Star Wars_ The New Jedi Order 05_ Agents of Chaos 02_ Jedi Eclipse - James Luceno [66]
Choka shot him a gimlet stare. “Who helped the Praetorite Vong obtain a yammosk—and an imperfect one at that?”
Nom Anor swallowed hard. “I may have mentioned something—”
“You facilitated them.”
“Only from a certain point of view.”
“Don’t try your doublespeak on me, Executor. You may have managed to distance yourself from Prefect Da’Gara and the rest by escaping the price they paid for their miscalculation, but you cannot deny engineering the plan that ended in the death of the priestess Elan, daughter of high priest Jakan—who, I might add, is most displeased with you.”
“There is no proof that Elan or her mascot Vergere are dead. Even so, I can scarcely be held accountable for what happened to them.”
“You take no blame for employing agents who act without orders from their handler?”
Nom Anor added force to his voice. “My agents were endeavoring to please me—us—by returning Elan. I had no knowledge of their designs until it was too late.”
“Is it true that Elan was to have assassinated a number of Jeedai Knights?”
“It is.”
Choka tempered his voice with curiosity. “Why this fascination with the Jeedai, Executor? I, for one, am not convinced they pose a serious threat to our conquest.”
“It is not the Jedi who pose a threat, so much as the Force—the mystical power they embody.”
“The Force is nothing more than an idea,” Choka said loudly, “and the best way to extinguish an idea is by replacing it with a better one, such as we bring.”
Nom Anor risked a patronizing sniff. “As you say, Supreme Commander.”
Choka glowered. “Now I learn from Commander Malik Carr that you were instrumental in gaining the allegiance of the creatures that occupy this space—these Hutts.”
Nom Anor’s genuine eye narrowed. “The Hutts are critical to a plan devised by Commander Malik Carr and myself to force a significant defeat on the New Republic. In fact”—he tilted his head to one side—“you arrive at an auspicious moment, because part of that plan is shortly to be put into effect. If you would care to accompany us into battle, you could observe firsthand our strategy for conquering the Core Worlds in advance of the arrival of Warmaster Tsavong Lah.”
Choka took a moment to weigh the consequences of such an action, then grunted an affirmative. “I will go. But let me caution you, Executor, about the perils of ambition. It’s obvious that you are hungry for escalation, but there are no shortcuts to the rank of consul, to say nothing of prefect.” He gestured over his shoulder. “Look to Yun-Shuno for counsel, Executor. Escalation is awarded only to those who have discharged their obligations in service to the gods. You appear to act in your own behalf, as if possessed of a personal stake in the results.” He leaned slightly forward. “Or is it this galaxy, Executor, and the heathen beliefs of those who populate it that have corrupted you?”
Nom Anor held his gaze, wishing he had filled his empty eye socket with a venom-spitting plaeryin bol. “I care only for what this galaxy is capable of providing the Yuuzhan Vong.” He cast a glance at Malik Carr. “With all due respect, Commander, our target awaits.”
Malik Carr nodded to Choka. “He speaks the truth.”
The supreme commander folded his arms. “Let us enact the sacrifices and see what Commander Malik Carr and Executor Nom Anor have masterminded.” He pointed to the knot of prisoners. “Bring the captives forward. In sacrificing them, perhaps we can help ensure Executor Nom Anor a much-needed victory.”
SIXTEEN
On a purely objective level, battles in space had a savage beauty, an incendiary splendor. Any veteran warship commander or fighter jock ordered to speak the truth would have said so. The more candid among them might even have confessed to moments of exhilaration or, at the very least, moments of hypnotic fascination, when ranging