Leia tried to calculate the distance to the communications tower and how long it would take to install the beacon.
“I assure you we’ll take good care of the, um, urdas.”
“That’s not why,” Nyessa said. “I need you back because tonight ’tis our meeting with the one who speaks for the Imperial garrison. And ’tis our obligation to tell him that his Empire is no longer welcome on Jaresh.”
IT TOOK LEIA A MOMENT to stop gaping at Nyessa.
“You…you can’t do that,” she stammered. “They’ll arrest you. Or worse.”
“But you have pledged yourselves to us.”
Leia looked at her helplessly.
“Yes,” she said reluctantly, hating the lie. “We have. But we don’t have the military forces to oppose the Empire here and now in that way.”
“’Tis a disappointment,” Nyessa said. “We had a covenant. But then you are from away. Anyhow, it does not matter. Our faith means obligations. Such as standing in opposition to evil.”
“But you’ll die!” Kidi said, aghast.
“Our obligation ’tis to do our duty. The consequences are not for us to determine. But now you must go. Come to the barn and select urdas to ride.”
Urdas turned out to be long-legged quadrupeds with horny clawed feet and shaggy coats that smelled faintly sweet. After Kidi fell off hers for the third time, Leia told Nyessa that they would take only two of the mounts. They rode side by side, Antrot clinging to Leia while Kidi rode behind Lokmarcha.
The fields stretched for kilometers beyond Jowloon before giving way to low, scrubby forest crossed by a pitted road. Fortunately, the urdas were both sure-footed and smart, nimbly avoiding uneven terrain and obeying the slightest pressure from a knee or tug on the reins. Leia might have enjoyed the journey if not for the knowledge that Nyessa and her villagers planned to do something suicidal—and that Leia’s arrival had led to that decision.
They began to climb into low, rounded hills, and soon after that Leia saw the communications tower ahead. They stopped beneath the massive structure, a metal lattice that stabbed a hundred meters into the sky like a spike.
“This mission involves too much climbing,” Antrot said.
“Oh, come on, Antrot,” Kidi said, setting her headphones over her tympanic membranes and adjusting a control on a portable scanner. “Look—go up ten meters or so and there’s a ladder. Easiest thing in the galaxy.”
“The first time I climbed something on this mission, creatures bit me,” the Abednedo tinkerer said. “The second time, I risked being incinerated by a volcano. If I climb up there, I will probably be hit by lightning or carried away by some avian predator.”
“I don’t think that’s how logic works,” Leia said.
“I am also tired and very sore.”
The tinkerer handed the bag containing the beacon to Leia and walked away. He plopped down on the ground, extracting a piece of gear from one of his pockets and examining it through his monocle.
“But, Antrot, you’ll miss all the fun,” Kidi said. Then her face turned serious.
“What is it?” Leia asked.
“Now that I see it, this tower’s a conduit, not a transmitter,” Kidi said. “It passes along all the comm traffic from the network and pushes it out into space from an array on the other side of the planet.”
“I thought you said this planet was quiet,” Lokmarcha said.
“Compared to anyplace else it is. But we’re still talking a planet’s worth of messages. Our signal will get lost. We need to boost it, and that’s tricky.”
“But not for you,” Lokmarcha said, giving her a fond smile. “You can do anything.”
Kidi smiled back at the commando, then brightened. “I know a way! A method for giving our signal a little extra shimmer. It’ll take a little while, though.”
And with that she picked up the bag containing the beacon, hooked a long leg over the lowest part of the tower’s lattice, and began to climb.
Leia watched her go, but her mind was elsewhere. That odd feeling in the back of her mind was back. Something was about to happen, and she had a central role to play.
Leia tracked Kidi’s progress, telling herself to relax, to trust herself. And then she knew what she had to do.
From Leia and Lokmarcha’s vantage point, Kidi was a small figure against the sky, framed by the lattice of the tower. Lokmarcha watched the Cerean with a concerned look on his face, hands on his hips.
“Kidi knows what she’s doing,” Leia said. “Besides, I want to talk to you.”
She eyed Antrot, but he was deeply involved with whatever he was fixing. Still, to keep the tinkerer from overhearing, she led the Dressellian commando over to where they’d tied up the urdas.
“I know what you’re going to say, Princess,” Lokmarcha said. “You’re upset about the old woman and her crazy plan.”
“Of course I am—and you should be, too.”
“What can we do? You heard her—she’s made up her mind. Anyway, the mission’s been a success so far. You should be pleased.”
“‘Pleased’?” Leia asked. “People on Basteel and Sesid are dead because we were there. And in a couple of hours, people on this planet will be dead, too. And all for a diversion. I didn’t join the Rebellion for that—and I doubt you did, either.”
“I joined it to defeat the Empire. Whatever the costs. We’re—”
“Don’t tell me we’re at war, Major. Because if I hear that again, I’m going to strangle you.”
Lokmarcha held up his hands peaceably. Leia fumed for a minute, studying Kidi at her work.
“Do we even need to make this final transmission before Yellow Moon?” she asked. “We know we have the Empire’s attention—too much of it, even. We can go back and convince Nyessa to stand down, then tell any ships that have answered our call the same thing….”
Lokmarcha was shaking his head. “We have the Empire’s attention, Princess, but we need to keep it. Every day we can do that is another day for the fleet to assemble. And we both know everything depends on that.”
Leia scowled, but the commando was right. She waited for Kidi to finish her work and test the beacon, trying to conceal her impatience. The Cerean tech gave them a thumbs-up, then descended. When she reached the ground, she was smiling.
“Plenty of shimmer,” she said. “I just hope somebody hears it. We need all the allies we can get, right?”
Leia looked down at her boots, then back to the Cerean woman’s beaming face.
“What is it, Princess?” Kidi asked. “Did I do something wrong?”
“No,” Leia said. “You haven’t done anything wrong.”
“Princess, don’t,” Lokmarcha said.
“No, Lok. I’ve made up my mind. I can’t do this anymore. Kidi, Antrot, it’s time to tell you the real purpose of our mission.”
She crossed her arms over her chest.
“Lok already knew—he’d been briefed before he joined our team,” Leia said. “So I’ll tell you two now, and Nien when we get back. And then you can decide what you want to do.”
“I don’t understand,” Kidi said.
“You will,” Leia said. “We’re preparing for a major battle with the Empire—one on the other side of the galaxy from here. I can’t tell you the reason for that battle—I’m sorry, I really can’t—but we’ve been gathering our capital ships into an armada in preparation. The outcome of the battle could well decide the outcome of the war. If we lose, the Alliance dies.”
“And so we’re gathering new allies here, as well?” Kidi asked.
“No,” Leia said. “Just listen to me. We’re decoys. Or, more properly, I am—a moving target to keep the Empire’s attention focused here. So that there’s less of a chance they’ll discover the location of our armada and strike before we’re ready.”
Antrot shrugged.
“Intelligence personnel always lie,” he said, and went back to fiddling with his gear.
But Kidi’s face was pale.
“That’s why I was given old codes,” she said. “The Empire already has them, doesn’t it? The whole point was for them to sniff us out.”
Leia just nodded. The Cerean had become a lot less naive in a hurry, she thought sadly.
“Which means you knew people on Basteel would die,” Kidi said.
“No,” Leia said. “I didn’t know that. I hoped nothing like that would happen.”
“But it did. And so you must have suspected it would happen again on Sesid.”
“Yes,” Leia said, forcing herself to meet Kidi’s eyes, feeling as though she owed her that much.
“Those people died for nothing!” Kidi said.
“Not true,” Lokmarcha interjected. “They died to help the larger plan succeed.”
“That’s terrible—” Kidi began.
“You’re both right,” Leia said. “The larger plan must succeed if we’re to restore freedom to the galaxy. But it is terrible—and very hard to accept being a part of.”
“Well, I don’t accept it,” Kidi said. “And I won’t be a part of it any longer.”
“I admire that,” Leia said. “And I told you the truth because I’m not going to be a part of it any longer, either.”
“It’s too late! What can we possibly do to make amends?”
“I don’t know if anything can do that,” Leia said. “But I’m going to try. For starters, we’re going to save Nyessa and the villagers of Jowloon. We’re going to fight.”
THEY RETURNED to Jowloon in the late afternoon to find the streets strangely quiet. Leia couldn’t figure out what was wrong for a moment. Then she realized the fields and pastures were empty of animals. The Imperials had taken them to the corral.
To Leia’s relief, she didn’t have to search for Nyessa—the old woman was hosing out her beasts’ empty pen. She let her hands linger on the urdas’ shaggy flanks for a long moment, comforted by their presence.
“We’re going to get the rest of your animals back,” Leia promised. “We’re only four, but we’ll keep our covenant with you.”
“’Tis no need. We will make our declaration and leave what follows to fate.”
“I believe in making my own fate,” Leia said. “Is there a barn overlooking the corral?”
“Yes. Old Grimshaw’s.”
“And can you trust him?”
“He is my cousin,” Nyessa said. “But, yes, I can trust him.”
“Excellent,” Leia said, and then told Nyessa her plan.
“I suspect that I’m allergic to this vegetation,” Antrot complained.
Leia wasn’t particularly happy, either—the hay that filled Old Grimshaw’s barn was dusty and itchy, and she feared one of them would sneeze and they’d be discovered. Only Lokmarcha seemed content. He had set up his blaster rifle on a tripod and was waiting patiently, occasionally peeking through the sight at the crowded square below.
“Do I need to go over the plan again?” Leia asked.
“No,” said Lokmarcha. “Unless you’re going to give me another chance to talk you out of it.”
“I’m not. Antrot, you’re sure the charge is set properly?”
“If I had any doubt, I would be down there eliminating that doubt.”
“Good enough. We’ll have to be patient, then.”
Below them, the crowd had gathered, waiting for the head of the Imperial garrison to arrive. The crowd had left a space for the Imperials right in front of the gates of the corral, which was filled nearly to capacity with animals. Warbu lowed, nerfs and whellays bleated, and urdas nickered unhappily in the confined space.
“I see the Imperials now,” Kidi said. “They’re in a troop transport.”
“What? Nyessa said they would walk.”
“Well, she was wrong.”
“If they park that thing in front of the corral our plan will fail,” Leia said.
“We better hope they don’t do that, then,” Lokmarcha said.
The transport approached to within thirty meters of the edge of the square. Then twenty. Leia realized she was holding her breath. Ten.
Then the transport stopped. A dozen stormtroopers emerged, blasters holstered, and eyed the villagers from behind their skull-like helmets. Two Imperial officers were with them, hands behind their backs.
“I wish that Imperial captain were here, too,” Leia said to Lokmarcha. “That’s crazy, isn’t it?”
“Very,” Lokmarcha said. “At least she lost our trail.”
The Imperials stood in front of the gate to the corral. One raised a loudhailer and ordered everyone to quiet down.
Little by little the crowd obeyed, until the only sounds were those made by the animals. Nyessa looked up and caught Leia’s eye. The old woman nodded.
“People of Jowloon…” the Imperial officer began, his voice harsh over the loudhailer.
“Now,” Leia said.
The charge Antrot had set behind the corral exploded, the light of the blast briefly illuminating the square. The animals shied away from it, shoving at one another, eyes rolling in panic. Nyessa was yelling, and the villagers were clearing the square as quickly as they could. The officers turned toward the corral, baffled.
Lokmarcha fired. The energy bolt from his rifle vaporized the lock on the corral. The frightened animals charged, shoving the gates open. For a moment Leia saw the stormtroopers and their officers in front of the corral trying to stay upright amid the stampede. Then they had fallen beneath the charging hooves and stamping feet.
But other Imperials had avoided the stampede.
“Take them out, Lok,” she said. “I’m going down there.”
The Dressellian looked up from his rifle, alarmed. “Princess, stay here where I can protect you!”
“If anyone comes near me, shoot them,” Leia said over her shoulder as she pounded down the stairs.
She emerged from the barn into a chaotic scene—animals were rushing everywhere, eyes wild and hooves kicking. Some villagers were trying to calm the animals while others were simply trying to escape the fight.
A stormtrooper hurried around the side of the barn, clattering in his armor. Leia brought her blaster up and fired, leaving him in a heap. She saw other troopers’ helmets turning her way as they shoved through the crowd, trying to reach the troop transport.
She couldn’t let them get there.
Leia dodged a trio of frightened nerfs, ducking as a blaster bolt sizzled over her head. A warbu tossed its head, hooting angrily and eyeing a pair of stormtroopers in front of it. Leia smacked the beast in the hindquarters as hard as she could, shouting at it. Her hand went numb. The beast charged the troopers, flinging them aside. One scrambled to his feet, and Leia shot him. The other crashed into a crowd of villagers, whose fists rose and fell around the armored figure in their midst.
Two of the stormtroopers were back to back, firing into the crowd. Screams erupted around Leia. She looked up to catch Lokmarcha’s eye—and saw a tall, coneheaded figure hurrying toward her, an E-11 blaster in her hands.
“Kidi! What are you doing?” Leia demanded.
“Fighting!” the Cerean replied.
A blaster bolt zipped between the two of them. Kidi aimed her gun at the stormtrooper who’d fired, but nothing happened. She stared at the weapon in dismay.
“Safety!” Leia yelled. A charging warbu knocked the trooper into her, spoiling both of their shots. The Imperial soldier grappled with Leia.
“It’s too late for safety!” Kidi yelled at Leia. “We have to fight!”
“No—your blaster has a safety!” Leia yelled, struggling with the stormtrooper for control of her blaster. “To the left of the trigger!”
A grizzled villager brought a grain rake down on the stormtrooper’s helmet, and the trooper crumpled. The villager grinned at Leia, then hurried away into the melee. Kidi fumbled with her gun, and a crimson energy bolt zipped past Leia’s head and crashed into the side of the general store.
“Oh!” Kidi said. “Sorry!”
&nb
sp; “Just stay behind me!” Leia said, yelling for the villagers to get out of her way. A blaster bolt zipped out from the barn, dropping another trooper. Lokmarcha fired again, forcing the troopers trying to reach their transport to duck.
Leia saw Nyessa in the middle of the square, ringed by brawny farmers. She caught the old woman’s eye and gestured urgently at the troop transport. Nyessa looked that way and nodded, then began bawling out orders. A gang of villagers surged toward the troops, farm implements raised. The stormtroopers fired and two of their attackers fell—but the rest overwhelmed them.
It was over.
The square rapidly emptied of animals as they sought the pens and fields they called home. Kidi turned toward the corral, where the stampede had begun, but Leia steered her gently in the other direction.
“You don’t want to see that,” she said, leading the Cerean toward Nyessa instead.
“They are gone,” the matriarch said with satisfaction.
“Yes,” Leia said. “But they’ll be back. And they’ll punish your entire village.”
“Perhaps,” Nyessa said. “But a lot may happen before they get the chance of returning. Things can change. And if we die? It will be defending those we love and the things we value. There are worse fates.”
Leia smiled at her. “There certainly are.”
NIEN NUNB HAD been busy. The hold of the Mellcrawler was filled with barrels of concentrated fertilizer from Jowloon—a cargo the Sullustan claimed would make him an enormous profit on Sullust.
Leia hoped so, because she could smell it from the lounge. Antrot looked stricken.
“Don’t tell me you have a phobia about fertilizer, too,” Kidi said with a grin.
“I’m gonna have one by the time I get off this ship,” Lokmarcha muttered.
Antrot shook his head. “I have no phobia, though the smell is unpleasant. What concerns me is that this cargo is dangerously volatile.”
Nien’s face fell. Then he shrugged. “I’ll try not to fly into anything. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I think it’s time to get off this planet.”
Leia was in the lounge, considering the best time to tell the Sullustan what she’d told the others, when the Mellcrawler lurched to starboard. Antrot’s monocle popped off and Kidi clutched Lokmarcha, her eyes wide.
Moving Target: A Princess Leia Adventure Page 9