to Jaina. “I’d appreciate it if you ordered your men not to open fire as we pass over, Captain. I’m overdue for an important briefing.”
Atar’s eyes grew stormy, but he leaned down to peer inside. “Flying over won’t be necessary, sir. I’ll order the speeder to move aside as soon as Jedi Solo steps out of the vehicle.” His gaze dropped to thedroid in her hands. “And she should bring the cleaning droid—we may be needing it as evidence.”
Jaina unsnapped her lightsaber and leaned across to glare at Atar. “Forget it, Captain.” There was no way she was surrendering the spy droid—not when it had a recording of Jag telling her what he had overheard in Daala’s office. “We’re in an Imperial diplomat’s vehicle, and that makes this droid Imperial property.”
Atar stared at the lightsaber hilt in Jaina’s hand for a moment, then finally nodded. “All right, Jedi Solo. You win this one.” He looked away and motioned the GAS speeder aside, then turned back to her. “But you won’t be able to hide behind your boyfriend forever. Sooner or later, the Remnant is going to come all the way into the Alliance. And when it does, GAS will still be here, waiting for the next time you screw up.”
The only thing more destructive than an angry Ramoan, Leia decided, was a Ramoan having convulsions. At present, Bazel lay pinned between two crushed airspeeders, shuddering, flailing, and—thankfully—trapped in one place. But half the vehicles in the hangar had already suffered crumpled hoods or smashed fenders, and the cargo lifter’s doors had been too badly dented to open. Perhaps most troubling of all, the walls and support columns were spattered with a yellow froth so foul that every breath came with a gag.
“I shouldn’t have hit him with a second dart,” said Melari Ruxon, the Duros apprentice to whom Han had entrusted the dart pistol earlier. “But he kept trying to get up after the first one, and Captain Solo said—”
“You did nothing wrong, Apprentice Ruxon,” Leia assured her. “Jedi Warv is a capable Knight. As long as he was even slightly awake, he would have been using the Force to counteract the tranquilizer.”
“You didn’t have a choice, kid,” Han agreed. “I’d have done the same thing.”
A note of relief came to Melari’s face. “Really?”
“Absolutely,” Leia said. “You know how this illness confuses the mind. How would you have felt if you
hadn’t
fired the second dart, and he had recovered and fled back out into the plaza?”
“They’re right, Mel, you did him a favor,” said Melari’s Jenet partner, Reeqo. He laid a copper-furred hand on her shoulder. “If I go mookey, I don’t want to end up iced and hanging in some GAS block house for the rest of eternity. I’d rather be in a cage down below.”
If I go
.
Leia had not realized the situation had deteriorated far enough to make young Jedi worry about whether they would be among the next to lose their minds, but of course it had. Until the nature of the illness was understood, the only sure thing anyone knew was that being young and Force-sensitive put you at risk. No wonder they were frightened.
“Listen to me, both of you.” Leia stepped around so that she could look each apprentice in the eye. “Things may look bad right now, but Master Cilghal
will
figure this out. And when she does, Barv will definitely thank you for keeping him out of carbonite.”
The two apprentices exchanged glances, then Melari asked, “You’re sure?”
“Trust me, she’s sure,” Han said. “I’ve been frozen in carbonite, and anything is better than that.”
Reeqo nodded, seeming to take the Solos at their word. But Melari gazed back toward the mountain of mottled jade flesh still shuddering between the two airspeeders.
“So
anything
is better than carbonite?” she asked. “Even dying?”
Han shot Leia a questioning glance. When she nodded for him to tell them the truth, he laid a hand on the shoulder
Atar’s eyes grew stormy, but he leaned down to peer inside. “Flying over won’t be necessary, sir. I’ll order the speeder to move aside as soon as Jedi Solo steps out of the vehicle.” His gaze dropped to thedroid in her hands. “And she should bring the cleaning droid—we may be needing it as evidence.”
Jaina unsnapped her lightsaber and leaned across to glare at Atar. “Forget it, Captain.” There was no way she was surrendering the spy droid—not when it had a recording of Jag telling her what he had overheard in Daala’s office. “We’re in an Imperial diplomat’s vehicle, and that makes this droid Imperial property.”
Atar stared at the lightsaber hilt in Jaina’s hand for a moment, then finally nodded. “All right, Jedi Solo. You win this one.” He looked away and motioned the GAS speeder aside, then turned back to her. “But you won’t be able to hide behind your boyfriend forever. Sooner or later, the Remnant is going to come all the way into the Alliance. And when it does, GAS will still be here, waiting for the next time you screw up.”
The only thing more destructive than an angry Ramoan, Leia decided, was a Ramoan having convulsions. At present, Bazel lay pinned between two crushed airspeeders, shuddering, flailing, and—thankfully—trapped in one place. But half the vehicles in the hangar had already suffered crumpled hoods or smashed fenders, and the cargo lifter’s doors had been too badly dented to open. Perhaps most troubling of all, the walls and support columns were spattered with a yellow froth so foul that every breath came with a gag.
“I shouldn’t have hit him with a second dart,” said Melari Ruxon, the Duros apprentice to whom Han had entrusted the dart pistol earlier. “But he kept trying to get up after the first one, and Captain Solo said—”
“You did nothing wrong, Apprentice Ruxon,” Leia assured her. “Jedi Warv is a capable Knight. As long as he was even slightly awake, he would have been using the Force to counteract the tranquilizer.”
“You didn’t have a choice, kid,” Han agreed. “I’d have done the same thing.”
A note of relief came to Melari’s face. “Really?”
“Absolutely,” Leia said. “You know how this illness confuses the mind. How would you have felt if you
hadn’t
fired the second dart, and he had recovered and fled back out into the plaza?”
“They’re right, Mel, you did him a favor,” said Melari’s Jenet partner, Reeqo. He laid a copper-furred hand on her shoulder. “If I go mookey, I don’t want to end up iced and hanging in some GAS block house for the rest of eternity. I’d rather be in a cage down below.”
If I go
.
Leia had not realized the situation had deteriorated far enough to make young Jedi worry about whether they would be among the next to lose their minds, but of course it had. Until the nature of the illness was understood, the only sure thing anyone knew was that being young and Force-sensitive put you at risk. No wonder they were frightened.
“Listen to me, both of you.” Leia stepped around so that she could look each apprentice in the eye. “Things may look bad right now, but Master Cilghal
will
figure this out. And when she does, Barv will definitely thank you for keeping him out of carbonite.”
The two apprentices exchanged glances, then Melari asked, “You’re sure?”
“Trust me, she’s sure,” Han said. “I’ve been frozen in carbonite, and anything is better than that.”
Reeqo nodded, seeming to take the Solos at their word. But Melari gazed back toward the mountain of mottled jade flesh still shuddering between the two airspeeders.
“So
anything
is better than carbonite?” she asked. “Even dying?”
Han shot Leia a questioning glance. When she nodded for him to tell them the truth, he laid a hand on the shoulder
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