Star Wars_ The Jedi Academy Trilogy 03_ Champions of the Force - Kevin J. Anderson [65]
Mon Mothma, flanked by her ever-present medical droids, seemed only partially aware of what was going on. None of the other Council members had suggested removing her from office while she was still willing to attend meetings, though Mon Mothma contributed little. Han was stunned by how much the Chief of State had worsened in just the last few days.
One of the functionaries beside the sculpted door arch tapped on a long chime, sending a pure tone into the air to call the attendees to order.
Han didn’t know much about the protocol of government, but he didn’t plan to stand by and do nothing while Kyp was trounced by bureaucratic bigwigs. Before one of the members could speak, Han stepped forward. “Hey! Could you let me put in a word for my friend, Kyp Durron?”
Aging General Jan Dodonna hauled himself to his feet. Ancient and weathered, like a piece of gnarled driftwood, the bearded general still seemed filled with energy. His eyes flashed at Han. “The prisoner may speak for himself, General Solo. He has certainly shown no reluctance to act for himself. Let him answer our questions now.”
Chastised, Han stepped back and looked at the floor, tracing patterns made by cracks in the inset flagstones. Since Dodonna had the lectern, he leaned forward to look down at Kyp. The young man lifted his tousled head and blinked sheepishly at the old tactician.
“Kyp Durron,” Dodonna said, “you stole the Sun Crusher. You attacked and temporarily incapacitated the Jedi Master Luke Skywalker. You blew up the Cauldron Nebula and obliterated two other inhabited star systems. I will not debate the tactical significance of your actions—but we cannot tolerate juggernauts who make up their own orders and cause wholesale destruction on a whim!”
The other Council members agreed. General Rieekan’s deep, thick voice reverberated through the chamber. “This Council had already decided that the Sun Crusher would never be used. We disposed of it in a safe and protected place, but you knowingly thwarted our wishes.”
The other members fell quiet after Rieekan’s words. They seemed eager to add their own condemnations, but realized there would be little point in it.
After a moment of silence Kyp spoke. His voice sounded impossibly thin and small, reminding Han and everyone else there just how young this boy was. “I have no excuse for my actions. I’ll accept the consequences.”
“Even if your actions demand the death penalty?” the obese Senator Hrekin Thorm asked. “Such destruction as you have caused can warrant nothing less than execution.”
“Wait a minute!” Han said. The Council members glared at him, but he ignored their silent rebukes. “I know, I know—but listen to me for a minute. Kyp wasn’t himself. He was possessed by the evil spirit of a Sith Lord who has since been defeated. And he did do some good. He destroyed Daala’s fleet. How many lives did he save by doing that? We are at war, after all.”
Mon Mothma’s words wheezed from her cracked lips. Her voice came out in a ragged whisper. The rest of the chamber fell into a deep hush as she began to talk. “Kyp Durron,” she said, “you have the blood of millions, perhaps billions, on your hands. We are a governing body here, not a judicial council. We have no right to decide your fate. You—” She gasped as if using most of her energy just to fill her lungs. “You must be judged by the Jedi Master. We are not qualified to judge your crimes.”
She raised one of her hands to gesture toward Han. “Take him to Yavin. Let Master Skywalker decide his fate.”
22
Leia, Ackbar, and Terpfen joined the rescue party from the Galactic Voyager, swooping through the violet skies of Anoth. Ackbar took the lead in his own B-wing. His weapons systems were powered up and ready to attack any ground assault team the Dreadnaught had deployed.
The starfighters soared over the fanged landscape toward the stone turret that Ackbar and Luke had chosen for the base. Leia saw signs of damage that made