The Eye of Darkness, page 31
“Be that as it may, it hasn’t gotten me very far, has it?” she said.
“It got you here, now. It brought us together, through Rhil’s message. I see the hand of the Force in that. We’ve been granted an opportunity, and we cannot waste it.”
Avar nodded. “What about you, Porter. How are you?”
“Old and tired,” said the Ikkrukkian. “But ready to see this through. It’s a conflict that’s been a long time coming, Avar.”
“How so?”
“A story for another day, when we have more time. But it has its roots in the long distant past, and I’m ready to see it end. It’s time we found a way to put a definitive end to the Nihil, and to deal with their troublesome pets.”
The Nameless. Avar shuddered at the thought of them. “That’s understating the problem just a little, Porter.”
He smiled. “Force of habit.”
“You really think the Eeex droid has the capability to bypass the Stormwall?” asked Avar. Porter had explained his plan, how he’d spent months piecing together the components he needed to rebuild one of the ancient droids, all to get a message out to the Jedi on the other side of the wall. Only to fail at the last hurdle, because of General Viess.
“I do,” said Porter. “And what’s more, I think it might be able to point the way to how to breach the Stormwall. If the Republic can harness the old hyperspace tech used by the communications droids, they might be able to completely bypass the distortion field, in the same way the Nihil use their Paths. These old droids used a forgotten, outmoded system of chaining together smaller hyperspace jumps to avoid the dangers inherent in traveling the bigger, unmapped routes.”
“A system that the Nihil aren’t aware of,” said Avar. “It could finally put us on a level playing field. We have to find a way to get the information out. If Elzar and the others knew…”
“They’re already on the right track,” said Porter. “They just don’t realize it yet.”
Avar frowned. “Meaning?”
“It was Elzar who gave me the idea in the first place,” said Porter.
“Elzar?” Avar stared openly at Porter. “How? He’s not here, in the zone…is he?”
She felt her heart skip a beat.
“No,” said Porter. He got to his feet. “Because of his messages.”
“What messages?”
“You don’t know?”
“Porter, I heard him call out to me once through the Force, but it was months ago, and just my name, nothing more. And nothing since.”
“Avar, he’s been broadcasting messages on the old, obsolete channels. Trying to find a way through. One of them worked. It’s what gave me the idea to go after the Eeex droids in the first place.”
Porter reached for his pack—the only belongings he’d managed to save from his ship, besides his lightsaber. He pulled open the flap and took out a small comm unit. It was old and had been adapted, with an additional antenna cluster and several extra dials. He flicked it on. Static hissed. And then a series of long and short tones sounded from the tinny speaker.
“It’s in code,” said Porter. “The old shorthand of the Pathfinder teams.” He listened for a moment. “I think…” He hesitated. “I think it best you get Kaysee to translate for you.” He patted the astromech on top of his head. “Don’t you agree, buddy?” KC-78 stirred, turning to track Porter as he picked up his pack and made for the door. “I’ll go check on the others.”
Avar looked at KC-78. She slowly lowered herself to the ground, cradling the comm unit. “Well?” she said. “Can you do it, Kaysee?”
KC-78 gave an affirmative beep.
Avar felt strangely light-headed. “Go on. Tell me.”
KC-78 rocked back on his legs. Diodes danced across the cylindrical canister of his torso. And then Elzar’s voice emerged from his speaker, sudden and quiet in the echoing space of the cargo hold.
“Avar. It’s Elzar. I don’t know if you’ll ever hear this. Perhaps it would be better if you don’t, if these words dissipate among the stars to be forgotten forever. It might save us both some embarrassment. The thing is…I miss you…”
Avar clutched the comm unit close to her chest, and wept.
HETZAL, INSIDE THE OCCLUSION ZONE
Marchion Ro was furious, and by now, Ghirra imagined that everyone on Hetzal knew about it.
He was standing before his throne, his gloved hand a matter of centimeters from General Viess’s throat, as she finished breaking the news of the escaped reporter and her Jedi allies.
One wrong word and the future could look very different for Viess. Or Marchion Ro, depending on how things went.
Ghirra was certain that there was more to the story than Viess was letting on—she was claiming that one of her cohort, a Talpini named Petrik, had stumbled upon a plot being cooked up by Dairo and Quith Meglar, after the reporter had seduced the comm engineer and persuaded him to help her escape.
Petrik, wishing to reap the glory of bringing the Jedi to Ro himself, had kept the information secret until it was too late. Viess had tried to intervene when she found out, but Petrik had botched the ambush and the two Jedi, along with Dairo, had escaped.
It all sounded a little too convenient to Ghirra, but she’d decided to keep her mouth shut for the time being. The hideous Ithorian, Boolan, was clearly adopting the same approach, judging by his silence and the look of utter contempt in his eyes.
Viess, though, seemed to be faring better than she had any right to. Nothing could stick to that woman. Sling mud and it slid straight off her armor. Stab her in the back and your knife came away broken in your hand. No wonder she’d managed to live so long. She should have been a politician.
“I want them found,” spat Ro, withdrawing his hand. “And I want the Jedi brought to me unharmed. The reporter you can kill.” He considered this for a moment, then cocked his head to one side. “In fact, I want you to make her suffer.”
“I understand,” said Viess.
Ro glowered at her, his black eyes boring holes. “You do?”
“Of course. I shall use every resource at my disposal to see it done. You know Porter Engle and I have history. I want him dead as much as you do.”
“I sometimes wonder,” said Ro.
Viess couldn’t hide her sour expression. Ghirra wanted to laugh but kept her own counsel. Now really wasn’t the time.
“What of the traitor?” said Ro.
“Already dead,” replied Viess. “I shot him myself to be certain.”
Ro nodded. “Convenient.”
Around them in the throne room, several of the other high-ranking Nihil were pretending not to listen in, striking up their own conversations, but if they thought they were being surreptitious they were badly mistaken. Luckily for them, the Eye had always been a showman and played well to an audience. Ghirra thought that half the things he did were purely for the metrics.
“To think,” he said, “the great Avar Kriss has been hiding in Nihil space all this time. Cowering like a scared child that’s been separated from her mother. And worse, she was here, on Hetzal, and we knew nothing about it.” He let out a long, deep breath, fighting to regain control of his flaring anger. Ghirra could see it was a losing battle. He was full of righteous fury. “I wish she were here now. I want to see her face as she recoils before the Leveler. I want to watch as she’s gripped by fear, as the realization of her fate reaches her eyes. I want to stomp on the ashes of her dead husk.”
He’d finally stopped pacing. “Hers will be the trial to end all trials. The execution of the so-called Hero of Hetzal, the Republic’s great hope. We shall see how hopeful they remain after that.”
“We have to catch her first,” said Boolan. His translator box buzzed as it fed out the words in a dry, electronic tone.
Ro stared at him. “It sounds to me as if you’re volunteering, Boolan.”
Boolan made a gesture of appeasement. “Whatever the Eye commands…”
Ro was about to answer when Viess cut him off. “No. I know Engle. I already know what he’ll do next. Now that he’s joined forces with Avar Kriss, they’re bound to attempt to escape. They’ll try to hijack a Nihil ship to use its Path drive. Meglar had clearly already put the idea in their heads. I can finish this.” She turned to Boolan, eyes narrowed. “You just worry about your little experiments. I’ll see to this.”
Boolan’s translator issued a long, garbled hiss. Whatever he’d said, the meaning was clear: Viess was on dangerous ground.
Ro seemed to be considering his options.
Ghirra unfolded her arms and stepped closer. “There is another way,” she said.
The Eye seemed not to hear her. She raised her voice. “We could just…”—she waved her hand—“let the Jedi go.”
That got his attention. He turned his head, slowly, to study her.
She felt the hairs on the back of her neck prickle.
“Let them go?”
“Yes,” said Ghirra, more confidently than she felt. This was a calculated gambit, a political move. And it was fraught with danger.
“And why would I consider letting them go?”
“Because the Republic is about to buckle. They threw everything they had behind that attack on the Stormwall, and where did it get them? Nowhere? A few dozen dead soldiers. And now you’ve increased the boundaries of Nihil space. Swallowed more star systems.” Ghirra tried to measure her next words carefully. “They’re panicking. I know them. The chancellor will be hurriedly reconsidering my offer. They’re going to come begging anytime now, offering us a place in the Senate and legitimacy as a ruling body. What’s more, we can use the two Jedi as bargaining tools. Hand them over in exchange for even greater political power.”
The room had grown silent. Even the pretense of other conversations had stopped. All eyes were on Ghirra and Ro.
This is it. This is the moment.
If he’s going to kill me, it’ll happen now.
Otherwise, there’s power in stating my case so boldly. If he doesn’t strike, he’ll look weak.
Ro took a step toward her. He flashed his teeth. She could feel the tension coiled in his wiry body, even from a meter away. “You don’t learn, do you?”
Ghirra swallowed but held her ground. “Not when I’m right.”
Was that a rare smile, twitching at the corner of his mouth? Did he see this as some sort of game? “I’ve told you before. I’m not interested in political power,” he said, his voice level, reasonable.
He turned on the spot and bellowed at the top of his lungs. “I want the Jedi dead!”
The room responded in a riotous uproar. A chant started like a wave, rolling across the room until all the Nihil that were present, save Ro and the three ministers, were chanting.
“KILL. THE. JEDI!”
“KILL. THE. JEDI!”
“KILL. THE. JEDI!”
Ro took a moment to bask in their adoration. And then he motioned for silence.
“You have one chance, Viess,” he said. His tone was soft and menacing. “Bring me those Jedi.”
“With pleasure,” she said. She turned and left the room.
Ro offered Ghirra a toothy smile.
Had he outplayed her again?
She inclined her head in a brief bow of deference and hurried after Viess.
In the dimly lit passageway, she saw that Viess was already gone.
Couldn’t get out of there quick enough.
Ghirra couldn’t blame her.
She sensed someone coming up behind her and turned, half expecting to see one of Ro’s She’ar, come to put a knife between her shoulder blades.
Instead, it was one of Viess’s followers, Selch, the tall Falleen, who—Ghirra remembered, bracing herself—had been praised on more than one occasion for her tenacity and brutality. Today, though, she looked atypically serious.
“Selch?” said Ghirra, as the Falleen stepped closer, until she was almost touching Ghirra.
She leaned closer, her lips brushing Ghirra’s ear. “I just wanted you to know, there’re a lot of us who agree with your way of thinking. Viess has been racking up a lot of deaths among her people, and it’s set people’s minds to a different way of doing things. Do with that information what you will.”
Selch leaned back, peered into Ghirra’s eyes for a moment as if to underline the seriousness of her point, and then went on her way, leaving Ghirra standing alone in the passageway.
A small laugh bubbled from her lips unbidden, and she quashed it immediately. But the sense of sudden elation remained.
It worked.
They’re listening.
It actually worked.
SPACE, INSIDE THE OCCLUSION ZONE
“We should stick to the plan,” said Porter.
“What plan?” said Rhil. “Meglar’s dead, and even if he weren’t, the odds of being able to sneak aboard the Cacophony now are less than zero.”
“Rhil’s right,” said Avar. “That plan was in ruins the moment Viess and the other Nihil showed up.”
They were crammed into the cockpit of Belin’s ship, debating their next move.
Back in the cargo hold, Avar had made KC-78 replay Elzar’s message three times before finally giving up the comm unit and returning it to Porter. She knew it was clear she’d been crying, but she didn’t care.
She felt as if a weight had been lifted. As if a dam had broken and the sudden release of pressure was palpable. She felt at peace.
She glanced over to see that Porter was grinning.
“What?” Belin asked him. “What are you smiling about?”
“Who said anything about sneaking?” said Porter.
Rhil shook her head in open disbelief. “You’re not suggesting—”
“I am,” said Porter. “That we hijack this Cacophony. Take it by force. Use its Path drive to exit the Stormwall and get both the ship and the Eeex droid back to Coruscant.”
“Two Jedi and two civilians taking on an entire Nihil raiding ship?” Belin laughed.
“And a droid,” said Porter, wagging his thumb at KC-78, who trilled a hesitant tune. “And besides, I’m not suggesting you come with us. This is something Avar and I need to do alone.”
“Oh, I like this,” said Belin, “you come onto my ship and start telling me what I can and can’t do. Well, let me tell you something, old-timer, that other Jedi over there is my friend, and where she goes, I follow.” He folded his arms pointedly. “I have spoken.”
“Avar?” prompted Rhil. “You’ve gone awfully quiet.”
Avar looked from Rhil to Belin. “That’s because Porter’s right.”
Belin guffawed. “You’ve all lost your minds!”
“No. We can do this,” she said. “The two of us, with Kaysee. But it’s dangerous.”
“Dangerous!” said Belin. “You’re talking about walking into a death trap. I can’t believe you agree with him. Stowing away with inside help was one thing, Avar, but attacking the ship outright—in a cargo vessel, no less—is quite another.”
Avar looked at Belin. “It was always going to play out like this, Belin. I need to get that Path drive back to Coruscant. At least this way, we have two Jedi to help pull it off. And one of them is the Blade of Bardotta, no less!”
Porter looked at Avar. “We know they’re setting out for the Seswenna sector in a few hours. We intercept, get aboard. Take the bridge and flight controls. Once we’re through the Stormwall we get a signal out to the RDC forces on the other side. All we have to do is hold the ship long enough for them to arrive.”
“All…?” said Belin. “All!”
Avar could understand Belin’s reaction. It did sound like a ruinous plan. But Belin hadn’t seen Porter fight with a lightsaber before. It was something spectacular to behold. Without him, it was true that she wouldn’t stand a chance. But together? She had to believe they could do it.
Besides, it was time.
She had to come back to herself. She had to dig deep and find the old Avar again, and set her free. She had to accept all her failings and come to terms with everything that had happened.
She had to do it for herself.
And she had to do it for Elzar.
“Rhil?” she said. “This was your plan. What do you think?”
Rhil chewed her lip thoughtfully. “I think if anyone can do it, the two of you can.” Beside her, Belin groaned. “And…I can’t believe I’m saying this…but I think I want to stay.”
“You want to stay here, in the Occlusion Zone?” Avar could hardly believe what she was hearing.
Rhil nodded. “For now. Until all this is over, and Nihil space is liberated. I just…I think it’s where I can do the most good. I’ve memorized the Nihil’s broadcast codes. I watched Meglar inputting them so many times. I can use them to talk to the people of the Occlusion Zone. To make sure they know the truth about the Nihil and the Republic. I can help them organize, coordinate the fight back.” She nodded, convincing herself as she talked. “It feels right. I can make sure everyone knows that the Jedi and the Republic are still out there fighting for them. That they need to hold on, push back against the Nihil. I spent so much of my life reporting on fashion and society gossip. This is my chance to do something real. Something that counts.”
“You’d do that?” said Belin. “You’d give up a chance of escaping to help others?”
“Isn’t that what you did?” said Rhil. “Avar told me you could have left at any time. But instead, you chose to stick around. To help her. Look at the way you just argued to fight by her side, despite all the odds.”
“Well, I…” Belin mumbled something incoherent. Then he looked up, banging his fist on the arm of his chair. “You’re right. And I don’t want to stop. I didn’t ask to get caught up in all of this, but I’m pleased that I did. I’ve spent my whole life doing nothing of consequence. Shipping grain. And when the Nihil came, I didn’t try to stop them. I didn’t fight. I just carried on shipping grain wherever they pointed me. I was sleepwalking. Thinking that it didn’t really mean much to me, all this Stormwall business.
