Star Wars: The Old Republic: Fatal Alliance (28 page)

"Good
work, Hetchkee, " she said, returning to the safety of the
vault's interior. "I think we'll have more company soon, so stay
alert. "

"Yes,
sir. " If the soldier was worried by that prospect, he didn't
show it.

Clunker
was communicating with Jet via a series of rapid signs.

"Bad
news, " the smuggler translated. "Stryver got away with the
navicomp. "

"That's
the end of that, then, " she said, unable to hide her
bitterness. The trail had gone cold. Any hopes she might have
entertained about redeeming herself by means of a successful
volunteer mission were now officially dead. "What does he want
with this colony, anyway? Doesn't Mandalore have enough soldiers
already?"

"Doesn't
Tassaa Bareesh have enough money?" His cynical smile flashed
again. "I think Stryver wanted the navicomp for two reasons. To
find the Cinzia's origins, and to hide its destination. That would
make sense if Mandalore has been part of this right from the
beginning. "

She
stared hard at him. "You could be right. Stryver knew about the
Cinzia long before anyone else. It was him going around asking
questions that tipped us off. "

"And
the Cinzia was on a diplomatic mission, but neither the Empire nor
the Republic had ever heard of it. Can you name any other major
players in the galaxy at the moment?"

She
granted him the point. Even if the Mandalorians hadn't acted as a
united body since the war, it wasn't inconceivable that they might do
so again, for honor, or the right price, or just because they needed
a good war. "Why did those things attack Stryver, then?"

"I
don't know. "

"And
who saved the nest from destruction when the Cinzia's crew blew
themselves up?"

"I
don't know that, either. "

She
shook her head. "Every way I look at this, it keeps on getting
crazier. "

"Tassaa
Bareesh had no idea, did she?"

The
sound of grinding rubble came from outside the vault. Larin hurried
to the door before Hetchkee could call. The giant mass of stone
blocking the far entrance was moving forward. Behind the crunching of
rock and ferrocrete, she could hear a hissing and pounding that could
only have come from dirt-moving droids.

"Okay,
" she said, "this is it. If you've got any other bright
ideas, Jet, now would be the time. "

"You've
had your daily quota, I'm afraid. "

"Well,
then, you'd better join me in hoping that Shigar turns up soon.
Otherwise, we'll see what Tassaa Bareesh's hospitality is really
like, behind all the chintz. "

"I
suppose we could try to make a last-ditch break for it, " he
said.

"And
go where?"

"Well,
there's my ship. "

"I
thought it was impounded. "

"Oh,
that. A small technicality. "

"Like
getting out of here alive. "

He
winked. "A man can dream, can't he?"

Levity
in the face of unspeakable odds always buoyed her spirits. It
surprised her how much she had warmed to the smuggler in their short
time together. Maybe their cells would be next to each other in
Tassaa Bareesh's dungeon. Maybe they would be stretched on adjacent
racks.

With
a rumbling crash, the droids broke through the rubble. Once the way
was clear, they retreated to allow the palace's security forces past.
There were dozens of them, all heavily armored and armed, creeping
forward across the exposed beams of the floor with sights trained on
the vault.

Larin
almost laughed. Tassaa Bareesh had sent an army to capture just four
people! It would've been absurd if she hadn't been on the wrong end
of the equation.

"What
do you think, Hetchkee?" she called to the Kel Dor soldier. "We
can try surrendering to them, if you like. We haven't done anything
wrong, when you think about it. Your boss was actually invited. "

"I
don't reckon they're in the mood to care about that, sir. "

That
was true enough. The ranks of Weequay, Houks, Niktos, and Gamorreans
looked as though they expected a whole army of Sith, Jedi, and
Mandalorians to burst out of the vault and make off with their
mistress's fortunes. If only they knew there were just three people
and a droid. It hadn't even occurred to Larin to try unlocking the
other three vaults.

"All
right, then, " she said. "Wait until you can see the red of
their eyes. "

Her
opposite number among the security team was saying much the same
thing, judging by the sudden tightening of their ranks. One enormous
Weequay raised his right hand to give the signal to attack.

At
that moment, Larin's comlink buzzed.

She
froze, unable to fire and answer at the same time. What was more
important: the last shots she might ever fire in her life, or the
last communication she might ever receive?

The
Weequay had frozen, too. A blue-skinned Twi'lek had appeared at the
far end of the room, waving and shouting something in a language she
couldn't understand.

"Can
you follow that?" she asked Jet.

He
shook his head. "Sounds important, though, whatever it is. "

No
one was coming for them at that moment, so she took the opportunity
to put her rifle aside and reach for the comlink.

"Larin,
it's me, " said Shigar. "Where are you?"

"Right
where you left me. Tell me you've got a flip card up your sleeve. "

"I
might just have. Has Tassaa Bareesh sent anyone to you yet?"

She
peered out at the masses of security guards. "You could say
that. "

"Go
wherever they take you. I know what she has in mind. "

"You
want me to surrender?"

"It
won't be surrender. We, ah, reached an agreement, she and I. "

Larin
didn't like that moment of hesitation. What if he was under duress
and walking her into a trap?

She
asked him, "Do you remember lightning season on Kiffu, when the
static trees take to the air?"

"What-?
Yes, I do. Spark-dragons lure them into caves to steal their charge.
I'm not setting you up, Larin. You can rest easy on that score. "

"All
right, " she said, keeping a close eye on the leading Weequay.
He was yelling at the Twi'lek and brandishing his massive fists.
"You'll be where they take us?"

"Count
on it. "

She
put down the comlink and turned to Jet. He had heard everything.

"I
will admit, " he said, "that I prefer resolutions that
involve talking rather than shooting. "

"So
you think we should do this?"

"I
do. And Clunker agrees. "

The
droid looked as though he was fully prepared to shoot his way out,
but nodded stiffly.

"Hetchkee!
Put down your rifle. When I say so, we're coming out. "

"Uh,
yes, sir. "

"Wait
for the signal. If we get the timing right, I think we've got a good
chance of surviving this with a little class. "

The
Weequay shook his hands overhead one last time, then let them fall to
his sides. The Twi'lek looked satisfied. The Weequay turned to his
troops and grunted a series of commands.

The
security detail rose to its feet one at a time, and lowered their
weapons.

"Right,
" said Larin. "That's our cue. Put down your blasters, but
keep your hands at your sides. We're not surrendering. "

She
stepped first out of the vault, and the Twi'lek came to meet her.

"I
am Sagrillo, " he said with a short bow. "By the order of
Tassaa Bareesh, you are free to go. "

Larin
kept her relief completely hidden. "You better believe it. "

"And
me?" asked Jet hopefully.

"Alas,
Captain Nebula, my mistress still has need of your services. "
The Twi'lek bowed again. "If you will accompany me, please, all
of you, I will take you where you are required to be. "

Larin
fell in behind the Twi'lek, with Jet beside him. Clunker and Hetchkee
brought up the rear. The only sound was a subterranean growling from
the Weequay as the security detail parted before them. Larin
considered tipping him a salute farewell, but thought better of it.

She
glanced at Jet. Apart from the slow clenching and unclenching of his
jaw muscles, he showed no emotion at all.

CHAPTER
22

Ula
sat in Encaasa Bareesh's office and tried not to weep. He should
never have come to Hutta. He should have argued with Supreme
Commander Stantorrs and made him send someone else. It didn't matter
how it would have looked. He would happily take a greatly diminished
position of responsibility in the Republic's military administration
rather than endure another minute in this slovenly disaster area.

From
the moment he heard the name of the accursed Cinzia, everything had
gone wrong. First he had been kidnapped and interrogated. Then he had
been caught in the crossfire among a Sith, a Jedi, and a Mandalorian.
Then the brutal hexes had almost killed him. And now...

He
put his head in his hands, barely able to think of it.

From
outside the office came the sound of constant commotion. The
destruction of the Republic shuttle had damaged the palace's
spaceport. Fire and repair crews ran backward and forward, shouting
at one another and into comlinks, requesting reinforcements. Ula
didn't offer to help. The palace could burn to the ground with
everyone in it for all he cared.

The
chances of Larin Moxla still being alive were slim indeed. Of that he
was completely certain.

He
wasn't proud of himself for running from the ruins of the security
air lock, even though he had been sure at the time that his motives
were pure. His performance as a Republic envoy had never been
convincing; Jet had seen through him straightaway, even if he hadn't
outright named him an Imperial spy. Better to let that life disappear
and start a new one in the Empire, where he could spend less time
worrying about who other people thought he was and more on actually
doing the right thing.

Getting
through the spaceport guards hadn't been hard, even after the
unexpected departure of Dao Stryver's scout ship. They remembered him
from his arrival and let him through. He had approached the Imperial
dock without hesitation, confident that the guards would allow him
admittance.

It
hadn't gone that way at all.

The
shame of it still burned. His fellow Imperials-of a junior rank,
what's more-had turned him away, recognizing him as belonging to a
near-human species rather than pure-blooded like themselves.
Epicanthix scum, they had called him. You belong in this hole, they
told him. Go away before we shoot you dead.

He
had staggered out of the spaceport, stunned by the sudden reversal.
If his own kind wouldn't take him in, who would? Barely able to think
straight, he had wandered in circles around the neighborhood for what
had felt like days, but couldn't have been any more than an hour. His
choices were limited. He could either go back to the Republic and his
old job under Supreme Commander Stantorrs-if he wasn't sacked for
failing so miserably in his mission-or do as the Imperial guards had
suggested and stay on Hutta. The latter he simply would not do.

When
he returned to the spaceport, determined to take his leave of the
planet forever, he learned that the Republic shuttle had been
destroyed. Bad enough that his fellow Imperials had rejected him; now
they had destroyed his only means of getting offworld! He had been so
wrapped up in his misery he hadn't even heard the explosion, and he
bore the news that things had gone from bad to worse with a
distressing lack of grace.

Luckily,
the situation wasn't without hope. The Imperials' blatant breaking of
the Treaty of Coruscant might, on more civilized worlds, have
resulted in all-out war, but on Hutta it was likely to be ignored
along with the many other infringements perpetrated by the Sith and
the Jedi that day. Furthermore, Ula's status as a Republic envoy
still carried some weight. Tassaa Bareesh's nephew had installed Ula
in his fetid office-a place of leathery drapes and entirely too much
velvet, with living things crawling all over the desk-and left him
there to sort himself out while the spaceport dealt with much more
important emergencies. Ula couldn't blame him.