"Well, it's the hardest piece of clear s.p.a.ce I've ever encountered,"

Narek-Ag shot back. "Damage report."

"Not sure. Can you get us stabilized?" her copilot asked. "Okay, looks like we got a lower hull rupture. Awww, there goes all our cargo! Engines running beyond the red lines." He swallowed. "We are in deep trouble, lady."

Then, as if to emphasize Trebor's a.s.sessment, a shower of sparks erupted from the main guidance console. Moon Dash careened out of control.

"Emergency, Coruscant One! This is shuttle Moon Dash. We've struck unknown s.p.a.ce debris," Trebor yelled into the comm unit. A burst of static from the speaker grille was accompanied by a squeal of feedback and another spray of sparks.

Narek-Ag coughed and tried to wave away the smoke. She flicked a pair of switches. "Aft-thrusters not responding," she said in a terse voice.

"Still scanning the area-there's nothing. What did we smash into?"

"News ain't any better from where I sit," Trebor said. "Can't get much worse."

"It can't, huh? Well, it just did," Narek said with a hard gulp. "I guess I'd better ask you to marry me after all."

Trebor caught sight of the readout that had grabbed his captain's attention. He groaned aloud. An unstoppable chain reaction had begun to build inside their engine chambers like an avalanche of deadly energy.

Within seconds, the Moon Dash would explode like a small supernova.

"Always wanted to get married out among the stars," he said. Tears stung his eyes. Probably from the acrid smoke, he thought. "Never had a better offer." He placed his hand over hers. "I accept... but I have to say that your timing stinks."

She squeezed his hand, then looked down at the panels. "Uh-oh! Hyperdrive engines are going crit-" In s.p.a.ce, the Moon Dash erupted in a silent shower of molten metal and flaming gases, fading to black.

Jaina paced the main living area of her family's quarters in the Imperial Palace like a caged jungle creature she had seen once in the Holographic Zoo for Extinct Animals. She hated inactivity. She wanted to do something.

Jacen and Tenel Ka had gone out again to look for Zekk, taking along See-Threepio and Anakin, while Lowie was off working with his uncle Chewbacca. When Jacen had pointed out that it would be a good idea for someone to stay behind in case Zekk or Peckhum tried to reach them, Jaina had reluctantly agreed to be the one.

She had finally broken down and tried to contact old Peckhum up in the mirror station, though he was due to return home that day. At his station holo panel, Peckhum had answered right away, but as she started to explain that Zekk had disappeared, the old man's fuzzy image quickly deteriorated.

His response was all but drowned out by static. "-can't und. understand your... not receivi-... transmission... returning tonight." The station's central mult.i.tasking unit was getting progressively worse, and communication wouldn't be possible until she saw Peckhum face-to-face.

By the time her mother came home for midday meal, Jaina was ready to scream from just sitting around. She was eager to talk, but Leia's face seemed tired and careworn, and Jaina decided it was best not to intrude on her mother's thoughts. She brought Leia a warm lunch from the processing station and sat down to eat beside her in silence.

A few minutes later Han Solo dashed in and rushed over to his wife. "I came as soon as I got your message. What is it?"

A grateful smile lifted the corners of Leia's mouth as she looked at her husband. "I need to get your opinion on something," she said. "Do you have time to sit down and eat with us?"

Han flashed her a roguish grin. " Midday meal with the two most beautiful women in the galaxy? Of course I've got time. What happened? Another disaster like the Imperial attack?" He helped himself to a bowl of warm Corellian stew.

"A disaster all right." Leia took a deep breath. "A shuttle blew up this morning just as it was leaving orbit."

Jaina looked up in surprise, but her father nodded. "Yeah, I heard about it an hour ago."

Leia's brows drew together in a frown of concentration. "No one seems to know what happened. What could have caused something like that?"

"Poor maintenance?" Jaina suggested. "Engine overload?"

Leia looked troubled again. "Coruscant One picked up a transmission just before the Moon Dash exploded. The captain seemed to think they'd run into something."

Han's eyebrows shot up. "Still in outer orbit, you mean? Any other ships around that weren't cleared for takeoff?"

"Noooo..." Leia said slowly.

"A s.p.a.ce mine deliberately planted there? Or a piece of debris?"

Jaina's ears perked up. "We ran into a lot of debris on our way home this time, didn't we, Dad?"

Leia grimaced. "I was afraid of that. The Commissioner of Trade has taken this personally. He says that all the leftover wreckage in orbit over Coruscant has always been an accident waiting to happen. He insists that we give higher priority to plotting safer s.p.a.ce lanes. We've mapped out some of the bigger pieces, but I think quite a few chunks escaped our surveys-and we haven't had time to check it. Some of that wreckage has been up there in orbit for decades."

Han pursed his lips. "These accidents are pretty rare, Leia. Let's not overreact."

"According to the Moon Dash's transmissions, they never saw what hit them-and it wasn't on any map. The Commissioner considers this an important safety issue. I have to agree-in the wake of this accident, we need to do something about it."

"How much work would it be to map the orbits of the larger pieces of wreckage?" Han asked.

"Quite a bit. And time-consuming, too." Leia pinched the bridge of her nose as if she had suddenly been a.s.sailed by another headache. "I'm not even sure the New Republic has resources to commit to a project like that-"

"Maybe I could help," Jaina interrupted, fixing her interest on an idea that would take her mind off Zekk. "After all, Uncle Luke said we were supposed to choose a study project while we're away from the academy.

Lowie and I could map the debris for you. It sounds like fun."

Jaina looked from the datapad to the computer screen, then at the holographic simulation. "Okay, this is the next trajectory, Lowie."

She stretched, trying to loosen the knotted muscles in her shoulders, then rubbed her bleary eyes, but her vision did not clear. They had been at the task for hours. She couldn't imagine why she had ever thought it would be fun.

The lanky Wookiee carefully programmed the orbit she had indicated, and another glowing streak appeared on the holomap. Jaina groaned. "This may be an important job, but I sure thought it would be more interesting."

Lowie grumbled a reply, and Em Teedee translated. "Master Lowbacca maintains that although plotting swarms of orbital debris never should have seemed an interesting project in the first place-schoolwork is rarely interesting. This job, at least, carries a certain amount of urgency." Lowie growled another comment. "Furthermore, he points out that the project is only approximately twelve percent complete, and he will be most gratified when it is finished."

Jaina sighed wearily and ran her hands through her straight brown hair.

"Well then, she said, "what are we waiting for?"

13.

PECKHUM SHIFTED THE strap of the travel duffel to his other shoulder as he trudged away from the Lightning Rod's low-rent docking station, where many smugglers and con artists also parked their ships. It was good to be back in the city, if only because the equipment was in his apartment, which was more than he could say about the facilities aboard the mirror station.

Despite his heavy pack, the grizzled old man slid through the broad streets and narrow alleyways with unconscious ease, muttering to himself as be went. "'You'll just have to make do, Peckhum.' 'We've got procurement problems, Peckhum. 'New equipment is expensive, mult.i.tasking units don't grow on starflower vines, Peckhum."' Scratching at his chin stubble with one hand, he continued to rant, as used to talking to himself as he was to talking to Zekk.

He growled. "You'd think they'd at least wait till I got off my ship to tell me the news. 'We tried to reach you, Peckhum, but we couldn't get through.' Serves 'em right, since they haven't fixed my comm system!" He shifted his duffel again. "'Your replacement was rea.s.signed to an additional security detail due to the recent Imperial attack, Peckhum. We need you back at the station tomorrow, Peckhum.'" Hah!

He stomped ahead, hardly noticing the cheery merchants, the wide-eyed tourists, the self-absorbed civil servants. "I just wish the administrator in charge of the mirror station would stop sitting in his comfy office down here and go up for a field trip. Feed him some of the swill the food-prep units have been putting out and see how much he likes it! See how well he'd 'make do." Peckhum turned a corner and made his way down the corridor toward his home. "If I waited for those bureaucrats to get something done, why, the whole station would fall apart." Then he smiled at the thought of Zekk's promise of a new central mult.i.tasking unit. "Sometimes you just gotta do things for yourself... with a little help from your friends."

Peckhum looked up with satisfaction to find himself at his door. He keyed in the unlocking code, and the door slid open with a whoosh of escaping air. The air smelled stale and musty, as if it had been recycled over and over again for days. He'd have to remind Zekk to let in some fresh air now and then.

He tossed his duffel inside the front entryway, as the door sealed itself behind him. No friendly voice rang out to greet him. "Hey, Zekk!" he called. The apartment seemed oppressively silent, so he raised his voice a bit. "After three days of breathing from bad tanks on the mirror station, even this air smells good, but..." He paused. There was no response. "Zekk?"

He looked around the cluttered main living area, then searched the food-prep chamber, Zekk's bedroom, even the refresher unit. All empty.

A concerned frown crinkled Peckhum's forehead. Zekk rarely went out when he knew Peckhum was returning from a job-especially not when he had promised to deliver a piece of scavenged equipment. But Peckhum saw no sign of the central mult.i.tasking unit. He would need it before the next morning's trip back up to the station.

He scratched his cheeks again and thought for a moment. Then he relaxed.

"Of course," he said to himself, "the Solo kids."

Zekk's friends Jacen and Jaina would be on Coruscant for only a few weeks. They were probably all out somewhere, enjoying themselves, telling tall tales of their adventures on other planets. Glancing back, he noticed the winking light on the infopanel beside the front door. That meant some messages hadn't been picked up yet. Probably just Zekk letting him know where he and his friends were, Peckhum thought.

There were three messages in all. Peckhum reviewed them. The first message showed the image of Jaina and Jacen Solo, standing with the other two young Jedi Knights.

"Hey, Zekk," Jacen said in his characteristically good-humored voice. "We came to go on the scavenger hunt with you for that unit Peckhum needs. It was this morning, wasn't it? We'll come by again tomorrow morning. Let us know if there's a change of plans."

As the next message played, Jaina Solo appeared, her hair straight and her expression concerned. "Zekk, it's us. Are you all right? We've been looking for you everywhere! I'm sorry if you still feel bad about the other night, it's okay, really. Can you call us when you get home?"

The final message showed Jaina again, her face anxious and drawn. She spoke slowly, as if each of her words stuck in her throat. "Zekk, are you upset about anything? We're all really... sorry if we said anything to make you feel uncomfortable at the banquet. If you've already found that central mult.i.tasking unit and you don't want to take us scavenger hunting with you right now, we'll understand. Please talk to us, if you get this message."

As Peckhum listened, his stomach contracted with dread. Something had to be wrong. He looked around again, seeing no signs that the boy had planned to leave. No messages. No notes.

That was unlike Zekk. He was more reliable than that. Others might brush him off as a young scoundrel or a street urchin, but Zekk knew his responsibilities well and always met them. He had promised Peckhum a new central mult.i.tasking unit, knowing how important it was to the mirror station. If Zekk told him he was going to do something, the boy did it.

Always.

Sure, Zekk was an orphan, a joker, a teller of tall tales, an adventurer-but he had always been a good friend, and he had always been completely reliable.

Almost before he knew it, his decision was made. Stopping only to leave a brief videomessage for Zekk on the infopanel, just in case the boy came back, he headed out the door toward the palace.

"Hey, am I glad to see you!" Jacen said, opening the door to find Peckhum standing there bedraggled and distraught. "Do you know where Zekk is?

Have you seen him? Have you heard from him?"

Peckhum's face gave Jacen his answer. "I was hoping maybe you'd have some news for me," the old s.p.a.cer said.

Suddenly remembering his manners, Jacen gestured Peckhum inside. "Uh, sorry. Come on in. I'll get Jaina and the others."

His sister and Lowie were at work plotting orbital debris patterns in their holo simulation, while Tenel Ka polished the weapons at her belt.

"Hey," Jacen said, "Peckhum's here, and he says he doesn't know where Zekk is either."

His sister's intent expression turned to one of concern. Lowie scrambled to his feet and pulled Jaina to hers. Back in the living area, all five of them reviewed a map of Imperial City, bending over a projection while Tenel Ka indicated several highlighted blocks of skysc.r.a.pers. "We have searched this area near your home," she told Peckhum.

Jacen crowded next to the image. "And we went to some of the places Zekk took us when we were scavenger hunting," he added. "The ones we could find our way back to, that is."

Peckhum nodded, scratching at his stubble, a distracted look on his face.

"Anakin and Threepio even went to a couple of the places that Zekk had talked about, didn't find anything," Jaina said. "We'd hoped you could offer us some other suggestions about where to look."

Lowie rumbled a comment, and Em Teedee said, "Master Lowbacca wishes to point out that our lack of familiarity with the, shall we say, 'less savory' aspects of Imperial City is, perhaps, an impediment to our search." The Wookiee growled at this overblown translation, but made no further comment.

"He's right, you know," Jaina said. "We really only know the good parts of the city."

Tenel Ka added, "And we were not absolutely certain until now that Zekk was missing. Your observations make it more definite."

"Hey, now that Peckhum's back, and we know for sure that Zekk's missing,"

Jacen said, "we can report his disappearance to security."

Peckhum looked up sharply. "No, not security. Zekk wouldn't want that."

"But he's missing," Jaina pleaded. "We have to find him." Jacen was surprised to see tears spring to his sister's eyes.

"Yes," Peckhum agreed, "but Zekk has had a few... 'misunderstandings'

with security before, and he wouldn't thank us for calling them in. Don't worry, thought can probably think of a lot of places you wouldn't have known to check."

"Well," Jacen said reluctantly, "that means we'll have to keep searching by ourselves then, but your ideas will be a big help, Peckhum. I guess it's still up to us."

"Zekk is a tough kid," Peckhum pointed out with forced optimism. "He's been through a lot, and he can take care of himself." Then his voice dropped. "I sure hope he's all right."

14.

INSIDE HIS PLUSH new quarters at the Shadow Academy, Zekk awoke feeling oddly refreshed and exhilarated. He had slept deeply and well, as if he had somehow needed recharging. He wondered if Brakiss had placed some sort of drug in his food. Even if that was the case, he thought, it was worth it, because he had never felt so alive or so enthusiastic.

He tried to stop thinking positively, tried to summon up some anger at being kidnapped and dragged off to the Imperial station. But Zekk could not deny that he was being treated with more respect than he had ever experienced before. He gradually began to think of this place as his room rather than as a cell.

He showered until his body tingled with warmth and cleanliness, then spent altogether more time getting ready than he should have. He didn't care, though. Let Brakiss wait. It would serve him right. Zekk didn't want to be here, no matter how much attention the leader of the Shadow Academy paid him.

He was concerned about old Peckhum and knew that his friend must be wild with worry for him by now. He was pretty sure that Jacen and Jaina would also have sounded the alarm. But Zekk guessed that Brakiss knew how to deal with that. Zekk just had to bide his time until he could come up with a plan.

While he showered, someone had taken his tattered clothes and replaced them with a new padded suit and polished leather armor, a sleek uniform that looked dark and dashing. He looked around for his old outfit, not wanting to accept more of the Second Imperium's hospitality than necessary, but he found nothing else to wear-and the fine new clothes fit perfectly....

Zekk tried his door, expecting to find it sealed, and was surprised when it slid open at his command. He stepped out to find Brakiss waiting in the corridor. The calm man's silvery robes pooled around him, as if knit from shimmering shadows.

A smile crossed Brakiss's sculpture-perfect face. "Ah, young Zekk-are you ready to begin your training?"

"Not really," Zekk muttered, "but I don't suppose it makes any difference."