Dark Nest_ The Joiner King Part 46

The skiff's trajectory began to flatten as Alema prepared to enter hypers.p.a.ce. The XJ3 pilots commed for permission to open fire, and Luke reached out to them in the Force, urging them to avoid disabling the vessel.

"Permission granted," Orame said over the comm channel. "Open fire."

The pilots hesitated. "But-"

"You heard the order," Luke said, still reaching out to the pilots through the Force, urging them let the skiff go. "Open fire."

The skiff's trajectory began to weave and wobble as it began evasive maneuvers.

"She's getting away!" Ben cried. "Stop her!"

"They have to be careful, Ben," Mara said gently. "Or they might hurt Gorog."

Ben considered this, then sighed and took her hand. "Let them go. I don't think Gorog wanted to stay anyway."

The skiff's trajectory reached the edge of Ossus's gravity well and vanished. The flight controller reported that the stolen skiff had entered hypers.p.a.ce.

Han let out a sigh of relief. "Right on sch-"

"Not now," Luke interrupted, raising his hand to silence Han. He turned to Ben. "How did you know Gorog didn't want to stay? Do you still feel her in your mind?"

Ben closed his eyes, then nodded. "Sort of. She wants me to be happy."

Luke felt his own dismay mirrored in Mara. If Ben remained in touch with Gorog after she had entered hypers.p.a.ce, it could only be through the Colony's Will. He was part Joiner-Dark Nest Joiner.

Mara had reached the same conclusion. Luke could feel her alarm and anger through the Force, and she was as quick as he was to realize that they could not discuss their plans in front of their son.

"Ben, m? be Nanna can take you to the pilots' lounge for some Fizzer," Mara said. "We have some things to discuss, then we'll find you there before we leave."

Ben made no move toward the door, where Nanna and C-3PO were waiting.

Luke frowned. "Ben, I'm sure you heard your mother."

Ben nodded. "I heard. But why do I have to stay behind on Ossus?"

Without waiting for an answer, he turned to Han. "Is there going to be another war?"

Han grimaced, then said, "Not if we can help it, kid."

"And certainly not in this part of the galaxy," Mara added. "Why are you worried about that?"

"Because this is what you do when there's a war," Ben said. "You just dump me someplace with Masters Tionne and Solusar and then never even come to visit."

The accusation struck a pang in Luke's heart, and he felt Mara wince as well. They often wondered how much Ben's refusal to use the Force had to do with the separation anxiety he had suffered during the war with the Yuuzhan Vong, and Ben knew this particular complaint had an effect on them.

Even so, Mara refused to be manipulated by an eight-year-old.

"Don't exaggerate, Ben. We had to keep you safe, and you know we came to see you every chance we had."

"Besides, they won't be gone long this time," Jacen said, stepping out from behind Han and Leia. "There isn't going to be a war."

Ben frowned. "How do you know that?"

"I know." Jacen flashed a crooked Solo smile. "Trust me."

Luke felt a sudden qualm in Mara, and though her eyes remained fixed on Ben, he sensed that her thoughts were on Jacen.

"Besides, you're not going to be alone," Jacen added. "I'll be here, too."

"You're not going back?" Ben asked.

"Not yet. The Masters are worried that some of us have spent too much time with the Killiks already."

"Tell me about it," Ben answered, rolling his eyes.

"So maybe you and I could hang out together?" Jacen glanced at Mara. "If that's all right with your mother."

"Of course." Mara answered with no outward hesitation, but Luke detected just a hint of apprehension, as though she did not quite trust the "new-and-improved" Jacen. "As long as Master Solusar thinks Ben is keeping up with his schoolwork-"

"No problem!" Ben's smile was as broad as a Hurt's. "School's easy."

"And as long as you obey Masters Tionne and Solusar," Mara warned Ben. "No secrets with Nanna, either."

"I can't do that anymore," Ben said. "Dad altered her program."

"Good." Jacen took Ben's hand and started for the door. "Why don't we get that Fizzer now?"

"Can I have kyleme?" Ben asked, not looking back. "A Blue Giant size?"

As soon as they were out of earshot, Han said, "Jacen has a knack with kids. Go figure."

"It's his empathy," Leia said. "I'm glad to see it's intact."

Leia left unsaid what Luke knew she was thinking: that after the war- after all Jacen had suffered at the hands of Vergere and the Yuuzhan Vong- she was surprised he had any empathy left.

Luke turned to Han. "Sorry to interrupt you earlier, but we don't know how much the Dark Nest might be able to glean from Ben's mind."

"No problem," Han said. "I got a little carried away when I saw how well the plan was working."

"I don't know why you're surprised," Leia said. "Alema is still a Jedi. Once Cilghal let her regain consciousness, there was never any question she could escape. The tricky part is going to be following her."

"How did you know which vessel she'd steal?" Mara asked.

"We didn't," Leia said. "We bugged them all."

"Speaking of bugs, we'd better get going," Han said. "That transmitter only has a subs.p.a.ce range of fifty light-years. We can't be too far behind when Alema hits Colony s.p.a.ce, or we'll be stuck guessing where she went."

Luke followed Han and the others toward the door. Their iniention was to follow Alema to the core of the Dark Nest, then undermine its influence over the Colony by eliminating Welk and-a.s.suming she had survived the Crash-Lomi Plo. Cilghal and Jacen were convinced that at least Welk had survived-and that a Dark Jedi now led the Gorog in much the same way Raynar led the Unu. It was a somewhat ruthless plan, especially in the way it placed Alema's life at risk without her consent.

But it seemed to Luke to be consistent with the nature of modern Jedi themselves. The war with the Yuuzhan Vong had taught the Jedi the folly of valuing sentiment over effectiveness, the wisdom of striking quickly and fiercely at the heart of a problem. Sometimes, Luke wondered whether it was a lesson the Jedi had learned too well; whether in defeating their enemies they had not become a little too much like them.

At the door, Han ran headlong into a short, gawky man with a heavily tattooed face and unruly blue hair. Without apologizing for-or even seeming to notice-the collision, the newcomer pushed past Han and stopped in front of Luke. R2-D2 followed close behind.

"Here you are," the man said. "I've been looking everywhere."

"I don't understand why, Ghent," Mara said. "We told you we were leaving on Jedi business."

Ghent furrowed his brow. "You did?"

"Several times." Luke saw Han tapping his wrist impatiently. "And we have to leave soon."

"Oh." Ghent's eyes dropped, then slid back toward R2-D2. "I guess this can wait."

"What can wait?" Leia asked. Luke had told her about the holo hidden in the sequestered sector in R2-D2's memory, and she was as eager as he was to learn more about the mysterious woman. "Did you find something?"

Ghent shook his head. "Just a few seconds of holo that I managed to relocate before I tripped a security gate. What I wanted to ask is if I could-"

"Holo of what?" Luke asked. "A brown-eyed woman?"

"That's right," Ghent said. "But it's really not very much. If I can-"

"Can you show it to us?" Leia sounded even more excited than Luke felt. "Before we leave?"

Ghent frowned. "Of course."

An uneasy silence fell as Luke and the others waited.

"Ghent, we want to see the holo," Mara said. "Now. As Luke said, we haven't got much time."

Ghent's brow rose. "Oh."

He squatted and inserted the plug of a homemade diagnostics scanner into one of R2-D2's input slots, then hastily typed a command.

"Show them."

R2-D2 piped an objection, and Han groaned and looked at his chrono.

"Don't make me scramble your sector tables again," Ghent warned.

"This time, I won't restore them."

R2-D2 let out a long, descending trill, then activated his holoprojector.

The hand-sized profile of the same brown-eyed woman that Luke had seen before appeared on the control room floor. She seemed to be standing alone, facing someone outside the hologram.

"Has Anakin been to see you?" asked a male voice.

"Wait a minute," Han said. "That guy sounds familiar."

"He should," Luke replied. The voice was much younger than when they had known him, but there was no mistaking its clarity and resonance.

"That's Obi-Wan Ken.o.bi."

Ghent tapped a key on his diagnostics scanner, stopping the holo.

"Do you want to see this or not?"

"Of course-we're sorry," Leia said. "Please continue."

Ghent punched the key again, and R2-D2 restarted the holo from the beginning.

"Has Anakin been to see you?" Obi-Wan's voice asked.

"Several times." The woman smiled, then said, "I was so happy to hear that he was accepted on the Jedi Council."

"I know." Obi-Wan walked into the hologram, wearing a Jedi cloak with the hood down. He was still young, with a light brown beard and an unwrinkled face. "He deserves it. He's impatient, strong-willed, very opinionated, but truly gifted."

They laughed, then the woman said, "You 're not just here to say h.e.l.lo. Something's wrong, isn't it?"

Obi-Wan's face grew serious. "You should be a Jedi, Padme."

The name shot an electric bolt of excitement through Luke - and he could sense it had done the same to Leia.

"You 're not very good at hiding your feelings," Padme said.

Obi-Wan nodded. "It's Anakin. He's becoming moody and detached."

His holoimage turned half away. "He's been put in a difficult position as the Chancellor's representative, but I think it's more than that." The image turned back to Padme again. "I was hoping he may have talked to you."

Padme's expression-at least what could be seen of it in the small hologrammic image-remained neutral.

"Why would he talk to me about his work?"

Obi-Wan studied her for a moment. "Neither of you is very good at hiding your feelings, either."

Padme frowned. "Don't give me that look."

Obi-Wan continued to look at her in the same way. "I know how he feels about you."

Padme's eyes slid away. "What did he say?"

"Nothing," Obi-Wan answered. "He didn't have to."

Padme's face fell, and she turned and walked out of the hologram.

"I don't know what you're talking about."