The gunship darted through a forest of glass high-rises, and for a few moments it ran level with a vast advertiscreen urging Imperial citizens to keep an eye on suspicious newcomers to their neighborhood in the upheaval that followed the war. THEY CAN LOOK JUST LIKE US, it warned. Darman wondered who us us was on a planet of a thousand different species, but he got the idea. was on a planet of a thousand different species, but he got the idea.

Is Ennen a safe bet? Will he shop us to the authorities if we let him know he can desert anytime? desert anytime?

Darman just didn't know. He'd have to talk to Ordo. Niner was right. Ordo would have a sensible answer.

Rede, looking a little nervous judging by the way he edged to the sill of the larty to look below, pointed down. "Wow, they've cordoned off a lot of sky lanes for one guy."

Darman leaned out to look. The ship was flying a few levels above the target area, and the cops were taking no chances. They'd blocked off every intersection for four levels, and in a three-dimensional street grid, that meant a lot of police speeders making sure that nobody wandered into the cordon area as well as stopping anyone trying to get out.

Darman hoped they'd evacuated the immediate area. It really crimped his style when he had to worry about blowing up the neighbors as well.

"He's a Jedi," Niner said. "Got to take precautions."

"I've never fought Jedi," Rede said. "Is it as tough as they say?"

Darman doubted if Rede had fought at all. It wasn't the time to embarrass him by asking.

"They're definitely not invincible," Darman said. "They make mistakes like everyone else. And they die like everyone else."

He knew that better than anyone.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN.

Mandalore's beskar beskar reserves far exceed its domestic needs. The population is four or five reserves far exceed its domestic needs. The population is four or five million-a village by our standards. They earn revenue from the shipbuilding and million-a village by our standards. They earn revenue from the shipbuilding and equipment contracts we place with them, they have enough ore to equip a moderate fleet equipment contracts we place with them, they have enough ore to equip a moderate fleet of their own-limited, mind you, because they're a troublesome people-and that will of their own-limited, mind you, because they're a troublesome people-and that will keep them happy while we concentrate on the business of stockpiling keep them happy while we concentrate on the business of stockpiling beskar beskar . A material . A material that's effective against Force-users must never be sold to any other government. Of that's effective against Force-users must never be sold to any other government. Of course, we'll need the cooperation of Mandalorian metalsmiths to produce the finished course, we'll need the cooperation of Mandalorian metalsmiths to produce the finished beskar beskar ...but we'll address that problem when we come to it. ...but we'll address that problem when we come to it.

Churg Anaris Hej, Deputy Head of Imperial Procurement Imperial City, Lower levels The gunship dropped through ever-narrower skylanes until it reached the nearest landing platform to the cordon.

It was a few meters longer and wider than the average police vessel, but Niner doubted that the escaped Jedi had factored that in when he went to ground down here.

The squad jumped out of the larty and jogged for the knot of police officers taking cover behind their speeders at the perimeter of the cordon. Niner glanced back at the ship to see the pilot tap the chrono on his forearm plate with an exaggerated gesture. The meter's The meter's running. running.

Niner didn't know him, but at least he had a sense of humor. A job like this could take minutes or hours.

"Where is he?" Niner asked, looking for a name tab on the nearest cop's uniform: ANSKOW. He didn't know any of these cops. They weren't any of Jaller Obrim's officers.

The blue strip on their badges showed they were part-time community cops, usually drafted for crowd control at big events or traffic duties. "Have you got remote surveillance operating?"

Anskow pointed at a shuttered cantina. It was flanked by a grocery store, and a lingerie boutique whose window contained items that Niner decided didn't look sensible or comfortable.

"You'll laugh," he said, "but for all the holocams in this city, we don't have anything watching down here. Which is where most of the crime is. Funny how they're spending like crazy on snoop devices for up top, but not here."

"I think the Emperor's more interested in a different kind of crime. Got a floor plan yet?"

Anskow took out his datapad. "Best we can do is this one from the planning authority, but it's old. There might be some changes to nonstructural walls."

Niner took the datapad from him and transmitted the plan to the squads' HUDs.

"Okay, that looks pretty straightforward."

"We don't think he's got hostages. Place doesn't open until the evening. The cook's normally first in."

"Jedi don't take hostages." Niner glanced at the cops standing behind the protection of their vehicles, some with blaster rifles resting on the roofs. "I've never known them to indulge in a shoot-out, either, but they're running for their lives now. What have we got, then?"

"What do you mean?"

"Padawan, Knight, Master? Any clues? Padawans wear a skinny braid, but they'll have cut those off unless they're idiots."

"Just a guy maybe twenty-five, thirty. The lightsaber was about all we had time to notice, on account of it taking one of my guy's hands off."

"Probably not a Padawan, then."

"Does it matter? They're all dangerous, right?"

"It matters to us us." Niner glanced at Darman, who'd gone back to the walkway above and was strolling along to get a better look. Niner could see the POV icon in his HUD.

"Orders. Padawans, we take alive. Masters, we shoot on sight. Knights-depends, but probably probably lethal force, too." lethal force, too."

Anskow gave him a long, dubious look. "Okay. We've evacuated the stores and the residential units up to this line. Area at the back of the cantina is industrial-repair shop, fuel storage, and so on. We've shut that off, too."

"We'll try not to hit it. They make a mess when they blow."

Anskow gave Niner a look that said he didn't know if he was joking or not, then motioned his officers to take up position. Darman, now accompanied by Rede, stabbed his finger down at the entrance to the cantina.

"He's not going anywhere unless he can fit down a sewage pipe," Darman said. "He's stuck in there. He'll have a reason, of course."

Jedi could get out of some pretty tight corners. Niner took nothing for granted, and reminded himself what had happened to Bry; even the most high-minded Jedi was likely to fight dirty when the entire sect was being exterminated. It looked like a dumb place to get cornered.

It had to be a setup, just like last time.

"No unnecessary risks, vode vode," Niner said. "I want everyone coming back with their head still attached. And he knows we're all out here waiting, so..." He upped the volume on his helmet's external speaker to loudhailer level. " Jedi! Jedi! This is the Imperial armed forces." It just didn't This is the Imperial armed forces." It just didn't sound sound right-not yet. "Come out-lay your weapons on the ground-hands above your head." He kept an eye in the POV icons on Darman's position. right-not yet. "Come out-lay your weapons on the ground-hands above your head." He kept an eye in the POV icons on Darman's position.

"Last chance, or we come in."

Predictably, there was no response. Darman took out a roll of detonite tape from his belt pouch and tossed it in his hand. "Knock knock."

"Okay, stick a charge on the front doors." Niner signaled to Rede and Ennen.

"Ennen-on my signal, stick a flash-bang through the lower floor window. Rede, you place one through the roof light. Can you reach it from there?"

"Yes, Sarge."

"Okay. It's going to be quick. Simultaneous doors, flash-bangs, then in in."

Niner looked up for a moment. Above him, beyond the cordon ceiling, he could see the undersides of stationary speeders hovering for a better look. He was sure the operation had an audience, and whatever they did would be on GNN sooner or later. He needed to get this over and done with fast.

"He's too old for a Padawan." Niner moved closer, twenty meters from the doors.

"Shoot first, worry about Intel's recruitment needs later."

"What?" Rede said.

"Never mind. Everybody-in position."

Niner watched Dar drop down from the walkway on his rappel line and hug the wall as he made his way to the cantina doors. It took him seconds to slap detonite on the weak spots and take cover. Niner checked the POV icons: Rede was lined up on the skylight in the cantina roof, and Ennen was fixed on the big transparisteel window. Fired from the Deece attachment, the stun grenades would punch a hole in anything before exploding in a harmless but disabling ball of deafening, blinding light.

"Go!" Niner said.

Dar could always rig a spectacular detonation for rapid entry. He hadn't lost his touch.

Boom.

Niner ducked as the det went off and sent the doors crashing in. They rushed into smoke, tactical lamps raking the unlit counter and reflecting off bottles and mirrors. Niner could hear boots clattering and shouts of "Clear!" Then wood splintered somewhere. He found himself face-to-face with Rede. He gestured left; Ennen appeared and pointed behind them to the kitchens. But they didn't get that far, because the familiar vzzzm vzzzm of a lightsaber cut through every other sound and made them all turn at once. The mirror behind the bar was lit with soft blue light. of a lightsaber cut through every other sound and made them all turn at once. The mirror behind the bar was lit with soft blue light.

"Counter," Ennen said. "Under the counter."

He dived for the open end of the bar and opened fire. Niner was still waiting for the booby trap, the ambush, the feint. From his position, it looked as if everything was happening simultaneously: a figure rising from behind the counter, the white flashes of a Deece emptying its magazine, a blue shaft of energy that left an afterimage and tumbled to the floor.

Ennen kept on firing. It seemed like minutes before he stopped. It could only have been seconds. The silence was sudden and complete.

"That's for Bry," he said. He stepped over something, crunching on broken glass, then grunted.

Niner braced, expecting him to trigger a device. That was the kind of stunt a smart operator would pull, a sacrificial act to take Imperial troops with them just as Camas had tried to do. Maybe the Jedi who'd been stranded here had been ordered to do maximum damage. It didn't sound very Jedi-like to Niner, but then neither did trying to overthrow Palpatine by violence, and they'd done that, too.

But he's a Sith. Does that make it okay, or not?

"Can't detect any explosives," Ennen said, standing up again. "Let's see who this joker is."

The noises sounded as if he was rifling through the guy's clothing. Less than three minutes from entry to finish; something to impress the locals. Imperial stormtroopers didn't mess around. Niner opened his comlink. "Anskow? Building secure. We'll check for booby traps, just in case."

"Maybe we should have done that first." Rede peered over the counter. "Did they leave just the dumb Jedi behind? Or are they all that useless?"

Ennen stood up, fanning out a sheaf of identichips one-handed. "Stang," he said. He tossed the chips to Niner and strode out. " Stang. Stang. " "

"What's up with him?" Darman asked.

Niner looked through the IDs. They were all taxi pilot licenses, each with the same image but with different names. He turned over the body and shone his lamp in the face.

There was enough left for a positive ID.

"I think we just got a random thief," he said. "Which explains why he didn't put up a fight. Probably all he could do was to switch on the lightsaber and wave it around."

He searched for the hilt and found it in the carpet of shattered bottles.

"How could he get hold of it?" Rede asked.

"Were you around for Order Sixty-six?"

"I wasn't deployed then."

"It was chaos. Jedi cut down everywhere. Buildings on fire. It wouldn't take a criminal genius to grab a lightsaber from the debris, just an opportunist."

"Okay, job done," Darman said, and walked out. "Well done, anyway, Rede."

Anskow looked at the IDs and spent some time on the comm checking with someone.

He even took fingerprints from the body. His embarrassed expression told Niner what information he was getting back from his control room.

"Well, he took a guy's hand off with that saber thing," he said at last. "What were we supposed to think?"

Niner shrugged. "Better safe than sorry. We won't bill you."

It was an anticlimax, but it wasn't the first foul-up Niner had been involved in, and it wouldn't be the last. There'd be some questions about how the guy might have come by the lightsaber, and someone-not them, he was sure-would be tasked to check the man's contacts just to make certain there was no real Jedi connection somewhere. Niner put it out of his head and climbed back into the LAAT/i. He'd file a report later.

Lawful warning given, suspect failed to surrender, drew lightsaber, neutralized by Trooper IC-4447 Ennen. Trooper IC-4447 Ennen.

What a dumb way to die, all for a stolen speeder and a dangerous souvenir. Idiot. Idiot. Did he have a family? What a rotten pointless end for his folks to have to live with. Did he have a family? What a rotten pointless end for his folks to have to live with.

It was just a speeder. A couple of months in jail, maybe. Not worth losing your life for.

Some people just ran, even though it must have been obvious they wouldn't get away. The LAAT/i lifted off the platform and they headed back to barracks.

"You okay, Ennen?" Niner asked.

Ennen was sitting on the starboard side bench, arms folded tight across his chest, head tilted back so that his helmet rattled on the durasteel panel of the bulkhead.

"Yeah. Fine."

He wasn't. Niner knew it.

Darman took off his helmet and scratched his chin. "Ennen, if that guy had really been a Jedi, it would have been a good take. Don't beat yourself up."

"Kriffing moron," Ennen muttered. "He was asking for it. What kind of carbon-flush thinks it's a good idea to wave a lightsaber around at a time like this? this? " "

"A moron who wasn't carrying a blaster?" Rede said.

Darman turned on him. "If you don't take a lightsaber seriously, ner vod ner vod," he snarled, "you're going to end up dead."

" Udesii Udesii, Dar," Niner said. "Let's all relax. Nothing we can do about it now."

Niner kept an eye on Ennen's POV icon all the way back to base. It stayed fixed, as if he was staring at the deckhead, although that was no guide to where his eyes were directed or even if they were open. When the gunship landed, Ennen was the first man out, and he stalked off as if he had something pressing to attend to. Niner knew he'd have a tough job ahead of him to knit this squad together as tightly as he had Omega. He let Ennen go. The doors to the 'freshers slammed shut behind him. There, at least, a guy could have a few minutes of privacy.

He'd come out when he was ready. Maybe Dar could take him out for that ale later.