Star Wars: The Old Republic: Fatal Alliance (42 page)

"Do
you really think that's possible, now?" said the female near-
human.

"Why
not?" Shigar looked at his Master for support, but she wasn't
giving it to him.

"You
are naive" said Ax. "This world is too valuable. The
Emperor will have it, or no one will. "

"And
your mother must be made an example of, " said Stryver,
"otherwise the power of the Sith will be eroded. "

"Stop
calling her my mother. Lema Xandret is a criminal and a fugitive.
There is no possibility that she will escape justice. "

"Would
you strike her down yourself, if you could?"

"I
would, and I will. She means nothing to me. "

"Good.
I believed once that I might reason with her. I believed that I could
broker an agreement that would keep her and her creations in check.
Now I fear that it is too late for any kind of negotiation. No
reasoning or agreement is possible. "

"Has
she gone mad?" asked the trooper to Shigar's right. "If so,
there are other options. We could take her out and talk to someone
else, for instance. "

"This
plan suffers from one small but fatal flaw. "

"That
is?" asked the Republic envoy.

"Lema
Xandret is already dead. She has been for some time. "

An
icy splinter snapped in Ax's heart at those words, leaving her unable
to tell if she felt triumph or grief, or both.

*
* *

"I
think it's time you told us everything you know, " said Master
Satele.

"I
agree, " said Larin. "Since when do Mandalorians negotiate
with anyone?"

Ula
remembered Jet telling him, They don't believe they have any equals.

"You
were the person Xandret's emissaries were hoping to meet, " Ula
said. "You came looking for them when they didn't show up. "

The
giant, domed helmet inclined in his direction. "Correct. "

"Was
Xandret herself supposed to be aboard the Cinzia?" asked Shigar.
"Is that why you think she's dead?"

"No.
She sent another. I believe she was here when she died. "

"So
you don't know for sure?" asked the Sith. Her face had a white,
pinched look under her blood-red dreadlocks.

"I
am certain of it. "

"Did
you kill her? Did you see her body?"

"No.
"

"So
how can you be certain?"

Stryver
tapped his helmet with one gloved finger. Ula couldn't see the
Mandalorian's face, but was positive he was smiling.

"She
means nothing to me, " the young Sith said firmly, as though
reassuring herself of the truth of it. "I just want to be
certain. "

"Be
certain of this, Eldon Ax: when those droids your mother created
leave this world, they will consume the entire galaxy in less than a
generation. "

Ula
blinked. The claim was preposterous, but if Stryver truly believed
it, that did explain another puzzling piece of the story.

"So
that's why you were willing to talk to her, " Ula said. "Lema
Xandret was a threat or a possible ally - just like the Empire. "

"A
force to be reckoned with, potentially, " said Master Satele. "A
force we clearly underestimated. But you wouldn't have taken her word
on it. You must have received some kind of proof. "

"A
demonstration factory, " said Stryver. "In two days, it
manufactured seventeen droids and two duplicates of itself using
nothing but the materials around it. The duplicate factories went
immediately to work, making another four factories and even more
droids. Their rate of reproduction was limited only by the energy
available to them; later we discovered how they send out roots to tap
into the local supply, ensuring they never run out. Curious, we put
the droids in the pit and they prevailed against all but the current
champion. Then the droids and factories self-destructed, leaving
insufficient remains for us to probe the secrets of their manufacture
or function. The message was clear. The Mandalore sent me to pursue
the conversation. "

"Why
did he send just you?" asked Larin. "You're not much use to
us on your own. "

"I
can confirm several hypotheses that you might already be forming.
This will save you time so you can begin to act. " Stryver
raised his right hand and began ticking off points. "One. Lema
Xandret and her fellow refugees arrived on Sebaddon determined to
cast off the hierarchy they had left behind. Fifteen years later,
hiding was no longer sufficient: Xandret wanted revenge on the people
who had stolen her daughter. So she sought out Mandalore to help her.
She approached him because my culture eschews the Force. That, after
all, was where all this started, with militarized religious cults
turning children into monsters. "

Ula
didn't dare look at the young Sith's face. He didn't know exactly how
the Sith trained their acolytes, but this sounded plausible. He
wondered if his Jedi "masters" had a similar system.

"Two.
" Stryver's count continued. "During her self-imposed
exile, Xandret and her fellow artisans advanced robotics in
directions no one has ever seen before. Finding inspiration and
materials in human biology itself, they sought to make droids that
would neither age nor grow inflexible and hidebound, so their small
colony could last forever. The technical challenges were immense, of
course, but they made some progress in unexpected directions. The
droids you've seen are advanced prototypes called fast breeders.
Given enough metal and raw energy, they grow from seeds into fully
formed combat versions in a matter of days. The nest on Hutta could
have produced dozens of such killers if left undisturbed, and the
same is true of the nests on Sebaddon. The hot spots you've been
observing from above, the ones that look like cities, are in fact
droid-building factories. They are churning out fast breeders by the
thousand now that the planet's defenses have been tripped. And not
just fast breeders: new factories as well. That is where the true
threat lies. This was the weapon she intended to use against the
Empire.

"Three.
If left unchecked, Xandret's breeder technology will inevitably
outgrow its homeworld and spill out into the galaxy. The math of
geometric progression is undeniable: one world this year, two worlds
the next; then four, then eight; within a decade it's two hundred and
fifty worlds, then another decade later it's a quarter of a million.
One human generation is all they would need to take over the entire
galaxy-along with Sith, Jedi, and Mandalorians alike.

"Four.
Negotiation is no longer an option. Xandret put all her prejudices
into her droids. You've heard their voices. You know what drives
them. The only solution is to crush Sebaddon completely. We must be
ruthless, decisive, and thorough, in order to ensure that Lema
Xandret's legacy is completely eradicated. Just one nest would be
enough to allow all this to start over again. "

Stryver
had run out of fingers on his right hand.

"Are
you finished?" asked the Sith.

"I
will be if this threat isn't neutralized. "

Stryver's
fists descended to take his weight, knuckle-first, on the side of the
holoprojector.

The
sphere of Sebaddon turned unstoppably between them. Glowing red
lights appeared and spread like a plague in fast motion. Soon the
whole planet was red, and streams of tiny, malignant dots began to
leap off the surface and escape into unseen spaces.

"You
said 'we. ' " Satele Shan's voice made Ula jump. "We must
be ruthless. I presume that was deliberate. "

"It
was. Everything I have seen, on Hutta and Sebaddon, confirms my worst
fears. Sebaddon is responding to the threat you all represent by
ramping up production. It must be stopped before the contagion
spreads. Since neither Empire nor Republic can single-handedly
destroy this menace with the resources available right now, you must
work together to see it done. "

"With
you in charge, I suppose, " said Larin.

"The
end justifies the means. "

"I
will never take orders from a Mandalorian, " said the Sith in
mocking tones. "And I will never fight alongside a Jedi. You are
insane even to suggest it. "

"There
must be an alternative, " Master Satele said. "Another
attempt at negotiation, perhaps..."

"The
planetary defense system is automated, " Stryver said. "The
only voices coming from the planet originate with the fast breeders.
That's how I know that Lema Xandret is dead. Everyone down there is
dead. It's just the droids now, and you can't negotiate with them. "

"Well,
we can't trust one another, " said Shigar. "That's some
choice you've given us. "

"Could
I make it any other way, I would. Believe me. "

Jedi
and Sith glowered at one another over the hologram, and suddenly Ula
knew exactly what he had to do. Once again, Jet had been absolutely
right. Ula could see both sides at once, and save himself into the
bargain.

"Are
you the leader of the Imperial fleet?" he asked the young Sith.
He already knew the answer. The Emperor would never trust such wealth
to someone so young, no matter how powerful she might be. But he had
to ask, for appearance's sake.

"No,
" she admitted.

"Whoever
that person is, then, I want to speak to them, face-to-face, "
he said. "I believe I can bring the Empire to the table. "

"You?
My Master would gut a worm like you just to watch you die. "

Ula's
stomach roiled. Her Master. He had hoped for a non-Sith commander,
but would have to settle for what he got. "Take me to your
command vessel and let me try. If I tail, by the sound of things, I
might as well be dead. "

"Your
death is closer than you think. He's in the shuttle. "

"Well,
then. All the better. It'll be over quickly. "

"Envoy
Vii, " said Satele Shan, "be very careful. You must be
absolutely sure of yourself. "

"I
am. " He straightened and puffed out his chest. "If the
Empire agrees to Stryver's suggestion, will you?"

The
Grand Master showed no sign of uncertainty. "Of course. We're
not at war, after all, and the threat is severe. "

"Good.
" Ula turned back to the Sith girl. She was tight-lipped with
rage, as though she couldn't believe his audacity. "This isn't a
trick. I'll go with you now, if you'll take me. Please. "

"Just
you, " she finally said. "No one else. "

"That's
out of the question, " said Larin.

"No,
" he said, although his heart warmed at her concern. "I'm
happy to go on my own. If I can't convince them with words, what
difference would a rifle or two make?"

She
reluctantly backed down. "Just be careful. We want you back in
one piece. "

"Not
several?" said the Sith. She was grinning now, perhaps
anticipating the sport her Master would have with him. "I refuse
to guarantee anything. "

Ula
wondered if he looked as faint as he felt. What if she killed him the
moment they were on the other side of the air lock, before he had a
chance to speak? That would be the most awful irony of all.

"I'm
ready" he said in as strong a voice as he could muster. "Let's
not keep your Master waiting. "

"Indeed,
" she said. "Let's not. "

"If
we don't hear from you within thirty minutes, " Stryver said,
"we'll assume you are dead. "

Ula
walked around the holoprojector and let the Imperial guards take him
by the shoulders and frog-march him to the door. There was no turning
back now. The eyes of his erstwhile allies in the Republic followed
him as he was led off to betray them all.

*
* *

The
moment the air lock closed behind them, the puny envoy started to
struggle. Ax strode on, her mind full of ways to lessen the
inevitable consequences of her failure. She didn't know what Darth
Chratis had expected, but he was sure to turn this unexpected result
against her. That she was finding it hard to think wasn't helping.

"Listen
to me, " the envoy called after her. "You have to listen to
me!"