• Choose a category
• All
• Classic-Fiction

Finishing his cigar, Lando stood, walked back to the ladder and up to the airlock, screwed on his helmet, and went outside. The Cave of the Elders floated beside the Falcon like a fantastic decorated egg, a million brilliant colors, a billion gleaming facets. He drifted toward the entrance and faced the three giant beings who waited for him there.

“Yes, it could be very important. It means you don’t leave any remains behind that can be detected against the normal molecular background of space. It means they won’t be looking for any stiffs.”

“Stiffs?” the three said at once.

“Bodies, corpses, DOAs, meat, Qs—corpora delicti. Tell me, what are conditions like out by the wall of the StarCave?”

If Oswaft had been capable of blinking at a rapid change of subject, Sen, at least would have done so. “Why, not terribly different from here. A bit colder, but not uncomfortably so.”

“Vuffi Raa,” Lando said into the radio in his suit, “get me some scanning data on the nebula wall, will you? I’ve been working on an idea. Sen, Fey, Lehesu, can you people get through the wall at all?”

Lehesu replied, being the only one with any practical experience in the matter. “It is all but impenetrable. One cannot—what is your expression?—’starhop’ because one cannot see where one is going. It is said that attempting it in any case will cause one to burst into flame and vanish.”

Lando considered this. “Makes sense. No matter how diffuse the gas and dust is, translight speeds will create that kind of friction. How deep could you—what is your expression?—’swim’ into the wall if you had to? Far enough so that sensors couldn’t detect you?”

It was Lehesu’s turn to think. While he was doing so, a sudden burst of radio transmissions entered the Cave of the Elders. It caused some stir. Lando couldn’t understand what was being said, but no one interrupted the conversation for a translation, so the gambler put it out of his mind.

At long last: “Yes, I believe such might be possible. If I follow your line of reasoning, you would have us conceal ourselves, we and all of the Oswaft, within the folds and billows of the wall until the fleet, believing in their despicable villainy that we had starved to death, gave up and went away to impose misfortune upon someone else. But what would you have us do about the molecular residue that—”

The gambler grinned. “I have that all figured out, my over-large friend. It wouldn’t take very much, would it? How about a little of my cargo, judiciously sprayed all over the place?”

“Lando! I believe the idea might work. Esteemed Elders, may I ask—”

“Silence, young one. Peace! We have something else to ponder at this moment, something very disturbing.”

“What’s happening, Sen, what’s going on?”

The giant spoke: “Bhoggihalysahonues’ attempts to negotiate an end to these insane hostilities have ended in disaster! She, and all of her party—a thousand of our people—were murdered with energy-weapons almost the moment they appeared at the mouth of the ThonBoka and greeted the nearest vessel.”

“I’m sorry to hear it, Sen … but, well, it doesn’t really change things very much, does it?”

“I am afraid, Captainmasterlandocalrissiansir, that it does. You see, unfortunately, and in their consternation—the details aren’t very clear—the negotiation party shouted at the … ‘cruiser,’ much as I did in an unthinking moment just now at the two Oswaft who brought you here so ill-usedly.”

“Yeah. I felt it, and it was a tight beam. The Courteous? What happened to her?” He had a bad feeling about this.

Sen gave the broadcast equivalent of a mournful sigh. “She—your Courteous—was not well defended, as is your Millennium Falcon, by deflector-shields, for they thought our people harmless.

“Thus was the Courteous utterly destroyed.”

“Swell,” Lando said, more to himself than to the Elders. “Nothing like a premature war on our hands.”

“The rest of the fleet, with full shields up now, has entered the ThonBoka mouth to murder us