Star Wars_ I, Jedi - Michael A. Stackpole [131]
“I have, Keevy, the military variant. Back during the Rebellion some.” I looked around the Premier cabin. “Those shuttles didn’t have the accommodations this one does, and we packed soldiers in fairly tightly. And our navicomp wasn’t as sophisticated as the one you describe.”
“Oh, this is so exciting.”
I smiled. “Tell me about it.”
“Okay …” he began.
I sank back in my seat and kept a smile on my face because that’s what Jenos would have done. The morning after the nightmare I had joined my grandfather in the greenhouse and told him what I had resolved to do: to leave Corellia and infiltrate the Invids. He applauded the plan and immediately set about getting me squared away to do so. He took a look at the identification Booster had provided me and while pronouncing it “marginally adequate,” he got on the comlink and soon had documents for me that appeared quite genuine.
“They are, Corran, quite genuine.” My grandfather smiled at me. “They will pass the most rigorous inspection.”
I looked at the identification card with my holograph on it. “Who is Jenos Idanian?”
“Originally? He was a small-time crook a bit older than you. He vanished, but his record was still on file. I adjusted details and the age to fit you better. You now have some youthful indiscretions in your background, including some ship-theft related problems and some smuggling arrests. Not enough to mark you well-known, but enough to suggest you know what you are doing. For your purposes, Jenos has since reformed, partially because of his participation in the Rebellion, and now works as a broker selling used starships.”
I thought for a moment, then nodded. The background was not so improbable that I couldn’t slip into it. I add a run of bad luck that becomes bitterness about rich folks who have stolen my commissions, and I become a likely pirate candidate with skills they need. “You sure this Jenos isn’t going to come looking for me?”
“Jenos hasn’t been heard from for over twenty years. If he had surfaced, your father would have gotten him, since Hal was close to arresting him back then.” Rostek Horn’s smile diminished only slightly. “I also have arranged for transport for you on the Tinta Lines Starship Tinta Palette. You will transfer in the Bormea system to the Tinta Rainbow and make your way to Coruscant. From there I suspect you can find your way to the Errant Venture and the Invids.”
I frowned. “The Tinta ships are luxury liners and have their cruises booked months in advance.”
“Siolle Tinta loves flowers, Corran.” He plucked a bud from a small seedling. “She was happy to see to it that a friend of yours would be treated like family.”
“While you might have gotten the death warrants for me quashed, there are still Imperial sympathizers here who wouldn’t mind capturing me and selling me to High Admiral Teradoc or any other self-styled warlord. Shouldn’t I be keeping a lower profile than shipping on a luxury liner?”
My grandfather laughed easily. “My dear boy, two things you must remember about Imperial sympathizers on Corellia: they would never believe any Rebel stupid enough to come to Corellia in the first place, and, second, they would find it impossible to believe any Rebel would be able to afford luxury passage on a starliner. Imperial sympathizers here live in a fantasy world twenty years old. They think of the days of Moff Vorru as a golden age. Aside from a few CorSec officials, I doubt anyone knows you are a Rebel, and those officials would never lay a hand on you.”
“Afraid of flowers?”
“A few. More remember your father very well.”
“I see.” I sighed. “I cannot tell you how much I appreciate your doing this for me. I’ve been a fool and I think you know it. I’d like to thank you for not having bashed me over the head with it.”
He watched me closely, his grey eyes cooling off. “What have you been a fool about?”
“Becoming a Jedi in order to