The last page of the file ended with grim reports about the losses of the New Republic Defense Forces.
The first full statistical report, gathered from all corners of the New Republic and consolidated by analysts into a single document classified as "Top Secret." Such information was intended solely for the members of the Provisional Council. If they unanimously voted to declassify it and allow Senate members access, the catastrophe would be of such magnitude that no one could hope to be spared from the coming storm.
At that moment, Leia was profoundly grateful to one obsessive and insufferable Bothan for disappearing and being whereabouts unknown. Since a unanimous decision was required, without Fey'lya it couldn't be made.
For the first time in her career, the Alderaanian princess prayed to the Force that Borsk would never show up at all.
Because the damage from Thrawn's actions was already measured in millions — dead, captured, wounded, and those unfit to return to military service. Another million and a half beings were in captivity, and the New Republic had to replenish its personnel losses by conscripting new soldiers and reactivating followed by modernizing ships previously categorized as "sent for scrap."
The Mon Calamari were exhausting themselves, working around the clock to replenish the losses in capital ships, so even Garm Bel Iblis admitted that in the near future the New Republic could not afford large-scale offensive operations.
Thrawn's reputation for setting traps for every remotely significant armed detachment of New Republic ships was spreading panic like a wildfire.
Sectors were flatly refusing to provide their armed forces to strengthen the Defense Forces, and the latter…
Well, to be frank — Thrawn hadn't dealt critical damage to the Republic fleet with his actions, but the ideological component of his campaign had broken the New Republic's morale.
A victory was needed, even a small one, to remind beings that they were still capable of fighting the enemy.
She desperately wanted to cry.
The New Republic had thousands of warships, tens of thousands… If they all united as a single force against the Dominion, it would all be over. Thrawn simply didn't have enough forces to face four fleets on equal terms. He just didn't!
But his regular victories…
The southern and eastern parts of the New Republic were in turmoil. Sectors were breaking away with each new piece of information about Thrawn's victories.
The attack on Coruscant had nearly split the New Republic apart.
Sullust and Sluis Van were openly voicing their displeasure that their shipyards were only occupied with converting ships for transport duty. They demanded either an increase in trade traffic through their territories, or orders for ship construction.
And how could they explain that the New Republic's strategy of rebuilding the economy through trading resources from the southern sectors was effectively nullified?
And it was for this very reason that the economic approach couldn't be changed… And they couldn't provide them with orders under the shipbuilding program — only offer participation in modernization programs for ships literally pulled from the scrap heap of the Rebel Alliance.
The New Republic's budget, while no longer bursting at the seams like six months ago, didn't have any spare credits either.
However, looking at the costs necessary for paying compensation to wounded military personnel, and rebuilding destroyed military installations, it became clear — by the end of the year, they'd blow a hole in the budget. One so big it would be a complete disaster…
And as if to mock the crisis — the exchange rate of the Dominion currency.
If a few months ago the Republic credit was higher than the Imperial temporary currency, but lower than the Hutt peggat (well, not just a little lower, but a lot), now it had practically gone into a nosedive, equalizing with the temporary Imperial currency's rate and showing a downward trend.
And after the attack on Coruscant, the Republic credit's nosedive became simply catastrophic…
Leia tried to push the destructive thoughts out of her head.
And while she understood that this wouldn't solve the problem, she had the right to at least get distracted, to surface from this stream. Working with a fresh mind was far better…
She leaned back in her work chair and stared out the window.
Nighttime Coruscant seemed calm and peaceful, but down there, levels below, it was becoming truly frightening.
The citizens were grumbling and angry at the government, which had introduced a series of restrictions — including rationing essential goods, especially food. Because supplies in the warehouses were dwindling day by day, and there was simply nowhere to replenish them.
The black market was thriving, and that didn't add a single gram of stability. There had already been attacks on law enforcement, the destruction of security droids, and the looting of several supply warehouses…
Well, that's a nice distraction.
Leia felt a ripple in the Force, which made her smile.
Jacen had woken up.
The young woman peremptorily left her workstation and headed to the nursery.
Her gaze brushed over the empty bed — Han was back at headquarters again, racking his brain and everyone else's in attempts to find those damned disguised "gifts" from the Grand Admiral.
Entering the next room, where the children were under the protection of a pair of massive and fearsome Wookiees who were constantly on guard, the princess slipped into the semi-dark room.
Despite the fact that she had wanted to put the cribs in her and Han's bedroom, the girl had heeded Winter's advice and set up a nursery, half of which was for Jacen, the other half for Jaina.
It was the right decision, even if hard for a mother to agree with.
But when mom and dad disappeared, sometimes for weeks, outside not just the house but the nearest star system, the babies' attachment to their parents and the need to see them every time they deigned to open their eyes would lead only to crying and psychological suffering for the little ones.
As she suspected, Winter was already there.
She was just stepping away from the crib of Jaina, who was falling asleep with a smile on her face. Her daughter had graciously finished her bottle of formula and now intended to continue her favorite activity.
Jacen, however, was in no hurry to finish his nightly meal.
The bottle held by a nanny droid allowed him to simultaneously sip the breast milk substitute and examine, with his huge eyes full of wonder at this big new world, his own little fingers and the star pattern on the ceiling. The pattern changed regularly and never repeated. Some constellations Leia recognized, others she didn't. But then again, this was a children's toy, what deep meaning was there?
Ah, it seemed her son really did take after his father and loved the stars — Jaina didn't show such enthusiasm for light effects. But for the figures dangling above her head — yes.
"Hello, little one," Leia approached the crib, nodding gratefully to Winter for her care. How did she always manage to appear so quickly?
But it was precisely for that reason she had agreed to Winter's help in this difficult time — she herself was almost never around, but the care and tenderness for the little ones had to be constant.
Winter, despite her low emotionality, was sweet, open, and kind-hearted with the children.
Sometimes Leia was tormented by jealousy that the kids treated her assistant better than they treated her. As if Leia hadn't given birth to them.
But she understood perfectly well that because of work, she couldn't give them as much attention as Winter could.
The young mother promised herself that without fail, as soon as the crisis caused by Thrawn was over, she would take a very long vacation and spend all her free time with the little ones.
But unconsciously, she knew that the recovery period following the inevitable victory would drag on. Drag on for a very long time.
Not to mention…
The girl promised herself once again not to even think about Thrawn's words regarding Palpatine's resurrection.
The Grand Admiral was just playing with them and had no intention of stopping his disinformation campaign.
But no matter how much she tried to convince herself of this, no matter how much others tried to convince her, Leia just couldn't accept that point of view. Even her attempts to hammer into her own head that all her anxieties were nothing more than frayed nerves and dictated solely by maternal "I'm afraid of everything, because anything could hurt the children" feeling, didn't really help.
"Jacen, hello!" Leia said again to her son.
The boy, drawn by her whisper, finally tore himself away from his undoubtedly important task. He looked at her with interest, then a smile spread across his face.
In his opened, toothless little mouth a tiny tongue flickered, which he then stuck out at his mother.
"What a little rascal," Leia said with a gentle smile, stroking her son's fine hair on his large head.
"He stuck his tongue out?" Winter clarified, stepping up.
"Yes," Leia admitted, stroking her son's nose with her fingertips. He tried to catch her fingers with his tiny hands, but his coordination failed him. Offended, he furrowed his little brows in an unclear expression and reached his hands out... toward Winter, who stood on the other side of the crib.
"He does that a lot," the silver-haired girl sighed, sweeping her mane of hair to the right side and leaning down slightly so the baby could play with it. "Teasing a little."
"His father's genes," Leia smiled. "He's not even six months old, and he already knows that little scoundrels attract girls."
As if hearing her words, Jacen ran his tiny fingers through Winter's locks, not even trying to grab hold of her hair. Instead, he seemed to comb and stroke it.
"He saw me taking care of my hair while reading them a story once, and now he can't go an hour without helping me with it," Winter said with an apologetic smile.
"Oh," was all Leia said, glancing at her own hair, swept over her left shoulder. Her son hadn't shown her that honor.
She stood there for a while, watching Jacen fuss over Winter.
Leia's gaze slid toward the crib where Jaina slept peacefully, then she looked out the window, where, in the night lights, the city that never sleeps lay before her. The city and the advertising signs that never dimmed for an instant. The night traffic of flyers and aircars, behind which, on the boundary where the garland of skyscrapers met the night sky, the muted whiteness of the snowcaps on the Manarai Mountains could be glimpsed.
And beyond them sat the planetary deflector projector, and beyond that another one, installed in a different district...
And somewhere out there, beyond that line of the horizon, the stars of Coruscant's night sky were easily visible, interspersed with the lights of starships in high orbit and the orbital mirrors under regular maintenance, and...
And somewhere between them—sky and earth—lay the invisible barriers of the planetary shield.
And the invisible asteroids, "gifts" from Grand Admiral Thrawn.
Should that invisible protection vanish, the impact of those invisible rocks on the surface could burn vast areas of the planet, turning the most populous astronomical object in the galaxy into a lifeless desert.
And in that cataclysm, the shield projectors would burn, the majestic skyscrapers would burn, the snowcaps on the Manarai Mountains would vaporize...
Millions, if not billions, of sentient beings would die, and with them, her, and Winter, and Jacen, and Jaina...
No! No one would get her children!
No one would threaten them!
Not Thrawn, not Palpatine, not anyone else!
A flash of resolve, bordering on fury, struck her as suddenly as the thought of possible loss itself.
Leia ground her teeth, imagining for just a moment that she might lose the little ones. Let the entire galaxy burn or swear allegiance to Thrawn, her children would never know pain, and...
"Princess?" she heard Winter's whisper.
The girl seemed to snap out of a trance.
Surprise flickered in her assistant's eyes, and her son's questioning babbling made her look down.
She stared in astonishment at the edge of the crib.
The metal railing of the crib, under her fingers, was dented inward, as if pressed by something heavy.
"Everything's fine," the girl said, flustered. "Just... worry..."
"You should rest more," Winter advised.
"Yes, I suppose so," Leia said, looking at the child with embarrassment. The moment she reached for the baby, Jacen scowled indignantly and grabbed Winter's hair as hard as he could. He continued playing with it.
The girl let out a silent gasp as the boy pulled her hair toward him.
Leia opened her mouth to soothe the child, but the moment she touched him, his little lips puckered into a crying face, and a scream burst from the baby's mouth.
"Little one, what's wrong...?" was all a stunned Leia could manage.
She reached for the child again, this time through the Force, but he wailed even louder.
Jaina stirred. And within seconds, she joined her brother's howling, flailing her arms.
Leia wanted to go to her, but she felt the mutual fear radiating from the children, the danger they sensed in her.
Opening her mouth in astonishment, she recoiled from the crib, watching as Winter, with a virtuoso juggler's skill, lifted Jacen from the crib and held him close.
After she performed the same operation with Jaina, the twins quieted down a bit, but from the way they pressed themselves against the princess's assistant, their tiny fingers clinging to her weightless robe, Leia understood that she was not welcome here at all.
Winter's calm had a positive effect on the children, who began to settle down, almost instantly transitioning into a drowsy state.
But the Force still radiated the anxiety that had afflicted her son and daughter.
Leia took another step back, finding herself in the doorway.
She watched as Winter carefully laid Jaina back in the crib, and she, smacking her little lips, instantly fell asleep.
Jacen, though half-asleep, clung tightly to Winter's robe and flatly refused to let go of her hair.
The assistant smiled apologetically, looking Leia straight in the eye:
"Your Highness," she said quietly. "Don't take it personally. They're just tiny; they got scared of something..."
"Yes, of course," Leia thought differently.
Moreover, she knew exactly what her children had been scared of.
Or rather, who.
"I think I'll go," the princess announced, leaving the bedroom.
When the door closed behind her, she pressed her back against the wall.
Closing her eyes, she took a slow breath.
Exhaled.
Then several more times.
And so on until her heartbeat steadied and the Force dispelled her fears.
"Luke, where are you?!" the girl thought with longing.
She needed her brother's support now more than ever.
She had almost fallen into a rage just at the thought of losing her children...
She needed training. She needed to at least gain control over her emotions. And only her brother, a trained Jedi, could help her with that.
But Luke was gallivanting across the galaxy with Lieutenant Irenez, searching for Jedi. Unlike most others, he was firmly convinced that Palpatine was still alive. And even though logic said otherwise, and there was no confirmation beyond Thrawn's stories and the attack on Luke himself on Polis Massa—which, incidentally, could have been provoked by the Grand Admiral himself to support his tale about Palpatine and his Dark Side Elite.
Yes, there was such a theory in the power-wielding circles of the New Republic. And given the Grand Admiral's "track record," it didn't seem at all like nonsense or a hoax.
The comlink on her wrist beeped.
And she had been hoping that at least this night would pass without alarming calls from Mon Mothma, the secretariat, or someone from the Provisional Government.
The girl activated the microphone, starting down the hallway:
"Counselor Organa Solo," she said into the mic.
"Sorry for the disturbance, Counselor," the clear speech and commanding tone indicated she was speaking to a military specialist. "A civilian ship with the call sign Millennium Falcon has emerged from hyperspace on a vector from the New Territories. Its commander demands to be put in contact with you. But, as far as we know, you and General Solo are on Coruscant, so our patrol ships are blocking the vessel and... Should we detain the starship you reported stolen, or simply escort it beyond the protected perimeter? Perhaps out of the system?"
Leia smiled with a sigh of relief.
If the Falcon, along with Lando, had returned without warning, then Calrissian had done what he was asked to do.
That meant Karrde was with him.
And that meant the New Republic's intelligence could get the information they were interested in about Imperial activities.
"Put me through to them," she told the controller.
"As you wish," came a distinct click of a channel switch from the comlink.
By this time, Leia had returned to her office and settled behind her desk.
"Leia," Calrissian addressed her. "Are you all right?"
And that question encompassed not only the Alderaanian princess but also her entire circle of acquaintances that Calrissian knew about.
"The children just fell asleep," Leia sighed, her mind turning back to the recent incident. "Luke has left on Jedi business. Han and Bel Iblis are at headquarters now..."
"Yes, we've heard," Calrissian replied. "Thrawn and another trick?"
"Unfortunately, not a trick," the girl stated. "We have every reason to believe the Grand Admiral dropped hundreds of invisible asteroids on Coruscant, after first using them to destroy the fleet protecting the capital. Furthermore, he apparently lured a dozen of our squadrons away by simulating an attack on several star systems and leading those ships into ambushes. From what we can tell, they were space mines, but we're still not sure."
"So things couldn't be worse?" Lando clarified.
"Bel Iblis and Han are trying to come up with some technology to help us detect those space rocks, but so far, nothing," Leia admitted. "We're in crisis..."
"Good evening, Princess," a new voice came from the comlink.
"Strangely enough, I'm glad to hear you, Karrde," Leia greeted, noting that she had just smiled.
Well, life sometimes brought you to the point where you were even happy to see an information broker.
"Yes," Karrde said slowly. "The circumstances of our last meeting were... not very civil."
"Oh, I remember that well," Leia shuddered involuntarily. "Thrawn sent the 'Butcher of Atoa' after me."
"I wouldn't want to downplay your captivity ordeal, but that meeting in the Milagro system marked the beginning of the end for my organization," Karrde stated. "Not to mention that Thrawn blamed me for every rancor in the fairy tale about building three 'Death Stars' on Linuri."
"Does that mean you're ready to help us?" the Alderaanian princess perked up. Could Karrde finally be choosing a side?
"I'm ready to discuss some things with you as a down payment on my work," ah, no, it was about credits. "In the time since my liberation from Linuri, my organization has suffered considerably..."
"You said it was practically destroyed," Calrissian interrupted, genuinely indignant.
"Who else but a professional sabbacc player knows how to 'raise the stakes,'" Karrde's voice held a good-natured chuckle. "So, as I understand it, as long as you haven't caught all those camouflaged asteroids, Karrde and I won't be able to land?"
"We can't take such a reckless step," Leia shook her head, as if someone might see and understand. "If even one of them falls to the surface, the consequences will be catastrophic."
"I figured as much," Karrde replied. "Is this line secure?"
"One moment," Leia took the comlink off her wrist and placed it on the scrambler to secure the frequency. After the device connected to the equipment, she put the comlink back. "It is now."
"I think you understand that the price for my services is high."
"That's hard to forget, Karrde," Leia admitted. "But I thought that since your organization had also suffered, you'd be... more flexible on pricing. After all, we have a common enemy."
"A very serious one, at that," the Claw stated. "Take it from me, Thrawn is a threat the galaxy hasn't even fully faced yet."
"We've already felt that," Leia admitted. "And we hope you can clarify everything we want to know about him. For instance—who is he, exactly? Since we're in a situation where we can't meet face to face, perhaps you could tell us over the comlink?"
"It won't cost me anything," Karrde assured her. "But whether you'll believe me, given our past experience working together..."
"I'll do my best to convince the Provisional Government to trust you," Leia promised, carefully omitting the fact that they had very few options. Literally a couple. And both were bad.
"In that case, let's hope your government stops playing at offended democracy and realizes the scale of the problem," she would have liked to be offended, but... "This Chiss is ruthless. And if before he served Palpatine, now both the Emperor, Vader, and the other Grand Admirals are dead. He is the last bearer of that title, and believe me, based on what I've been able to find out about him, there are serious doubts that he cares at all about what's left of the Empire."
"Excuse me, what did you say?" Leia asked again. "Chiss?"
"Exactly. Far out in the Unknown Regions, there is a state known as the Chiss Ascendancy," Leia frowned. Ascendancy? Dominion? That couldn't be a coincidence. "I've never encountered them myself, but some of my partners who worked farther from the authorities told me about creatures very similar to Pantorans, only with red eyes and jet-black hair. A familiar picture, isn't it?"
"Your words should have come a couple of months ago," Leia almost sobbed.
"I found this out relatively recently, when I was auditing my contacts," Karrde noted. "Not much is known about Thrawn's past, but a couple of high-ranking Imperials from the Pentastar Alignment tipped me off that Thrawn once made quite an impression on the Emperor himself. And their meeting was extremely interesting. Imagine, at that time, still Captain Voss Parck, having discovered Thrawn in the Unknown Regions, on a planet where he had been exiled by his own people, was so impressed by the Chiss's abilities and skills that he brought him personally to Palpatine. And the Emperor didn't execute either of them."
"Sounds like a fairy tale," Leia stated. "But... is his past so important?"
"Oh, believe me, I'm not telling you this just to show off how smart I am," Karrde declared. "Thrawn was the one who crushed the Zaarin insurrection. Not to mention he was the one who defeated Warlord Nuso Esva in the Unknown Regions. Remember the battle between the Alliance, the Empire, and the fleet from the Unknown Regions in the system..."
"Poln Minor," Leia involuntarily leaned forward, realizing that her husband had told her exactly the same thing.
"So you do remember," the information broker stated. "The accounts diverge from there, but apparently, either on Palpatine's orders or due to intrigues in which Thrawn was an amateur, the Emperor's court decided to get rid of the upstart. And they did it easily, despite his genuinely brilliant command abilities. Guess where he was exiled?"
"To the Unknown Regions," Leia paled. Han had said this too.
"Officially—for a cartographic expedition. Unofficially..." Karrde sighed. "Do you know where the late Prince-Admiral Krennel lost his beloved right hand?"
"In the Unknown Regions?"
"More specifically—under Thrawn's command. And he wasn't part of the original expedition. I'll go further: Krennel, upon returning from Thrawn, managed to tell some of his friends that this exotic alien didn't cut off his hand on a whim, but because Krennel used brute force instead of tactics and skill to get results. But that's not even the main thing. I searched for some Ciutric military personnel who fled after Krennel's death, found a couple of his guards who had something resembling Krennel's diary. I had to spend some credits, but it was worth it. Counselor, Thrawn didn't just map the area there. He created a network of military bases and a number of pro-Imperial colonies in that part of the galaxy, which are literally teeming with his kin who fled the Ascendancy. I don't know how good Krennel was at fabricating stories, but if one Thrawn accomplished that, imagine what will happen if some cousin or two flies in to help him?"
Leia felt a bitter taste in her mouth.
"This isn't a joke?" she asked with vain hope.
"Not even close," the Claw stated. "That's what I paid for, that's what I'm selling. By the way, it cost me twenty thousand credits."
"Don't worry about payment," Leia assured him. "But... if he already has his own state, then... why did he come back here at all?"
"As far as I can tell, things aren't quite right in the Unknown Regions," Karrde speculated. "And the power of what he created there isn't that great, since he incorporated natives who had barely crossed the threshold of space travel. Not all of them, but the vast majority. I think he has territory and resources, but lacks technology. And that's what he came here for."
"That could explain why he doesn't spare his stormtroopers and space troopers, sending them on ship boarding actions," Leia stated. "He needs the starships, not the people flying them. And he's shipping the technology to his kin or somewhere else..."
"I'll repeat, that's just my assumption," the Claw warned. "There's so little information about his past that even big money doesn't motivate anyone to explore the Unknown Regions. For development, it would have been enough for him to transmit the schematics, not the entire ships. But he's stubbornly digging into the New Territories. And what's happening there, inside the Dominion, is unknown... Literally a million-credit piece of information."
"So... is that all you can tell us?" Leia asked in surprise.
"Far from it," Karrde chuckled. "I had a lot of time to observe from the sidelines. And... I'm not sure most of this news will please you."
"So, there's something even worse than a state of Thrawn's kin in the Unknown Regions?" Leia was taken aback.
"Yes," Karrde said. "You see, the thing is... In the Ghost Nebula, there really is something like a 'Death Star.' Big, spherical..."
"But... wasn't the information from Linuri just a fake?" Leia stammered.
"I'm one hundred percent sure of that," Karrde stated. "However, the fact that a huge, spherical station is in the hands of Warlord Ennix Devian, along with a comparatively sizable fleet of ships under his command, cannot be ignored. Nor can the fact that some top-secret developments are happening at the orbital shipyards of Lianna. Nor that mass construction of warships is taking place in the Pentastar Alignment—and they'll be ready by the end of this year. And political games are starting behind the scenes in Imperial Space. Along with mobilization. Not to mention that some Imperial warlords who dabbled in piracy have started disappearing from the galaxy. Especially along the Corellian Trade Route."
"Wait, wait, wait," Leia spoke up. "But... how is this connected to Thrawn?"
"Based on what I've learned, what's happening in the Alignment and Space isn't connected to Thrawn at all," the Claw said. "Though... I suppose the numerous raids by Mon Calamari MC80 cruisers on Alignment communications aren't your doing either?"
"Same as the attacks by those ships on convoys from Lianna, Cygnus, and our own shipments," Leia sighed. "We suspect Thrawn is using our captured ships to discredit the New Republic in the eyes of the Imperial Remnants..."
"It seems he's succeeding," Karrde noted. "But now it's clear why the military in the Alignment and Space has become active. The first—because they've already lost several thousand turbolasers and a huge amount of other weaponry. Not to mention a massive quantity of Imperial equipment, comparable to the outfitting of dozens of Star Destroyers. And the second—because they decided to hedge their bets against the failures of the first. However, I can't rule out the possibility that Orinda Thrawn continues to openly sell TIE fighters while secretly implementing his own plans. It's just that neither I nor my remaining informants know about it. Yet."
Leia sat for a while, trying to digest what she had heard.
Thousands of turbolasers.
Equipment for dozens of Star Destroyers...
"Counselor?" Karrde reminded her tactfully. "Are you all right?"
"What?" Leia snapped out of it.
"You went silent so suddenly that even the Claw got worried," Calrissian explained.
"It's all right..." Leia said, pondering whether she should tell them... She probably should, to prove mutual interest. "I think we now know why Thrawn needs that equipment."
"Is that so?" Karrde was surprised. "So you also know about the missing elite forces Kaine sent to find the raiders?"
"The latter is news to us," Leia murmured, adding mentally: "like so many other things." "After we repelled Thrawn at Coruscant, we learned, along with other information, that... We don't know where or how, but he dug up an Executor-class Super Star Destroyer for himself."
"You must be joking, Leia!" Calrissian groaned.
"I wish I were," the princess admitted. "But our people say otherwise. He has an SSD. Not in fully working condition, but... I don't think restoring that ship will be much of a problem for Thrawn."
"It won't be at all," Karrde stated. "His Dominion has several decent shipyards—he can bring a ship into order at any of them in a couple of months, if it's not a completely disfigured hull."
"According to our information, it's not," Leia said grimly.
"Not to mention that he destroyed the tibanna mining station on Kril'Dor, attacked Bespin, and took all the tibanna collected in Cloud City over the last year and a half from its warehouses," Calrissian stated, and his voice held resentment multiplied by grief over the loss of profit he could have commanded if he had remained the baron-administrator of that settlement on Bespin. "This guy isn't just armed. He's armed to the teeth! And at our expense!"
But Lando had turned down that post many years ago. Not that things had gotten much worse there than under his administration, but under him, tibanna never accumulated in such volumes. And it had cost less, too. In fact, those two facts were directly linked — the absence of Lando's business acumen as baron-administrator of Cloud City on Bespin and the huge unsold stockpile of tibanna that had piled up in the warehouses.
And the result was equally obvious — not only had Thrawn deprived the New Republic of its Bespin tibanna source, which supplied most of the state's armed Defense Forces, but he had also destroyed the nearest source of that same gas on Kril'Dor. He understood perfectly that the young state's economy could not afford to rebuild a mining station costing billions. And if so, they would simply have to abandon that gas giant and tighten security on Bespin itself to prevent another capture of such valuable resources.
Still, according to Joint Command's estimate, the volume of tibanna Thrawn had captured would be enough to power nearly five thousand combat vessels continuously for a year, maybe longer.
Reflecting on what Karrde had said, only one conclusion could be drawn: Thrawn had pinned the New Republic's attention on Coruscant and forced them to pull their forces into the Core Worlds, so he could strike precisely to seize tibanna and deprive the New Republic of it. Simultaneously, he had struck dozens of prisons across the galaxy holding Imperial military personnel whom the New Republic had deemed unfit for amnesty.
And there weren't all that many fanatics of humanocentrism there — those types usually preferred dying to surrendering.
But capable commanders and mid-level officers were far from scarce in those prisons. Most of them, in fact. They were being held in such facilities solely to break their aversion to the New Republic's "rebel" past and force them to switch sides. That was how Admiral Ackbar and the late General Cracken had intended to bolster the Defense Forces' personnel potential.
And now, apparently, they would strengthen the Dominion's armed forces. Thrawn certainly knew where and why to strike. All those destroyed minor outposts, exploded barracks, attacks on transports and small convoys were nothing but a smokescreen to mask his real objectives.
Thrawn was acting quite logically.
First, he increased the number of ships under his command. Simultaneously, he supplied his task force with everything necessary by looting supply convoys.
Then he provoked attacks on the Sluis Hegemony to capture it and simultaneously inflict a humiliating defeat on the Fourth Fleet.
That gave him an industrial base and a permanent home base.
Then he expanded his controlled area, absorbing remote sectors the New Republic had never reached.
And now he was simply taking everything needed to sustain his entire fleet — crews, equipment, munitions, factories for producing ground vehicles. Clearly, he hadn't attacked Balmorra only for their ion cannons and Imperial factories.
He was running out of stormtroopers, so he intended to flood the galaxy with the blood of a new army of Separatist-design droids.
Only this understanding did nothing to move the Provisional Government toward its main goal at the moment — breaking the blockade of Coruscant. That was exactly the victory they so desperately wanted.
"We've reached the same conclusion," Leia sighed. "Another Super Star Destroyer, and in Thrawn's hands… that's too much for us to survive unscathed."
"I'll bet Fey'lya is foaming at the mouth demanding we use the Lusankya," Calrissian snorted.
"No," the princess replied. "Borsk is absent from Coruscant. He's been summoned to Bothawui to answer before the heads of the Bothan clans…"
"Don't tell me you believed that fairy tale," Karrde muttered. "Fey'lya works exclusively in the interests of the clans. Yes, they lost their fleet, but I've heard rumors that Bothawui is now guarded by several squadrons of Mon Calamari star cruisers. And half of Kuat is ecstatic over huge shipments of 'Planet Defender' ion cannons."
"You think the Bothans are acquiring them?" Leia asked.
"I heard about it on my way here," Karrde said. "The information is still being verified. Preliminary — large-scale deals are being made across the galaxy through shell companies. Construction equipment is being bought up, especially construction droids. Ion cannons. Planetary shield generators and their power sources. More than a dozen minor planetary governments have had their Golan stations bought out. Rumor has it that Golan Arms has been approached with an offer to purchase nearly a hundred platforms of the second and third types."
"And not a single ship?" Leia was surprised. "That seems doubtful — the Bothans buying defensive tech but not bothering to pick up a dozen or two Victory-class Star Destroyers or something similar from the Corporate Sector. And I doubt they'd spend so much on defense knowing the entire New Republic Fourth Fleet is right next door."
"Yes, it sounds like a farce," the "Claw" agreed. "But unfortunately, it's true. Bothawui is leading everyone by the nose, including Coruscant. For example, their claim that the remnants of their fleet are on maneuvers is nothing but an excuse and more obfuscation. Because their strike cruisers haven't been seen anywhere near the exercise zone. The Bothan trail isn't that obvious, but from experience I can say this is their style of covert operations."
"If I can understand the projectors, generators, and cannons — the Bothans have something to defend right now — what do they need construction droids for?" Leia continued thinking aloud.
She deliberately ignored the "Claw's" open accusations of the Bothans' unethical behavior toward allies.
Whatever they were up to, the main thing was that they didn't get underfoot with their political intrigues.
But at the same time, it was undesirable for them, in their eagerness to restore their sullied honor, to cause even more trouble, as had happened more than once in the past.
"I don't know, but that's not my problem," Karrde declared. He was silent for a few moments, then unexpectedly asked:
"When we flew to Coruscant, we came across information that your capital is under blockade because of massive destruction on the surface. Honestly, when I heard about invisible asteroids, I was very surprised. It looks like a tactic of distraction through disinformation over communication channels. At least that's the narrative being pushed on the HoloNet, and from there it spreads through gossip across the planets."
"Sounds like the Grand Admiral's favorite pastime," Leia grumbled. "Apparently he has nothing to keep himself busy between combat operations, so he decided to improve his practice at destroying our morale."
"He seems like the type who learns from his predecessors' failures," Karrde said. Leia thought his voice sounded strange. "Let's get back to the camouflaged asteroids. How many have you managed to find so far? If you've found any, that is…"
Leia hesitated, unsure whether she could share such information with someone who might easily resell it or use it for his own purposes. But after a few seconds of thought, she concluded that her revelation wouldn't give away any huge secret. Coruscant was already infested with enemy spies — starting from the Imperial Palace itself.
"He used thirty-three against our fleet," she said. "Two were detected in orbit around Coruscant. Another one rammed an orbital mirror. That's all for now. But we registered several hundred launches of his fleet's ships…"
Karrde was silent.
"Thirty-six…"
He said it as if he remembered something and pieced together the facts in his head.
"I'll bet, Councilor, we're talking about thirty-to-forty-meter asteroids, aren't we?" There was a hint of amusement in his voice. Well, of course — it wasn't him under pressure from circumstances and invisible bombs.
"For the most part," Leia agreed. "We couldn't determine the size of most of them because they…"
"Destroyed your fleet," Karrde finished for her. "Yes, I've heard something similar. Though the cloaking screens weren't mentioned."
"He used ordinary asteroids against us too," Leia admitted.
"Successfully?" the information dealer asked.
"In a way," the girl said. "Your tone… You know something, don't you?"
"Oh," Karrde laughed. "I'm afraid I have simply splendid news for you, Councilor. You can drop your shields right now — there are no more camouflaged asteroids. One way or another, you've detected and destroyed every single one Thrawn created and delivered here."
Not believing her ears, Leia stared dumbfounded at the comlink, completely forgetting that none of the conversation participants could see each other's faces.
"You're not trying to pull a stupid joke, 'Claw'?" Lando asked.
"In a situation like this?" There was reproach in Karrde's voice. "Of course not. Some time ago, almost immediately after my release, my now-deceased friend Mazzic and I dropped by the Yaga Minor shipyards. And we found a most interesting sight there — thirty-six thirty-to-forty-meter asteroids with deflector generator mounts bolted onto their surfaces. Apparently, Thrawn hired Kaine's specialists to do the dirty work."
"Do you have any record of this?" Leia asked quickly. If Karrde was right, the problem was solved! In such a short time! This really was a victory! A significant victory!
"Mazzic had a habit of recording everything with his ship's scanners," Karrde said. "Unfortunately, his vessel was destroyed by Imperials on Trogan…"
What a night this was!
" but you're in luck, because I have a copy," Karrde finished, barely hiding his amusement. "It seemed like a pretty curious detail to me back then. I just couldn't piece together why anyone would need it. And now it turns out — Thrawn came up with an interesting little idea for bleeding a whole planet dry. So, if you need the copy, I can send the data right now."
"Is that even a question?!" Leia exclaimed, rising from her seat. She quickly prepared her workstation to receive data. "I'm ready. Go ahead and send."
An indicator lit up on the monoblock, showing incoming data over the comm channel…
She had to wait a few minutes for the data array to land on her hard drive. Then more time to process it…
And now she was looking at a three-dimensional scan vector image clearly showing thirty-six space rocks being shoved into the holds of space freighters…
"In case any bad ideas crossed your mind," Karrde continued, "those 'Actions' no longer belong to me."
"I readily believe you," Leia said quickly, saving the received data onto an information chip. "I'll forward this to the Provisional Government immediately. If your information is confirmed, the blockade is over, and we're in your debt!"
"Oh," Karrde laughed, "that's not the best thing you can afford. But if in your pursuit of the Grand Admiral you put a couple of turbolaser salvos straight into Chimaera's bridge, then consider the New Republic owes me nothing. Besides the commission, of course."
Leia smiled genuinely.
The first substantial disruption of the Grand Admiral's plans was looming on the horizon, so Karrde's humor felt more than appropriate.
"It'll take some time to verify," the princess warned, already tapping out messages summoning an emergency meeting of the Provisional Council members. "I'll notify the picket ships not to bother you."
"That would be nice," Calrissian grumbled. "Because I'm sick of staring at the muzzle of the nearest Carrack's laser cannon through the cockpit while you two exchange pleasantries."
"I don't think we should break protocol," Karrde remarked. "I have no business on Coruscant right now, and I've told you everything I know about Thrawn at this point. Since my ship was destroyed, would you be so kind…"
Leia thought for a moment — if she agreed to this, Han probably wouldn't stop loving her… But he'd certainly grumble for a long time.
But it was fine; for the sake of strengthening allied relations, she should make concessions.
"Falcon is at your disposal," she said. "Lando…"
"I didn't leave the military to moonlight as a freighter pilot," Calrissian declared.
"Basically, you can name your fee; I'll pay," Karrde said. In response, he only heard good-natured grumbling.
"Lando, I'd be very grateful if you'd go to Cloud City to assess the prospects of the tibanna they can provide us," the princess said, recalling Mon Mothma's recent request. "I'd send our ships, but…"
"They're all holed up," Calrissian sighed. "Fine, I understand. But even without an inspection, I can tell you that by the end of the month their output should be enough to supply a couple hundred large vessels…"
"Just what we need," Leia said, smiling. "When you're done, head to Sluis Van. Han and I will fly there as soon as we resolve the blockade issue."
"From your tone, Councilor, you've got something very cunning in mind," Karrde said.
"Yes," Leia didn't deny having a wild idea. "We'll pay Thrawn back in the same coin. But with a certain dose of rebel ingenuity."
* * *
Commodore Shohashi seemed unperturbed as he read the data displayed on the datapad's screen, but after he set the device aside, a crooked smile appeared on the man's face.
It vanished just as quickly, though.
"Credit where credit is due, this man approached his work with a great deal of imagination," he said.
I nodded silently.
"An unorthodox method of fleet assembly," I agreed. "Attacks on Imperial warlords or captures of Imperial or Republic ships would inevitably attract attention. Which he tried his best to avoid until a certain point. So restoring crashed Star Destroyers is a very creative approach."
"An'ya Kuro, Implacable, Motivator, Evil Wind," the Alderaanian said, giving the real names of ships once commanded by a well-known Zabrak in narrow circles. "The last one is clearly not among the restored scrap."
"That's why Maul chose it as his flagship," I explained the role of the false Liquidator. "The shipyards in the Venin sector couldn't provide exact numbers of ships they restored for ×1, but the fact remains — we're talking about dozens of Star Destroyers."
Shohashi thoughtfully twirled his cane, examining the precious-stone pommel.
"Motivator crashed on Kothlis," he said. "A year before the defeat at Endor. Implacable, former flagship of Admiral Trigit, who served Warlord Zsinj, also suffered a severe shipwreck — I led a survey raid on that vessel when I served Imperial Space. That was a little over a year and a half ago, half a year after the New Republic attacked the ship in the Corporate Sector near the planet Ession. To be honest, there was little left worth restoring there. The corporates didn't even plan to break it up for scrap."
"An'ya Kuro was sabotaged and crashed almost twelve years ago," I noted.
"I read the investigation report," Shohashi nodded. "It unofficially 'circulated' among fleet officers. Naturally, it was done with the approval of the competent authorities to instill fear in reckless commanders. But it mostly demoralized the personnel, because the ship's commander wasn't at fault and anyone could have been in his place. Alliance saboteurs sabotaged the ship. After the wreck, the commander was demoted to desk duty at a remote outpost, and the vessel itself was bombarded so it wouldn't fall into enemy hands."
"That destroyer was probably the first in a series of subsequent restorations," I said. "At least at the Barpine shipyards."
"Do you suspect there might be more shipyards?" Shohashi perked up.
"The enemy is quite competent at concealment," I noted. "That's precisely why he must be destroyed."
Shohashi nodded in agreement.
He understood perfectly that negotiating with a Force-sensitive, insane individual would be more trouble than it was worth. We had the example of the Emperor, the example of C'baoth's clone, and Darth Maul himself wasn't known for calm reasoning. So options for an alliance with such a person weren't even considered.
He was dangerous as an opponent, dangerous because he could go underground and harm the Dominion, and dangerous because he could easily join Palpatine to try and seize power.
We could no longer trust post-knowledge — history had changed radically. Misconceptions could only seriously harm those foolish enough to believe them.
"Your request to appoint Captain Harbit as commander of a tactical-assault formation, as well as to change the standard strength and composition of the Red Star squadron, has been approved," I said, closely watching the man's reaction.
Excellent composure, exemplary aristocratic bearing…
"Thank you, sir," he replied formally.
But from his facial expressions — barely noticeable, barely perceptible even to Shohashi himself — I sensed a kind of relief.
So the "reshuffling" was needed for personal reasons — this man was ready to answer for his service performance without batting an eye. But his physiognomy gave him away.
There weren't that many individuals for whom he would take such a step — giving up part of his destroyers from the squadron in exchange for reinforcing them with standard tactical-assault formations of dreadnoughts, Immobilizers, and Corellian corvettes.
Off the top of my head, I could name only one — the captain of the Adjudicator, Brandei.
The man who, during the battle with the Fourth Fleet's First Division, threw his own ship's hull in front of the Imperious to cover it.
And Shohashi, as soon as his squadron was organized, requested Brandei without batting an eye when given the condition — instead of two first-class ISDs, he would receive two that had undergone modernization at the Hast shipyards, where a significant portion of their artillery was replaced with reduced crew complements and missile launchers. Objectively, some of the weakest Star Destroyers in my fleet. But Shohashi passed the test, proving that even these tubs were worth attention and it was too early to send them to Tangrene for conversion.
So Brandei's career advancement had a personal background. At the same time, I knew for certain that Shohashi had intended, within his authority, to appoint his friend as commander of the squadron's flagship and chief of his staff (which would consist of Brandei alone). So he changed his mind.
Quite sensible and prudent of him.
I don't like all these "friendly promotions to higher positions."
"You and your squadron have a new assignment, Commodore," I said, handing the officer an information chip with the mission data.
Eric took the storage device and, without unnecessary questions, tucked it into his tunic pocket.
An amusing combination.
An Alderaanian tunic with Dominion insignia.
"Red Star is ready to deploy at any moment on your command," Shohashi declared.
"Your target will be strikes on the planets of the Zann Consortium," I explained. "Hypori, Saleucami, Shola. If you identify others, you have full operational freedom. I need all surviving data and production facilities from these planets. Pay special attention to the droid factory and the old Separatist facilities they used to create space mines during the Clone Wars. Our reconnaissance and sabotage groups are already active on the planets. The chip contains frequencies for communicating with them, as well as all available intelligence on this criminal organization's activities."
"It will be done, Grand Admiral," Shohashi assured me.
As if I doubted he would answer any differently.
"Any specific instructions regarding the pirates?" he asked.
"I'm only interested in important prisoners," I explained. "As for the rest, do as you see fit. I don't consider this category of pirates and other criminals worthy of re-recruitment or wasting Dominion resources on labor camps."
Especially in light of the construction-procurement operations conducted by Captain Hoffner and Grand Moff Ferrus, the need for prisoners of war was naturally eliminated.
"I'll consider it an honor to rid the galaxy of this plague," the "Butcher of Atoa" grinned carnivorously.
That was precisely why Shohashi was being sent to deal with the Consortium, not Captain Stormaer.
I needed Tyber Zann's legacy exterminated, not everything not nailed down captured as trophies.