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Daala’s hand swung up to silence him with the finality of a vibroaxe. Kratas clamped his thin lips shut and slithered back into his chair.

“I am fully aware of the battle statistics, Commander. I see the numbers in my sleep. I have studied the datapads over and over.” Her voice rose and became molten with anger. “No matter how much damage we have done to the Rebellion, their losses have been insignificant compared to ours.”

Then her voice dropped to such a sudden quiet coldness that she saw General Odosk’s watery eyes widen in fear. “And so I intend to use my last resources in one final assault. If successful, it will fulfill both of our missions.”

Her gloved fingers worked the controls at the end of the table. From a holoprojector in the center of the black slab rose the computer-generated image she had worked up that afternoon in her private quarters while the image of Grand Moff Tarkin droned on with his prerecorded lectures.

“I mean to stab at the heart of the Rebellion,” she said. “Coruscant itself.”

A high-resolution mapping of the last-known surface topography of the Emperor’s planet focused on a world-sized metropolis with frozen polar caps and sparkling chains of city lights on the night side of the planet. She saw spacedocks, curved solar mirrors that warmed the upper and lower latitudes of the planet, communications satellites, large freighters, streams of orbital traffic.

Daala gestured, and two fully rendered images of her Star Destroyers appeared traveling side by side at high speed toward Coruscant.

“I intend to take all ships and all personnel onto the Gorgon, leaving only a skeleton crew—of volunteers, of course—on board the Basilisk. Our Star Destroyers will come out of hyperspace just beyond the moons of Coruscant. We will drive in at full sublight speed, without hesitation, straight toward our target.

“We will give no warning, and we will fire every turbolaser battery we have, clearing a corridor to head directly for Imperial City. Any ship that stands in our way will become a cloud of ionized metal.”

As she spoke, the computer animation demonstrated her tactics. The two Star Destroyers arrowed toward the capital city of the New Republic.

“The Calamarian commander who defeated the Manticore gave me an idea with his suicide run, and we shall turn the tables on them.” Daala watched the stony face of General Odosk, the appalled look of disbelief on Captain Mullinore, and the stern support of Commander Kratas.

“This will be our deadliest hit-and-run,” Daala said. “It will cause enough damage for our names to live forever in the annals of Imperial history. We shall deal a death blow to the Rebel government.

“As we approach in-system, the Basilisk’s small volunteer crew will begin a self-destruct countdown. The Gorgon will run interference until we reach our target, at which time we will turn aside. At full speed the Basilisk will plunge into the atmosphere of Coruscant. It will be unstoppable.”

On the simulated image one Star Destroyer split away before touching the skin of air, curving in a tight orbit around Coruscant and then streaking off into space as the first ship plummeted flaming into the atmosphere toward the most heavily populated center on the planet.

“When the Basilisk detonates …” Daala said. She paused as the planetary image flashed with a brilliant ring of fire that sent ripples igniting through the atmosphere. All the lights on the night side of the planet went dark. Cracks of fire appeared across the land masses.

“The explosion will be sufficient to level the buildings on half a continent. The shock wave traveling through the planetary core could topple cities on the other side of the world. The underground reservoirs will break open. Tidal waves will cause damage along the coasts. For the price of one Star Destroyer, we can lay waste to Coruscant.”

Odosk looked grimly admiring at the simulation. “A good plan, Admiral.”

“But my ship—” Captain Mullinore said.

“It will be a glorious sacrifice,” Commander