Star Wars_ Millennium Falcon Part 36

"Restore Republic honor to the galaxy."

Oxic grinned broadly. "Precisely, Captain. A symbol meant to rouse and reawaken those who had allowed themselves to fall under the sway of the Emperor." He paused briefly. "Well, we all know that even the healthiest of seedlings don't always bear fruit. The replacement emblem was discovered to be a counterfeit during restoration work occasioned by General Grievous's attack on Coruscant. In either case, no attempt was ever launched to uncover the original. The Emperor didn't care, and most of the Senate was beyond caring by that point. But collectors of Republicana art and sculpture have been combing the galaxy for it ever since." He swung back to face it. "And here it is at last."

Oxic fell silent while a powerful tremor shook the room. Han holstered his blaster, but pulled Leia and Allana close to him.

"I've been chasing it for almost fifty years," he said, almost as if to himself. "It's the reason you weren't left to flatline in the Nar Shaddaa facility to which you were medevaced alter your collision there, Captain Jadak." He glanced over his shoulder. "You're certainly ent.i.tled to a finder's fee for leading me here. But let us face facts: you never knew precisely what you were chasing-whether it was riches beyond your imaginings or simply a dream-and, more important, the Millennium Falcon turns out to have been the real key to unlocking this particular treasure chest.

"Therefore, I lay claim to it. I've known from the start what I was pursuing. And my expenditures in time, energy, and credits far exceed the sum total the rest of you have contributed."

From his jacket pocket, Oxic drew a small cylindrical probe. Applying the tester's bulbous scanner to the most accessible part of the emblem, he studied the readout. "Its worth in precious metals is of little import," he said. "It is the piece itself, soon to be the prize in my collection. To the envy of all who have sought it..."

Eyes riveted to the tool's small display screen, he cut himself off. "This can't be right," he said in a shaky voice. More roughly, he pressed the scanner to another section of the emblem. "This can't be right!" His hands were trembling now, and the motion had nothing to do with Tandun III's quakes, which were increasing in both duration and severity.

"This can't be right!" Oxic slashed at the emblem, as if the tester had become a knife, then staggered backward with his hands pressed to his head, Koi Quire and the Nautolan ship thief hurrying in to prevent him from keeling over onto the floor.

Without looking at Leia, Han said, "Did I ever tell you about the time Chewbacca and I were in the treasure vaults of..."

"Xim the Despot," she completed. "On Dellalt. I'm saving that little tale for chapter seven of my book." He frowned at her. "Book?"

"'The Crook, the Wook and Me. Volume two of my memoirs." Han's jaw dropped a little more. "Who's a crook?" Throwing the tester to the floor, Oxic shucked out of the Nautolan's grip and stood to his full and impressive height. "It's a fake! A counterfeit!" Shuffling to the wall, he supported himself with one arm and began to sob. "Not even worth the metals it was forged from!"

The floor shook again, more violently.

Oxic composed himself and swung around to lace Koi Quire, his red-rimmed eyes ablaze. "Obviously the Republic Group never realized that they had spirited a fake from the Rotunda. That suggests that the authentic old Republic emblem had to have disappeared earlier- perhaps at the earliest phase of the Rotunda's renovation." He locked eyes with Quire. "The name of the construction firm hired to oversee the renovation!"

"Naffiff Brothers," she said.

Oxic balled his fists. "Sils Naffiff, yes . . . now wealthy beyond all expectation. He could have fabricated the counterfeit even before the renovation commenced!" His eyes found Jadak. "Or might the actual seal have been stolen by the person to whom you were to deliver the Stellar Envoy?"

"An Antarian Ranger," Jadak said.

"Yes, yes, I wouldn't put it past one of those people to plunder a treasure!"

"You'd be better off figuring this out somewhere else, counselor," Han said.

The strongest quake yet shook the room, knocking Oxic and Quire off their feet and vibrating the emblem's brackets loose from the wall. Jadak was just helping Quire up when the emblem tipped to the floor and smashed to countless pieces.

"A just fate!" Oxic said in disgust, then whirled on Jadak and Poste. "What would you two say to throwing in with us to continue the search? I'll pay you well. And Jadak-what else is there for you?"

Jadak glanced at Quire, who smiled. "I'm in," he said.

"Me, too," Poste said.

"I want to go," Allana started to say, when Leia interrupted.

"Don't you even think about it, kiddo. I'm afraid you're stuck with us."

The lot of them raced into the landing bay, where the light had taken on a different quality. Han looked up to see a horde of Yuuzhan Vong gricha attempting to seal the lift shaft.

"The Falcon will never fit through that," Oxic said. "There's room in my yacht for all of you, Captain Solo."

Han glanced at the sleek yacht that had followed the Falcon in, then leveled a look at Oxic. "Leave her here?"

"Has it occurred to you that the Falcon is meant to be entombed here? The ship's final mission executed? Its destiny fulfilled?"

Han's silence was momentary. "She'll fulfill her destiny when I say so!"

Oxic nodded in respect. "Suit yourselves. Princess Leia, Amelia, See-Threepio ... I hope we meet again under more favorable circ.u.mstances."

Han extended his hand to Jadak. "Your rucksacks are aboard the Falcon"

"I figure we can make do without them."

"Stay out of trouble, Captain," Han said. "You, too, Captain."

"And grow up, will ya," Han said as Jadak and Poste were heading for Oxic's ship. "Start acting your age."

"I'll give it a try on one condition."

"What's that?"

"You agree to take good care of my ship."

The Solos bolted up the Falcon's boarding ramp, exhorting C-3PO to pick up the pace. Han skidded to a halt in the ring corridor and swung to Leia. "You and Threepio are going to have to raise her. Hot-scamble!"

Her eyes searched his face.

"I'll be up top. She's not sporting quad lasers for nothing." Leia took her lower lip between her teeth and nodded. "I know," Han said as C-3PO entered the corridor. "It's going to be tight. Rotate her around a hundred eighty degrees and bring her nose up. I'll do the rest. Got it, Threepio?"

"Got it, Captain Solo."

Han smiled. "And make sure nothing happens to her."

"Not a scratch," Leia said as Han ducked into the ladderwell. Leia had the repulsorlifts quick-started by the time Han harnessed into the high-backed chair and clamped his hands on the twin firing grips. Outside, the walls of the structure were heaving and pieces of the landing platform roof were piling up on the Falcon's hull. Before too long the entire roof would come down, and the ship would be buried. Han watched Oxic's snazzy yacht perform an exacting rotation and ascend through the narrowed opening.

"Raising ship," Leia told Han through the earpiece of his intercom rig.

Levitating from the turbolift deck, the Falcon turned and trimmed. The bow maneuvering jets fired, the mandibles came up, and Han was waiting.

The quads chugged and a hail of crimson bolts made short of the gricha's roofing efforts.

"Now, Leia!"

Great tangles of vegetation peeled from the walls and huge stones plummeted, ricocheting off the ship's armor plate. Wearing a beard of Yuuzhan Vong thorn tree, the Falcon shot up and out of the ancient structure, then rose into the crazed sky on a pillar of blinding energy.

Oxic's yacht was veering to starboard to avoid a flight of airborne boulders when the Falcon overtook it and raced for s.p.a.ce at top speed. By then Han had dashed into the c.o.c.kpit and strapped into the navigator's chair alongside Allana. Caught in Tandun Ill's death throes, the Falcon bucked like a marble in a juice blender.

"Your chair, Captain Solo," C-3PO said, rising.

Han clapped him on the shoulder. "Stay put, Goldenrod. You deserve to ride in the front for a change."

"Are we gonna escape?" Allana asked, without evident apprehension.

" 'Course we are," Han said, mussing her hair. "Just like on that HoloNet show."

Impa.s.sive stars winked into existence, losing their dazzle the higher the Falcon climbed. When they had attained a safe distance from the planet, Leia banked through a broad turn that left them facing Tandun III, cracked like an egg about to release a creature made of pure fire.

Then in unsettling silence, the planet simply came undone, flaring like a star for a fleeting moment before hurling ma.s.sive chunks of itself into the void. Of what almost seemed its own volition, the Falcon reared up as the shock wave whirled out into the night.

A telltale flashed on the instrument panel, and Leia glanced at the displays.

"Port landing jets and repulsors are out."

Standing up, Han pounded his fist against the control panel above Allana's head, and the telltale blinked out.

"Back online," Leia said, directing a smile over her shoulder. Han sighed. "I'm gonna have to get that landing jet fixed."

Chapter thirty-two.

"This lever controls the engines the Falcon uses to travel through reals.p.a.ce," Han said. "This one takes the ship into hypers.p.a.ce, after the navicomputer here figures out when it's safe for the ship to jump to lightspeed."

"And these?" Allana asked, pointing to a pair of trackball controllers just left of the central display monitor.

"Hopefully, you'll never have to touch those. They control the laser cannons."

It was just the two of them in the c.o.c.kpit, Han in the pilot's chair and Allana seated on his knee. Leia was in the main hold trying to reach Luke on the comm and C-3PO was crating up the slicer droid for shipment back to Vaced. Free to pursue her own course, the Falcon was purring through interstellar s.p.a.ce.

"Can I steer?"

Han stood her at the yoke. "Go ahead."

Allana experimented with the instruments. "Can I make it go faster?"

"Can you reach the throttle?"

She stretched out her right hand and made a sound of effort. "Got it."

"Wow! Not so fast," Han laughed, thankful he had the inertial compensator dialed to full.

Surrendering the yoke, she climbed into the copilot's chair.

"I think you're going to be a terrific pilot," Han told her.

"Like Aunt Jaina?"

"Just like Aunt Jaina."

Allana inclined her head to one side. "Is she going to marry Jag?"

Han smiled. "I don't know. We'll have to ask her when we see her."

"Did your grandpa teach you how to pilot a starship?"

"No." Han gave his head a pensive shake. "I didn't know my grandfather."

"We could go look for him."

He laughed. "I think I've had my fill of quests for the time being."

"Why?"

"You're full of questions," Han said, pivoting to face her. "But I've got one for you. Do you want to visit your mom? We're not too far from the Hapes Consortium right now. A quick hypers.p.a.ce jump and we're there."

Allana smiled. "I want to see my mother." She looked up at Han. "And if Mom says it's okay, I want to stay with you and Grandma some more."

"You're sure?"

Allana nodded. "Sure."

"You know it's not always going to be a treasure hunt. Sometimes Grandma and I just sit around doing nothing."

"I can do that," she a.s.sured him. "Anyway, how do you know another adventure won't happen?"

Han had his mouth open to respond when Leia entered the c.o.c.kpit, C-3PO a step behind her. Her look told him that she had big news.

"What?"

"The GA government is planning to file criminal charges against Luke."

"Charges? What's he done this time?"

Leia's gaze s.h.i.tted briefly and deliberately to Allana. "Dereliction of duty."

Han nodded slowly. So Daala's government had decided to Maine Luke for having allowed Jacen to slip to the dark side. Will it never end?

"How are the Jedi taking it?" he asked.

"Not too seriously."

"Maybe they're right. Daala could be doing this because she has to, not because she wants to."

Leia gave her head a quick shake. "He's going to need our help, Han."