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Scaur glanced angrily at his deputy director of operations. “Colonel Kalenda, since you’ve been attached to this fiasco from the beginning, I’d like you to start by telling me which parts of Han Solo’s report can be considered fact and which parts can be dismissed as owing to an obvious case of space giddiness. Frankly, I’m not even clear on how the defectors wound up in his hands to begin with.”

Belindi Kalenda stirred in her chair. “Sir, after Major Showolter and his support team were ambushed by members of the Peace Brigade, Showolter and the defectors went in search of backup elements known to be aboard the Queen of Empire. When the major spotted Solo, he assumed that Solo was part of the operation—”

“When has Han Solo ever worked with this agency?”

Kalenda cleared her throat. “Well, sir, I did recruit his help during the Centerpoint Station crisis.”

Scaur’s nostrils flared. “That was seven years ago, Colonel.”

Kalenda returned the look. “Major Showolter was in bad shape, sir.”

The director’s expression softened. “How is he doing?”

“He took a nasty burn to the upper chest, but he’s coming along.”

Scaur nodded and glanced around the table. “My condolences to any of you who worked with officers Jode Tee and Saiga Bre’lya, or with Dr. Yintal of Fleet Intel. Their deaths and the deaths of Showolter’s backup agents, who were apparently tortured into revealing the countersign, add tragedy to this calamity.” He turned to Kalenda once more. “So the defectors became the property of Solo, who then proceeded to surrender them to the Peace Brigade.”

“The Peace Brigade had a means of identifying the one called Elan. They took her and her companion, Vergere, aboard their shuttle and were attempting to reach a Yuuzhan Vong warship when the entire crew was apparently poisoned by Elan.”

“By Elan’s exhalations, I take it.”

“Yes, sir. Solo retrieved her and Vergere, but was then convinced that both were part of an intricate plan to assassinate as many Jedi as possible. As you know, they had requested to meet with the Jedi to furnish details about an illness released by Yuuzhan Vong agents. We have since ascertained that Elan may have been referring to a molecular malady that has claimed some one hundred lives this past year—though just what the Jedi have to do with the malady is presently unknown.

“In any case, Solo considered the enticement to be part of the plot and was preparing to eject the defectors from his ship when he himself almost fell victim to Elan—to Elan’s exhalations, that is. Sir.”

Scaur stared at her for a long moment before replying. “On what basis did Solo determine them to be assassins rather than political fugitives?”

“As I say, sir, Solo became convinced that Elan had killed the members of the Peace Brigade to prevent them from returning her to the Yuuzhan Vong. The residue we collected from the Peace Brigade’s shuttle matches that found aboard Solo’s ship. Autopsies conducted on the men—including a Yuuzhan Vong operative—revealed that they died of hemorrhagic shock, induced by an inhaled vesicant toxin—a blood agent—of an unknown type.”

Scaur located Solo’s report from among the documents he had brought with him, scanned it, then tapped it with the back of his fingertips. “Solo claims that what you refer to as residue was actually alive at one point. He describes the creatures as some sort of mites that appeared out of thin air.”

Kalenda compressed her lips. “Sir, I won’t pretend to understand the nature of the toxin or the mechanics of its delivery. I know only that Solo was clearly meant to die.”

“And instead, this Elan succumbed to the toxin herself.”

“Presumably. Inside an escape pod, which Elan’s companion subsequently employed to make her escape.”

“Do we know what became of the pod?”

“Not yet. We conducted a search of the planetoid, but nothing turned up. While it’s possible the pod is there somewhere, lodged in some crevasse or cave, it could just as easily have been recovered by the enemy frigate or destroyed during the