Star Wars_ The New Jedi Order 05_ Agents of Chaos 02_ Jedi Eclipse - James Luceno [127]
The Mon Calamari nodded and fixed one eye on Ranth. “The Hutts are not the subject of this inquest, Senator. Can you show good cause for pursuing this line of questioning?”
Ranth inclined his head, gazing at the tribunal from beneath his jutting brow. “I am merely trying to establish the sequence of events that led to the sneak attack on Fondor.”
“Proceed,” the Mon Calamari told him.
Ranth turned to Shesh. “Senator, early on, the command staff’s suppositions about Corellia were bolstered by information regarding the scarcity of spice in certain planetary systems. Chief of State Fey’lya asserts that the Advisory Council was aware that the information had been supplied by Talon Karrde and the Jedi Knights.”
“We were so informed.”
“Can you think of any reason why former Imperial Remnant liaison Talon Karrde or the Jedi Knights might have wished to mislead the Defense Force?”
The lawyer nearest Shesh shot to his feet. “Objection. Calls for speculation.”
“No, I’ll answer it,” Shesh countered. “I don’t for a moment accept that either Talon Karrde or the Jedi were trying to mislead us.”
The Gotal studied her. “Are you suggesting that they were also manipulated by the enemy?”
Shesh straightened in the chair. “I’m suggesting, Senator, that the Jedi are not infallible, and that we shouldn’t look to them as saviors. For all anyone knows, the Yuuzhan Vong have brought to our galaxy a power superior to even that of the Force.”
On a hover platform close to where the Justice Council was convened, Isolder’s former bodyguard, Astarta, opened the hatch to the prince’s personal quarters aboard the shuttle that was to return the Hapans to the Battle Dragon Song of War, just then in stationary orbit above Coruscant. Astarta showed Leia her most barbed glare before leaving the two of them alone.
Isolder was standing at the cabin’s broad viewport, his back turned to the hatch. In the aftermath of the Battle of Fondor, events had conspired to prevent them from seeing each other for almost two weeks, and the Song of War was scheduled to launch for Hapes later that day.
Leia waited for him to turn from the view of Coruscant’s impossibly tall towers before moving toward him, but the pained expression on his face brought her to a halt after only two steps.
“Isolder, I’m so sorry,” she blurted, eyes brimming with tears.
He compressed his lips, biting back whatever he had in mind to say, then sighed deeply. “Leia, we spoke of this before the fleet left Hapes. I told you then that I would never hold you accountable for any untoward outcome. We knew what we were risking by going to war.”
Having expected him to say just that, Leia nodded silently.
Frowning, Isolder stepped away from the viewport to regard her. “But you knew what was going to happen. You sensed it.”
Leia let out her breath. “I sensed some tragedy in the making, but I didn’t know when or where, or even if it would transpire. I knew that some of what I was feeling owed to concerns for my children. But I couldn’t separate those from sudden doubts about having brought you into this, or about Commodore Brand’s strategy for Corellia.”
Unable to continue, she shook her head mournfully.
Isolder glanced away from her for a moment. “I’ve been asking myself if it would be easier to have been defeated by the Yuuzhan Vong rather than by misdirected fire from a weapon we didn’t even know existed.”
“A weapon enabled by Anakin,” Leia said quietly.
“Who also refused to fire it,” Isolder was quick to point out. “Leia, you must understand, we accept what has happened to us, without hostility or regret.”
She held his sad gaze. “What will happen now?”
He ran his hand over his mouth. “Well, I don’t anticipate a triumphant homecoming. The Consortium has split along lines dictated by the vote that