Star Wars_ Darksaber - Kevin J. Anderson [89]
As Lemelisk watched Nar Shaddaa, anxiety gnawed at the pit of his stomach. He didn’t want to go there, didn’t want to be around so many people, didn’t want to walk willingly into that nest of vermin. The crew accompanying him was unpleasant enough—and they were on his side. Lemelisk had no way of knowing what sort of scum he would encounter in the rundown streets of Nar Shaddaa.
He hoped to be in and out as soon as possible, and he hoped—though he didn’t expect it—that General Sulamar had actually obtained acceptable computer components for the Darksaber.
Already, Lemelisk found himself longing to be alone with his plans and his dreams. But to make his brainchild a reality, he had to make certain sacrifices.
As always, Bevel Lemelisk would do his duty, even if it cost him his life … again.
CHAPTER 30
The New Republic fleet engaged in out-system/in-system speed trials and maneuverability runs. Ackbar’s ships leap-frogged Wedge’s squadrons as they pushed their piloting skills to the limits, always remaining on call should trouble arise for the Chief of State.
Fortunately, everything had been quiet for several days, and it did not appear that the Hutts were going to be a problem. Leia sent word that she believed her mission would be over in a day or two, so General Wedge Antilles, taking the opportunity to apply for some rest and recreation, accompanied Qwi Xux down to the Smugglers’ Moon.
“You always take me to such interesting places, Wedge,” Qwi told him, staring around at the seedy sections of Nar Shaddaa, her indigo eyes filled with amazement, and drinking in details.
Wedge laughed. “Well, this isn’t exactly one of the more … romantic places I’ve shown you.”
Qwi shrugged and tossed her head. Her hair was like a mass of spun crystal fragments, pearly white strands made of fine feathers that sparkled around her head. “No, but it’s still fascinating,” she said. She had an elfin appearance with a faint blue tinge to her skin that gave her an exotic charm—yet she looked and acted completely human.
Qwi Xux had been brainwashed as a child to become a weapons designer for the Empire. In Maw Installation she had helped design the original Death Star with Bevel Lemelisk, and she had developed the Sun Crusher by herself. She remembered little of that, however, because young Kyp Durron, flooded with dark side powers, had erased much of her memory in a disastrous attempt to make it impossible for anyone to re-create such weapons. Despite her many ordeals, Qwi retained a childlike sense of wonder at discovering new things. Wedge found it endearing, and he loved her more with each day he spent at her side.
They left their small shuttle at the Port Authority and paid a fee to guarantee its protection—an exorbitant enough price that Wedge was reasonably sure they would have no troubles. He wore no uniform, only a nondescript jumpsuit in the pockets of which he had stashed an assortment of weapons, communicators, and locator beacons. They should be fine.
Nar Shaddaa was a nightmare of decrepit buildings, empty warehouses, and closed doors marked “Keep Out” in numerous languages. Low-level fliers cruised across the sky, belching smoke from poorly tuned engines. Industrial processing centers spewed toxic wastes into the air and down drainage pipes.
The atmosphere itself was murky and oily, laden with vapors that made visibility equivalent to looking through a glass of dirty water. The planet Nal Hutta filled much of the stained sky, a bruised green, blue, and brown sphere, rising halfway over the horizon like a heavy-lidded eye.
Wedge and Qwi strolled along the stuttering glidewalk, looking at flashing signs that advertised bizarre services. Giant, open repair bays yawned wide, full of dismantled parts stolen from ships that hadn’t paid exorbitant protection money, as Wedge had done. The Smugglers’ Moon seemed like a world-size mechanics’ shop, dingy and grease-stained, filled with discarded components that might eventually find