Star Wars_ The New Jedi Order_ Dark Tide 02_ Ruin - Michael A. Stackpole [20]
Jacen glanced down again at his mug. “Thank you.”
“If we do this mission right, we’ll be in and out and the Vong will have scant evidence we were ever there. I’m not expecting anything to require the sort of reckless heroics your family is famous for.” Corran smiled warmly. “On the other hand, knowing we’ve got a good dose of Corellian disdain for the odds, backed by Noghri combat skills, is enough to keep me confident about our chances for survival.”
Jaina lifted an eyebrow. “What about Ganner?”
“He’s from Teyr—he wouldn’t know odds from groats.” Corran retrieved his mug from the table. “He’s good in a fight, though, and smart when he thinks before acting. And handsome, too, as you’ve probably noticed.”
Jaina blushed again. “Well, it’s hard not to.”
“His preening all the time kind of makes it obvious.” Corran winked at Jacen. “We probably can keep that between us, though. Kind of outside mission parameters.”
“Understood.”
“Well, I’m off. Take some time with your sister, then double-check your gear. We have a day or two until we deploy, but being ready early is never a vice.”
“Will do, Corran.”
Jaina nodded. “Good to see you, Colonel.”
“And you, Lieutenant. Keep improving that Rogue Squadron reputation, will you?”
“Yes, sir.”
Jacen waited until Corran had passed on before arching an eyebrow in his sister’s direction. “You were being awful formal there.”
“In the military, Jacen, familiarity flows downhill, not up.” She smiled. “We’re playing by different rules now, I guess.”
“Same goal, different paths.” Jacen sighed. “Which could get me thinking beyond the mission at hand, but I won’t. First things first. Get through them, and then worry about the future.”
“That, my brother,” she allowed as she clicked her mug against his, “is a winning strategy.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
Leia Organa Solo sat silently in the passenger compartment of the Marketta-class shuttle Chandrila Moon. Her two Noghri bodyguards, Olmahk and Basbakhan, sat behind her in the craft’s narrow cabin. In contrast to the woman seated in the row in front of her, Leia sensed only calm from the two Noghri. Danni Quee, on the other hand, threw off fear the way a fire gives off heat.
Leia forced herself to breathe in deeply, then slowly exhale, letting her tension slowly bleed away. Some of it, anyway. The journey from Coruscant to Bastion had been undertaken under the tightest security possible. The ship kept away from heavily traveled routes, plotted a convoluted course to its destination, and then, when the Victory-class Star Destroyer Protector arrived at the Bastion system, it waited at the edge, its shields down, weapons unpowered.
Bastion’s reaction was swift, sending out an Imperial-class Star Destroyer—the Relentless—to query the Protector concerning the intentions of the New Republic. Leia had indicated she had information she needed to communicate to Admiral Gilad Pellaeon. The Remnant ship had broken off communications for two hours, then instructed Leia that she, her personal staff, and two pilots could bring a single shuttle into the system.
Admiral Aril Nunb of the Protector had insisted that for Leia to comply would be to put herself in the hands of the enemy. Leia acknowledged this was true. Many of the Remnant’s people still clung to the former glory they had known in the Empire. A whole new generation had grown up since the Emperor’s death, and all the wants they felt were blamed on the Rebellion. Leia, as a leader of same, and the chief of state for the New Republic during all but the final battles with the Remnant, became the focus for much bitterness. People from the Remnant tried to disrupt Luke and Mara’s wedding, and it would be foolish to assume I’m safe here.
Still, if the greater threat of the Yuuzhan Vong was to be dealt with,