The Old Republic_ Fatal Alliance Part 4

The Ithorian walked him back to the atrium and left him there. The secretary waved cheerfully as he left. A film of sweat covered Ula from head to foot. It could have gone much worse, he told himself, if they had only known what he really was...

Ula had a contact in the office of the Senator from Bimmisaarian. He made an appointment by comlink as he walked. With luck, he hoped, this whole thing could be wrapped up before day's end and life would return to normal.

"Oh, I know exactly what you're talking about, " breezed Hunet L'Beck over a pot of traditional ale. He had insisted on meeting for lunch, and Ula had found it impossible to talk him out of it. Ula didn't like eating in public. It was one of the things he preferred to keep to himself, without worrying about what other people thought.

"Go on, then, " he said, moving sc.r.a.ps of yot bean fry-up around his plate. "Tell me everything. "

L'Beck had finished eating long ago and was on to his second pot. That made him even more loquacious than normal, which wasn't a bad thing. Ula needed him to talk.

"The Senator's offices on Bimmisaari received a communique from Ta.s.saa Bareesh seven days ago. Do you know who she is?"

"A member of the Bareesh Cartel, I presume. "

"Only the head, the matriarch. She has close ties to the Empire, so we keep an eye on her as best we can. There's nothing we can do about the smuggling, but open slavery is something we try to crack down on. "

Ula nodded. Bimmisaari's home sector b.u.t.ted directly on Hutt s.p.a.ce, so the behavior of the cartels could have a hugely destabilizing effect on the local economy. "Go on. "

"The communique was a pitch, really, and a fairly unsubtle one at that. Bareesh was attempting to interest us in something one of her pirates had found in the Outer Rim. Information, apparently, and an unspecified artifact. She didn't say where they had come from, exactly; way out past Rinn was the only hint she dropped. We didn't pay it much heed at first, naturally. "

"Why 'naturally'?"

"Well, we receive dozens of offers from the Hutts every day. Most are scams. Some are traps. All are full of lies. Not so different from what we receive from the Resource Management Council, but at least that's supposed to be on our side. " L'Beck toasted his own cynical witticism and ordered another drink.

"So you ignored the communique, " Ula prompted.

"And that normally would have been the end of it. Except another one arrived, and then another, each adding a little to the story until eventually we had to pay attention. It was quite a clever campaign, actually. We wouldn't have accepted it if it had arrived all at once, but doled out bit by bit, letting each piece of the puzzle tall into place before offering us the next one, eventually it was enough to get even the Senator himself interested. "

"In what, exactly?"

"The Hutts found a s.h.i.+p. The Cinzia. There was something inside it, apparently, an artifact they're trying to sell, but that's not the most important thing. What really makes this interesting is where the s.h.i.+p came from. "

Ula was getting tired of playing games. "Just tell me, will you?"

"I can't. That information is what the Hutts are selling. " L'Beck leaned forward. "We've been trying to generate interest in the Senate. Support is spreading for an official response, but not fast enough. The auction is in a few days' time, and I'm afraid we'll miss out. " L'Beck's voice lowered until it was barely audible over the background noise. "How would you like to be the one to hand the Republic a previously unknown, resource-rich world, ripe for the picking?"

Ula kept his expression neutral. So that was what the fuss was about. New worlds weren't especially hard to come by, but anything steeped in minerals or biosphere was fiercely contested between the Empire and the Republic. If the Hutts had stumbled across the location of one such world, there was indeed a real chance to profit from the knowledge.

"Are you sure it's real, not another scam?" he asked L'Beck.

"As sure as we can be, " L'Beck said lightly, taking his third pot from the waiter and knocking back a hefty swallow. "Supreme Chancellor Janarus would authorize a bidding party from Bimmisaari, I'm sure, if we could only get word to him. Do you think you can help?"

And there it was, the appeal for a.s.sistance in shoring up local politics. Halla sector wanted not only to be the ones who brought a new world to the Republic's attention, but access to the Chancellor's coffers as well. A small percentage would be skimmed off the top to cover administration expenses, no doubt-providing more ale for the likes of Hunet L'Beck and his ilk. Thus the Republic doomed itself, and all it purported to represent.

Ula suppressed his ideological revulsion. "I'll bring it to Supreme Commander Stantorrs's attention, " he said. And that was the truth. He had no choice now. If he returned with nothing, and two days later the information did reach the Supreme Chancellor's ears from another source-well, it wouldn't pay to be diminished in Stantorrs's eyes. Maintaining that contact was paramount.

But that wouldn't stop him from spreading the information elsewhere first.

"I owe you, " said L'Beck as Ula paid the bill and took his leave. That was the best way to leave an informant: in one's debt. Ula's coffers, like the Republic's, weren't limitless, but they contained enough credits to grease the path to Imperial domination, just a little.

Many means existed of getting secret transmissions off Coruscant. One could stash an antenna on a little-used building and broadcast when official satellites were out of range. One could pay a lowlife to take a recording to orbit, there to send the message farther by more ordinary means. One could employ a code of such baroque complexity that the transmission resembled layers of noise upon noise, with no significant features.

Ula believed that the best way to arouse suspicion was to go too far out of his way to avoid it. So his preferred method of contacting his superiors was to place a call to Panatha, the planet of his birth, leave a message for his mother, and wait for the reply to come to him. That way, the burden of guilt was s.h.i.+fted elsewhere. It was much easier to brush off receiving an illicit communication, one possibly misplaced, than the accusation of making one.

After notifying the Supreme Commander that he was hot on the case, he went immediately to his austere quarters and sent two signals. Ula lived in Manarai Heights, near his work in the Senate District while at the same time close enough to the Eastport Docking Facility to make a quick getaway if he needed to. He had stashes of doc.u.ments, credits, and weapons in several locations between home and the s.p.a.ceport. He also had a secondary apartment, little more than a closet, really, in case he needed somewhere to hide for a while. He wasn't one for taking chances. The illusion of innocence he had wrapped around himself could be all too easily dispelled. He had seen it happen before. One mistake was all it took...

The bleep of his comlink broke him out of the nervous reverie in which he had spent the last hour. The call was on its way, in response to the first of his signals. He readied himself by straightening his uniform for the dozenth time and taking position in front of his holoprojector. This was the part of his job he liked the least.

A ghostly image appeared before him, flickering blue with static. There was little more than a hint of a face, and the voice was both genderless and species-less. Ula had no idea whom he spoke to on distant Dromund Kaas.

"Report, " said Watcher Three.

Ula summed up everything he had learned in as few words as possible: A s.h.i.+p from an unaffiliated resource-rich world in the Outer Rim had been captured by the Hutts, who were offering information about it to the highest bidder. That same s.h.i.+p was the object of a search by a Mandalorian, Dao Stryver. Another name, Lema Xandret, was implicated. The origins of the s.h.i.+p were unknown, as was its cargo, the mysterious object L'Beck had alluded to. Both were up for auction.

When he finished, the noisy line crackled and fizzed for almost half a minute before Watcher Three responded.

"Very good. This is a matter of concern to the minister. Maintain a close watch and report all developments. "

"Yes, sir. "

"Dismissed. "

The transmission ended, and Ula sagged with relief. For all he knew, Watcher Three was a perfectly ordinary person, just another functionary like him, but there was something about that hollow voice that made him feel utterly unworthy. Bad enough that he wasn't fully human, but worse even than that. He felt dirty, unclean, vile, for no reason at all.

Watcher Three made him feel like he did when he talked to a Sith.

His comlink buzzed again. He prepared himself again, with very different reasons to feel nervous. Whereas the last call had come through perfectly official channels from the Ministry of Intelligence, this one had a very different purpose, and bore risks of its own.

This time, when the holoprojector stirred, it revealed a perfectly clear image of a woman who still struck Ula as looking entirely too young for the role she played in Imperial administration.

"h.e.l.lo, Ula. How nice to hear from you again. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

Ula swallowed. Shullis Khamarr's smile seemed perfectly sincere, and Ula had no reason to believe it otherwise. The current Minister of Logistics was the same age as he and shared his pa.s.sionate belief that the Empire was a civilizing force to be reckoned with. They had discussed this subject at length during a shuttle flight from Dromund Kaas, the one time he had visited the Imperial capital world. He had been attending a briefing for members who hadn't qualified to be Cipher Agents but were still considered useful to the intelligence arm; she was on her way to be promoted to lieutenant Since then, her rise had been meteoric, while he remained essentially nowhere.

"I have something for you, " he told her. "A world ripe for annexation, discovered by the Hutts. "

"I've heard something about this already, " she said. "No one knows where it is, and we won't until we pay up. Do you have anything to add, Ula?"

He deflated slightly. So he wasn't the first to make a report. "Not yet, Minister. But I'm well placed to follow it up and hope to learn more soon. "

"That would be to the benefit of us all, Ula, " she said with another smile. "Why did you call me about it?"

"Because it's the opportunity we've been waiting for, " he said, feeling his pulse thudding in his neck. This was as dangerous a territory now as it had ever been. "We don't need fanatics to rule a galaxy. We just need proper governance and administration. Rules, laws, discipline. When you see those lunatics wreaking havoc on the worlds out here-Jedi and Sith alike-I have to ask what benefit they bring. " He used her own word deliberately. "There wouldn't be a war at all without them stirring things up. "

"I remember this, Ula, "she said with patience that cut through him like a lightsaber. "I understand your views, but there's nothing I can do..."

"All we need is just one world, a strong world capable of defending itself, on which the Imperial citizens could thrive without fear or oppression. "

"The world you've heard of belongs rightfully to the Emperor. I cannot claim it for myself. "

"But you're the Minister of Logistics now! The entire Imperial bureaucracy is yours. "

She rebuffed him gently, as she always did. "It is the Emperor's, as it should be. I am his instrument, and I would not betray his trust. "

"I would never ask you to do that. "

"I know, Ula. You are as loyal as I am, and you mean well, but I fear that what you ask is impossible. "

He took pains never to push their friends.h.i.+p too far, but he was unable to hide his disappointment "What will it take to change your mind, Minister?"

"When you have the location of the world, talk to me again. "

He knew all too well that betraying the Republic while at the same time trying to convince a senior minister to increase the influence of ordinary people in their relations with the Sith ruling cla.s.s could bring his entire world to ruin.

"Thank you, Minister, " he said. "You are kind to indulge me. "

"It's neither kindness, Ula, nor an indulgence. You may call me anytime. "

She ended the transmission, and this time Ula didn't sag. He already felt fully deflated, insignificant-even if Watcher Three did describe his mission of being one of significance to the Emperor himself. He felt like a grain of sand buffeted by powerful ocean currents. No matter which sh.o.r.e he landed upon, the waves pounded him harder than ever.

Maintain a close watch and report all developments.

That he could do. Exhausted from his day of talking, he filed a written report for Supreme Commander Stantorrs. Then he undressed and lay on his hard bed and waited for dawn.

CHAPTER 4.

Larin Moxla stood in the Senate Gardens, on a busy thoroughfare lined with benches. It was early evening, and the sky was full of lights. She felt uncomfortably exposed, and was struck by how used she'd become to the old districts. Only a few months had pa.s.sed since she'd been drummed out of Blackstar Squad, and already the hazy sky of the upper levels looked too large, the people too refined, the droids too clean, and the buildings too new. Give her a year, she thought, and she'd be completely at one with the dregs of society.

Her feeling of alienation was only confirmed when a quartet of Senate Security officers strode by, three men-Twi'lek, Zabrak, and human-and a stocky Nikto woman. The SSO's caught sight of her and approached.

"Are you lost?" rumbled the Twi'lek. "You look like you've been pulled backward through a Sarlacc. "

"Twice, " the Nikto woman chittered, not unkindly.

Larin wanted to walk away. They were speaking to her soldier-to-soldier, using familiar, bantering tones, but her heart wasn't in it.

"Thanks, guys, " she said. "I'm okay, and I won't be here long. " She was waiting for s.h.i.+gar to return from talking to Satele Shan, and this was where she had said they should meet.

"No worries, " said the human with a wink. "l.u.s.t try not to frighten anyone. "

"Wait, " said the Zabrak, peering at her. "Do I know you?"

"I don't think so, " she said.

"Yeah, I do, " he said. "You're Toxic Moxla, the Kiffar who snitched on Sergeant Donbar. "

Larin felt the blood rising to her head. "That's none of your business. "

"Oh, yeah? I've got a cousin in Special Forces who'd disagree, " said the Zabrak, right into her face.

She held his stare, lighting the urge to retreat, or to head-b.u.t.t him-one swift, solid lunge that might cut her forehead to the bone on his horns, but would certainly lay him out cold.

But then she'd have a probable affray charge to wear afterward. The gardens were full of witnesses, fine, upstanding witnesses who didn't sleep in an abandoned warehouse and hand-weld their clothes from castoff sc.r.a.p.

"Easy, Ses, " said the Twi'lek to the Zabrak. "You've had one too many fizzbrews over lunch again. "

"When did you hear from your cousin, anyway?" added the Nikto woman, taking his arm and guiding him firmly away. "Last I heard, he owed you money. "

The human cast Larin an apologetic look as the trio led their drunk friend away, but not before he could call over his shoulder, "Crawl back into your hole, Toxic Moxla. We don't want your kind up here!"

Larin watched the Zabrak go with her face burning hot. How did such a lout ever get into the SSO, Jet alone know someone in Special Forces? It didn't seem possible.

But mixed with her outrage was a feeling of deep shame. Yes, she had snitched on her commanding officer. Yes, she was playacting at being a soldier in a poorly made costume. But neither came lightly to her. She had her reasons.

Larin turned to face the distant Jedi Temple. Abandoned in ruins and sealed off ever since the sacking of Coruscant, it was an ominous, shadowy presence against the lights of the skylanes and skysc.r.a.pers. Like fate, ever-present.

s.h.i.+GAR WAITED FOR five minutes before his Master appeared as though out of nowhere, right by his side. He never heard her coming, but had learned at least not to be as startled as in the early days of his apprentices.h.i.+p. That, he a.s.sumed, was the heart of this particular lesson: some things could never be antic.i.p.ated, but he could control the way he reacted to them.

They stood together for a moment in the empty cloisters, staring up at the looming, silver cylinder that was the Galactic Justice Center. Its lights burned brightly, and never flickered once.

"You've put something in motion, s.h.i.+gar, " she said.

"Do you see this in the future, Master?" The foresight of Grand Master Satele Shan was legendary, and never wrong.

She shook her head. "Not this time. I received this a moment ago from Supreme Commander Stantorrs. "

She pa.s.sed s.h.i.+gar a datapad, and he read the packet of information displayed there twice. It contained everything uncovered about Dao Stryver, Lema Xandret, and the Cinzia in the previous hours. Someone had been busy, he thought.

"The Hutts certainly recognize an opportunity when they see one, " he said, wrapping the new data around everything he had already gleaned about the Mandalorian, the Black Sun, and the attack on Larin Moxla.

"The Cinzia gives Ta.s.saa Bareesh two plays for the price of one, " his Master said. "To the administrations of the Republic and the Empire, the primary concern is the s.h.i.+p's origin. Where it came from matters much more than its purpose or what it contained. We all know that the Republic is desperate for resources, and any new world will aid its cause. It goes without saying that Supreme Commander Stantorrs will pursue this matter further, on that ground alone.

"From the point of view of the Jedi Council, however, the situation is precisely reversed. The Hutts are auctioning more than just information: there's the cargo of the s.h.i.+p to consider, too. The object they're selling presumably has some recognizable value, but as yet we do not know what it is. It could be anything. We can't ignore the possibility that they have stumbled upon something critical to the Jedi Order-an artifact, perhaps, or a weapon. Many are spoken of in ancient records but are yet unaccounted for; just one might make a difference in the war against the Emperor. "

"It could lie a Sith artifact, " he said, knowing full well that the forces of the enemy had their own a.r.s.enals, as ancient as the Jedi Order's.

"That's also a possibility. We must, therefore, do everything in our power to ensure that this thing the Hutts have-whatever it is-does not fall into the wrong hands. "

"It's already in the wrong hands, " he said.

"That's true, but Ta.s.saa Bareesh only recognizes one side: her own. I have no fears of her using this find directly against us. Still, we need to know more about it, and soon. That's where you come in, s.h.i.+gar. "

s.h.i.+gar studied his Master's face. He had felt that the conversation was more than idle chat, but he hadn't expected an active role in the situation.