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“In sabacc, yes, and you’ve lost to me more than once, if I recall correctly.”

Vansyn chuckled. “Guilty as charged. But you said it yourself—I’ve got a good, solid reputation. I think you could use my aid—if your thoughts bend in the same direction mine do.”

Let him say it first, thought Lecersen. Call the bluff. “And what might that direction be?”

Vansyn tapped the ash off his cigarra and took another thoughtful puff. “Neither of us is overly fond of one Jagged Fel. He’s utterly botched his leadership of the Empire. Daala’s been run off like a scared eopie. Seems to me that leaves a rather large hole that needs filling. And, a touch too coincidentally, here you are, back in Imperial Space.”

“And what am I doing here, do you suppose?”

“Planning to take over the Empire. You’d make a jolly fine Emperor, you know. I’d follow you.”

There it was. Lecersen relaxed back in the comfortable chair and sipped his wine.

“I see” was all he said. “I think I’d make a jolly fine Emperor myself.”

“I assume things are already in the works?”

Lecersen made his decision. “They are,” he said. “And permit me to apologize right now for keeping you ignorant of it. I wanted you to have plausible deniability if things fell apart before we reached this stage.”

“That’s very kind of you, Drikl,” said Vansyn. “And I’m just as pleased you’re choosing to include me now.”

“I definitely have plans for you, my old friend,” Lecersen said warmly. Plans that included utilizing the other Moff’s dominion as a base and, eventually, rewarding Vansyn for his cooperation. “There are quite a few of us who are rather unhappy with both Daala and Fel right now. And we’re in very high places.”

“Oh?” Vansyn looked keenly interested, leaning forward. He was, Lecersen realized, very excited at being included in something so ambitious and simultaneously clandestine. As he should be. When this was all over, every single one of the conspirators would get exactly what he or she wanted. “Who?”

“Haydnat Treen was the one who approached me first,” said Lecersen. “She’d already been hard at work behind the scenes, and was able to bring in several other key players. For example, when Bwua’tu was attacked, we found his temporary replacement highly ambitious and willing to participate.”

Vansyn’s brown eyes had widened. “Astounding,” he said. “How did you all manage to meet without being observed?”

Lecersen chuckled. “We only had one simple dinner at my estate,” he said. “The rest of the time, we were in disguise.”

“Disguise?”

“You’re familiar with the costume nights at the Gleaming Fortunes Casino? And the willingness of Obrigadar’s Simulator Palace to indulge customers in military garb as long as it’s either decommissioned or twenty years out of date?”

A sharp bark of laughter escaped Vansyn. “So you could meet right out in the open and no one would know it was you! Delightful!” he exclaimed. “Ingenious! You, sir, are indeed a master at this game! I am distressed I couldn’t have picked a costume and attended myself.”

“When this is all over and the goal achieved, I promise I’ll host a masquerade, and you may come as anyone you’d like.”

“I am already planning my costume. Please continue—this is absolutely fascinating.”

Lecersen knew when his ego was being stroked. Vansyn was rather obvious about it. Filled with good food and good liquor, he opted to relax and enjoy it.

“Daala zigged when she should have zagged, which made our job easy for us. She acted like an Imperial Admiral when she should have acted like a Chief of State. An understandable mistake, but a mistake nonetheless. I wonder if Tarkin would have approved or disapproved, and if he saw it coming, what he would have done.”

“He probably wouldn’t have noticed. Men are sometimes blind when dazzled by the charms of a lovely woman.” Vansyn said. He grinned. “And of course, Daala’s half blind already herself.”

It was a cheap shot, but Lecersen found himself laughing. “True,” he said. “Poor Daala. I actually feel a bit sorry for her. If she’d only embraced the uprisings and sent