Xizor was tempted to hire a dozen a.s.sa.s.sins, not tell them who their target was, and loose them on Vader. The killers would fail, of course, be squashed like ins.ects by Vader with less effort than Xizor had expended on the man in the walkway. Vader could kill with a wave of his hand, though he enjoyed a chance to use his lightsaber from time to time.

But-no. That might foul Xizor's plans to appear to be Vader's friend-or at least, not his enemy. If Xizor could figure out who had been party to the pathetic attempt on his life without any evidence save his feeling, Vader could also determine who might be brave enough to send shooters after him.

Certainly he would be quick to at least consider that it was a retaliation in kind for the attack on Xizor. No. Satisfying as it might be to worry Vader with an attack, it would not be prudent, given the larger plan. But it was good to know that Vader disliked him enough to want to see him dead.

Leia laughed. "That's your plan?" Luke looked indignant. "What's wrong with it?" His breath made fog-vapor in the cold room.

"You and Rogue Squadron will attack the Imperial Enclave, keep a hundred and some-odd TIE fighters and two Star Destroyers busy while Dash leads the Mil-lennium Falcon to where Boba Fett's ship is docked? We'll just land, rescue Han, and fly away? Why, nothing is wrong with that plan.

What could I possibly be thinking was wrong? It's perfect." She shook her head.

"Okay, so it's simple-" Luke began.

"Simpleminded," Leia said.

He set his jaw. Uh-oh. She'd insulted his manhood.

She knew that look. "If you have a better idea...?" Luke said, his voice tight.

Leia sighed. That was the problem. She didn't have a better idea. Luke's plan was straightforward, and while it might be foolhardy enough to get them all cooked by Imperial turbolasers, it might also be just crazy enough to work. If she were the local commander, she'd never expect anybody to do anything so stupid. "Well..." she began.

"That's what I thought," Luke said. There was a small note of triumph in his voice when he said it, too.

"Not to put a governor on your drive or anything," Dash said, "but if we're going to sneak in the back way, it'll take some pretty fancy flying. Treetop-level stuff to avoid local sensors. Might have to drop into the Grand Trench canyons." He looked at Lando. "Even if that piece of Corellian junk you're in doesn't fall apart, you think you can manage it?"

Lando said, "You flew it? 7 can fly it."

"Yeah, well, I was in the Outrider when I did it."

"The Millennium Falcon has had a few modifications since I owned her,"

Lando said.

Chewie said something.

"That right?" Dash said. "Where'd you get sublight engines that fast?"

Chewie said something else, waved his left arm. Dash grinned. "Yeah, I guess Solo would be dumb enough to do something like that." He nodded at Luke and Wedge. "Okay. If you can keep the TIE fighters and the Destroyers busy, I can get Lando to where Boba Fett's ship is."

Chewie said something. Leia figured she knew what it meant. He was offering to go along. "You don't have to, pal," Lando said.

Chewie spoke again.

"Thanks, I appreciate it."

"Count me in, too," Leia said.

"I don't know if that's a good idea-"

Leia interrupted him. "You don't think the Imperial commander is going to send all his TIEs out to deal with a dozen X-wings, do you? He's bound to have somebody on the planet. If they start shooting at the Falcon, you'll need somebody to shoot back. If Chewie is in the dorsal turret, who is going to cover your belly?"

Lando and Luke looked at each other. Luke shrugged. "She's right. And she's a good shot."

"Thank you," Leia said.

"Okay, I guess that's it," Wedge said. "The boys'll be glad to fly under your command for this mission, Luke."

"Thanks, Wedge."

Dash said, "Want to see something, kid?"

Luke looked at him.

"Through that door there."

Luke walked toward the door. Curious, Leia fol-lowed them. Dash opened the door, into another large, hangar-like room.

"Wow," Luke said.

Leia looked through the doorway.

A ship sat perched on the cheap plastic flooring. Ithad smooth lines, heavy cannon mounted above and below, and it shined with a dark gleam, like chrome. It was almost the size of the Millennium Falcon and had an offset c.o.c.kpit module, but that was as close as it got. This ship was a top-of-the-line, state-of-the-artcraft; Leia had seen enough ships to recognize that itwas something special.

A droid stood next to it, a stripped-down skeletalmodel with a tool bag slung over one shoulder. "The Outrider," Dash said. "And my droid, an LE BO2D9-he answers to 'Leebo,' when he bothers to answer at all. He thinks he's funny."

"How'd you afford a ship like that?" Luke said.

"Well, it wasn't clean living. You like it?"

Luke nodded. Leia could see he itched to inspect the vessel, to climb into it, to see what it would do with him at the controls.

Like boys with an expensive toy, she thought. She hoped the mercenary who owned it could fly half as well as he claimed. This didn't sound as if it was going to be an easy trip.

Leia stared at the Outrider. She was about to risk her life again, and that wasn't something you got used to doing, even when it was necessary.

That she was going to risk it to rescue Han somehow made it worse. That she would be that... vulnerable, to want something-no, someone-so badly was scarier still. She could justify putting herself at risk for the Alliance; that was of galactic importance. But to do it for the love of a man...?

She'd never thought it would happen. Her dedication to the Alliance, to defeating the Empire, had never allowed for much of a personal life. Oh, sure, there had been friends, even some with whom she'd been close, but she had always thought that her life would be spent fighting against the Emperor and his evil. She'd never seen herself falling in love, settling down, having a home or children. Probably that wouldn't happen anyway, given all that could get in the way, but at least it was a possibility now. a.s.suming they could find and free Han. a.s.suming they could escape and not get killed in the process.

a.s.suming Han had any real interest in her. He hadn't said the words.

She'd believed he felt the same thing, but he hadn't said it.

Big a.s.sumptions, those.

Well. They'd just have to see. One thing at a time.

One thing at a time.

7.

Darth Vader held his lightsaber firmly, wrists locked, and watched the killer droid circle to its left. The droid was a new model, one of a dozen identical units constructed to his personal specifications. Like Vader, it also held a lightsaber. It was tall, spindly, looked something like the general-purpose Asps to be found all over the Empire, but with a number of special modifications. The unit was faster than an ordinary man, stronger, programmed with the knowledge of a hundred sword masters and a dozen different fighting styles. Against a normal person, the droid would be unbeatable and deadly-The droid stepped in fast and cut at Vader's head. Vader blocked, and the droid chopped again, circling the humming blade in a second cut at Vader's side. Fast, but again a block-The droid's third attack came from the opposite side as its blade flashed in a large half circle-Vader parried and riposted, angling a slash at thedroid's head - The droid blocked and slid back a meter, out of range, blade held over its head, point angled down.

The slight ache in Vader's shoulder where Luke had cut through his armor during their fight was definitelybetter. He hardly felt any soreness at all with that series.

He moved in, swung a feint at the droid's neck, twisted his wrists, and pivoted the lightsaber for a sec-ond feint at the same side, then a third feint, a jab at the midsection.

The droid stepped back and crossblocked the finalfeint-Vader V-stepped to his left, c.o.c.ked his blade over hisleft shoulder, and hacked forty-five degrees at the base of the metal neck-The droid's block was a quarter second slow. Strong as it was, it was not strong enough to offset the powerand momentum of Vader's strike. The blades met, hissed and sparked, but Vader's sword shoved the droid's blade to the side. It tried to backpedal-Too late. The lightsaber hit midway between the droid's neck and shoulder joint, sheared through the exoframe and halfway through the chest. Circuitrysparked, shorted out. Sparks and acrid smoke erupted from the droid's body. It dropped the lightsaber as its hand controls died.

Fell to its knees.

Vader c.o.c.ked the weapon over his right shoulderand swung in a flat horizontal arc-The lightsaber sliced through the droid's neck and took its head off. The head fell, bounced, and the droid's decapitated body fell backward.

Vader stood over the downed droid. Soon he would have to order another dozen of them produced-this was the eighth one of the originals; he had but four left.And the next batch would need to be improved. It was getting too easy.

His shoulder definitely felt better. He shut off his lightsaber and turned away from the droid. An aide stood in the doorway, looking impressed and nervous.

"Clean up the mess," Vader said.

He strode away. He did not look back.

Inside his X-wing, Luke took a deep breath. "Youready, Artoo?"

Artoo whistled a.s.sent.

"This is Rogue Leader," Luke said. "Lock your foils into attack position, accelerate to sub-six and acknowl-edge."

"Rogue One, copy," Wedge said over the comm.

"Rogue Two, that's affirmative, lock and load."

"Rogue Three, I copy."

The rest of the squadron acknowledged Luke's orders. They were ready, as ready as they were going to get. The dayside Destroyer lay dead ahead, and by now its long-range sensors would have spotted the incoming X-wings, and the commander would have started scrambling his fighter force.

The latest TIE fighters were a couple of sublight units faster than an unmodified X-wing, TIE interceptors faster still, but theycouldn't get to top speed immediately, so Rogue Squadron would get one relatively free pa.s.s at the Destroyer before the TIEs got clear and moving. Not that they'd be able to do much to the Destroyer with fighter-wattage laser cannons or proton torpedoes; Destroyer shields and armor were too thick.

But a lucky shot might do a little damage, and it would make the Imperials keep their heads down-they couldn't know if the Alliance might have outfitted its snub fighters with some new weapon. It would make them sweat a little.

TIEs were faster but no more maneuverable, and the X-wings had the advantage in shielding-TIEs didn't have any, save for a few of the specially equipped interceptors, like the one Vader had. "Here they come," Rogue Six said. That was Wes Janson, an old hand. A score of TIE fighters spewed from the Destroyer's flight bay ports. "I see them, Wes,"

Luke said. "Everybody stay alert!"

Took them long enough, Luke thought. Must have thought it was a drill; they probably don't get much action out here. Maybe they'd gotten fat and lazy. Well. He could hope they had.

"Double up on the forward shields," Luke ordered. "Attack speed, targets of opportunity."

"Yeeehhaaawww!" one of the squad yelled into the comm.

Luke had to smile. He really should tell whoever it was-sounded like Rogue Five, that was Dix-to bottle the unofficial commspeak, but he knew just how the pilot felt.

There was nothing else in the universe that felt like flying into combat.

"Watch yourselves," Luke said.

Then he was cutting across the Destroyer's axis, laser cannons spitting high-energy beams, no time to talk now.

The battle was joined.

On the Millennium Falcon, Leia crouched down behind Chewie and Lando in the control c.o.c.kpit. Threepio stood behind them, braced more or less in the doorway.

"Do be careful, Master Lando. We're awfully close to the tops of those trees!"

"Oh, really?" Lando said. "I hadn't noticed."

"Well. There's no need for sarcasm."

Ahead of them a couple hundred meters, Dash flew the Outrider, and the wind of his pa.s.sage was enough to fan the tall evergreens below; you could see the air wake ripple through the foliage. The chrome-silver ship cleared the tops of the highest trees by no more than five meters.

"Any closer and we'll get green stains on our belly," Leia said.

"Tell me about it," Lando said. "He said we'd have to fly low but I didn't realize he meant this low. Chewie, what's our alt.i.tude?"

Chewie looked at a control panel and said something in that half gargle, half moan of his.

"Oh, my!" Threepio said.

"Do I want to know?" Leia said.

"I don't think so," Lando said.

Over the comm on a shielded opchan, Dash spoke. "You nervous back there, Calrissian?"

Lando glanced at Chewie. "Who, us? Nah. I thought you said we were going to be flying low, Dash. We're practically in the stratosphere way up here." He cut the comm off.

Lando grinned at Chewie. "Guess I told him, didn't I?"

Dash didn't respond in words; instead, the Outrider dropped four meters lower. If a pa.s.senger on the smuggler's ship could have reached through the floor, he would have been able to touch the tops of the trees with his fingertips.

He's crazy, Leia thought.

"He's crazy," she said.