
“That’s not necessary,”Mothma said with a smile,and Leia saw the darkhollows under her eyes.“You’re the one I wanted tosee.Sit.”
Mostof thepeople in thegalaxy who could tell Leiawhat to do and beinstinctively obeyed were
dead—but not all of them.Shesat.
“Haveyouspokentoyourcrew?”Mothmaasked.
“Yes,”Leiasaid,knowingbetter than to ask if thatmeantMothmahadapprovedthe plan. “They all agreed togo, thoughMajorLokmarchawas reluctant. He feels likehe’s letting down hiscommandoteam.”
“And are you satisfied
withthem?”“I am,” Leia said, then
hesitated.“Antrot,he’s…let’sjust sayhe’sa littleodd.Butthen I’ve never met ademolitions expert whowasn’t.”
“NeitherhaveI,”Mothmasaid. “I know you’rewaitingformydecision.ButbeforeImake it, Iwant to talk aboutyou.”
“Me?”
“Yes. I’m worried aboutyou.”
“SoamI,”Leiasaid.“I’mworriedaboutallofus—you,me, the Alliance, the entiregalaxy.”
Mothma leaned forward,her gaze direct andunflinching.
“I’ve known youpractically since thedayBailbrought you home toAlderaan,” Mothma said. “I
watched you grow up.Tutored you before youjoined the Senate. And I’veseenyoucarryonBail’sworkwith the Alliance. He wouldhavebeensoproudofyou—oftheleadershipyoushowedatYavinandatHoth.”
Mothma looked away,andforamomentshelookedold—old and badly worndown.
“I’ve missed him these
last twodays,”Mothmasaid.“But then I miss him everyday. His advice and hisperspective. But mostly hisfriendship.”
“So do I,” Leia saidquietly, waiting. She knewMothma hadn’t come to talkaboutherfather.
But what the olderwoman said next surprisedher.
“You have feelings for
CaptainSolo,”shesaid.After a moment Leia
nodded.“I’vereadtheintelligence
reports,” Mothma said. “Wedon’t have the resources tomount a rescue mission toTatooine—particularly notwiththeEmpireexpectingustomakesuchamove.”
“I haven’t asked for theAlliancetodothat,”Leiasaidsharply.
“I know you haven’t—and I know you wouldn’t,”Mothma said. “But CaptainSolo hasmany friends in theAlliance. Which is why I’dintended to propose such amissionmyself.”
Leia looked at her insurprise—and for a momentfelt wild hope swell insideher. But then she saw theexpressiononMothma’sface.
“Yousaid‘intendedto.’”
“Such a mission wouldnowbemuchmoredifficult,”Mothma said. “As you’veheard, our commandos areneededelsewhere.But‘muchmoredifficult’ isn’t thesameas ‘impossible.’ We havewhat General Cracken callsunconventional assets.Commander Skywalker is ina unique position at themoment. And then there’syou.”
Leia shook her head,annoyed that Mothma wastalkingaroundsomethingthatconcerned her so deeply—and surprised the chancellorseemed to be dangling thepromise of amission to saveHaninfrontofher.
“Briberyisn’tyourstyle,”shesaid,andfromthelookonthe chancellor’s face sheknew immediately that she’dmadeamistake.
“You’re right, it isn’t,”Mothma said, eyes flashing.“Idon’tneedtobribeyouifIdecide Operation YellowMoonisanogo.Myrankaschancellor of the Alliance toRestore the Republic allowsmetodothat.”
Leia looked away. Shewouldn’tapologize,butshe’dletMothmadecidewhere theconversationwentnext.
“I brought it up, Leia,
because I’m not sure whatyou’d say if I offered you aplace on a rescue mission toTatooine. And thatuncertaintyiswhyI’mhere.”
Leia looked down at herhands, twisting them in herlap.
“My duty is to theAlliance,” she said, relievedto hear her voice soundunwavering. “Not to CaptainSolo.”
“Ah,”Mothmasaid.“Andwhatabouttoyourself?”
Leia started to speak butthenlookedbackdownatherhands in her lap, forcing heremotions more deeply insideherself.When she looked upMothmawas simplywaiting,agentlesmileonherface.
“Goon,Leia,”shesaid.“Before I got the call to
comehere,myconvoy lost ablockade runner—the
Ranolfo—to an Imperialpatrol,” Leia said. “And theRemembrance was damagedduring the fighting, takingcasualties.”
Mothmasaidnothing.“That convoy was
assembled to protect me,”Leia said. “Because I’m oneoftheleadersoftheAlliance.Because I’m a symbol. Andit’s not the first time peoplehave paid with their lives to
protect me. I accept that—Iaccept it and I understand it.The least I can do, in returnfor that sacrifice, is dedicatemyselffullytotheRebellion.Particularly now, given whatweface.”
Mothmasaidnothing.Shesimplywaitedwithherhandsfolded. It was a diplomat’stactic, used when the peopleon theother sideof the tablewere in theworsebargaining
position,when talkingwouldjust dig them deeper into ahole.
ButLeiawas a diplomat,too. So she did what thepeople on the other side ofthe table didn’t do enough:shestoppedtalking.
Mothmasurrenderedfirst,which made Leia feel bothslightly satisfied and a bitguilty.
“Do you blame yourself
for what happened toAlderaan?” Mothma askedquietly.
Leia looked at her inshock.
“How can you ask methat?”shemanaged.
“I wasn’t aware therewere things we couldn’t askeach other,” Mothma said,thenleanedforward.“LetmetellyouabitofintelIdecidednot to include in today’s
briefing.OncethenewDeathStariscomplete,theEmperorplans military operations toeliminatealloppositiontohisrule. Massive invasion fleets—larger than any seen incenturies—will advance onMon Cala and Chandrila.Their mission will be todestroy all resistance,blockade both planets, andthen wait for the Death Starto arrive. The destruction of
both worlds, the Emperorfeels, will provide anexcellent object lesson foranyone who might opposehim.”
Leia felt numb. It wouldbeAlderaan all over again—except planets would diewhenever the Emperorcommandedit.
NowitwasMothmawhoneeded a moment to getcontrolofheremotions.
“For decades, many onChandrilahavebeggedmetostop opposing the Empire—because of the danger to myhomeworld,” she said. “IfwhatPalpatinedesires comesto pass—if his new DeathStar is built and his invasionfleets fly—will Chandrila’sfate be because of myactions?”
“Of course not,” Leiasaid.
“I wish it were thatsimple,” Mothma said. “Itwill be because of me—butonly because the Emperor iswilling to destroy an entireplanetfortheopinionsofoneperson. Which is monstrous.Monstrous and evil. And ifwe accept that—if we letourselves be ruled by suchtwisted logic—we may aswellsurrender.”
Mothma smiled, but her
eyeswerefullofpain.“Atleastthat’swhatItell
myself during the day,” shesaid.“Butinthemiddleofthenight?That’sharder.”
Leia started to saysomething, then stopped.Howmanytimeshadshelefther bunk to study intelbecause she feared sleepwould bring anothernightmareaboutAlderaan?
“You make the Alliance
proud every day,” Mothmasaid. “By representing ourcause—and by doing yourduty.Butdutywon’tgiveyoucomfort,Leia—andyouneedthat.We all do. The comfortof friends—andof love.Youwere Bail and Breha’sgreatest joy, Leia—the loveyou shared was whatsustained them through thedark years. Don’t denyyourself another chance at
love because of what theEmpire did to them. Don’tgive Palpatine that victory,too.”
“I haven’t,” Leia said.“AndIwon’t.”
“I hope that’s true,”Mothma said. “Because it’sthekindofbattleyoucanlosewithoutknowingit.”
She got smoothly to herfeet.
“OperationYellowMoon
isapproved,” she said, in thetoneLeiahadworkedsohardtoimitateasagirl.“You’retotellmeanythingyouneed.”
“Thank you,” Leia said.“IpromiseIwill.”
“And you’re to comeback safe and sound,”Mothmasaid, inafarquietervoice. “Losingyouwouldbeunbearabletome—tomeandmanyothers.”
That’s something I can’t
promise,Leiathought.
THE ALLIANCEMEETINGbrokeupthenextmorning, with rebel officersslipping into Zastiga’s manydocking bays in twos orthrees to leave the planet.Luke had to catch his ownshuttle back to theRedemption but accompanied
Leia to theMellcrawler first.C-3PO and R2-D2 followedthem, the protocol droid’sbaleful tales of slavers andpirates prowling Zastigaaccompanied by derisivehonksfromArtoo.
Inthedockingbayseveralboxy power droids wereignoringNienNunb’sorders,grumbling to themselves intheirelectroniclanguage.
“Hey, we were supposed
to be in space half an hourago!” Nien yelled, hands onhiships inmock indignation.“I charge by theminute, youknow—and there’s nodiscountforroyaltitles!”
LeiawavedthatawayandturnedtoLuke.
“I’ll be back soon,” shesaid.“Takecareofyourself.”
“You too,” he said. “Becareful. And may the Forcebewithyou.”
“I’lltakeallthehelpIcanget,” Leia said, putting herarms around him. Theystayedlikethatforamoment,taking comfort in eachother,then parted. R2-D2 whistledmournfully.
“Speak for yourself,”Threepiosaid.“Iwelcomethechancetoavoidsomeghastlyperilforonce.”
Artoo hooted somethingrude.
“What a ridiculoussentiment. ‘Adventures’ isjust a different name for‘terribleideas.’”
Leia shook her head andhoisted her duffel bag ontoher shoulder, leaving Lukeandthedroidsbehind.
“In fact, I chargenobilitytwice my usual rate, youknow!”Nienyelled.
Leia was the lastmember ofthe crew to board theMellcrawler—theotherswerewaiting in the crampedlounge. She dropped her bagin the cabin she was sharingwith Kidi—she’d refusedNien’s repeated offers of hisown single cabin—thenemergedtofindtherestofthecrew waiting silently, theireyesonher.
“What I’m about to tell
you is highly classified,” shesaid. “Our mission has twoobjectives. I’ll be meetingwith local resistance leaderson three planets we’revisiting. And we’ll berecruitingshipstojoinusinasystemwe’ve given the codenameYellowMoon.”
Kidi, the Cereancommunications operator,noddedeagerly.Shewasthinand pale, withmultiple pairs
of headphones wrappedaround her tall, conical headand datapads strapped to herspindly arms and legs. Thedatapads were blinking asdata constantly flowed intothem.
It pained Leia not to tellthemthattherendezvouswasa deception, but she’d spentthe morning remindingherself that it was necessary.Thatway,ifanyofthemwere
captured, Operation YellowMoon would still fool theEmpire, keeping its focus farfrom the fleet gathering atSullust.
“In each of the threesystemswevisit,we’llsetupabeacondesignedtorepeatacodedmessage,”shesaid.“Itwill tell the starship captainswe recruit the location ofYellow Moon and when torendezvous with the ships
we’re committing to thisoperation.”
Antrot, the tinkerer,looked up from checking thebeacon in his lap. He was amember of the Abednedospecies, with a knobby ridgeatop his small black eyes.One of those eyes wasmagnified by a poweredmonocle.
IfLeia felt bad about thestory she was telling her
crew, she felt worse aboutwhat could happen to anystarship captains whoresponded to the beacon.Because there would be norebel rendezvous—no fleetawaiting them.At best, therewould be nothing but emptyspace, leaving the captainsperplexed. And at worst?Imperial Star Destroyers andTIEfightersmightbewaitingtodisableordestroythem.
She swallowed at thethought, hating it, thensteeledherselftogoon.
AsGeneralCrackensaid,we’reatwar,shetoldherself.I hope we don’t have tosacrifice any lives. But if wecan save trillions of peopleelsewhere in thegalaxy, isn’tthat an acceptable price topay?
“While we’re in port,maintain operational
security,” she said. “Becareful who you talk to andwhat you say. There’s noreasonfortheEmpiretothinkwe’re anything but a privatecraft. But the Emperor hasfleets,intelligenceagents,andbounty hunters searching thegalaxy for any sign of rebelactivities. And Nien,Lokmarcha, and I are allwantedbytheEmpire.”
Lokmarcha, the
Dressellian commando, satstock-still on the end of theacceleration couch, hiswrinkled face expressionless,onehand lovingly tracinghisblasterrifle.
“It’s good to bewanted,”Nien said in Sullustese,grinning. Kidi twisted a dialonherheadphones,activatingher translator unit, and askedhim to repeat that. When hedid, she nodded and smiled,
then told Antrot. But thetinkererjustlookedpuzzled.
Leia wondered whatthey’d think if they knewCracken’s agents planned toseedvarious communicationsnetworks with rumors abouttheir mission. It was strangeto begin a mission byvoluntarily endangering itssecrecy,butitwasnecessary.Operation Yellow Moonwould fail if the Empire
captured them, but it wouldalsofail if theydidtheir jobstoo well, attracting noImperialattention.
“Any questions, come tome,” Leia said. “All rightthen,atease.”
“One moment,”Lokmarcha said, getting tohis feet and standing besideher.
“I’m trained to spotthreats and to terminate
them,” he said gruffly, hisvoicelowandgravelly.“Thatmeans look to me and listento what I say. It’ll keep youalive. Got it? In a potentialcombat situation, I’m incharge.”
“What’s a potentialcombat—”Kidibegantoask,butLeiaheldupherhand.
“One moment, Major,”she said. “I’m grateful tohaveyouonthismission,but
someone has given youincorrect information. I’m incharge—atalltimesandinallsituations. No exceptions. Isthatclear?”
The others nodded, butLokmarchawasstaringatherinshock.Sheheldhisyelloweyes with her own until helookedaway,takingasuddeninterest in cleaning a part ofhisgunthathe’djustcleaned.
“It’s clear,” he said,
hesitating a moment,“Princess.”
“Good,” she said,ignoring the emphasis he’dputonhertitleandturningtoNien. “And now, time toleave Zastiga behind. Let’sseewhattheMellcrawlercando,shallwe?”
LEIA DIDN’T HEAR theargument begin—she was inher cabin reviewing intelabout their first stop, theplanet Basteel. By the timeshereachedtheMellcrawler’slounge, a red-facedKidiwasstaringupatLokmarcha,fistsclenched. The Dressellian
commando had his armscrossed and was grinning atthe communicationsspecialist.
“What’s happeninghere?” Leia demanded,glancingoveratAntrotwherehe sat at the Mellcrawler’stech station, fiddling with abeacon’sinnards.
“Some kind of dispute,”Antrotsaid.“Ididn’thearanystatements whose veracity I
could assess, so I have beentryingtoignoreit.”
“He’s a monster!” Kidisaid,hervoicequavering,butLokmarcha just grinned andshrugged.
“What happened?” Leiaasked.“Kidi,youfirst.”
“We were just talking.About how we wound upsigningonwith theAlliance.Andthismonstersaid—”
“Stop there,” Leia said.
“We’re not referring to othermembers of this crew thatway, nomatter what they’vesaid.Nowtryagain,Kidi.”
“I’m sorry, Princess.You’re right. I told him howI’d been a signals analyst inthe Imperial Survey Corps,before I deserted, and how Ihope my former colleagueswill get amnesty after wedefeat the Empire. How thebestway to have peace is to
offer forgiveness. And hecalledmea,a—”
“I called her a naiveconehead who’d been givenone heart too many and onebrain too few,” Lokmarchasaid. “I think that was it,anyway. I told her when wedefeat theEmpirewe’ll havemasstrials—withmostofheroldcolleaguesgoingtoprisonorfacingafiringsquad.”
His wrinkled face
hardened and his eyes grewcoldandreptilian.“Oratleastthat’swhatwouldhappenifIwereincharge.”
“That’s barbaric!” Kidiyelped, lapsing into silencewhenLeiaheldupafinger.
“So the two of you arearguing about how theAlliance should deal withImperial war criminals,” shesaid. “After we depose theEmperor, and defeat the
Imperial starfleet and theStormtrooper Corps, anddismantle the bureaucracy,andfindandneutralizeeverymoff, admiral, and generalwho refuses to disarm andkeepsupthefight.DoIhavethatright?That’swhatyou’rearguingabout?”
“Their argument didn’tinclude a discussion ofreconstruction efforts,”Antrotobjected.
“Do I have thatapproximately right?” Leiaasked.
“Approximately is not auseful term,” Antrotcomplained.
Kidi nodded, andLokmarchashrugged.
“I tell you what,” Leiasaid. “When all those thingshavebeenaccomplished,youtwo can argue about what todonextallyoulike.Butsince
at themoment we’re sharingspace aboard one very smallspace yacht and hoping wereach Corva sector withoutbeing intercepted by about athousand Imperial patrols,let’ssticktothetaskathand.Isthatunderstood?”
Lokmarcha shrugged, butan embarrassed Kidi noddedrepeatedly.
“I’msorry,Princess,”shesaid.“Inevershouldhave—”
“No need to apologize,”Leia said. “Major, I havesome intel I need to reviewwith you in private. I’dappreciate it if we could dothatrightnow.”
She headed out of theloungewithoutlookingtoseeif Lokmarcha was followingher and was relieved to hearthe sound of his boots amoment later.Shewaited forhim to enter the cabin she
shared with Kidi, then shutthedoor.
“I don’t know whatGeneralMadinetaughtyouasa commando, but I’m prettysurewhat I just saw isn’t thebest way to build unitmorale,” she said instantly,hoping to keep Lokmarchaoffguard.
The Dressellian justshrugged, a gesture that wasbeginningtoirritateLeia.
“Kidi’s a naive bleedingheart, Princess,” he said.“Which means she’ll freezeup when the shooting starts.Which means she’ll die. I’mtrying to toughen her up sothatdoesn’thappen.Afterall,we’reatwar.”
“Weare,”Leiasaid.“ButKidican’tdoher job ifshe’sconstantly angry at anothermember of the team. So goeasy,Major—that’s anorder.
Canyoufollowthatorder?Orshall I ask Nien to divert tothenearestplanetandputyouonacommerciallinerbacktoZastiga?”
“No need for that,Princess,” Lokmarcha saidcoolly.“ThoughI’dwelcomeit.My unit has a newDeathStartocrack,backatEndor.”
Leia looked at him inshock.
“Whatdidyousay?”
TheDresselliangrinned.“We’d already had our
first briefing before Madinereassignedme,”hesaid.“SoIknowtherealmission.We’rea decoy, a diversion. You’rewisenottolettheothersinonit—neitherKidinorthatscrapcollector would last an hourunder Imperial interrogation.Welldone,Princess.”
“You listen to me,Major,” Leia said. “Not a
wordofthistoanyone,underany circumstances. Or I’llhave you before a courtmartial inside of ananosecond.”
That time Lokmarchadidn’t shrug but just stareddownatLeia.
“Back in the early days,beforetheRebellionformallyexisted,alotofguerrillasgottheirhandsdirtydoingthingsnooneelsewantedtodo—or
even think about,” he said.“The Alliance would neverhave existed without them,Princess. Those men andwomen were my mentors—I’ve spent my entire careertrying to live up to theirexample.”
“Is therea reasonfor thishistorylesson,Major?”
“It’s so you understandI’ll take the secret to mygrave,” Lokmarcha said.
“Onethingyou’lllearnaboutme, Princess—I always domyduty.”
“WELCOME TOBASTEEL,” Nien said.“Never thought I’d be backonthisrock.”
Leialeanedforwardinthecopilot’s seat. The planetbelow the Mellcrawler wassmall and gray. A scatteringofships—amotleycollection
of short-range freighters andboxy transports—were inorbit.
“Not exactly the gardenspotoftheCorvasector,”shesaid.
“Corva doesn’t have agarden spot,” Lokmarchagrunted from the seat behindher,“justabunchofcompostheaps.”
“Kidi, scan all rebelmessagefrequencies tosee if
anyone’s trying to contactus,” Leia said. “And keepyour ears open for Imperialtraffic. The Empiregarrisoned Basteel a fewyears ago in response torumors of a resistancemovement, but from whatwe’ve heard, it’s a tokenpresence. The thing toworryaboutistheTIEpatrols.Withany luckwe’ll be in and outbefore we have any trouble
withthem.”“Scanning now,
Princess,” Kidi saidenthusiastically,her fingers ablurastheytappedatvariousdatapads.Leiawonderedhowshe kept track of whatinformationshehadonwhichdevice.
“Eladro City is thebiggest settlement on theplanet,” Nien said as theMellcrawlerbegantoshimmy
and bounce through theturbulent outer layers ofBasteel’s atmosphere.“Which isn’t to say that it’sbig.”
He tookhishandsoff thecontrols and brought up aholographic representation oftheplanet,thenzoomedinonthe dot indicating EladroCity. The Mellcrawlerlurched to port and Nienabsentmindedly lifted his
knee, bumping the controlyoke to turn the little yachtbacktostarboard.
“Basteel’s almost entirelymountain ranges—there’salmost no flat ground andlittle vegetation,” Nien said,tapping at the display as theMellcrawler began to rattleand shake. “Eladro City’ssubterranean—a warren oftunnelscarvedoutoftherockoverthecenturies.”
“No flat ground? Wheredoweland?”Kidiasked,andLeia saw her fingers werewhitewheretheygrippedherharness.
“Inside the mountains,”Nien said, bumping theMellcrawler’s controls againwith his knee. “See thiscanyon—”
“Put your hands back onthe controls!” Kidi said,unabletostanditanylonger.
“Youcanshowmelater!”“Relax,Kidi—I’magreat
pilot,” Nien said. “I mean,nothing’skilledmeyet.”
The Sullustan grinned,and Lokmarcha chuckled.Leia patted Kidi’s shouldersoothingly. She knew Nienwas a good pilot—and she’dendured enough flights withHanSolothattheapproachtoEladro City seemed smoothandeasy.
The cockpit door openedand Antrot entered,seeminglyunconcernedaboutthe bumpy ride. TheAbednedo tech stood behindthem with his arms foldedoverhischest.
“You’d better strap in,”Kidi warned. “Our ship’sbeingflownbyalunatic.”
As if in response, theMellcrawler bucked up anddown in a sharp updraft.But
Antrotstayedonhisfeet,noteven uncrossing his arms.Leia peered at him. Shehadn’t expected the tech tohavesuchgoodbalance.
Antrot saw herquestioning look and pointedat his feet. “I havecustomized my boots withmagneticsoles.”
“Customize my suit withmagneticeverything,please,”Kidisaid.
“Relax—we’re almostthere,”Niensaid,steeringtheMellcrawler into a narrowcanyonthatlookedasifsomegiant had created it bybringing an enormous axdownonBasteel’ssurface.Inthe canyon walls on eitherside, Leia saw mountaindwellings carved out of therock, surrounded by intricateandbeautifuldesigns.
Nien eased the
Mellcrawler intoaslot in themountainside ahead,activating the yacht’sfloodlights. Antrot peerednervously out of the cockpitat the rocky ceiling a fewmetersabovetheirheads.
“You didn’t sayweweregoing into a cave,” hemuttered. “I haveclaustrophobia.”
“Then you’ve picked thewrong planet, pal,” grunted
Lokmarcha.“It’sactuallyquite roomy
in here,” Nien said as hepeered down at a green-skinnedalienwavingglowingdirectional batons. “Plus itmakes maintenance easier.The wind and ice do anumber on any ships left outin the elements—up in themountains your systems willfreeze solid in a matter ofdays.”
“I suppose that would beadvantageous,” Antrot said.“I hate rust even more thancaves.”
“There you go, then,”Nien said. “Things arelookingupalready.”
“My contact has a homedeeperinthecity,”Leiasaid.“I think I’ve got the addressfigured out. I’ll try to set upand activate our beacon aspart ofmymeeting.Major, I
wantyouwithme.Therestofyoustaywiththeship—Kidi,monitor communications incasewehavetomakeaquickgetaway.”
“Uh, about that,Princess…”
“What?” Leia asked,impatient with the Cereantech’s unwillingness todeliver bad news. “Out withit,Kidi.”
“Iknowthecodesfor the
Imperial military channels,but I can’t pick up anytransmissions. I can monitorcomlinks but not exteriorcommunications from shipsorinstallations.Itmustbeallthisrock.”
“Toomuch rock, and it’sright over our heads,”Antrotsaidunhappily.
“Relax, Antrot,” Leiasaid,thinkingthatthelandingpad was beautiful—its walls
and ceiling had been carvedinto a dizzying array ofshapesandremindedherofacathedral. “That ceiling’sbeenupthereforcenturies.”
“Sincecomlinkswork,dowe have to stay with theship?” Nien asked, his darkeyes hopeful. “I always getgood intel in bars. Besides,I’mthirsty.”
Kidi nodded eagerly.“Canweseethecity?”
“We’re not tourists, youknow,”grumbledLokmarcha,which was enough to makeupLeia’smind.
“You can take a lookaround,”Leiasaid.“Butsticktogether—and keep yourcomlinkshandy.”
ShetossedNienahandfulof credits, which theSullustan snapped out of theair.
“Firstdrink’sonme,”she
said. “You’re buying thesecondone.”
“Andthethird?”“Don’t have a third,
flyboy.”Niengrinnedandsaluted.
As the group moved deeperthroughthetunnelsofEladroCity, Leia told the othersabout her contact onBasteel.HisnamewasBonYoth,and
he’d once been a part of theAlliance but resigned hiscommission after adisagreement with GeneralRieekan.Rieekan hadn’t toldher what led them to partways, but it had been clearthathewasstillupsetaboutityears later. Still, he’dpromised her, Yoth was nofriendoftheEmpire.
Lokmarcha gave her asidelong look and smirked,
but that time everything shetold themwas true. Itwasn’tlikely that Yoth could bebrought back into the rebelfold,butitwasworthtrying.
AndifYothpaidthepricefor their having drawn theEmpiretoCorvasector?Leiahoped she wouldn’t have toask herself if that had beenworthitornot.
The tunnels near thelanding pad were wide, but
kiosks built from plastic andreclaimed freight containersreducedthepassagetoatightsqueeze that left thembumping shoulders witheveryone going the otherdirection.Lokmarchahadonehand on the butt of hisholstered pistol, and Antrotwasmuttering in agitation atthecrampedconditions.
“Thebazaar’sjustahead,”Nien said. “I hope that four-
armed bartender hasn’t beenpinched by bounty hunters.Guy made a mean Novaniangrog.”
“I hate these tunnels,”Antrot said. “Only verminliveinsideholesintherock.”
Many eyes turned theirway.
“Maybe this would be agood time to keep youropinions to yourself,” Leiasaid, edging closer to
Lokmarcha.Nienflunganarmaround
theAbednedo tinkererwithacompanionablegrin.
“I’ll take you around myhome tunnels on Sullustsometime,” he said. “Theymake this look like a palace.Ah,hereweare.”
Antrotpeered throughhismonocleatthemazeofstalls,his distaste for cavesmomentarilyforgotten.
“Oh!” he said. “Things!”Andwith thathe tookahardleft to pick through avendor’s collection ofmechanicalgear.
A crowd of aliens ofmultiple species gatheredaround the tinkerer, hagglingloudly and enthusiastically.Leia stopped, concerned thatAntrotmight be in danger—ormight reactbadly tobeinghemmed in by so many
bodies.Butthenacheerwentup—Antrot had bought hisfirst item—and soon he wasbeing led to the next boothlike a visiting dignitary,happilyinspectingthestrangepieceofgearhe’dacquired.
“He’s fine,” Nien said.“Kidi and Iwill keep an eyeonhim.”
“Allright,”Leiasaid,butshe couldn’t help glancingover again as the Sullustan
pilot and the Cereancommunications specialistpicked their way across thecrowdedchamber.
“Weshouldgo,Princess,”Lokmarchasaid.
“Somethingwrong?”Leiaasked.
“Idon’tlikecrowds.”“Don’ttellmeyouhavea
phobia,too.”She tried to keep her
voice light, but the
Dressellian looked grim, hisyellow eyes scanning thecrowdrestlessly.
“Too many potentialthreats to keep track of,” hesaid. “I swore to GeneralMadine that I’d bring youbacksafeandsound.”
“I’ll be fine,” Leia said,simultaneously annoyed bythecommando’s concernandimpressed by his dedicationto duty. “But you’re right—
let’skeepmoving.”
At first no one respondedwhen Leia banged on themetal door to Bon Yoth’shouse. She winced at howloud the clanging sounded inthenarrowpassages.
“Wefly fromonesideofthe galaxy to the other andhe’snothome?”shesaid.Butthentheyheardfootsteps,and
the door opened a fewcentimeters, revealing a palehumanface.
“Who are you?” themanaskedsuspiciously.
Leia drew herself up toherfullheight—whichwasn’tmuch,butshe’dlearnedearlythat people who projectedconfidence and authorityseemed much bigger thantheyactuallywere.
“Leia Organa,” she said,
“of the royal house ofAlderaan. Carlist Rieekantoldmewheretofindyou.”
“Oh, no,” Yoth said.“Carlist and I parted ways along time ago. You’re notdragging me back into thatmadness.”
Yoth tried to shut thedoor,butLokmarchajammedhis foot against it. After amoment’sstruggleYothgaveup and retreated. The room
contained a scattering offurniture and a fireplace.Lokmarcha looked aroundsuspiciously, then indicatedto Leia that it was safe toenter.
Yoth was only a fewyears older than GeneralRieekanbutthinnerandpaler,as though the lack of naturallight had sapped somethingfrom him. But his eyesweresharp,andbrightwithanger.
“I’ll tell you what I’vetold Carlist—no,” Yoth said.“I’m done fighting theEmpire. You’re all kiddingyourselves—no one candefeat the Imperial warmachine.Thebestwecandoismakeourowncommunitiesbetterplaceswhile tryingnotto attract attention. That’swhatI’vedonehere.Andit’smade more of a differencethan you’ll make fighting
yourinsanewar.”“You’re scared,”
Lokmarchasneered.“Quiet,”Leiasnapped.But Yoth eyed the
commando. “Of course I’mscared. If you’re not, you’reeither a liar or a fool. Sowhichisit?”
“I’m scared,” Leia saidquietly.
Yoth and Lokmarchastopped glaring at each other
andlookedatherinstead.“I’mscaredall the time,”
shesaid.“TheEmpirehassomany warships and soldiers,and limitless credits. Andwhat do we have? A ragtagfleet, not enoughcredits,anda bunch of fools. Fools likeMajor Lokmarcha and mewhobelievepeopleshouldbeable to livefreeof fear—andare willing to die to achievethatgoal.”
Lokmarchanoddedather,smiling slightly. But Yothlookedunmoved.
“That’s a stirring speech,young lady,” he said. “But Isaid no and Imeant no. I’vemade my decision, and I’dask you and my old friendCarlisttorespectit.”
“Very well,” Leia said.“General Rieekan thoughtyou’d say that. So he had adifferent request foryou.We
need your help sending amessage.”
“Whatkindofmessage?”Yothaskedwarily.
“This kind,” said Leia,unzipping her bag andwrestlingthebeaconoutofit.
Yoth looked suspiciouslyat the silver sphere she held.Leiahanded it tohimandheexamined it, then pressed arecessed button on itsequator. A small antenna
emerged from the center andbegantorotate.
“A hyper-transceiver,” hegrunted.“Haven’tseenoneoftheseinawhile.”
“But you know what itis,”Leiasaid.
“OfcourseIknowwhatitis,child.”
Leia told herself toremain calm, givingLokmarchaawarninglook.
“What’s the message?”
Yothasked.“We’re gathering
starships at a rendezvouspointinthissector,”shesaid.“Looking for crews who’llsupportourcause.”
“What rendezvouspoint?”
Leia weighed how toanswer that one, aware ofLokmarcha’s eyes on her.They wanted the Empire tofind out about Operation
Yellow Moon but not all atonce.
“I think it’s safer foryounottoknowthat,”shesaid.
“Fairenough.”“Nowthatyouknowwhat
itis,canyoutelluswhereweshould place it? It has to besomewhere its transmissionscan be received but theEmpirewon’tfinditforafewdaysatleast.”
Yoth pointed at the
fireplace,whereafewemberswerestillglowingfeebly.
“Idon’tthinkthat’sgoingto work,” Leia said. “TheEmpire would find itimmediately.”
Yothlaughed.“Not in the fireplace,” he
said. “Up the chimney. Itfeeds intoanetworkofventsand tunnels that eventuallyemerge among the peaks.Smugglersuse themfordead
drops.Youcanplaceitinthecaves.But you’ll need to getup a kilometer or so for thesignaltoreachthesurface.”
“A kilometer?” Leiaaskeddoubtfully.
“It’s not a tough climb,”Yothsaid.“Justtakesawhile.Seeforyourself.”
Leia crouched on thehearth and opened the flue,ducking as soot rained downonher.Thechimneywasless
thanameterwide,hackedoutofroughstonethatleftplentyofhandholdsandtoeholds.
She finished herinspection and turned toLokmarcha, who had alsocrouched down to considertheroute.
“Howlongdoyouthinkitwilltaketoclimbupandthenback down?” Leia asked theDressellian.
“Oh, no,” Yoth said.
“That’s a one-way trip.You’renotcomingbackhereafter placing that thing. Youkeepgoingallthewayupandsignalyourshiptogetyouonthe surface. We never saweachother,understand?”
Leia looked atLokmarcha,whoshrugged.
“Not my idea of a funafternoon, butwe canhandleit.”
“Except we’ll need to
takeKidiandAntrotuptherewithus,”Leiasaid.
“All four of us?”Lokmarcha asked. “Thatseems dangerous. Kidi’sbrave, but she’s a civilian.And the tinkerer will fallbeforewe get tenmeters up.Orpanicandstartfoamingatthe mouth like a Sparingiandirehound.”
Leia shook her head. “Iwant Antrot because I’m not
climbing up that little pipeand finding out the beacon’smalfunctioned. And we needKidi to enter the codes. Pluswemightgettothetopofthemountain and discover acomlink’s not powerfulenough to reach theMellcrawler.”
“They’re not trained forthis,” Lokmarcha saidunhappily.
“We’llall justhave todo
the best we can,” Leia said.“Go find Kidi and Antrot inthe bazaar and bring themback here. And tell Nien theplan.”
Lokmarcha shrugged.“Yourwish ismy command,Princess.”
ANTROT REACTEDWITH HORROR when theytoldhim that theyplanned toascend into the darknessabove Bon Yoth’s dwelling,but Kidi assured the tinkererthatitwouldbelikeclimbinga ladder and promised she’dstayrightwithhim.
“If the success of themissiondependson it, then Isuppose I have to,” Antrotsaidmiserably.
“It might,” Leia said.“Thankyou,Antrot.”
“I’llgofirst,”Lokmarchasaid.“Thentheprincess,thenthetinkerer,andKidilast.”
“No,” Leia said. “Youlead and I’ll take the rear.I’ve got more weapons andsurvivalexperience thanKidi
orAntrot.”“But you’re—”
Lokmarcha began, thenstopped and nodded. “No,you’re right. Me, Antrot,Kidi,thenyou.”
Lokmarcha strapped alamptothemuzzleofhisriflewithalengthofbondingtape,then slung the weapon overhis shoulder. He aimed thelight up the hole, gruntedunhappily,thenshrugged.
“Ifanyoneuptherewantsto take a shot at us they’llhave a perfect target,” hesaid.“Butit’snot likethey’dmiss in that small a spaceanyway.Allright,let’sgo.”
The Dressellianclambered up into thechimney and disappeared.Antrothadfoundaheadlampin one of his many pocketsand secured it beforefollowing, with the bag
carrying the beacon strappedto his back. Kidi went next,looking almost as miserableasthetinkerer.
“Good luck,” Bon Yothsaid.
Leia nodded and reachedup into the chimney. It wasloud in the enclosed space,and she could see Antrot’slightmoving back and forth,outlining Kidi’s long armsandlegs.
She reached up, feelingfor handholds, and leveredherselfintothechimneyuntilher toes found purchase. Itwascoolanddiminside,andnarrowenoughthatshecouldrest by bracing her backagainst one side of the tubeand pressing her feet againsttheother.
Long way to the top,though.
BonYothclosedtheflue,
leaving her in darkness. ShelookedupandsawKidiafewmeters above her. Higher upthechimneyshemadeouttheformofAntrot,spotlightedbyhisheadlampwhenhepeereddownatthem.
“We’ll need a stablesurfacetosetupthebeacon,”LeiacalleduptoLokmarcha,her voice echoing hugely intheshaft. “Andwe’llhave toverify we’re in
communications range of thesurface.”
“Why not just set up thebeaconon themountaintop?”Kidiasked.
“Because theEmpirewillfindittooquickly,”Leiasaid,climbingafterher.“Yothsaidtherewasawarrenoftunnelsupabove.We’llfindaplace.”
“But what if he waswrong?” Antrot asked,breathing hard. “What if the
tunnelgetstoonarrow?Whatifwegetstuck?”
“Then we climb backdownandblasthimfor lyingtous,”Lokmarchasaid.
“That’snoreasontoshootsomeone,”Kidisaid.
“Can you two not havethis argument right now?”Leia asked. “Just keepgoing.”
She quickly discoveredthedisadvantageofbeinglast
inline:everylittlebitofdustand rock dislodged by theotherscame rainingdownonher. It got in her eyes andnose, forcing her to stop andblink furiously.And shewasall too aware of the dropbelow her. If she fell, she’dbatterherselfagainstthesidesofthetunnel.
Andthesamethingwouldhappen if one of the threepeople above her fell, she
reminded herself as Antrotslipped,catchinghimselfonlyafterkickingKidiinthehead.Leiawasbreathinghardnow,her arms and legs wereaching, and her fingertipswere tender from scraping atthe chimneywalls and beingsteppedonbyKidi.
Everybody’s tired, shetoldherself. If you complain,Kidi and Antrot will loseheart.Sokeepgoing.
“We’re at anintersection,” Lokmarchacalleddowntothem.
Aboutthirtymetersaboveher,alowtunnelbisectedthevent.Leiaclamberedupafterthe others, exhalinggratefully. The tunnelwasn’thighenoughforher tostand,but she was able to rest.Lokmarcha grinned whileKidiandAntrotjustsatthere,breathinghard.
“How far do the tunnelsgo?”Leiaasked,peeringpasttheothersintothegloom.
“Farther than my lamp,”Lokmarcha said, letting thelightattached tohisgunplayalong the walls of the rockypassageway. “Typical lavatube—”
“Shhh,” Leia said. “Iheardsomething.”
Kidi looked aroundfearfully while Antrot
strained to see down thetunnel.Lokmarchagotononeknee, gun pointed into thedarkness.
“It’s your imagination,”theDresselliansaid.
“No, I hear it, too,” Kidisaid.
The soundwasvery faint—adistant,dryscrabbling.
Like claws on rock, Leiathought, trying to spotmovement beyond
Lokmarcha’s light.Whateverwas making that noise couldsee them perfectly well, sheknew.
“I have a bad feelingaboutthis,”shesaid.
“Whatever that is, itdoesn’thaveanA-280rifle—or know how to use it,”Lokmarcha said, patting hisblaster.“Let’skeepgoing.”
“Gowhere?”Kidiasked.“I did a little poking
around while the rest of youwere climbing. Yoth’schimney ends not far aboveus, but there’s another downthis way, and it goes all thewaytothesurface.”
“Howdoyouknowthat?”demandedKidi.
“Because there’s a galeblowing up into it,”Lokmarcha said with hisusual infuriating shrug. “Andbecause Icansee lightat the
top. It’s pretty high, but wecanmakeit.”
“Oh,” Kidi said,embarrassed.
“Kidi,seeifyoucangetatransmission through thisrock to the surface,” Leiasaid. She couldn’t hear thatskittering noise any longer,but she didn’t like beingentombedinthedarkheartofa mountain, knowingsomething cloaked in
darkness might be creepingclosertothem.
Her spirits sank whenKidi couldn’t get any signalson her ship-to-surfacereceiver, but Lokmarchasuggestedtheytryunderneaththe pipe he’d found. Theycrawled twenty meters downthe low tunnel, thecommando keeping his rifleaimed in front of him. Asthey went, the slight breeze
steadily strengthened until itbecameaconstantflowofairwhistlingpastthem.
Kidiadjustedacontrolonher receiver and gave Leia athumbs-up.
“We can set up thebeaconhere,”shesaid.
“There’s even room,”Leia said, relieved.Maybe itwouldn’t be as bad as she’dfeared.
Lokmarchastoodbetween
KidiandAntrotandwhatevermight be in the darkness,sweeping his light back andforth. Behind him, Antrotextended the beacon’s tripodlegs to keep it upright. Heopened a panel on the orb’sside and punched in theactivation code, then turnedto Kidi. She typed in a longstring of numbers, thennodded.
“Gotit,”shesaid.“Signal
is transmitting, alternatingbetween Alliance codes OskandPeth.”
“Wait a minute,”Lokmarcha said. “Did youenterthosecodesbyhand?”
Kidi nodded. “I have alltheAllianceencryptioncodesmemorized.”
“How is that possible?”Leia asked. “Eachof them isdozens of random characterslong.”
Kidi shrugged. “I don’tknow. I just like numbers, Iguess.”
“It’s also an enormoussecurity risk,” Lokmarchasaid.
Kidi looked puzzled.“Why?”
“Because if you’recapturedtheEmpirewillhaveall of those codes,” theDresselliansaid.
Kidi’s face fell. “Oh. I
neverthoughtofthat.”Lokmarcha shook his
head,muttering.“All right,” Leia said,
trying to stop anotherargument before it began.“It’s not like Kidi can makeherself forget them.Anyway,goodwork.”
She peered into the pipeabovethemandsawadistantcircle of white light. “Thebeaconwillkeeptransmitting
untiltherendezvous?”“Iprogrammedit,”Antrot
grumbled.“Thatmeansitwillwork.”
“Good,”shesaid,peeringintothedarkness.“I’dliketogetoutofhere,then.”
Within a hundred metersLeia’s fingers were hurtingagain. By then the problemwasn’t just the rough-hewn
walls but also the plungingtemperature. Leia could seeher breath, and her fingersand toes were numb. Aboveher, Kidi urged Antrot tokeep going, assuring him itwasn’t much farther. Leiawished she had someonebelow her to encourage herwith little white lies—and tolistenforthingsthatmightbecrawlingupthepipeafterher.
“Watch out,” Lokmarcha
called down from above.“The rock up here is full ofholes. We can still climb,though—and we’re onlyabout two hundred metersfromtheexit.”
Leia stopped for amoment, her aching legsbracing her above the longdrop into darkness. Shetucked her hands into herarmpits,tryingtowarmthem.Her ears and nose were
throbbingwithcold.“Princess?” Kidi called
down.“Areyouallright?”Leia looked up and
realized she’d fallen somethirty meters behind theCerean.
“I’mfine,”shesaid.“I’mcoming.”
She forced her achinglimbstomove,climbinguntilshe reached the area ofbroken rock Lokmarcha had
mentioned. Thewalls lookedasthoughthey’dbeendrilled,and she thought the air wasslightly warmer up there.Perhaps that was because ofthe sun she could see above.Or maybe it was just herimagination.
It also smelled funny—faintly of rot. And therewasno way she was imaginingthat.
Go faster, she thought,
reaching into theholes togeta better grip on the rock andclimbingmorequickly.
“Ow!”shesaid.Shemusthavecutherfingerinsideoneof the holes. It was hard totell with her fingers sobatteredandnumb.
She peered at the hurtfinger,but itwas toodark tosee.Shestuckitinhermouthand the taste was sharp andcoppery—blood.
Thensomethingbitoneofthefingersonherotherhand.She pulled it back, twistingtoo far, and felt her bodyslipping. She flung out herhands and caught herself asshe started to fall, one footkicking wildly in thedarkness, and clung to thewall, heart hammering in herchest.
“Princess?” Kidi calledagain.
“There’s something alivedownhere,”Leiasaid.
“What? Antrot, shine thelight.”
In the weak light fromabove, Leia saw malevolentred sparks glittering in theholes in the rock. Theywerebelow her now, too, forminga ring around the shaft. Andshe heard movement—tinywet sounds that made thehairsonherneckstandup.
She began to climb, hermovements growing franticas the black shapes cameboiling out of the walls. Shecouldfeelthemonherhands,thenherarms.Andthentheywereeverywhere—inherhairand on her face, moist andcoldandslippery.
She cried out whensomething bit her ear. Thensomething else bit her hand.Shecouldhearscreamsabove
her,too.“Princess!” That was
Lokmarcha. “Get out of theway,youtwo!”
“Don’t fire!” Leiamanaged to yell. “You’ll hitoneofus!”
When she yelled one ofthe unseen creatures crawledintohermouth.Terrified thatit would continue into herthroat,shebitdown,herteethsinking through cold, wet
rubbery skin. It tasted acidicand vile, and she spat it out,stomach heaving, thesquelching sound of theswarmloudinherears.
They were biting hereverywhere then, and sheshook her head violently,trying to dislodge them, butonly smacked her headagainsttherock.
“Princess!” Lokmarchayelled.“We’reout!Comeon!
Icanseeyou!”She looked up and could
see theothers then, too, theirheads silhouetted against awhite circle of light. Panicdrovehertowardthem.Whenshegotwithinameterof thetop,theswarmstoppedbitingand scuttled away, seekingrefuge in the crevices andholesliningtheshaft.
They were afraid of thelight, she realized. Probably
night feeders that hid duringtheday.
Lokmarcha seized herarmanddraggedher throughthe opening. She lay on thecold rock, gasping. Belowher,countlesseyeswinkedinthe gloom and the walls ofthe shaft seemed to be inconstantmotion.
“Are you all right?”Lokmarcha asked, yelloweyeswideandstaring.
“I think so,” Leia said,hoping thatwas true.She satup and looked around, handsexploring the bites on herface, dabbing at the littlespots of blood leftwhere theswarm had fed. The othermembers of the team weredottedwithbitesaswell.
“What were thosethings?”Kidiwhimpered.
“Idon’tknow,”Leiasaid,spitting to get the rest of the
awful tasteoutofhermouth.“But if any tourists visitBasteel, I’d recommend theyskipthechimneyclimb.”
The shaft emerged in alow saddle between jaggedmountains painted deeporangebythesunlight.Itwasfreezing,socoldthatthethinair was hard to breathe, andthe wind was cruel, piercingtheirclothing.
“Kidi, tell Nien to come
getus,”Leiasaid.“Wewon’tlastlongintheseconditions.”
The Cerean nodded,pullingouthercomlink, thencalledforNien.
Therewasnoresponse.“He better not be still
hanging out in the bar,” saidLokmarcha. He wasshivering.
“He wouldn’t do that,”Leia said. “Keep trying,Kidi.”
“Look!”Antrot said afterKidi had made four moreunsuccessfulattemptstoraiseNien.
Leia followed theAbednedo’s pointing fingerandsawthreedotsinthesky.Theywere far away, but shecould swear they lookedlike…
“Find cover!” she said.“Getdown!”
They scrambled into the
sparse shelter of a boulderthat had detached itself fromthe mountain ages before. AmomentlatertheTIEfightersshriekedoverhead,theirsolarpanelswinkinginthesun.
“If we’re captured,Princess,don’tpanic—Ihavea plan B,” Lokmarcha saidquietly toLeia. “One no onewilleverfind.”
“Idon’tpanic,”Leiasaid.“Butgoodtoknow,Major.”
“Do you think theImperialscaughtNien?”Kidiasked.
“I hope not,” Leia said.She was shivering, her teethchattering uncontrollably.And, she realized, the sunwas sinking toward thehorizon.
Lokmarcha had seen it,too.
“We can’t stay up here,”he said grimly. “We have to
climbbackdown.”“Past those things?” Kidi
asked, her face gone palewithfright.“No.Noway.I’dratherfreezetodeath.”
“They’re waiting till thesun goes down,” Lokmarchawarned. “When night comesthey’llemergetofeed.”
Kidishookherhead,eyesfixedonthepipefromwhichthey’demerged.
“Kidi, relax,” Leia said.
“Panic won’t help us. Wehave to keep trying Nien.Now,doesanybodyhaveanysurvival gear? Anything thatcouldhelpus?”
Lokmarcha shook hishead.“Ithoughtwe’donlybeout here for a couple ofminutes.”
“Kidi?Antrot?”The tinkerer scowled,
thenbrightened.“Ihaveasheetofflexible
insulation in my pack,” hesaid. “It’s for electronics—meanttokeepheatout.Butitwill keep it in just aseffectively. It works bypreventing thermal radiation—”
“I don’t need to knowhowitworksrightnow,”Leiasaid.
Antrot extracted a thin,metallic-looking sheet fromone of his apparently infinite
pockets. Unfolded, it wasabouttwometerssquare.
“Give it to the princess,”Lokmarchasaid.
“Don’tberidiculous,”shesaid, her teeth clackingtogether.“We’llshare.”
“It’s not big enough forallfourofus,”Antrotsaid.
“Sowe’llshiftpositions,”Leiasaid.“Twentyminutesata time. Come on, huddle up.We’ll need our body heat to
staywarm.”She put her arms out,
drawing Kidi and Antrotclose and wrapping theinsulated sheet around them,then inclining her head atLokmarcha. He crouched afewcentimetersaway,clearlyreluctanttocomecloser.
“It’s not the GrandCoruscant Ball, Lok,” Leiasaid, amused despite thedesperate situation. “Come
here,Major.That’sanorder.”The four of them clung
together, the wind whippingatthem.Ifitweren’tsocold,Leia thought, shemighthaveappreciated the view. Themountains were almostimpossibly tall, their jaggedpeaks jabbing into the sky,andthecolorswereglorious.
They huddled together,shifting positions everytwenty minutes, taking turns
enduring the exposed spacethe sheet couldn’t cover. Atfirst Leia nervously watchedthe sinking sun, trying tofigureouthowlong theyhaduntil it disappeared, and sheducked her head when TIEfighterspassedoverhead.Butsoon she was too numb andexhaustedtocareabouteitherperil. She wondered if Hanhadfeltlikethatastheliquidcarbonite froze in place
aroundhim, forcinghim intohibernation. Shewondered ifhedreamedinthatstate.
And if he did, was it ofher?
Shecouldn’t remember ifitwas time to tellKidi to trycontacting Nien again, or ifthey were supposed to rotateplaces. Her brain wasskippingbetweenrandombitsof memory—things that hadhappened so long before, on
Alderaan and Coruscant andBespin and other worlds.Planets that had been warmandfulloflifeandnoise.
Noise.Sheforcedherselftoraise
herhead.Thesunwaslowinthe sky—opposite its fadingglow, the first stars hadappeared. The wind was abanshee wail, ceaseless andpitiless.
And a voice was leaking
outofKidi’sheadphones.“Kidi!” Leia yelled,
shaking the Cerean techfrantically. On Leia’s otherside, Antrot clutched hermore tightly, moaning acomplaint.Lokmarchalookedup,hisyellowgazedull.
After a moment Kidi’seyes snapped open. Shelooked at Leia reluctantly,uncomprehendingly. Andthensheheardthevoice,too,
and remembered what itmeant.
“Nien!” she yelled intoher headset. “Nien! I’mtransmittingourposition!”
Above them,abrightstarwasmoving.
ItwastheMellcrawler.Theyweregoingtolive.
LEIA HADN’T KNOWNthatwarming up could be sopainful.Thefourof themlayin theMellcrawler’s lounge,wrapped in slightly mustyblankets Nien had foundsomewhere in thehold.Theysipped soup from chippedmugs while the Sullustan
fretted over them, asking ifthey wanted broth or tea oranythingelse.
“You should lie still andrecover your strength,Princess,” Lokmarcha said,huddledbeneathablanketonthe other side of theaccelerationcouch.
“No, she shouldn’t,”Kidiprotested. “She should sit upifshe’sready.Keepthebloodmoving.”
“Icantellwe’vesurvivedbecause you two arebickering again,” Leia said,and had to smile when bothKidi and Lokmarcha lookedembarrassed.
Leia wondered what herauntswouldsayiftheycouldsee her—filthy, half-frozen,and covered with bites.They’d probably lecture herabout maintaining herappearance and the company
shekept.Ladies don’t crawl up
chimneys, she thoughtwith asmile. At least not in HouseOrganatheydon’t.
“Why did you notrespond to ourcommunications, Nien?”asked Antrot from where hewaslyingonthedeck.“Wereyou still consuming theNovanian grog youremembered?”
“I wish,” Nien said. “ItwastheEmpire.”
“I guessed that,”Lokmarcha grumbled. “TheTIE fighters were agiveaway.”
“TheEmpirearrivedwitha landing craft,” Nien said.“Stormtroopers fanned outand started searching thetunnels. The Imperialschecked every ship’sregistration and captain’s
license. Fortunately for us,my documents were forgedby the best slicers in theOuter Rim. But it still tookforever. And then I couldn’traiseyou.…”
The Sullustan’s earsdrooped.Leiasmiledathim.
“Youdidfine,Nien,”shesaid, reaching up to squeezehis hand. “We’re alivebecauseofyou.”
“Well, I might have had
something to do with it,”Nien said with a smile.“Anyway, we’re safely inhyperspace and heading fortheSesidsystem.Andbeforewe made the jump I did afrequency scan—the beaconwas transmitting loud andclear.”
“I don’t understand,though,” Kidi said. “Did theEmpire just happen to bethere? Or were they looking
forus?”Leia looked up to find
Lokmarcha’seyesonher.Sheknewwhathewasthinking—that their plan was working.Butwasthattrue?Orwasitacoincidence—some kind ofcrackdown that had nothingto do with them? No starsystemwas truly beyond theEmpire’sreach.
She shoved the thoughtaway—itwouldn’thelp them
completetheirmission.“Wecanworryaboutitin
the morning,” she said. “Fornow, I suggest we get somesleep. It’s been a very longday.”
“That’s an excellentidea,” Lokmarcha said,gettingtohisfeetandheadingfor the cabin he shared withAntrot. Then he turned andofferedthemalittlebow.
“Good night, ladies and
gentlemen,” he said. “Don’tlet the hideous bugs in thewallsbite.”
Kidistiffened.“That’snotfunny.”
Lokmarcha shrugged, buthewasgrinning.
“All right, maybe it’s alittlefunny,”Kidisaid.
In themorning, though,Kidiwasinnomoodforhumor.
Leia was in theMellcrawler’s cramped head,removing bactamicropatchesfromherface,whensomeoneknockedatthedoor.
“I’ll be out in aminute,”shesaid,annoyed.
“Princess,Ineedtotalktoyou,” Kidi replied. “It’surgent.”
Leiaheardnoalarms,andthe Mellcrawler was flyingsmoothly as it followed its
course through hyperspace.She opened the door andpeeked past Kidi down thecorridortothelounge.Antrotwasfiddlingwith the innardsofabeaconwhileLokmarchawas sharpening a wicked-looking knife big enough toholdoffawampa.
Whatever was wrong, itwasn’t an imminent threat totheir lives. And that meantLeiacouldmakeacupofcaf
first. She desperately neededone.
“Now then,” she said afew minutes later, gratefullycradlingthewarmmuginherstill raw hands. “What’swrong,Kidi?”
“Codes,” Kidi said. “It’sthecodes!”
“I’m not following.Kidi.Take it slow.Tellmewhat’swrong.”
“Antrot downloaded the
codes Alliance Intelligencegave us to use during themission,” Kidi explained.“But when I saw the reportsfrom Basteel, I got worried.So I checked the codes andthey’re ones we stoppedusing weeks ago, onsuspicion that they’d beenbrokenbyImperialslicers.”
Over Kidi’s shoulder,Leia saw Lokmarchawatchingtheconversation.
“I see,” she said, stallingfortime.
“IfollowedtheordersthatGeneralCracken’s teamgaveme,” Antrot said, lookingmorebaffledthandefensive.
“I’m not blaming you—it’smy fault,” Kidi said, hereyes wet. “I should havechecked.AndnowI’veputusin danger—us and anyonewho hears ourmessage.Andeverythingthat’shappenedon
Basteelismyfault,too.”“Wait a minute,” Leia
said.“Imissedwhenyousaidthatearlier.What’shappenedonBasteel?”
“I saw it on anunauthorized holofeed thismorning—thereare still a lotof them operating in theOuter Rim,” Kidi said. “I’llshowyou.”
Nien emerged from thecockpit, looking as if he had
something to tell them. ButwhenhesawKidi’sagitation,he looked questioningly atLeia.
“She has something toshowus,”Leiasaid.
Kidi activated theholoprojector housed in theMellcrawler’s engineeringstation. The report wasbreathlessly narrated, puttogether from footage shotaround corners and from
concealment. It showedImperial officers in thetunnels of Basteel andstormtroopers holding peopleatgunpoint.Leiasawtheblueringsofstunblasts.Andthenthe report showed a line ofbeings—humans and aliensalike—beingledinbinderstoa landing craft. She lookedfor Bon Yoth but didn’t seehim.
“Go back,” Leia said.
“Play it again.There—freezethat.”
The hologram waveredslightlyintheair.Itshowedasquad of stormtroopers andtwo officers. One was anolderman,withgrayhairandlong sideburns. He wasturning to look at the otherofficer,whowaspointing.
The other officer was awoman. She was small andslight, about Leia’s size, and
wearing an olive-greenuniform. Her mouth was athin line, her gazeunflinching. She turned andLeia saw the rank badge onherchest.
“She’stheoneincharge,”Leia said. “An Imperialcaptain.”
Nien nodded. “Thatwould be the commander ofthe Imperial Star DestroyerShieldmaiden, then.I justgot
wordfromaformerassociateof mine. The Shieldmaidenarrivedacoupleofhoursafterwe departed.CaptainKhioneisknownforherdedicationtoduty,I’mtold.”
“AStarDestroyer on ourtrail already?” Leia said.“That’snotgood.”
And yet that wasn’tcompletelytrue.Theyneededtheir mission to attractImperial attention. But that
was a little more attentionthanshe’dwanted.
“An Imperial crackdownwill bring ruin to Basteel,”Kidisaid.
“Seemed pretty ruinedalready,” Lokmarcha said,studying his reflection in hisknife.
“You saw those people!”Kidi said. “They’ve got nextto nothing and now theImperialbootwillbeontheir
necks.Andit’sallmyfault!”Leia shook her head
sadly. They’d been to onlyone world, and already thatworld was suffering fromImperial reprisals. And notbecause theAlliance plannedto fight for the people’sfreedom, either. Those whocalled Basteel home werepawnsinalargergame.
“Kidi,it’snotyourfault,”Leia said.“Listen tome. I’m
aprime targetof theEmpire.Anything could havehappened—someone sightedme or a security drone sawus. We just have to keepgoing. If I’m a prime target,our best defense is to makesureI’mamovingtarget.”
Kidi nodded uncertainly.“All right. Meanwhile, I canupdate our messages to usethelatestAlliancecodes.Theonesweknowaresecure.”
Lokmarcha stoppedfussing with his knife,waiting to hear what Leiawouldsay.
“We can’t do that,Kidi,”she said, hating the lie shewas about to tell even as itcame together in her mind.“We know the codes we’reusingmaynotbesecure.Buttherehasn’tbeentimeforouragents to tell potentialresistance movements about
the new encryption keys. Ifyou change the codes, theEmpire won’t hear ourmessages—but neither willthe people we’re trying toreach.”
Kidi cocked her head atLeia. “But doesn’t that putanyonewhogetsourmessageingreaterdanger?”
“Yes,” Leia said. “Buteveryone we speak to andeveryone we meet is in
danger.AndtheywillbeuntiltheEmpireisjustamemory.”
FROMSPACE,Sesidwasaballofbrilliantblue,adornedwithwhiteswirlsandfleckedwithblackandgreendots.
“It’sawaterworld,”Nienexplained from the pilot’sseat as the Mellcrawlerdescended. “Imperialcorporations conduct
pharmaceuticalresearchhere,and there’s a garrison toprotect those facilities. Butmost of the islands cater totourists, and the localauthoritieswanttokeepthemhappy and spending credits.That means as long as westay away from the pharmaplants, we should be able toavoid any Imperial attention—stormtrooperstendtoputadamper on a family
vacation.”“And the resistance?”
Kidi asked, turning to Leia.“Who are you meeting onSesid?”
“AllIknowishisnameisAurelant,” Leia said. “He’ssomekindof local resistanceleader. I’m supposed tomeethim on a volcanic islandslightly east of the mainchain. Fortunately, we’veidentifiedthepeakasanideal
place to set up our nextbeacon.”
“In an active volcano?”Antrot asked, looking upfromwhateverhewasdoing.“I can accomplish a lot,Princess Leia, but moltenrock is at a temperatureoutside of these beacons’rangeforsafeoperation.”
Leia reminded herself tobe patient with the quirkytinkerer.
“We’re not going tothrow the beacon into themouth of the volcano,Antrot,” she said. “We’ll setitupontheslopes.Anddon’tworry, the terraindata showsthisclimbwillbea loteasierthanBasteel.”
“But the volcano isactive?”
“Just a little smoke andthe occasional rumble,”Niensaid with a yawn. “It hasn’t
actually erupted for, oh, fiveorsixyears.”
Nien Nunb had been tohundredsofplanets,butSesidwasn’t one of them, and hehad to ask Sesid TrafficControl to repeat itsinstructions that he land theMellcrawler on a giant leaffloating in the turquoisewaters near the island called
Thrinaka.“We can accommodate a
medium freighter, pal—thepadwon’tevenbudgewithalittle boat like yours,” thetechondutytoldNien.“Resteasy and come enjoy abeautifulday.”
Nien chuckled. “Neverthought I’d be landing on agiant lily pad. Every time Ithinkthegalaxycan’tgetanystranger,itsurprisesme.”
Kidi looked worried, butthe Mellcrawler set downwithout incident, bobbingslightly on the massive,spongy leaf beneath it. Theramp lowered and humid airflowed into the space yacht.Leia blinked at the brilliantday outside and—unable toresist—spread her arms tofeel as much of the warmsunshineaspossible.
“SoIlikethisplacejusta
bit better than Basteel,” saidLokmarcha.
“Me too,” Nien said.“ThinkI’llcomewithyouasfarastown.”
“You mean the firstcantina, don’t you?” askedKidi.
“Yourmissionisclimbingactive volcanoes. Mine isgathering intel—and tryingout a new tropical beverageor two. Either way, duty
calls.”The fibrous veins of the
giant pad made naturalwalkways, which the five ofthemfollowedtoapier.Birdswheeled in the sky, andLeiasawschoolsoffishmovingasoneintheshallowwater,likepeacefulminiaturestarfleets.
“This is lovely,” Kidisaid. “But how dowe get tothe island where we’reputting the beacon?Couldn’t
wehavejustlandedthere?”“Youalwayswanttodoit
theeasyway,”Niensaidwithagrin.“TrafficControlwouldhave spotted us immediatelyand alerted the Empire.Besides, this way you get togoboating.”
They left the pier andwalked along a broadboardwalk of white wood,shot through with whorls ofgreenandpurple.Childrenof
a hundred species wererunning around, pursued byparents, and multiarmeddroids hawked everythingfrom sweets to tubes of sunprotection.
“What are those?” Kidiasked, pointing to clusters oftall black cylinders on theother sideof the road. “Theyalmost look like escapepods.”
“That’sexactlywhat they
are,” Nien said. “Everysettlement here has them. Intheeventofabigeruptionorseismic event, it’s easier toevacuatepeoplebylaunchingthem into space than it is tolandandpickthemup.Therearebigfinesforusingtheminnon-emergencies,ofcourse.”
Leia realized theSullustan was eyeing them,onehandunderhischin.
“Whatisit?”
“Your clothes. You can’trent a boat wearing thatstuff.”
“What’s wrong with ourclothes?”Kidiasked.
“You don’t look liketourists,” Nien said. “Whichis fine, sincewe just arrived,but before long people willstartaskingquestions.”
Leia tried to weigh theperilsofdiscoveryagainsttheneed to keep the Empire on
her trail. She decided—reluctantly—that Nien wasright.
“Nobody told me to packbeachwear,” Lokmarchaobjected.
The Sullustan pilotchuckled. “Fortunately,Major, there isn’t a beachtown in the galaxy withoutpeople happy to sell you
whateveryouforgottobring.Let’s go get you properlyoutfitted.”
“Nobody is to tellanybody about this, ever,”Lokmarchasaid.“Imeanit.”
Kidi tried to look seriousbutdissolvedingiggles.
The Dresselliancommando was wearingpolarized eye lenses, purpleshorts, and a T-shirtadvertising a local smazzo
quartet.Hisweaponsandgearwereconfinedtoaduffelbag.He lookedridiculous,aswellasfurious.
He also no longer stoodout among the throngs ofvacationers walking alongThrinaka’sboardwalk.
“Noneofusareexactlyfitfor military inspection,Major,”Leiapointedout.Shewaswearing a flowered shirtthathurthereyesovershorts,
with a bright pink towelwrapped around her waist,having indignantly rejectedNien’s roguish suggestion ofa two-piece brown swimsuitadorned with gold braid.Kidi’stropicalshirtwasevenmoregarish, andpoorAntrotlooked like he’d lost a bet,stumblingalongwithhiseyeshidden behind oversizeshades,andacapbearingthelogoofalocalfishingcharter
sitting awkwardly on hishead.
“I think you look great,”Nien said. “We should stopso I can get a holo forMonMothma.…”
“No!”severalmembersofthecrewsaidatonce.
But Leia was relievedwhen no one looked at themtwice as they forked over anexorbitant number of creditsto rent a repulsorcraftwith a
powerfulengine.Nienwavedfromtheshoreastheywadedout into the shallowwater towheretheirboatwasmoored,surrounded by vacationersexchangingweatherreports.
“The galaxy’s atwar andthey’re worried about anafternoon shower,” grumbledLokmarcha,uptohiswaistinwater, with his duffel heldoverhishead.
“I’m happy for them,”
Kidi said. “Imean, isn’t thatwhat we’re fighting for? Tomake the galaxy a placewhere people are free toworryaboutsillythings?”
“That’s not the way I’dput it,” said Lokmarcha,heaving his duffel into theboat. “But it’s an interestingwayofthinkingaboutit.”
“It is,” Leia said. “Plusthewater’snice.”
“I don’t like wide-open
spaces,” Antrot said. “I haveagoraphobia.”
“Oh, goodness me,” Kidisaid.“IfeellikeIfinallyhavesome room. Even a bigstarship gets to feelingcramped—particularly whenyou’reaCerean.”
When they were aboard,Lokmarcha reeled in theanchor and they raced out ofthe lagoon and into the opensea, the boat flying over the
surface of the water. Thewind whipped at them, butunlike Basteel it was warm,full of the smell of salt andlife, and Leia found herselfsmiling.
She was almostdisappointed when she sawthe conical island rising outofthewateraheadofthem.Athin plume of smoke trailedfromitssquared-offtop.
“Our rendezvous point
shouldbe right in thiscove,”Lokmarcha said, cutting thethrottleandeasingthebowoftheir boat right up onto thebeach.
“Pinpoint landing, Lok,”Leia said. “Nien would beproud.”
Lokmarcha gave Leia asmall bow and they splashedashore. The sand was black,littered with tiny whiteseashells—almost as if the
night sky and the shore hadswitched places. Beyond thebeach, the land rose steadilythrough green jungle to thesteep sides of the volcaniccone.
Once on the beach,Lokmarcha turned seriousagain.
“I don’t like sendingthose twooff alone to set upthe beacon—we don’t knowwhatkindofpredatorsmight
live here,” he told Leia in alowvoice. “But I can’t leaveyou alone to meet whoeverthisresistanceleaderis.”
“You’ll have to pick,”Leia said. “Butkeep inmindthatIcanhandlemyselfwitha blaster, and they barelyknowwhichendiswhich.”
“True.Butmymission istoprotectyou,notthem.”
Itwasa simple statementoftruth,butitstillmadeLeia
want to clench her fists. Shewas tired of peoplevolunteering to die for her—becausealltoooftentheyhadtokeepthatvow.
“I have a comlink andyou’re not going far, Lok,”Leia said. “If anythinghappens that I can’t handle,I’llseekcoverinthejungle.”
The commando kicked attheblacksandunhappily.
“Would it be better if I
madeitanorder,Major?”sheasked.
“Itwouldbe,actually.”Leia smiled. “Easy
enough, then. Lok, I orderyou to protect Kidi andAntrot. And not to worryaboutmesomuch.”
She watched the three ofthem cross the black sandwith their gear and vanishinto the green jungle. Thewaves broke softly on the
beach, and the birds calledoverhead. It was strange tofind herself somewhere sobeautiful during such aterribletime.
But it was alsocomforting.Natureflourishedeven in a galaxy at war,creating life and beauty onbillions of planets—beautynot even the Empire coulderadicate. She sat down onthebeach,watching thebirds
and trying to see how manyspeciesshecouldidentify.
It was warm and therewas no sign of a boat, oranything else that indicatedher rendezvous was at hand.Leiadecidedtoliedownforafew moments, to rest whileshe could. She rubbed herhead back and forth in theblack sand, creating acomfortable hollow, andstaredupintotheinfiniteblue
sky.And a moment later, she
wasasleep.
LEIA AWOKE WITH astart to see a figure standingover her, silhouetted againstthe sun. She scrambled forher blaster, knowing it wasalreadytoolate.
“Relax, Princess—it’sus,” said Lokmarcha.“Fortunatelyforyou.”
“Leave her alone,” Kidisaid.“Shewasexhausted.It’sgoodthatshegottorest.”
Leia got up hastily,embarrassed. TheDresselliancommandowasstandingwithKidi and Antrot, looking outtosea.
“Is the beacon placed?”Leiaasked.
“Transmitting perfectly,”Kidi said. “Beautiful viewfromupthere,too.”
“But no one showed upfortherendezvous,Itakeit,”Lokmarchasaid.
“Not unless they decidedto let me finish my nap andleft.”
Shewasrelieved,actually—there was no need toendanger the mysteriousAurelant. With luck theycould return to Thrinaka andheadtotheirnextdestination,attracting Imperial attention
withoutdireconsequencesforthe people of this lovelyplanet.
“Let’s get back,” Leiasaid.“Wehavea schedule tokeep.”
They had just come insightofThrinakawhenLeia’scomlinkbegantochime.
“We’re about twentyminutes away, Nien,” shesaid.
“Turnaround,then,”Nien
said. “There arestormtroopers in port—andthe Imperial captain we sawon Basteel is with them.They’re searching the town.I’ve got to take off in casethey recognize theMellcrawler.”
“Lok, head back out tosea,” Leia said. “Nien, youand Kidi figure out a commchannel you can use in casethe Imperials start jamming
us.”Lokmarchacuthardtothe
left, sending their boatbouncing over the waves.Leia caught Antrot as hestaggeredacrossthedeck.
“Don’tyourbootswork?”Leiaaskedhim.
“Thedeckmaterial isnotmagnetic,” Antrot said. “Ibelieve it’s wood. It wouldhave been better if Nien hadnotrentedsuchafancyboat.”
“Behind us,” Lokmarchasaid. “About five hundredmeters. Electrobinoculars areinmygearbag.”
After ordering Antrot tohold on more securely, Leiaknelt and dug in thecommando’sbag.Shebracedherself against the boat’sgunwale, grateful for theelectrobinocs’ stabilizercontrols.
“Stormtroopers on
waveskimmers!” Leia yelledover the wind. “And whatlooks like an amphibioustransport behind them. Canwelosethem?”
“Their boats are fasterthan ours!” Lokmarchashouted back. “And out herethere’snowheretohide.”
“Let me drive—we needyoutoshoot!”Leiasaid.
The boat hit a wave thatsentitmorethanameterinto
the air, repulsorlifts whiningin protest. Leia landedawkwardly, pain shootingthrough her knees, andstaggered across the deckbefore crashing intoLokmarcha’sback.
“Don’tletthemgetabeadon us, Princess,” he said,scrambling across the decktoward his bag. Leia gunnedthe throttle and Lokmarchaslid toward the stern,
smackingintoitwithhisriflealready raised. He staredthrough the rifle sight andsqueezed off a volley ofblaster bolts at the pursuingwaveskimmers.
“At this range if I hitanything it’llbedumbluck!”hesaid.
“Kidi, find somethingbuoyant!” Leia yelled. “Afloat-vest or chunk ofinsulation! Antrot, rig a
detonator on a ten-seconddelay!”
She cut the boat hard tostarboard,throwingupasheetof water to spoil theImperials’ aim. Antrot washuddled in the bottom of theboat, looking queasy whilerigging a detonator. TheAbednedo’s cap had flownoff, and his sunglasses wereaskew.Blasterboltssizzledinthe water off to the boat’s
left, causing columns ofsteamtorise.
“Must be a deck gun onthat transport!” Lokmarchayelled. “Princess, hold ourcourse!”
Leia riskeda lookbehindherandsawAntrotholdingabright orange float-vest overhis head. The tinkerer let goof it and it fluttered throughtheair,vanishingintotheseaand then immediately
bobbingtothesurface.Leiatriedtocountbutlost
track when she had to duckunder a blaster bolt. Shepeekedoverhershoulderjustintimetoseeacolumnoffireerupt from the surface of theocean. The black shape of ariderless waveskimmerskittered over the waves likeastoneandthensank.
“Got one!” Lokmarchayelled. “That was beautiful,
Antrot!”Thenthebowlurchedinto
the air and Leia felt heat onher back. The boat slewedcrazily to starboard, and shebriefly feared they’d capsize.Shelookedbackandsawpartof their stern had beenvaporized. A thin ribbon ofsmoke began to trail behindthem.
“We’re all right—keepgoing!”Lokmarchayelled.
The engine screeched asLeiatriedtocoaxmorespeedfrom the damaged boat,which was listing slightly toport.
“This isn’t going towork!” Leia yelled atLokmarcha. “We need tohead back to the island—thejunglewillgiveuscover.”
“Even ifwebeat them tothe island, they’ll only be acoupleofminutesbehindus!”
“Betterthatthananythingthat will happen to us outhere! Kidi, monitor allchannels in case they’recoordinating with otherunits.”
Kidi nodded, crouchedover her own gear, asLokmarchafiredwildly.
“I found their commfrequency,” Kidi said,looking horrified. “That’sCaptainKhione back there—
and they’re looking for you,Princess. They used yourname!”
“Never mind that, Kidi,”Leia said. “See if you canraise Nien—maybe he canpickusupontheisland.”
Another blaster bolt setthewatertoportboiling.Leiabegan to juke the boat backandforth, listeningnervouslyto the damaged repulsorlifts’protests. Black smoke was
pouringfrombeneaththehullnow. Antrot groaned andretched.
“There’ssomethingunderourboat!”Kidiyelled.
Leiapeekedovertheside,hoping the Cerean tech waswrong, and saw a large darkshape below them. She cutthe boat hard to starboard,flinging Lokmarcha to thedeck.Antrotwaslyinginthebottom of the boat with his
armsclutchinghishead.Ahead of them,
something rose out of thewater.
It was a vehicle, sherealized—huge and dark. Acrack appeared in its bluntbow, widening until ityawned like a leviathan’smouth. Leia could see lightinside and figures scurryingabout.
Leiahesitated,thenaimed
forthemysteriouscraft.“Princess, no!”
Lokmarchayelled.“Wedon’tknowwhotheyare!”
“They’re not shooting atus! Right now that’s goodenoughforme!”
Another shot struck theportsideoftheirboatandLeiaducked. Bolts zinged pastthem,kickingupsparksfromthe vehicle’s hull. Leia sawthat the ship was covered in
lush green seaweed, like theshaggycoatofsomemassiveanimal.
The opening in the bowextendedbelowthesurfaceofthe water, allowing Leia tozip inside without slowingdown. She threw the enginesinto reverse, kicking up acolumn of water that soakedthem. The basin inside theship was ringed withcatwalks, where humanoid
aliens of a species Leia hadnever seen were gathered.Theywerehuman-sized,withsilvery green skin, red eyes,and sharp teeth. They woresimple clothes and carriedgeartypicalofsailors—alongwithblastersandknives.
Behind them, the ship’smassivemawbegan toclose.When Leia shut off theengines, the aliens began tocheer.
“I’m having troubledetermining if we have beensaved or captured,” Antrotsaidweakly.
“Metoo,”Leiasaid.Oneofthealiensdirected
Leia to bring the boatalongside a catwalk.When itdrew within a meter, severalofthealiensreachedoverandgrabbed it, tying it fast withimpressive speed and skill.Their fingers were long and
ended in wicked-lookingclaws.
“Maybe we should havetaken our chances with thestormtroopers,”Kidimutteredas the pirates gestured withtheirrifles,orderingthemoutoftheboat.
They took Lokmarcha’srifle away from him andpatted down the others,laughing as a shaky Antrothad to be helped onto the
catwalk. Pirates beganpawing through their gear,holding up detonators andcomm terminals andchatteringexcitedly.
The crowd parted and analien a head taller than theothers looked down at them.He was festooned withdozens of necklaces andbracelets, andhis green armswerecrowdedwithtattoos.Abreastplate scavenged from
stormtrooper armor protectedhischest,andaheavycutlasshungathiship.
He grinned at them, histeethbrilliantwhite.
“Princess Leia Organa, Ipresume,”hesaidinaccentedBasic, “of the Alliance toRestoretheRepublic.There’sa considerable bounty onyour pretty head, YourHighness.”
LOKMARCHA STEPPEDbetween Leia and the alien,teeth bared. But she pushedpast the Dresselliancommando.
“Don’t,” she whispered.“We’re hopelesslyoutnumbered.Letme.”
Sheeyedthealienpirates,
handsonherhips.“I see I need no
introduction,” she said. “Butyoudo.WithwhomdoIhavethepleasureofspeaking?”
The alien’s grin got evenbigger.
“Your captor,” he said.“That’sallyouneedtoknowfornow.”
The pirates laughed.Leiaraised her voice to be heardabovethem.
“The Imperials will behere in moments—and thenwe’ll all be captives,” shesaid.
“We’ve alreadysubmerged—those fools willnever find us down here. Tooff-worlders the ocean issurfaceandwhatliesbeneathis mystery. The question iswhat to do with you,Princess.”
“So we’re negotiating?”
Leiaasked.“Negotiating?Hardly.I’m
thinking—you’re waiting.Here’s the thing, Princess—I’m a businessman. Andyou’reworth a year’s prizes,for a lot less risk. Can youoffermeadealthatgood?”
“Youcanhave theboat!”Kidisaidimpetuously.
The pirates began tolaugh.
“I alreadydo,” the leader
said. “No, your offer willhavetobebetterthanthat.”
Leia tried to think ofsomethingshecoulduse.Sheknew better than to promisethepiratesaransomfromtheAlliance. For one thing, theAlliance needed every creditfor the fight against theEmpire; for another, such apromise would just drive uptheprice.
“You’renotfriendsofthe
Empire,”shesaid.“No self-respecting
Draedan is,” thepirate leaderspat.
“So we have that incommon.”
Leia looked at theDraedanpirates,at theirgunsand their toothy grins. Theywere tough, and there was adarknessinthem.Butperhapsthat wasn’t all there was inthem.
She’dhavetohopeso.“I can offer you
something better,” she said.“A place in the RebelAlliance. A chance to makethegalaxybetter.Tofightnotforcreditsorstolengoodsbutfor freedom.Freedomfor theDraedans and all the peopleofthegalaxy.”
“Andwhat’s thatworth?”thepirateleaderasked.
“More than anything,”
Leiasaid,thenwaited.The leader cocked his
greenheadather,hisredeyesnarrowed.Thenhelaughed.
“You’re fearless—particularly for a human,” hesaid.“That’sgood.Wehadtoknow.”
He made a curt gesture,and the pirates lowered theirweapons.
“The name’s Aurelant,Princess—Captain Aurelant,”
hesaid.“WelcomeaboardtheDaggadol.”
Leia felt her shouldersslumpinrelief.
“You’re our rebelcontact?” Kidi asked indisbelief.
Aurelantnodded.“We may be a small
world, and far from theimportant places of thegalaxy,” he said, “but wehave long memories.
Memories of a time beforethe Empire, when Sesid wasfree and the stars offeredpossibilities, not threats.PerhapsSesidcanbethatwayagain.”
Leia bowed her head toAurelant. The pirates begantocheer.
“You missed ourrendezvous, Captain,” shesaid.
“That I did,” Aurelant
said. “On account of theImperials. They’ve beenprowling these waters forhours.”
Leia felt her heart flutter,imagining if the Imperialshadseentheboat in thecoveandfoundoneoftheprincipalleadersof theRebelAlliancebyherself,asleeponthesand.
In a hideous floweredshirt,noless.
“Haven’tseenanImperial
operation like today’s onSesid since the last time weDraedans went to war,”Aurelant said. “They’velocked down all transportsoff-worldwhiletheylookforyou. And there’s a StarDestroyerinorbit.”
“That’swhereweneedtoget, too—space,” Leia said.“So we can continue ourmission.”
“Ah, yes. You—
conehead. Can you tune aHorvax-16transmitter?”
Kidi lifted her chin. “Ilearned to insert signals intotheHolonetwith aHorvax-8whenIwasakid.”
“DidyourHorvax-8useasubaquatic amplifyingarray?”
Kidi shook her headmeekly, but Antrot clearedhisthroat.
“I have made
communicationsrigsfunctionwith everything fromsubaquatic amps to quantumrelays. It’s an easycustomization.”
“Good,” said Aurelant.“That means the two of youprobably won’t damage ourgear.I’dhatetogetoffonthewrong foot by having tocharge your Alliance for areplacement.”
“Ourship’sinorbit,”Leia
said. “But it’s too risky tohave it come down to get us—that Star Destroyer willblankettheareawithTIEs.”
“Rather than itcoming toyou, you go to it,” Aurelantsaid.“Inanescapepod.”
“The Star Destroyer willsee the launch. We’ll becaptured.”
“Let me tell yousomething about Draedans,Princess,”Aurelant saidwith
a toothy grin. “I’m one ofeighteenbrothersandtwenty-two sisters—which makesmine a shamefully smallfamily. I have more cousinsthan I can count in everytown within five hundredkilometers of here. TheImperials can target oneescape pod, yes. But we’regoing to launch hundreds.Theywon’t knowwhich oneisyours—butyourshipwill.”
Leiasmiledandnodded.“You’ll do that for us?”
Kidiasked.The pirates began to
laughagain.“What’s so funny?” the
Cereanasked.“The Empire pays a
salvage company torecondition accidentallylaunched pods and refuelthem,”Aurelantsaid.“Oneofmy brothers owns that
company. We won’t makequite as many credits as wewould turning your princessovertotheEmpire,butitwillstillbeaprettygoodpayday.”
INTHEMORNING, on theway to the planet Jaresh,Leia’sdoorchimedagain.
That time, she wasn’tsurprisedtofindKidilookingpale and anxious or to hearthat the Empire hadresponded to Aurelant’sescape-pod stunt with
reprisals. The footage fromSesid showed nervous-looking tourists lining up fortransports, stormtroopersescorting captive Draedans,and TIE bombers hurtlingover the surface of theturquoise ocean, their angledsolarwingssendingsheetsofwater flyingupbehind them.In a transmission, theShieldmaiden’s CaptainKhione demanded that all
thosewho’d helped the rebelfugitives elude justice beturned over to the authorities—or all of Sesid would paytheprice.
“Everyone who helps ussuffers because of it,” Kidisaid,lookingstricken.
“I know,” Leia said.“That’s how the Empirekeeps people living in fear.By demonstrating thatanything other than utter
obediencebringsbrutality.”“But how can we ever
stop such…such evil?” Kidiasked.
“Byriddingthegalaxyofthosewhocommitsuchacts,”Lokmarcha said. “You said‘evil’ and you were right.There’s no negotiating withpeople who would do that—or the far worse things doneintheEmperor’sname.”
Kidi just nodded
miserably,wrappingher longarms around her body. Leiafelt like curling into a ballherself.CaptainAurelantandhis pirates had seemed likemarauders, but their reasonsforopposingtheEmpirewereasnobleasanyexpressedbythe people of Alderaan orChandrila.
Now they would pay aterrible price for thatopposition—and theAlliance
would be no help to them.Leiaknewperfectlywell thatthe Rebellion wasn’t comingtoCorvasectoranytimesoon,notwiththefateofthegalaxyto be decided nearly ahundred thousand light-yearsaway. The people of Sesidwere alone—just as thepeopleofBasteelwere.
And as the people ofJareshwouldbe.
We’re at war, Cracken
had said, and Leia hadaccepted that. But now shewonderedhowmuchevilhadbeen done, deliberately ornot,becauseofthatexcuse.
Below the MellcrawlerhungtheplanetJaresh, likeagreen jewel in space. As theyachtapproached,Leiacouldsee thin blue lines carvedacross the continents,marking a complex series ofirrigation canals that brought
water from enormous polarice caps to the moretemperateregions.
“It’s quiet down there,”Kidi said from beneath herheadset. “I know there arecommunications towers thatserve the planet, but you’dnever know they existed ifyoulistened.I’veneverhearda planet with that big apopulation and so little tosay.”
“Seems wise to me,”Antrot muttered. “Maybethey save their words forwhentheymatter.”
“The first Jareshicolonists were part of areligious order,” Nien said.“They’vechosen to livewithlittlebesidesbasictechnologyand dedicate themselves tofeeding nearby planets. Notmy philosophy—I like myplanets to be a bitmore fun,
thanks—but admirableenough,Isuppose.”
“We’ll be landing nearthevillageof Jowloon,”Leiasaid.“Mycontact is there—avillage matriarch namedNyessa. I’m to ask forher atthe general store. As for ourbeacon, Alliance Intelligencesuggests we install it at acommunications node sometwenty klicks outside of thevillage. How many of you
knowhowtoride?”Lokmarcha raised his
hand.SodidKidi,thoughshelookedtentative.
“I’ve ridden aryx,” sheexplained. “Bigbipedalbirdsnative to Cerea. Do thosecount?”
“I don’t know yet,” Leiasaid.“Antrot?”
“Icanrideinaspeeder.”“That would be a no,
then.”
“What about you,Princess?” Lokmarcha askedskeptically.“Canyouride?”
“Former Alderaanianjunior champion in steeple-chase,”Leiasaid.
“Ididn’tknowthat.”Leiashrugged.“It’srarely
muchuseinspace.”
Nien set the Mellcrawlerdowninaspaceport thatwas
little more than a landingfield, a fuel depot, and awarehouse full of cargocontainers. They stepped offtheyachttofindthesunhighin a bluish-purple sky dottedwith white clouds. The airwas humid and smelled offertilizer.
“Well, it’s not hard tofigure out what they exporthere,” Nien said. “Still,fertilizer’s valuable.Maybe I
canswingadeal.”“Betterthatthanspending
your time in the cantina,”Kidisniffed.
Nien offered her a littlebow. “Don’t step inanything.”
He waved and headedback up the ramp. Leia,Lokmarcha,Antrot, andKidipulled their hats down andtheircloaksclosed,hopingtolook unobtrusive as they
walked through the muddystreets into the outskirts ofJowloon. The houses weremade of wood, carefullymaintained and painted. Inthe fields, farmers shoutedencouragement to burlylivestock of a species Leiadidn’t recognize—powerfulbeasts with bony plates ontheir backs, dragging plowsbehindthem.Elsewhere,boysrested among herds of nerfs
—though they weren’t theAlderaanian breeds Leiaremembered from her youth—orwatchedoverwhellays.
The crew of theMellcrawler walked quietlythrough the village, but Leiastill saw heads turn to notetheirpassage.
Not a place whereoutsiders are common—orfailtoattractattention.
Suddenly,Kidistiffened.
“Look!” she saidurgently, starting to lift herarm.
Lokmarcha pushed herhandbackdown.
“Don’t,”hesaidurgently.“Inconspicuous,remember?”
Leia saw what hadattracted Kidi’s attention—apairofstormtroopersstandingin the village square, theirwhite armor a strangecontrast to the rich colors
aroundthem,likeblankspotsinapainting.
“Keep going,” she said.“They have no reason to besuspicious of us unless wegivethemone.”
Jowloon’s general storewasliketherestofthevillage—simple and rustic. A fewfarmerswere buying tools orfeedwhileaged locals talkedabout the weather and finerpoints of animal care. Leia
leaned her elbow on thecounterandwaitedfortheoldwoman behind it to look upinquiringly.
“I’m a friend ofNyessa’s,” Leia said. “Shesaid I couldcallonherhere.I’ve just arrived from off-world.”
“Knew you lot was fromaway the second I sawyou,”thewoman said. Itwasn’t aninsult, just a fact she’d felt
likestating.“Thistimeofdayyou’dmostlikelyfindNyessabythewarbupaddock.”
“Andwhere’sthat?”“Same place ’tis always
been—just up the hill fromtheol’Galwayfarm.”
Leiajustwaited.“Och, that’s right. You
lot’sfromaway.I’llmakeupamap.”
Nyessa was a hunched,leathery-faced Kyuzo. Shewas ancient, but Leia saw awiry strength in the way sheheld herself, and her eyeswere brilliant yellow sparksbeneathabroad-brimmedhatofgrayfelt.
“You’d be the ones fromaway,” she said simplywhenthey got her attention. “Therebels. Wait there a fewticks.”
Shecalledtothewarbu—apparently, thatwaswhat thearmoredbeastswerecalled—making a strange cluckingnoise. They eyed her frombeneath their intimidatinghorns, then obedientlyplodded in the direction of along shed with a watertrough.
“Loyal beasts,” Nyessasaid with satisfaction. “Nowthen.Ispeakforthepeopleof
Jowloon. What ’tis that youneed?”
Leia must have lookedsurprised, for Nyessa shookherheadimpatiently.
“Comenow,”shesaid.“Idon’t know how they do itoutintheaway,butonJareshwe honor our obligation tohelp thosewhohavepledgedtohelpus.What’tisthatyouneed?”
Leia exchanged a look
withLokmarcha.“Mounts,” she said. “We
have something—a machine—weneedtoattachtooneofthe communications towers,up in thehills. It’s too far towalk.”
“Just in time, then,”Nyessa said. “A few morehours and the Empire wouldhave fetched them to thecorral to be tagged—urdas,warbu, nerfs, and whellays,
everything. But I can lendyoufoururdas.”
“Thecorral?”Kidiasked.“’Tis newly built and on
theothersideofthevillage—youwould not have seen it,”Nyessa said. “The Empirewants to implementa systemto track everything we have—beasts,crops,wells.Sowecan be more efficient infeedingtheirarmies.”
“Efficiency is helpful in
every industry,” said Antrot,looking puzzled when Leiashothimapoisonouslook.
“You people from awaywant to change the way weare,”Nyessa said. “Wecameto Jaresh centuries agobecause we did not want tochange. ’Tis that not ourright?”
“Ofcourse it is,Nyessa,”Leia said. “And we want torestore that freedom.Foryou
and everyone else in thegalaxy.”
“’Tis good,” she said.“But you must return bydusk.”
Leia tried tocalculate thedistance to thecommunications tower andhow long it would take toinstallthebeacon.
“I assure you we’ll takegoodcareofthe,um,urdas.”
“That’snotwhy,”Nyessa
said. “I need you backbecause tonight ’tis ourmeeting with the one whospeaks for the Imperialgarrison. And ’tis ourobligation to tellhimthathisEmpireisnolongerwelcomeonJaresh.”
IT TOOK LEIA AMOMENT to stop gaping atNyessa.
“You…you can’t dothat,” she stammered.“They’ll arrest you. Orworse.”
“But you have pledgedyourselvestous.”
Leia looked at herhelplessly.
“Yes,” she saidreluctantly, hating the lie.“Wehave.Butwedon’thavethemilitary forces to opposethe Empire here and now inthatway.”
“’Tis a disappointment,”Nyessa said. “We had acovenant. But then you arefrom away. Anyhow, it doesnot matter. Our faith means
obligations. Such as standinginoppositiontoevil.”
“But you’ll die!” Kidisaid,aghast.
“Ourobligation ’tis todoour duty. The consequencesare not for us to determine.Butnowyoumustgo.Cometothebarnandselecturdastoride.”
Urdas turned out to belong-legged quadrupeds withhornyclawedfeetandshaggy
coats that smelled faintlysweet.AfterKidifelloffhersfor the third time, Leia toldNyessa that they would takeonlytwoofthemounts.Theyrode side by side, Antrotclinging to Leia while KidirodebehindLokmarcha.
The fields stretched forkilometers beyond Jowloonbefore giving way to low,scrubby forest crossed by apitted road. Fortunately, the
urdas were both sure-footedand smart, nimbly avoidinguneven terrain and obeyingthe slightest pressure from akneeortugonthereins.Leiamight have enjoyed thejourney if not for theknowledge that Nyessa andher villagers planned to dosomething suicidal—and thatLeia’s arrival had led to thatdecision.
They began to climb into
low, rounded hills, and soonafter that Leia saw thecommunicationstowerahead.They stopped beneath themassive structure, a metallatticethatstabbedahundredmeters into the sky like aspike.
“This mission involvestoo much climbing,” Antrotsaid.
“Oh, come on, Antrot,”Kidi said, setting her
headphones over hertympanic membranes andadjusting a control on aportable scanner. “Look—goup ten meters or so andthere’saladder.Easiestthinginthegalaxy.”
“The first time I climbedsomething on this mission,creatures bit me,” theAbednedotinkerersaid.“Thesecond time, I risked beingincineratedbyavolcano. If I
climb up there, I willprobably be hit by lightningor carried away by someavianpredator.”
“I don’t think that’s howlogicworks,”Leiasaid.
“I am also tired and verysore.”
The tinkerer handed thebag containing the beacon toLeia and walked away. Heploppeddownontheground,extracting a piece of gear
from one of his pockets andexamining it through hismonocle.
“But, Antrot, you’ll missall the fun,” Kidi said. Thenherfaceturnedserious.
“Whatisit?”Leiaasked.“Now that I see it, this
tower’s a conduit, not atransmitter,” Kidi said. “Itpasses along all the commtraffic from the network andpushes itout into space from
an array on the other side oftheplanet.”
“I thought you said thisplanetwasquiet,”Lokmarchasaid.
“Compared to anyplaceelse it is. But we’re stilltalking a planet’s worth ofmessages.Oursignalwillgetlost.Weneedtoboostit,andthat’stricky.”
“But not for you,”Lokmarchasaid,givinghera
fond smile. “You can doanything.”
Kidi smiled back at thecommando, then brightened.“Iknowaway!Amethodforgivingoursignalalittleextrashimmer. It’ll take a littlewhile,though.”
Andwith that she pickedup the bag containing thebeacon, hooked a long legover the lowest part of thetower’s lattice, and began to
climb.Leia watched her go, but
hermindwaselsewhere.Thatoddfeelinginthebackofhermind was back. Somethingwasabouttohappen,andshehadacentralroletoplay.
Leia tracked Kidi’sprogress, telling herself torelax, to trust herself. Andthen she knew what she hadtodo.
From Leia and Lokmarcha’svantage point, Kidi was asmall figure against the sky,framed by the lattice of thetower. Lokmarcha watchedthe Cerean with a concernedlookonhisface,handsonhiships.
“Kidi knows what she’sdoing,”Leiasaid.“Besides,Iwanttotalktoyou.”
She eyed Antrot, but hewas deeply involved with
whateverhewasfixing.Still,to keep the tinkerer fromoverhearing, she led theDressellian commando overto where they’d tied up theurdas.
“I know what you’regoing to say, Princess,”Lokmarcha said. “You’reupset about the old womanandhercrazyplan.”
“Of course I am—andyoushouldbe,too.”
“What can we do? Youheardher—she’smadeuphermind.Anyway, themission’sbeen a success so far. Youshouldbepleased.”
“‘Pleased’?” Leia asked.“PeopleonBasteelandSesidare dead because we werethere. And in a couple ofhours, people on this planetwillbedead, too.Andallfora diversion. I didn’t join theRebellion for that—and I
doubtyoudid,either.”“I joined it to defeat the
Empire. Whatever the costs.We’re—”
“Don’t tell me we’re atwar,Major.BecauseifIhearthat again, I’m going tostrangleyou.”
Lokmarcha held up hishands peaceably.Leia fumedforaminute,studyingKidiatherwork.
“Do we even need to
make this final transmissionbefore Yellow Moon?” sheasked. “We know we havethe Empire’s attention—toomuch of it, even.We can gobackandconvinceNyessa tostand down, then tell anyships that have answered ourcallthesamething….”
Lokmarcha was shakinghis head. “We have theEmpire’s attention, Princess,butweneedtokeepit.Every
daywecandothatisanotherday for the fleet toassemble.And we both knoweverythingdependsonthat.”
Leia scowled, but thecommando was right. Shewaited for Kidi to finish herwork and test the beacon,trying to conceal herimpatience. The Cerean techgave thema thumbs-up, thendescended.Whenshereachedtheground,shewassmiling.
“Plenty of shimmer,” shesaid. “I just hope somebodyhearsit.Weneedalltheallieswecanget,right?”
Leia looked down at herboots, then back to theCerean woman’s beamingface.
“What is it, Princess?”Kidi asked. “Did I dosomethingwrong?”
“No,” Leia said. “Youhaven’t done anything
wrong.”“Princess, don’t,”
Lokmarchasaid.“No, Lok. I’ve made up
my mind. I can’t do thisanymore. Kidi, Antrot, it’stime to tell you the realpurposeofourmission.”
Shecrossedherarmsoverherchest.
“Lokalreadyknew—he’dbeenbriefedbeforehejoinedour team,”Leiasaid.“SoI’ll
tell you two now, and Nienwhenwe get back.And thenyou can decide what youwanttodo.”
“Idon’tunderstand,”Kidisaid.
“You will,” Leia said.“We’repreparingforamajorbattle with the Empire—oneon the other side of thegalaxy fromhere. I can’t tellyou the reason for thatbattle—I’m sorry, I really can’t—
butwe’vebeengatheringourcapital ships into an armadain preparation. The outcomeofthebattlecouldwelldecidetheoutcomeofthewar.Ifwelose,theAlliancedies.”
“And so we’re gatheringnew allies here, as well?”Kidiasked.
“No,” Leia said. “Justlisten to me. We’re decoys.Or, more properly, I am—amoving target to keep the
Empire’s attention focusedhere.Sothat there’slessofachance they’ll discover thelocation of our armada andstrikebeforewe’reready.”
Antrotshrugged.“Intelligence personnel
alwayslie,”hesaid,andwentbacktofiddlingwithhisgear.
ButKidi’sfacewaspale.“That’s why I was given
old codes,” she said. “TheEmpire already has them,
doesn’t it? The whole pointwasforthemtosniffusout.”
Leia just nodded. TheCereanhadbecomealot lessnaive in a hurry, she thoughtsadly.
“Whichmeans you knewpeopleonBasteelwoulddie,”Kidisaid.
“No,”Leiasaid.“Ididn’tknow that. I hoped nothinglikethatwouldhappen.”
“But it did. And so you
musthavesuspecteditwouldhappenagainonSesid.”
“Yes,” Leia said, forcingherself to meet Kidi’s eyes,feeling as though she owedherthatmuch.
“Those people died fornothing!”Kidisaid.
“Not true,” Lokmarchainterjected. “They died tohelpthelargerplansucceed.”
“That’s terrible—” Kidibegan.
“You’re both right,”Leiasaid. “The larger plan mustsucceed if we’re to restorefreedom to thegalaxy.But itis terrible—and very hard toacceptbeingapartof.”
“Well, I don’t accept it,”Kidi said. “And Iwon’tbeapartofitanylonger.”
“Iadmirethat,”Leiasaid.“And I told you the truthbecauseI’mnotgoingtobeapartofitanylonger,either.”
“It’s too late! What canwe possibly do to makeamends?”
“Idon’tknowifanythingcan do that,” Leia said. “ButI’mgoingtotry.Forstarters,we’re going to save Nyessaand thevillagers of Jowloon.We’regoingtofight.”
THEY RETURNED toJowloon in the lateafternoonto find the streets strangelyquiet.Leiacouldn’tfigureoutwhat was wrong for amoment. Then she realizedthe fields and pastures wereempty of animals. TheImperials had taken them to
thecorral.To Leia’s relief, she
didn’t have to search forNyessa—the oldwomanwashosing out her beasts’ emptypen. She let her hands lingeron the urdas’ shaggy flanksforalongmoment,comfortedbytheirpresence.
“We’re going to get therest of your animals back,”Leia promised. “We’re onlyfour, but we’ll keep our
covenantwithyou.”“’Tis no need. We will
make our declaration andleavewhatfollowstofate.”
“I believe in making myownfate,”Leiasaid.“Istherea barn overlooking thecorral?”
“Yes.OldGrimshaw’s.”“Andcanyoutrusthim?”“He is my cousin,”
Nyessa said. “But, yes, I cantrusthim.”
“Excellent,” Leia said,and then told Nyessa herplan.
“IsuspectthatI’mallergictothis vegetation,” Antrotcomplained.
Leia wasn’t particularlyhappy, either—the hay thatfilled Old Grimshaw’s barnwas dusty and itchy, and shefeared one of them would
sneeze and they’d bediscovered. Only Lokmarchaseemed content. He had setuphisblasterrifleonatripodand was waiting patiently,occasionally peeking throughthe sight at the crowdedsquarebelow.
“DoIneedtogoovertheplanagain?”Leiaasked.
“No,” said Lokmarcha.“Unless you’re going to givemeanotherchancetotalkyou
outofit.”“I’m not. Antrot, you’re
sure the charge is setproperly?”
“If I had any doubt, Iwould be down thereeliminatingthatdoubt.”
“Good enough. We’llhavetobepatient,then.”
Below them, the crowdhad gathered,waiting for theheadof the Imperialgarrisonto arrive.The crowdhad left
aspacefortheImperialsrightin front of the gates of thecorral, which was fillednearly to capacity withanimals.Warbu lowed, nerfsand whellays bleated, andurdas nickered unhappily intheconfinedspace.
“IseetheImperialsnow,”Kidisaid.“They’reinatrooptransport.”
“What? Nyessa said theywouldwalk.”
“Well,shewaswrong.”“Iftheyparkthatthingin
front of the corral our planwillfail,”Leiasaid.
“We better hope theydon’t do that, then,”Lokmarchasaid.
The transport approachedtowithin thirtymetersof theedge of the square. Thentwenty.Leiarealizedshewasholdingherbreath.Ten.
Then the transport
stopped. A dozenstormtroopers emerged,blasters holstered, and eyedthe villagers from behindtheir skull-like helmets. TwoImperial officers were withthem, hands behind theirbacks.
“I wish that Imperialcaptainwere here, too,”Leiasaid to Lokmarcha. “That’scrazy,isn’tit?”
“Very,” Lokmarcha said.
“Atleastshelostourtrail.”The Imperials stood in
frontofthegatetothecorral.One raised a loudhailer andordered everyone to quietdown.
Little by little the crowdobeyed,until theonlysoundswere those made by theanimals. Nyessa looked upand caught Leia’s eye. Theoldwomannodded.
“People of Jowloon…”
theImperialofficerbegan,hisvoice harsh over theloudhailer.
“Now,”Leiasaid.ThechargeAntrothadset
behind the corral exploded,the light of the blast brieflyilluminating the square. Theanimals shied away from it,shoving at one another, eyesrolling in panic. Nyessa wasyelling,andthevillagerswereclearingthesquareasquickly
as they could. The officersturned toward the corral,baffled.
Lokmarcha fired. Theenergy bolt from his riflevaporized the lock on thecorral. The frightenedanimals charged, shoving thegates open. For a momentLeia saw the stormtroopersand their officers in front ofthe corral trying to stayupright amid the stampede.
Then theyhad fallenbeneaththe charging hooves andstampingfeet.
But other Imperials hadavoidedthestampede.
“Take them out, Lok,”she said. “I’m going downthere.”
TheDressellianlookedupfrom his rifle, alarmed.“Princess, stay here where Icanprotectyou!”
“If anyone comes near
me, shoot them,” Leia saidover her shoulder as shepoundeddownthestairs.
She emerged from thebarn into a chaotic scene—animals were rushingeverywhere, eyes wild andhooves kicking. Somevillagerswere trying to calmtheanimalswhileothersweresimply trying to escape thefight.
A stormtrooper hurried
around the side of the barn,clattering in his armor. Leiabrought her blaster up andfired, leaving him in a heap.She saw other troopers’helmets turning her way asthey shoved through thecrowd, trying to reach thetrooptransport.
She couldn’t let themgetthere.
Leia dodged a trio offrightenednerfs,duckingasa
blaster bolt sizzled over herhead. A warbu tossed itshead, hooting angrily andeyeingapairofstormtroopersin front of it. Leia smackedthe beast in the hindquartersashardasshecould,shoutingat it. Her hand went numb.The beast charged thetroopers, flinging themaside.One scrambled to his feet,andLeia shothim.Theothercrashed into a crowd of
villagers,whosefistsroseandfellaroundthearmoredfigureintheirmidst.
Twoof the stormtrooperswerebacktoback,firingintothe crowd. Screams eruptedaroundLeia.Shelookeduptocatch Lokmarcha’s eye—andsawa tall, coneheaded figurehurrying towardher, anE-11blasterinherhands.
“Kidi! What are youdoing?”Leiademanded.
“Fighting!” the Cereanreplied.
A blaster bolt zippedbetween the two of them.Kidi aimed her gun at thestormtrooperwho’dfired,butnothinghappened.Shestaredattheweaponindismay.
“Safety!” Leia yelled. Acharging warbu knocked thetrooperintoher,spoilingbothof their shots. The ImperialsoldiergrappledwithLeia.
“It’s too late for safety!”KidiyelledatLeia.“Wehavetofight!”
“No—your blaster has asafety!” Leia yelled,struggling with thestormtrooper for control ofherblaster.“Totheleftofthetrigger!”
A grizzled villagerbroughtagrainrakedownonthe stormtrooper’s helmet,and the trooper crumpled.
The villager grinned at Leia,then hurried away into themelee.Kidifumbledwithhergun, and a crimson energybolt zipped past Leia’s headand crashed into the side ofthegeneralstore.
“Oh!”Kidisaid.“Sorry!”“Just stay behind me!”
Leia said, yelling for thevillagers to get out of herway.Ablasterboltzippedoutfrom the barn, dropping
another trooper. Lokmarchafired again, forcing thetroopers trying to reach theirtransporttoduck.
Leia saw Nyessa in themiddle of the square, ringedby brawny farmers. Shecaught the old woman’s eyeand gestured urgently at thetroop transport. Nyessalooked thatway and nodded,then began bawling outorders. A gang of villagers
surged toward the troops,farm implements raised. Thestormtroopers fired and twooftheirattackersfell—buttherestoverwhelmedthem.
Itwasover.The square rapidly
emptied of animals as theysought the pens and fieldstheycalledhome.Kiditurnedtoward the corral, where thestampedehadbegun,butLeiasteeredhergentlyintheother
direction.“You don’t want to see
that,” she said, leading theCerean toward Nyessainstead.
“They are gone,” thematriarch said withsatisfaction.
“Yes,” Leia said. “Butthey’ll be back. And they’llpunishyourentirevillage.”
“Perhaps,” Nyessa said.“Butalotmayhappenbefore
they get the chance ofreturning.Thingscanchange.And if we die? It will bedefending those we love andthethingswevalue.Thereareworsefates.”
Leiasmiledather.“Therecertainlyare.”
NIEN NUNB HAD beenbusy. The hold of theMellcrawler was filled withbarrels of concentratedfertilizer from Jowloon—acargo the Sullustan claimedwould make him anenormousprofitonSullust.
Leia hoped so, because
she could smell it from thelounge. Antrot lookedstricken.
“Don’ttellmeyouhaveaphobia about fertilizer, too,”Kidisaidwithagrin.
“I’m gonna have one bythe time I get off this ship,”Lokmarchamuttered.
Antrot shookhis head. “Ihave no phobia, though thesmell is unpleasant. Whatconcernsmeisthatthiscargo
isdangerouslyvolatile.”Nien’s face fell. Then he
shrugged. “I’ll try not to flyinto anything.Now, if you’llexcuseme,Ithinkit’stimetogetoffthisplanet.”
Leia was in the lounge,considering the best time totell the Sullustan what she’dtold the others, when theMellcrawler lurched tostarboard. Antrot’s monoclepoppedoffandKidiclutched
Lokmarcha,hereyeswide.Leia raced to thecockpit,
hands out to brace herself,and found Nien franticallyflippingswitches.
“Star Destroyer!” heyelled.“Snuckuponmefromthedarksideoftheplanet.”
“It’s the Shieldmaiden,”Leiasaidgrimly.
“Hang on! It’ll take aminuteortwotocalculatethejump to hyperspace—gotta
makeitbeforetheygetalockwiththetractorbeam!”
Kidi and Lokmarcha halffell into the cockpit. Kidipointed at a light on theconsole.
“They’re hailing us,” shesaid.
Nienhitaswitchwithhisfistandthecockpitwasfilledwith a woman’s voice, ascoldasspace.
“IamaddressingPrincess
Leia Organa,” CaptainKhione said. “Shut downyour engines and prepare forboarding—or the people ofJaresh will pay the price foryourtreason.”
“Oh,no!”Kidiwailed.“It’s a bluff,”Lokmarcha
said.“They’renotgoingtogoafter another target with usrighthere.”
Nienadjustedhisheadset,ignoring Kidi’s screams for
him to fly the shipwithbothhands.
“Talk’s cheap, lady,” hetold Khione, struggling withthe unfamiliar sounds andrhythmsofBasic.“Youwantus?Comegetus!”
Alarms began to blare,and laser fire lit up spaceaheadofthem.
“How long till you canmakethejump?”Leiaasked.
“I need another minute,”
Niensaid.“We don’t have another
minute!”Kidiyelped.“Wait! Look on the
scopes!That’sperfect!”Amassiveshipwasahead
of them—judging by itsprofileitwasoneoftheslow,colossal commercial vehiclesthat plodded between starsystems.
“You’re cutting it tooclose!”Lokmarchawarned.
“Let’s hope not,” Niensaid. He headed straight forthe massive freighter, jukingand weaving to keep theShieldmaiden’s tractor beamfrom locking on. Proximitywarnings blared in thecockpit as the freighter’sprow filled space ahead ofthem.
Then Nien dived belowthegiantship,levelingouttostreakalongbeneathitsbelly.
“Lock on to that!” heyelled triumphantly, thenreached for the throttle. Amoment later, theMellcrawler shot intohyperspace and Nien threwhisarmsintheair,crowing.
“You’re a maniac,” Kidimoaned, hands still over hereyes.
“I know a certainCorellianwho’dbejealousofthat maneuver,” Leia said,
bending down to give theSullustanakissonthecheek.
“So what happens now?”Kidi asked once Nien hadappeared in the lounge toverify that the Mellcrawlerhadtakennodamageandwasonthecorrectcourse.
“We go to YellowMoon,” Leia said. “But themission will be a little
different than what weoriginallyplanned.Anyshipsresponding to our beaconswill be there in two days—but the Empire may bewaiting. So as soon as theyarrive we’re going to tellthem what our real missionwas—andwarnthemtoclearout.”
“It’s too risky, Princess,”Lokmarcha said. “We’vehadtoomany close calls already.
We’vedonewhatwecametothis sector to do—we shouldget clear and set course forSullust.”
“Others are taking risks,too,Lok,”Leiasaid.“Excepttheydon’tknowwhatthey’regettinginto.Wehavetohelpthem.”
“Mymissionisto—”“I know what your
mission is,” Leia said. “AndI’m grateful to you for your
dedication.IfanyofyouwanttooptoutofgoingtoYellowMoon, you’ve earned thatright. I’ll get Nien to find asafeportforyou.”
“I go where you go,”Lokmarcha said. “You knowthat.”
“I want to help,” Kidisaid.“Whateverthecost.”
“I want to see if mybeacons worked,” Antrotsaid.
Nienchuckled.“What can possibly be
funny about this?” Kididemanded
“Well, if I say no youhavenoship.”
“That’strue,”Leiasaid.“No”—Nien grinned at
the shocked surprise onKidi’s face—“way am Imissingthis.”
“There’s a problem,though,”Lokmarchasaid.
“Onlyone?”Leiaasked.“The Empire has the
codeswe’vebeenusing,” thecommando said. “If youbroadcast an explanation,you’ll also be telling anyImperial ship or spy droidthat might be listening. Andthat could tip off theEmpireabouttherealplan.”
Leia stared at the deck,frustrated. “Andwecan’tgeta secure code to only the
shipswewanttotalkto.”Lokmarcha nodded. But
Kidiwassmiling.“I can,” she said. “We
send a new encryption codeby tightbeam—ship to ship,not broadcast. I’d have tocompress the code so it canbe transmitted quickly, but IthinkIhavetimetodoit.Weonlysendthenewcodetotheshipswewanttohearit.Thenwe use that to encrypt your
broadcast and we’re talkingonlytoourfriends.”
“And if one of them’s abounty hunter posing as afriend?”Lokmarchaasked.
“It’s an acceptable risk,”Leia said. “I’m not going totellthemeverything,Major—I’m not that crazy. TheEmpire’s not in the businessof believing wild tales frombounty hunters. By the timethey decide it isn’t justmore
disinformation, the fleetshouldbeassembled.”
“A more immediateproblem?” Nien began. “Wedon’t know how many shipsmightbewaiting forus.Youmaynothave time tocontactthemonebyone.”
Kidismiled.“That’s the value of
having friends,” she said.“We tell the captains to sendmy code along to those they
came with. That way it onlytakes a couple of hops tospreadthewordtoeveryone.”
Antrot looked up inpuzzlement when Leia askedhim to come into her cabinfor aminute. Then he beganpacking up his seeminglyinfinitetools,oneatatime.
“You don’t need to dothat,” Leia said. “I just need
you.”The Abednedo tinkerer
obediently got up andfollowedher.
“What can I do,Princess?”heasked.
“Something secret,” Leiasaid.
“Therehavebeenenoughsecrets on this missionalready.”
“You’re right,”Leia said.“Itellyouwhat.It’llbeupto
you whether or not to keepthisone.Fairenough?”
“Isuppose.”“I want you to rig the
ship,”Leiasaid.Antrotblinkedather.“To
dowhat?”“Explode.”“Our mission has had
difficulties,butsuicideseemslikeanoverreaction.”
Leia sighed. “I’m riskingour livescontacting theships
responding to our call atYellow Moon—but I’m alsorisking the future of theAlliance.Ifthingsgobadly,Ineed a contingency—a planB.”
“Oh.”“Whatdoyouthink?”“Howbiganexplosiondo
youneed?”“As big as you can give
me.”“Not a problem,” the
tinkerer said. “Nien has thehold packed so full offertilizer that there was achance the ship wouldexplode during ourmaneuversoverJaresh.”
“I was happier notknowingthat,Antrot.”
“My apologies,” thetinkerer said. “People arealways telling me that I’vesaid too much or too little.It’sconfusing.”
“I think you’ve done justfine,Antrot,”Leiasaid.“AndI’m grateful to you. So areyougoingtotelltheothers?Itreallyisuptoyou.”
Antrot thought about itforamoment.
“No,” he said. “I don’tknowwhatMajorLokmarchawouldsay,butitwouldmakeKidi nervous. And Nienwould be angry. I think onlyyouandIshouldknow.”
“All right then. Thankyou,Antrot.”
She opened the cabindoor. Lokmarcha and Kidiwere ineachother’sarmsonthe acceleration couch. Leiaput a finger to her lips andgestured forAntrot to followher down the corridor to thehold.
“Let’s give them someprivacy,” she said, wrinklingher nose at the barrels of
fertilizeraroundthem.“Why are they doing
that?” Antrot asked, peeringbackdownthecorridor.
“Um…”Leiabegan, thenrealizedshehadnoideawhattosaynext.
“I mean, they spent alarge part of our journeyarguing,”thetinkerersaid.
Leia smiled, thinking ofanasteroidbeltfaraway.Fora moment she could almost
see Han’s eyes and the grinshe’d found infuriating atfirst, then irresistible. Hadn’tescaping from Hoth with adamaged hyperdrive been animpossiblemission,too?
If I make it out of here,Han, I’m going on onemoreimpossible mission. Not fortheAlliance—nomatterwhatI’m told my duty is. But foryou.
“Princess?”Antrot asked.
“Didyousaysomething?”“Oh, I was just
remembering somethingfunny. Sometimes argumentscan be away of hiding yourtruefeelings,Antrot.”
Heshookhishead. “Thatdoesn’t make any sense atall.”
“You’reright—itdoesn’t.But love often doesn’t makesense.”
GALAAN HAD a strangebeauty, Leia thought as shesat in the Mellcrawler’scockpit.Itwasamassivegasgiantwhose bid to become astar had narrowly failed,leaving a glowing orbsurrounded by a cloud ofmoonsofallshapesandsizes.
The largest was a sandywasteland that reflected theyellow glow of its system’sstarlikeamirror.
“Yellow Moon,” Kidisaid from the seat behindNien. “It’s hard to believewe’rehereatlast.”
“It is,” Leia said. “Howlonguntiltherendezvous?”
“Lessthananhour,”Niensaid. “And before you askagain, there isn’t even a blip
on the scopes. And nounusualcommtraffic.”
Kidi covered her mouth,lookingembarrassed.
“What is it?” Lokmarchaasked.
“I was thinking that Ireally want ships to showup,”Kidi said. “Because thatwould show that ourmissionsucceeded. Our originalmission, I mean. But that’scrazy.Because itwould be a
lotbetterifnobodydid.”They waited in silence.
The appointed time of therendezvous came, with noships appearing. A minutepassed.Thenanother.
“Maybe nobody’scoming,”Leiasaidhopefully.
AnalerthootedonNien’sconsole.
“Ship coming in!” theSullustan said. “Looks like asmall freighter, but she
accelerates like an attackship.”
“Ready with the newcode?”LeiaaskedKidi.
Kidi nodded, speakingurgentlyintoherheadset.
“They say they’re theSapphireRogue,andtheygotour message at Sesid,” shesaid.“Sendingcodenow.”
Then another ship cameout of hyperspace, followedby another, and soon there
were nearly two dozen,ranging from salvagedCloneWars–era craft to spaceyachts like the Mellcrawler.Nien carved sweeping arcsthrough space to ensureKidicould contact asmanyof thearriving ships as possible,seeding the code Leia wouldneed.Kidi’slongfingersflewoverthekeysofherdatapads,but at last she lookedupandsmiled, giving them a
thumbs-up.“Letmehavethecomm,”
Leia said, then hesitated.She’drehearsedwhatshewasgoing to say half a dozentimes but was still unhappywithit.
“Allcraft, this isPrincessLeia Organa,” she said. “Irepresent theRoyalHouseofAlderaan and theAlliance toRestore the Republic. OnbehalfoftheAlliance,weare
honored that you haverespondedtoourcall.”
“They’re receiving,”Kidisaid.
Leianodded.“Butpleaselistentowhat
Ihavetosaynext,”Leiasaid.“Youarehereasasmallpartofalargerplan—andIregretto say that has placedyou interribledanger.
“As I speak, a rebelarmada is gathering to fight
theEmpire.Whathappensonthatbattlefieldwilldeterminethe fate of the Alliance andwhether our galaxy will befree once again. But we arenot that armada, and this isnotthatbattlefield.
“I brought you here tobuy time for that mission. Ibrought you here under falsepretenses. For that I amdeeply sorry, and I swear Idid so only because the
Alliance was in grave peril.The call you responded towas a ruse, butmy gratitudeisveryreal.AndsoisthatofeverybodyintheAlliance.”
Sheswallowed.“Andnow thatyouknow
thetruth,Ibegyou—fleethissystem. Because my ship isbeing hunted. We kept ourrendezvous to warn you, incase the hunters followed ushere.”
“Another ship comingin,”Niensaid.
“What kind is this one?”Kidi asked. “Nien? What’swrong?”
“It’s an Imperial StarDestroyer.”
NIEN MASHED DOWNthe throttle and theMellcrawler leapt forward,carving an arc across space,away from the ships thathadansweredthebeacons’call.
“Ioutranheronce—Icanoutrunheragain,”hesaid.
But this time theyhadno
head start, and there was nobulk freighter toputbetweenthe Mellcrawler and theShieldmaiden’stractorbeams.Leiaknewtheyweren’tgoingto make it, even before theMellcrawler shuddered andslowed.
“If I don’t shut downwe’ll get turned into scrap,”Niensaidapologetically.
“What about the otherships?”Leiaasked.“Arethey
safe?”“They’re out of tractor
range,” Nien said. “Andalready jumping intohyperspace.”
LeialookedbackandsawthatAntrot had something inhis hand—a compact littledevice with two bright redbuttonsontop.
“Not until we’re insidethe Shieldmaiden’s belly,”Leiasaid.
Thetinkerernodded.“Inside?”Kidi asked, but
Lokmarcha reached over andputhishandonAntrot’sarm.
“Don’tblowuptheship,”hesaid.“Wemaystillhaveachance, Princess—I havemyownplanB,remember?”
Nienlookedback,hisearsquivering. “Wait—you weregoingtoblowupmyship?”
“Take the detonatorapart,” Lokmarcha told
Antrot. “Hide the pieces inthose pockets of yours. YoucanbeplanC.”
LeianoddedatAntrot.“How did you know?”
sheaskedLokmarcha.“The tinkerer and I share
a cabin, remember? Antrottalksinhissleep.”
Antrot looked chagrined.“Ididn’tknowIdidthat.”
“Besides, it’s what Iwould have done,”
Lokmarchasaid.The Shieldmaiden’s
shadow fell over theMellcrawler, immersing it indarkness.
“I think it’s time for youtotellmeyourplanB,Lok,”Leiasaid.
Thecommandoshookhishead. “I’ll be with you.You’ll know. And if I’velearned anything about you,it’sthatyou’llfindaway.”
“Since you’re not goingtoblowupmyship,I’llpurgethelogs,”Niensaid.
“Right,”Leiasaid.“Allofyou, do the same with yourdatapads. Don’t let theImperialsgetanyinformationexcept what’s in our heads.And hang on to that as longasyoucan.”
Antrot immediately leftthecockpit.WhenKidigottoher feet, her hands were
shaking.“They’re going to
interrogate us, aren’t they?”sheaskedinasmallvoice.
“Yes,” Leia said, andtried to push awaymemoriesof the torment she’d sufferedat Darth Vader’s hands,aboardtheDeathStar.
“Willithurt?”The question made Leia
want to run and find Antrotand tell him to blow up the
shipafterall.But shesteeledherselftoremaininherseat.
“Yes, Kidi,” she said.“I’mafraiditwill.”
When the stormtroopers ledthemdown the ramp into theShieldmaiden’s landing bay,Leia expected CaptainKhionetobewaiting.Buttheofficeratthefootoftherampwas a young lieutenant, who
simply verified that they’dbeen disarmed and orderedthem taken to a detentionblock.
“We haven’t jumped tohyperspace,” Nien whisperedtoLeia.“Iwouldhavefeltit.”
“Theymustbewaiting inhopes of catching moreships,”Leiarepliedgrimly.
“No talking,” astormtrooper said, jabbingLeia in the smallof theback
withhisrifle.They threw Leia in a
detention cell and shut thedoor.She scanned the cell indespair—it was the standardImperial model, down to thehard slab of a bunk and thetiny pop-out washbasin. HercellaboardtheDeathStarhadbeen identical, and she’dcome to know everycentimeterofit.
I should have had Antrot
blow the ship, she thought,hating the idea of Kidi’spleadingwith her captors, ofAntrot’stryingtoreasonwithtormenters who would neverlisten. She hoped shewouldn’tbeabletoheartheirinterrogations when theyreached the worst parts, theones that Leia rememberedonlyinnightmares.
The light inside thedetention cells never
changed, so it was easy tolose track of time—a tacticthe Empire used to disorientprisoners. But eventually thedoor to her cell slid into thewallandanofficerwalkedin,two stormtroopers taking uppositions in the corridorbehindher.
“Princess Leia Organa,”Captain Khione said. “Wehavealottodiscuss.”
She tapped a button on a
control unit attached to herbelt. Leia heard an awfulwarble outside, and then theblack bulb of an Imperialinterrogation droid floatedinto the cell, moving with aslownessshe remembered alltoowell.Hereyesinventorieditsgriminstruments—pincersand prods and needles. Sheknew themall, andhow theywereused.
“I’m impressed you do
your own dirty work,Khione,” Leia said. “MostcaptainswouldleaveittotheImperialSecurityBureau.”
“I enforce the Emperor’swill in this sector,” Khionesaid.“Whenthingsgowrong,I put them right myself.Anyonewhoknowsmynameoughttoknowthat,too.”
“Sorry to disappoint you,but until a few days ago I’dneverheardyourname,”Leia
said. “I’d barely heard ofyoursector.”
Khionejustsmiled.“Within a few days
everyone in the Empire willknow my name,” she said.“But fornow, it’syournamethatmatters.AndKidi’s, andNien’s, and Antrot’s, andLokmarcha’s. We’ll discussthem first, and then we’llmove on to other names.Names of admirals, and
starships,andplanets.”“I’mnotgoingtotellyou
anything,” Leia said. “Nomatterwhatyoudotome.”
“Speaking of names,there’ssomethingI’vealwaysfound interesting about thismodelofinterrogationdroid,”Khione said. “It typicallyisn’t programmed to knowanythingaboutaprisoner.Allit knows is that you’re theone in the cell—and that
means you must be theinterview subject. I’ve hadprisoners break when noone’s there to listen. Theythink they’re talking to thedroid, but it doesn’t hearthem.Youcantellitanythingand it doesn’t care. It’ll justkeep working on you untilsomeonetellsittostop.”
And then, to Leia’ssurprise,Khioneleft,thedoorshutting behind her. The
interrogation droid floatedinto thecenterof thecell, itsrepulsorlifts filling theenclosed space with thathideouscyclingwarble.
Leiajumpedthefirsttimeitmoved,expecting it todartat her with one of itsinstruments raised. But itmerely moved sideways andthen began to hover again.She thought of attacking itbut knew that would do no
good. It would shock her, orretreat to the ceiling andsummonthestormtroopers.
Shesatdownon thehardbunk, eyeing the droid. Herhands had begun to shake,she noticed, and she wedgedthemunderherlegs,angryatherlossofcontrol.Thedroidextended one of its probes,andsheinstinctivelyretreatedinto the corner of the cell.Then the probe retracted and
thedroidwasstillagain.Stilland silent, except for thesoundthatwascrawlinglittlebylittleintoherskull.
She wondered if Khionewas watching.Watching andwaitingforhertocrack.
When the door openedLeia didn’t know how muchtime had passed. Twostormtroopers entered,draggingLokmarchabetweenthem.Hewas inbinders.His
yelloweyesleapttotheblackbulbous droid, and his handsbegantoshake.
Khione walked into thecell, her steps unhurried. Itwas all Leia could do not tospringather.Atawordfromher, the stormtroopers exitedthe cell, leaving the dooropenbehindthem.
The Imperial captainwanted Kidi, Nien, andAntrottobeabletohearwhat
would happen next, Leiarealized.
“This one’s admirablyloyal,” Khione said.“Promised to tell meeverything if only I let himsee his princess again first.But I don’t think he hasanythingimportanttosay.Sowe’re going to do somethingelse.”
She smiled. “The droid’sgoing to work on him, and
you’re going to watch. Andthen we’ll repeat theprocedure with the rest ofyourfriends.”
Khione touched thecontrol unit on her belt, andtheinterrogationdroidrotatedaway from Leia. It floatedfrom side to side, scanningthe room, then approachedLokmarcha.
The commando’s yelloweyes turned to Leia and he
nodded.Lokmarcha’s chest
contracted so suddenly Leiaheardhisribscrack.Thenhischestexpandeddrastically,asif he’d taken an impossiblylarge breath. The hairs onLeia’s arms rose asLokmarcha slumped to thedeck, already dead. Theinterrogationdroid lurched tooneside,dipped,thentriedtorise. In the corridor outside,
the stormtroopers clutched attheirhelmets,kneesbuckling.
Electromagnetic pulse,Leiarealized.Lokmarchahadbeen carrying some kind ofpulse bomb in his chest, onepowerful enough to shutdownagoodchunkofaStarDestroyer. That had been hisplanB.
Khione looked up inshock as Leia sprang at her.The captain raised her arms,
but it was too late—Leiaseizedtheinterrogationdroid,trying to get a grip on themachine’s slick surface, andslammed it into Khione’shead. The captain crumpledto the deck, unconscious, theinterrogation droid lyingmotionless between her andLokmarcha’sbody.
Leialookedsadlydownatthe Dressellian. She didn’twanttothinkaboutwhathe’d
endured tomaneuverKhioneinto the only situation thatwouldgiveLeiaachance.
I do have a chance—thanks to you, Lok. And I’mnotgoingtowasteit.
She hurried out of thecell, snatching a blaster fromone of the fallenstormtroopers. Behind her,thelightsinthecellflickeredanddied.Sheheardthecoughand zing of blaster fire and
randown the corridor, stolenrifleraised.
Ashapecame towardherout of the darkness and shealmost fired—then was gladshe hadn’t. It was Nien,holding a stormtrooper’sblaster,withAntrot andKidibehindhim.
“Theguards?”sheasked.“Not a problem
anymore,”Niensaidgrimly.“Where’s Lok?” Kidi
askedfrantically.Leia shook her head
sadly.Kidistaredatthefloorand began to rock back andforth.
“Hesacrificedhimselfforus,” Leia said. “If we giveintoourgriefnow,he’llhavedone so for nothing. Antrot,do you still have yourdetonator?”
“I started putting it backtogether already,” the
Abednedo tinkerer said. “Butit’s not working because oftheelectromagneticpulse.”
“It will soon enough,”Niensaid.
“And so will everythingelse,” Leia said. “We don’thavemuchtime.”
The Shieldmaiden shookaroundthem.
“What was that?” Kidiasked.
Leia looked at Nien and
saw that he looked baffled,too. The Imperial warshipshuddered again and klaxonsbegantoblare.
“They’re under attack!”Nien said. “If we can get tothedockingbay—”
“We can and we will,”Leia said. “I’ve got a plan.Nien, you and Kidi collectthree pairs of binders fromthe guard station. Antrot, Ineed you to hot-wire a cell
door.Butwait here aminute—Ineedtochangeclothes.”
She hurried back to hercell, stepping over the twostormtroopers, blaster raisedin case either the droid orKhione showed signs ofstirring.Butbothwerestillonthe deck. One of thestormtroopers groaned andLeia stunned both of them,thenfiredastunbolt intothefallen captain for good
measure.Movingquickly,shestepped into the cell and setdown the blaster, thenstripped off her tunic andtrousers before yankingKhione’s uniform off. It wastoobig,andshetriedtocramthe extra material of thetrousers into the tops of theboots.
TheStarDestroyer shookagain. Leia wondered whowas attacking the Imperials.
HadMothma or Ackbar sentataskforceafterher?
She turned, adjustingKhione’scap,andsawAntrotstanding in the doorway,lookinguncomfortable.
“Howlonghaveyou—oh,never mind,” Leia said.“Shove the troopers in hereand get the door locked.Quickly!”
“Does a minute count asquickly?”thetinkererasked.
It didn’t even take halfthat long.Thedoorshutwitha groan and a flash ofsparking wires. Antrot gaveherathumbs-up.
Nien returned with Kidiand the items Leia hadrequested.Leiafitthebindersloosely around her friends’wrists, checking to see thatthey appeared closed from adistance.
The Shieldmaiden
shuddered again, and lightsstarted to blink on in thedetentionblock.
As they exited thedetention level, Leiawonderedifsheheardafaintwarble. Or perhaps it hadonlybeenherimagination,anillusionconjuredbyawispofunpleasantmemory.
“It’ll just work on youuntilsomeonetellsittostop,”shemurmured.
“Whatdidyousay?”Nienasked.
“Nothing.Comeon.”
LEIASTRODEOUTof thedetentionblockwiththethreecuffed prisoners beside her,her blaster rifle held waisthigh. Imperial officers anddroids were hurrying alongthe corridor.Theyglanced atthegrayImperialuniformandher rank badge, but none of
themstopped.“Nien,” Leia whispered.
“I don’t remember a StarDestroyer’slayout.”
“Straight a hundredmeters or so, then take theelevatorfivelevelsdown.”
“Areyousure?”“Sortof.”“Great,” Leia said, then
barkedatthemtomoveit.Theyreachedtheelevator
and found it guarded by two
stormtroopers. Technicianswere running aroundfrantically, looking up eachtime the Star Destroyershudderedaroundthem.
The stormtroopers lookedinquiringly at Leia and herprisoners.
“We lost power to thedetention block,” she said,tryingtoinjectanicychillinher voice. “These three arebeing moved so the
interrogationcancontinue.”The stormtroopers
nodded. One of them evensummoned the elevator forher.Leiaputahandupinthefaceofalieutenantwhotriedtoget inwith them, exhalingasthedoorsclosed.
“Antrot, how’s thedetonatorcoming?”
“It would be easierwithout these cuffs,” thetinkerercomplained.
“What?”Leia saw, toherhorror, that Antrot’s binderswereclosed.
“Is something wrong?”the tinkerer asked, lookingconfused. “You forgot toclose mine all the way, so Idid it. I didn’t want theImperials to realize oursubterfuge.”
“Sweet dark-eyed motherofSullust,”mutteredNien.
“Howarewegoingtoget
thoseoffofyou?”Leiaasked,then shook her head. “Nevermind. Just get that detonatorworking.”
TheliftdoorsopenedandLeia gave a silent prayer ofthanks that Nien hadremembered his Imperialschematics accurately. Theywere in a broad corridoradjoining the Shieldmaiden’sdocking bay, and she couldsee the Mellcrawler resting
on its landing gear, perhapsfifty meters away. Not farfrom the yacht was a bat-winged Imperial shuttle withitsrampdown.
“Gofor theshuttle,”Leiasaid. “Remember, we belonghere.Butyou’reprisoners,sodon’tgotoofast.Ready?”
“Let’s get going,” Niensaid.
“I’mready,”Kidisaid.“I think the detonator’s
working,” Antrot said.“Though I won’t know forsureuntilIpushthebutton.”
“We’llhopeforthebest,”Leiasaid.“Let’sgo.”
They marched into thedockingbay.
“The magnetic shield’sup,”Niensaid.“Wewon’tbeable to flyoutofhereunlessit’slowered.”
“One thing at a time,”Leiasaid,proddingNienwith
herblaster.“Ow,” the Sullustan
complained. “First you try toblow up my ship and nowyouassaultme.”
“KeeptalkingandIreallywill assault you,” Leiamuttered.
“Princess Leia?” Antrotsaid, far too loudly.Kidi andNienlookedathiminhorror.
“What is it, prisoner?”Leia snapped, hoping to
remind the tinkerer of theirroles.
“I rigged theMellcrawlerso the blast would hit thereactor and be directedoutward through the engines.If I blow it up in its currentlanding configuration, theblastwillfillthedockingbay.It’lldonohulldamagetotheStar Destroyer but extremedamage to everything insidethisbay.”
“Great,”Leiasaid.“Ontoplan D, then. Or maybe it’splan E by now. Get on theshuttle, and I’ll see if I canbully someone into openingthemagneticfield.”
“That’s not going towork,” Antrot muttered,lookingdistressed.
“Sure it will,” Nien said.“Oratleast…well,itmight.”
They were ten metersfromtheshuttlewhenasquad
ofstormtroopers caught sightofthem.
“Ma’am,we’retakingfirefrom rebel craft,” the squadcommander began, thenstopped. “Wait. You’re not—”
Leiashothim.“Get on the shuttle!” she
yelled as blaster bolts beganflying.
Nien threwhisbinders ina stormtrooper’s face and
rushed up the ramp. Kidifollowed, bashing her headpainfully into the shuttle’sundercarriage before findingher way. Leia fired at astormtrooper before he couldgetabeadonher,thenlookedfor Antrot—and found theAbednedo running thewrongway,wristsboundinfrontofhim.
“Antrot!” she yelled.“Thisway!”
“Get on the shuttle!” thetinkereryelledinreply.
Antrot hadn’t made amistake, she realized. Heknew exactly what he wasdoing. They’d made a planand hewas going to carry itout.Nowhewas themovingtarget.
“Antrot, no!” she yelled,trying to think of what shecould say that would makehimturnaround.
A blaster bolt caught thetinkerer in the arm and hestumbled, teeth gritted, butthen ducked and rushed upthe ramp of theMellcrawler,whichshutbehindhim.
“Leia!” Nien yelled fromtheshuttle.“Wehavetogo!”
Ablasterbolt strucknearher feet and she smelledozone.Shehurriedaboardtheshuttle, the ramp starting torise beneath her feet. Nien
was in the pilot’s seat,jabbing at the controls. Kidisat behindhim, fiddlingwithher headset. Then her handwenttohermouth.
“There’s another StarDestroyer coming out ofhyperspace!”shesaid.
“One thing at a time,right?”Nienasked.
“Right,” Leia said. “Canyouflyoneofthese?”
“Icanflyanything.Butit
won’tmatter ifAntrot’s plandoesn’twork.”
Stormtrooperswerefiringat them from the floorof thedocking bay. Their shotssplashed harmlessly off theshuttle’s viewports. Nienactivatedtherepulsorliftsandthecraftroseintotheairwithawhine.
“Poor Antrot,” Kidi said,andLeiaputherhandon theCereantech’sshoulder.
“Ineedyouonthecomm,Kidi,” she said. “Rebelfrequencies—let whoever’sattacking this ship knowwe’reafriendly.”
“Good thing I have thosefrequenciesmemorized,”Kidisaid.
TheMellcrawlerliftedoffthe deck, moving sluggishly,then made an awkward turnand tipped downward. Itslanding gear scraped across
thedeck.“That lunatic’s going to
damage my ship,” Niencomplained as the yachtbegantorotateclumsily.
Leia just stared at theMellcrawler in dismay,imagining Antrot trying toguide the yacht with awounded arm and boundhands. The tinkerer wasstubbornandodd,buthewasalsoincrediblybrave.
“Strap in,” Nien said.“Thisisabouttogetbumpy.”
The yacht kept rotatinguntilitsengineswerepointedat the wall of the dockingbay, its bow facing theshuttle.Leia thought she sawthe slim figure of Antrot inthecockpitinthesplitsecondbefore theflashpolarized theshuttle’s viewports and thebayfilledwithfireandnoise.
Leia opened her eyes.
Bright spots danced acrossher vision. She couldn’t see,butapparentlyNiencould.Hestomped on the shuttle’sthrottle and the bat-wingedship swooped through thegaping hole punched in theShieldmaiden’s hull by thedemiseoftheMellcrawler.
Leia, eyes still dazzled,was trying to make sense ofthe battle around them.Flashes of light surrounded
theShieldmaiden, whichwaslisting badly. She could seethe triangular bulk of theotherStarDestroyer—andtheTIEfighterspouringoutofitsbelly.
“How long until we canmake the jump?” she askedNien, wondering why theSullustanseemedsocalm.
“Thirty seconds,” Niensaidwithagrin.“Scanshowsthe Shieldmaiden’s reactor is
failing. We should wavegood-bye.”
“First we need to tellthoseother rebel ships togetclear,” Leia said. “Kidi, canyouraiseanyofthem?”
“Yes—yes, I can,” Kidisaid quietly. “Now that theyknow we’re safe, they’rejumping.”
“Good,” Leia said. “Butwhere did they come from?Whosetaskforceisthat?”
“Youmightsayit’sours,”Kidi said, and tears began torun down her cheeks.“They’re the ships from therendezvous—the ones youwarned to flee. They cameback.”
“They did?” Leia lookedat Kidi, astonished. “Howmany?”
“Allofthem.”
WITH THE SHUTTLEsafelyinhyperspace,Leialeftthecockpit tocheckonKidi,who had gone back to sit inthecrewcompartment.
“Are you all right?” Leiaasked,takingherhand.
Kidi shook her head. “Ican’tbelievehe’sgone.We’d
barely gotten to know eachotherandnowhe’sgone.”
“Iknow,”Leiasaid.“Butyou can’t let your grief stopyou from living. I’ve learnedthat.Wehavetoliveforthosewe’ve lost so that theirmemories are kept alivethroughus.Particularly thosewho sacrificed their lives sowecouldgoon.”
“Lok,” Kidi said. “AndAntrot.”
“Andthepeopleweneverknew,”Leiasaid.“Thecrewsof the ships that came to ouraid, and the villagers inJowloon, and the pirates onSesid.Wehavetohonorthembycarryingontheirfight.”
“By doing our duty, youmean.”
“That’s part of it,” Leiasaid, remembering MonMothma’s words to her,before they’d set out for
Corvasector.“That’spartofit,butnow
I realize there’s somethingmore important than that,”she said. “We fight for acause, but what we’re reallyfighting for is each other.That’swhyourpilotsflyintofire instead of abandoning awingmanandourcommandosstandtheirgroundratherthanleave a flank unguarded. It’sbecause they care for each
other.Wefightforduty,yes.Butwealsofightbecausewelove each other. And that’ssomething even morepowerful.”
“And do you think Loklovedme?”
“You don’t need to askme that,” Leia said. “Youalreadyknowtheanswer.”
To Leia’s amazement, Kidi
managed to broadcast anencryptedtransmissiontoR2-D2, and an hour later LeiawaslookingatahologramofLuke.
“Mon Mothma’s beenbeside herself,” he said,smiling. “And I’ve been alittleworried,too.”
“I’m fine. Where areyou?”
“Kothlis,”Lukesaid,thenpeered at the hologram he
was seeing of her. “Are youwearing an Imperialuniform?”
“I am,” Leia said. “Itspreviousownerwon’tmiss it—she’s space dust. Alongwith her Star Destroyer. Ofwhich theshuttleTydirium isallthatremains.”
“You’llhavetotellmeallabout it when you get here.The fleet’snearlyassembled.Pluswehavenewintelabout
Han.He’sstillincarbonite,inJabba’s palace.And I have aplantogethimout.”
Leia looked down at heruniform. “I don’t know yourplan, but I’ve been thinkingabouta role Icouldplay. I’lltell you about it when wereachKothlis.Andthenwe’llget Han and bring him backtous.Wherehebelongs.”
PZ-4COSAIDnothingforalong moment after Leia hadfinished, and she brieflyfeared that theprotocoldroidhad shut down without hernoticing.Butthenthedroid’seyes brightened and theholorecorder sticking out ofher chest turned off, then
retractedintohertorso.Leia turned at the sound
ofherquarters’doorchime.“This is an excellent
beginning, General Organa,”thedroidsaid.“Nowperhapswe could discuss yourchildhoodonAlderaan—”
“Some other time,Peazy,” Leia said. “That’smore than enough for oneday. Besides, I have avisitor.”
Ematt stood on the othersideofthedoor.
“Major, how fitting,” shesaid as the droid clankedaway down the corridor. “Iwas just discussing themission to Yellow Moon,right beforeEndor.Youmayrecall you and Nien NunbbroughtmetoZastiga,whereitallstarted.”
“IndeedIdo,”Emattsaidwith a nod. “What brought
that tomind, if I might ask?Ah—you’vefinallyagreed todictateyourmemoirs.”
“To start on them, atleast,” Leia said. “It was aquestion about duty—ourcommitments to causes, andto each other, and how webalance the two. It’ssomething I learned battlingthe Empire, and now Poe’slearning the same lessonagainst the First Order. I’ve
discussed it with him. He’sold enough to hear me, butnot old enough to listen yet.I’llkeeptrying.”
“Dameron’s commitmentis absolute,” Ematt said.“And he’s our best pilot.He’llgetwhatweneed.”
“I’veneverworriedaboutPoe’scommitment.Myworryis for what that commitmentmaycosthim.”
Ematt nodded, and Leia
peeredathim.“I know that look,” she
said. “Is there news fromJakku?”
“Yes, General,” Emattsaid. “We’re awaiting you inthecommandcenter.”
Leia nodded and steppedinto the corridor. The doorshut behind her. As she andEmatt walked toward thecommand center, she felt afamiliar tingle somewhere in
thebackofhermind.Eventswere in motion, and shewould be at the center ofthem—at the center of theaction.
And that, even after somany years of war, was arelief.
CECILCASTELLUCCI is theauthor of books and graphicnovels for young peopleincluding Boy Proof, ThePlain Janes,The Year of theBeasts,TinStar,Stone in theSky, and the Eisner-nominated Odd Duck. Alifelong Star Wars fan, shethinks Princess Leia is the
best space princess ever.Cecil lives in Los Angeles,where there are stars on thestreetsandinthesky.
JASON FRY is theauthor of The Jupiter Piratesyoung adult space-fantasyseries and has written orcowritten more than thirtynovels, short stories, andother works set in a galaxy
far, far away, including StarWars: The Essential Atlasand the Servants of theEmpire quartet. He lives inBrooklyn, New York, withhis wife, son, and about ametrictonofStarWarsstuff.
PHILNOTO began hiscareeratWaltDisneyFeatureAnimation where he workedon such films as The Lion
King, Pocahontas, TheHunchback of Notre Dame,Mulan, andLilo& Stitch. In2001, Phil started his comiccareer as the cover artist forDC Comics’ Birds of Prey.Since thenhehasworkedonnumerous projects such asDanger Girl, Jonah Hex,Avengers,UncannyX-Force,X-23, The Infinite Horizon,and most recently, Marvel’sBlackWidow.