Star Wars_ The New Jedi Order 11_ Dark Journey - Elaine Cunningham [80]
She spun away into the ship. The Wookiee’s furred forehead pulled down in puzzlement as he considered his friend’s outburst. After a moment he shrugged. His uncle Chewbacca had often warned him that humans tended to make everything more difficult than it had to be.
From what he’d observed pass between Jaina Solo and the black-haired pilot, Lowbacca was inclined to agree.
NINETEEN
“I don’t believe we finally got this Sith-spawned monstrosity to sit up and say hello,” Jaina murmured, gazing in fascination at the villip she’d finally managed to attune.
Her image stared back at her, twisted a bit and looking as she might appear if viewed through a dense fog and after several shots of Corellian brandy. The lips moved in sync with hers, and the voice, sounding deeper and smoky and somehow menacing, spoke in precise duet with her own. Jaina looked up at Lowbacca and grinned. The Yuuzhan Vong creature twisted the gesture into something distinctly sinister.
Jaina blinked, impressed by the transformation. “Wow. Let’s hope the Yuuzhan Vong see me that way,” she said to Lowbacca, nodding to her villip.
The Wookiee glanced from the reflection to the original and tipped his head quizzically to one side. He shrugged, not seeing much of a difference.
Jaina didn’t take offense, since Wookiee perceptions of individual humans were usually expressed in terms of scent. She smoothed a hand over her villip. When it inverted back into a formless blob, she pushed back from the table and stretched.
“We’ll get back to this tomorrow. I’ve got some arrangements to make before we can take the next steps.”
Lowbacca tipped his head to one side again and grumbled a question.
“I’ll tell you all about it in the morning,” she said as she rose. “Why don’t you get some sleep, pack your gear. If all goes well, we’ll be leaving early. On a completely artificial ship,” she added, knowing what the Wookiee’s next question was likely to be. “Complete with metal and ceramics and computers and all those other lovely abominations.”
The Wookiee whuffed contentedly and picked up the inverted villip. Jaina patted his shoulder affectionately, then hurried from the docking bay to her room in the palace. She could hardly approach the former queen of Hapes seeking a favor wearing a patched mechanic’s jumpsuit. Ta’a Chume had made a point of commenting on Jaina’s appearance, and the way Jaina saw it, showing that she took the older woman’s advice to heart might lubricate the negotiations.
Later, scrubbed and brushed and cinched into a borrowed Hapan gown, Jaina set out to find Ta’a Chume. Gaining audience was far easier than she’d anticipated—the first palace servants she ran into took her directly to the former queen’s residence.
As Jaina followed the servants through gleaming marble halls, she considered the probable significance of their response. Ta’a Chume might not be the reigning queen, but surely there were many demands on her time. The servants would not take Jaina directly to their mistress unless they’d been instructed to do so.
Yes, Ta’a Chume was definitely up to something.
A little smile of anticipation touched Jaina’s face, and a feeling not unlike the surge she experienced when powering up her X-wing for a mission.
That analogy didn’t fade when she entered Ta’a Chume’s chamber. Jaina knew a command post when she saw one, despite the silks and glitter and art that decorated this one.
The older woman reclined gracefully on a settee, surrounded by perhaps a dozen people. Some wore the uniforms of the royal guard; others scribbled notes onto small datapads. Servants moved quietly about the room, bringing what was needed before they were asked. One of them slipped the cape from Jaina’s shoulders and indicated with a nod that she should approach.
Jaina tilted her chin up and moved into the room. Ta’a Chume noticed her and glanced at a dignified servant.
Apparently that was some sort of signal well known to the retainers,