Pa.s.sing through security, he headed through the maze of corridors to his docking bay. He keyed open the hatch and went inside, locking it again behind him, then made his way to the c.o.c.kpit. Seating himself in the pilot's seat, he punched for the tower. "This is Kinman Doriana of Supreme Chancellor Palpatine's Office," he identified himself when the controller answered. "Requesting a lift slot in thirty minutes."

"Acknowledged, Doriana," the other said. "Thirty-minute lift slot confirmed."

"Thank you." Shutting off the corm, Doriana keyed for full-ship start-up, watching the displays closely as the systems began coming online.

"You are late, Commander Stratis."

Doriana gave the displays one more leisurely look. Then, just as leisurely, he turned around.

The Neimoidian was wedged half hidden in the holo alcove off the c.o.c.kpit's aft bulkhead, glowering at him from beneath his short, five-cornered hat. "Vicelord Siv Kav," Doriana greeted him. "May I say how very uncomfortable you look."

"Very amusing," Kav growled. Working his shoulders back and forth, he managed to extricate himself and his elaborately layered robes from the alcove. "You should have been here an hour ago."

"Why?" Doriana countered calmly. "Isn't your fleet ready?"

"Of course it is."

"And Outbound Flight only just now left," Doriana said. "Plenty of time to set up our ambush." He c.o.c.ked his head slightly. "Or are you simply annoyed that I made you hide there in your little hole longer than you expected?"

"I was not hiding," the Neimoidian insisted stiffly. "I simply did not wish to be seen if someone from the s.p.a.ceport Authority came in unexpectedly."

"You could have accomplished that by waiting in the guest cabin as I'd instructed," Doriana pointed out. "But of course, in there you wouldn't have been able to eavesdrop on my clearance request to the tower. Tell me: was the knowledge of my true name and position worth the wait?"

Kav's large eyes studied his face. "We were betrayed once by your Master," he said, his voice darkening. "Darth Sidious promised that Naboo would be ours, that we would have the foothold we needed there. But the battle turned, and he abandoned us."

"The reversal of battle was not his fault," Doriana countered. "You want to blame someone, blame Amidala. And you have hardly been abandoned."

"Is Naboo ours, then?" Kav said sarcastically. "I must have missed that fact."

"Naboo is nothing," Doriana said. "The continued existence and functioning of your Trade Federation is infinitely more valuable. Or did you also miss the fact that it has yet to be punished for its excesses?"

"The lack of punishment is not Sidious's doing," Kav insisted. "That is the doing of the judiciary, at the cost of far too many expensive legal representatives."

Doriana smiled thinly. "Do you really think the judiciary wouldn't have bowed to Senate pressure by now without someone operating behind the scenes on your behalf?"

A hint of uncertainty crossed Kav's face. "You?" he suggested.

Doriana shrugged. "Lord Sidious has many servants."

"Yet this particular servant resides in the Supreme Chancellor's Office,"

Kav said, gesturing toward him. "That must be very useful for him."

Doriana let his face harden. "Yes, it is," he said softly. "And from this point on you will forget you've ever heard that name and that position.

Forever. Is that clear?"

Kav started to sniff in contempt, took another look at Doriana's face.

"It is clear, Master Stratis," he said instead.

"Good." Doriana gestured toward the c.o.c.kpit door. "Then if you'll return to your cabin, I have a ship to fly. You have the fleet's coordinates for me?"

"Yes." Kav's long fingers dipped into a recess of his robe and emerged with a data card. "It will take no more than two days to reach them."

"Good," Doriana said. "That should give us time to finalize our attack strategy."

" I am the one trained in battle tactics," the other said stiffly. "The attack strategy will be mine."

"Of course," Doriana said, suppressing a sigh. "I meant only that I'd be available to a.s.sist you. Now if you'll return to your cabin, we'll be on our way."

The Neimoidian drew himself up and, with his pride at least momentarily appeased, strode from the room.

Shaking his head, Doriana crossed to the holo alcove. Neimoidians. If they didn't control one of the best collections of military hardware in the Republic, he would have recommended dumping the whole species down the refresher long ago. He just hoped Sidious was working on finding someone more competent to replace them.

Positioning himself in the alcove, he keyed for a HoloNet relay. The lights winked on, and he signaled for his Master.

The wait was longer than usual, and more than once he considered taking a quick trip forward to check again on the status boards. But each time he resisted the temptation. If Sidious came on and had to wait, he would not be happy.

At last the familiar hooded figure appeared. "Report."

"Outbound Flight is on its way, Lord Sidious," Doriana said. "I have Vicelord Kav aboard, and will be heading for the rendezvous within the hour."

"Excellent," Sidious said. "And you know precisely where in the Unknown Regions Outbound Flight will be stopping?"

"Yes, my lord," Doriana said. "Captain Pakmillu has two separate navigational checks planned for the first eight hundred light-years beyond Republic s.p.a.ce. I have the coordinates of both."

"Be sure you take the first one," Sidious warned. "It may be that C'baoth in his impatience will order the second to be canceled."

"That is indeed my plan, my lord," Doriana confirmed. "One final matter.

I have Pakmillu's final pa.s.senger listing, and three more Jedi have been added."

"One of them being Lorana Jinzler, no doubt," Sidious said. "C'baoth had earlier informed the Senate she would be accompanying him." The drooping corners of his mouth turned briefly upward in a sardonic smile. "Though I don't believe he had mentioned it to the woman herself."

"Yes, she's one of them," Doriana confirmed. "The others are Obi-Wan Ken.o.bi and his Padawan, Anakin Skywalker."

Sidious's smile vanished. "Skywalker?" he hissed. "Who authorized this?"

"I don't know, my lord," Doriana said, feeling his heart starting to thud in his chest. The last time he'd seen Sidious like this, someone had died. Violently. "It must have been C'baoth-"

"He cannot go on that ship," Sidious cut in sharply. "He must remain here. You will see to it."

"Understood, my lord," Doriana said quickly. "Don't worry, I'll get him off "

He reached for the cutoff switch, his mind whirling as he tried to sort through the options. Outbound Flight's first scheduled stop was at Lonnaw system. If he headed there immediately But he couldn't, not with Vicelord Kav aboard. Too much risk that someone would see the Neimoidian and make a connection they couldn't afford. He would first have to drop Kav with the attack force, then go after Outbound Flight. That meant the Lonnaw connection wouldn't work, which meant he would have to try for their next stop, Argai, all the way over in Haldeen sector. If he missed them there "Wait."

Doriana paused, his hand hovering over the control. Sidious's lips had tightened, and Doriana had the sense that the Sith Lord was running through the same logic chain he himself had just been working out.

And apparently had come to the same conclusion. "No, you continue with the plan," he said, his voice calm again. "I will remove Skywalker from Outbound Flight."

"Yes, my lord," Doriana said, wilting a little with relief. He didn't have the foggiest idea how Sidious was going to pull that one off, especially with C'baoth and five other Jedi Masters on hand to oppose him. But that was the Sith Lord's problem. Doriana was off the hook, and that was the important thing. "I'll contact you again when the mission has been accomplished."

"Do that, Doriana," Sidious said. His eyes, as always, were hidden by his hood; just the same, Doriana could almost see them burning a hole through the long light-years separating the two men before the image flickered and vanished.

For a few seconds Doriana remained where he was, taking deep breaths as he worked out the tension still quivering through his body. Once again, the game had nearly proved fatal. Once again, he had made it through unscathed.

One of these times, perhaps, he wouldn't.

But that future was a long way away. Right now he had a fleet to find, and an ambush to prepare.

And eighteen Jedi to kill.

Shutting down the holoprojector, he went back to the pilot's chair and plugged Kav's data card into the reader slot. Time to find out exactly where they were going.

14.

The pylon turbolift car door opened into yet another s.p.a.cious lobby area.

"Okay," Anakin said, leaning out for a look. "And this one is"-he threw a not quite surrept.i.tious look at the marking on the side-"Dreadnaught-Four?"

"Correct," C'baoth said, putting a hand on the boy's shoulder and pressing him forward out of the car. "We're now at the farthest side of Outbound Flight from the command ship, Dreadnaught-One."

"Rather like Tatooine in that respect," Obi-Wan added drily.

"Right," Anakin said. "Only cooler and less sandy."

"'Tatooine?" C'baoth asked.

"A small planet where Anakin grew up," Obi-Wan explained. "The locals like to say that it's the farthest point from the center of the universe, like Dreadnaught-Four's the farthest from Dreadnaught-One's command areas."

C'baoth nodded. "Ah."

Dreadnaught-Four's architecture and equipment, Obi-Wan noted, were identical to those of the other ships they'd visited on C'baoth's tour.

Not really surprising, considering how the expedition had been put together. Also as in the other Dreadnaughts, the people pa.s.sing through the corridors around them all seemed to be moving with a brisk, business-like step, their expressions cheerful, confident, and determined.

Small wonder. Against steep odds their grand adventure had finally begun, and the warm glow of that accomplishment was still with them.

"Jedi Master Justyn Ma'Ning is in charge of this particular Dreadnaught,"

C'baoth said as they headed aft. "I believe you spoke with him at the First Night dinner."

"Yes, we chatted for a few minutes," Obi-Wan said. "I thought Commander Omano was in charge of Dreadnaught-Four."

"I meant that Master Ma'Ning oversees Jedi operations and activities,"

C'baoth said. "He should be back in Conference Room Five with his two Jedi Knights and a select group of families. Let's go see how they're doing."

"What were these families selected for?" Obi-Wan asked.

"The highest honor possible," C'baoth said. "Over the next few days, one of each family's children will be starting Jedi training."

Obi-Wan stared at him. "Jedi training?"

"Indeed," C'baoth confirmed. "You see, along with their basic technical skills, prospective colonists were also screened for the presence of Force-sensitive children. Those families with the most promise were given preferential status, though of course we kept that a secret up until now.

We have eleven candidates in all, including the three here in Dreadnaught-Four."

"How old are these children?" Obi-Wan asked.

"They range in age from four to ten," C'baoth said. He c.o.c.ked an eyebrow at Anakin. "Which is, I believe, the same age Master Skywalker was when you took him as your Padawan."

"It is," Obi-Wan confirmed, feeling his lip twist. For centuries standard Temple policy had been to accept only infants into Jedi training, and C'baoth knew it. Unfortunately, Anakin was a glaring exception to that rule, an exception C'baoth clearly intended to use as his justification for this. "What about their parents?"

"What about them?"

"They've all given their permission for this training?"

"They will," C'baoth a.s.sured him. "As I said, giving a child to the Jedi is the highest honor possible."

"So you haven't actually asked them yet?"

"Of course not," C'baoth said, an edge of puzzlement creeping into his tone. "What parent wouldn't be proud to have a Jedi son or daughter?"

Obi-Wan braced himself. "But if for some reason they don't see it that way-"

"Later," C'baoth interrupted, gesturing to a door to their right. "We're here."

The conference room was one of many midsize meeting areas scattered around a typical Dreadnaught. At the far end, standing beside a podium, was Jedi Master Ma'Ning, listening intently to a question from a woman in the front row. Flanking him, dressed in Jedi robes, were a pair of Duros.

And seated in the rows of chairs in front of them, nearly packing the available s.p.a.ce, were perhaps forty men, women, and children. Far more than the three families C'baoth had implied would be here.

C'baoth was clearly surprised, too. "What in the . . . ?" he rumbled under his breath, his eyes flashing as he looked around.

"Maybe they brought their friends?" Anakin suggested hesitantly.

"Friends were not invited," C'baoth growled. He started to move forward, then seemed to think better of it. Instead, he gave an impatient gesture to his right. Turning that direction, Obi-Wan saw Lorana Jinzler detach herself from the back wall where she'd been standing and walk over to them.

She nodded in greeting as she reached them. "Master C'baoth," she said quietly. "Master Ma'Ning said you might drop in on us."

"And it's fortunate that I did," C'baoth said. His voice was low, but Obi-Wan could see a few of the people in the back row starting to look around to see what was going on. "What are all these people doing here?"