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Daala’s face was strained, her green eyes fastened on the unfolding events. This was not the first time news had revolved around something as seemingly innocuous as the Exchange and Exhibition. Plenty of times in the past a creature or two—or three or four—had broken loose to stampede about for a while before it was brought down by crack security teams. Or sometimes the less-than-savory dealings unofficially conducted in back rooms went awry. But even Dorvan was surprised to see this.

“I received the call a few moments ago and took the liberty of sending out some special teams from the GA,” he said to Daala, who nodded absently, her gaze still riveted.

The cam pulled back to show the main floor as Tyrr continued to narrate. “What you’re seeing are empty corrals that should be filled with herd animals. Someone has deliberately sabotaged the gates and set dozens of creatures loose to stampede among the populace. The source of—”

The cam moved so suddenly, Dorvan felt a hint of nausea. And then he saw why. A Falleen, her skin reddened as she exuded hormones, was bringing a lightsaber down upon another gate, this one containing rontos. The animals, skittish in urban areas under the best of circumstances, were terrified, rearing and snorting. As they dived for freedom, the Jedi, for it could only be a Jedi, leapt clear, then darted away.

“A Jedi?” said Desha, disbelieving. “But a Jedi would never put civilians in harm’s way like this!”

“These days they would,” Daala said grimly, her lips pressed together in a thin, furious line. “And have.”

“It’s a Jedi!” Javis Tyrr was crying, echoing their words. “Another Jedi, sworn to protect, has clearly gone insane! Who knows how many innocents will die here, terrorized, trampled or gored to death? When will this stop?”

The cam swung around to a close-up of the back of a woman’s head. Her hair was long, dark, and pulled back in a ponytail. Suddenly the woman turned.

“You!”

“That’s Jaina Solo,” Desha Lor said, her eyes wide as the Jedi strode up to the cam and covered it with her hand. “What’s she doing there?”

“She, her parents, and her adopted sister were attending the exhibition,” Dorvan said. When Desha stared at him, he answered her unspoken question. “While we do not exactly follow her or other notable personages around, the GA does take care to know exactly where such personages are at all times. You’ll soon learn about this. And I’ll be putting you in charge of such operations.” The Twi’lek looked uncomfortable with the idea, but said nothing.

Meanwhile, despite the vibroblades Jaina was metaphorically shooting at him, Tyrr wasn’t giving up. He continued to speak. “Jaina Solo, can you verify that Jedi Natua Wan—”

Dorvan tuned out the rest, instead listening to a message from his earpiece comlink. He turned to Daala. “Admiral, there’s worse going on in the Dangerous Animal Hall. I have reports of injuries and a possible fatality.”

“Oh, no!” Desha looked stunned and shocked, and again Dorvan wondered if anyone could really be this innocent.

Dorvan directed his gaze back to the holonews. Javis Tyrr had moved away from covering the current crisis; apparently he had switched to a second holocam; the image was not as clear as before. Dorvan was willing to bet a month’s wages that Jaina had damaged it somehow. The fact that Tyrr had a backup cam indicated that this sort of thing must happen a lot to a holojournalist.

“ … exclusive footage,” Tyrr was saying. “Natua Wan’s murderous rampage is not the first example of a Jedi harming the public. Nor is it likely to be the last. And yet the Jedi continue to operate without restrictions. While Valin and Jysella Horn are safely encased in carbonite, Natua Wan is still on the loose. And so, we thought, was another rogue Jedi—Seff Hellin.”

What he saw next shocked even Wynn Dorvan.

It was Seff Hellin, captured, raging at nothing, and then collapsing on a comfortable-looking flowform couch. The cam pulled back to reveal what looked like a pleasant apartment complete