Star Wars_ Fate of the Jedi 05_ Allies - Christie Golden [61]
“Whoa, whoa, slow down,” Jag said, dropping her hands and lifting both of his up in a defensive gesture. “First of all, Luke isn’t supposed to have any aid. Those were the terms of his agreement.”
“He doesn’t know we’re coming. That way he won’t get into trouble. And once the threat is ended, everyone, even Daala, will realize that it was absolutely necessary.”
“And what is it exactly you would like me to do?”
She straightened, slightly, hearing the ice in his voice. “Distract Daala. Get her to quit watching us. Or else—” Her eyes widened as the idea struck, then she shook her head. “No, I can’t ask that of you.”
“Spit it out.”
She seemed to be having an internal battle. “You’ve got to believe me—I wouldn’t ask this of you unless I felt it was absolutely necessary.” The words came slowly, reluctantly, and Jag knew they were true. This wasn’t a flippant request.
“Maybe … you can give us some of your ships. Some Imperial ships. That way we don’t have to launch the StealthXs. We can just—”
“Let me get this straight. You want me to either lie to Daala to get her off your back, or else provide you with Imperial ships without informing the Galactic Alliance, to go haring off chasing some unnamed threat to the galaxy? Jaina, the repercussions from this—” He was at a loss for words for a moment. “You realize you could be asking me to help start a war? In order to fight some enemy you won’t even tell me about?”
She shifted her weight and looked away uneasily. “Okay, so … when you put it like that,” she said, “it doesn’t sound very good. But Jag, this is real. And it’s dangerous. It’s—it involves the Sith, okay? Please, just trust me!”
Sith. Now he understood a bit better. The Sith were, for Jaina, an almost incomprehensibly personal matter. More than anyone else he could think of, Jaina knew what they could do, and the cost they could exact on one’s soul. Daala had stated that she did not think that, in the end, there was that much difference between Sith and Jedi. Now he knew why Jaina wanted to act now, rather than request permission and aid—because it would be denied her.
It was with gentleness and a regret that went bone deep that he spoke. “I understand why you are asking this. But … you have to know I can’t possibly do it. I can’t ask my people to go out and commit crimes that would cause the sort of gigantic diplomatic incident that could possibly start a war. I can’t do this for any of a thousand reasons. You see that, don’t you?”
She reached out to him imploringly. “Jag, this is me. Jaina. Just trust me. It will all work out, I swear it to you. But we’ve got to get some kind of fleet to Luke or it’s going to be too late!”
“For me, Jaina, I would believe you. I would follow you anywhere just on your word. And you know what that means to me.”
She swallowed, nodding. She knew. Trust was something that had once been shattered between them, and the admission that he was willing to trust her again did not come easily.
The door slid open. Ashik rushed in, grabbed a controller, and turned on the viewscreen. Both Jaina and Jag had their mouths open to protest his barging in, but they quickly forgot it as they watched what was unfolding.
The cam focused on the familiar image of the Jedi Temple. Jaina stopped breathing, her eyes going wide. The cam then pulled back to show that the Temple was completely surrounded. By Mandalorians and their vehicles.
Jag quickly took in the sight of at least half a dozen tra’kads, Mandalorian Protector starships. Slow, heavily armed, and built with beskar, the things were essentially flying tanks. They were on the ground