[Black Fleet Crisis(15)

She turned toward Ackbar and said, “We can take up the rest this afternoon, when you have an itinerary for me to approve. ” Then she smiled. “You may find that some of the information you need is over at Eastport. “

“I am almost certain of it, ” Ackbar said gravely.

Leia’s bodyguards fell in beside her as she left the room. The guard changed four times a day, but somehow they all seemed the same-tall, broad-shouldered, alert-eyed, and silent. Leia had nicknamed them the Sniffer and the Shooter.

The former was plugged into a backpack full of electrical and chemical sensors. It was his job to make sure no bomb, poison, pathogen, radiation, or micro-droid harmed her. He preceded her around corners, through doors, and into closed spaces.

The latter wore combat armor, a personal shield, and a SoroSuub blaster rifle with backpack generator.

Since Leia refused to wear a personal shield, it was his job to place himself between her and any would-be assassin, shield her, and strike down her attackers.

Han had gotten the chief of security to order the protection and had won a reluctant promise from Leia to accept it.

But Leia had never adjusted to the guards’ presence, which seemed ever more unnecessary. And, paradoxically, she found that the presence of her personal guards didn’t make her feel safer-just the opposite, since they were a constant reminder that someone might want to kill her.

So she had learned to pretend they weren’t there, even when they shared a liftcar, a scooter, or a slidewalk with her. She didn’t want to learn their real names or to become friendly with them-her promise didn’t extend that far. She wanted them to be furniture.

The only time she acknowledged their presence was when the Sniffer silently signaled an alarm. Then she would let the Shooter guide her to whatever sheltered spot he chose, and would wait there until the Sniffer satisfied himself that there was no threat. It happened often enough that it no longer startled her, but infrequently enough that it was only a minor annoyance.

Still, Leia never expected it to happen while she was walking along the Memorial Corridor, just outside the walls of the Senate Chamber.

One moment she was striding briskly past the holo statuary of the heroes of the Rebellion, robes flying, her mind sorting through what she knew about the Y’taa. Then, in an eyeblink, the Sniffer sharply raised his hands and the Shooter pushed Leia sideways into one of the niches where the pillar between it and the next offered cover.

Her heart was suddenly racing, and her thoughts raced with it.

Unreasoning fear brought back the memory of Tig Peramis, livid with anger, looking at her as Vader’s daughter instead of as a royal child of Alderaan.

Was he angry enough to kill? Had Tolik Yar been tricked into betraying her? How horrible to be forced to be afraid here, on the doorstep of the New Republic’s most famous symbol of freedom, the first structure to be rebuilt after Imperial factions turned Imperial City into a battle zone.

Then, just as suddenly, it was over. “Clear, ” the Shooter said in his emotionless voice, moving aside to allow Leia to emerge from the niche.

Frowning crossly, Leia hurried after the Sniffer and demanded to know what had prompted the alarm.

“I detected a new energy field at the entrance to the Senate Hall, ” the Sniffer said, pointing. “It became active as we approached. “

Still frowning, Leia strode a few dozen steps farther down the corridor, then stopped short and laughed despite herself. Hanging over the ornate double doors of the Senate chamber was a large holosign.

On appearance alone, the sign belonged in a factory, beside the entry to the work floor. The text it displayed cemented that impression. It read

882 DAYS WITHOUT A SHOT FIRED IN ANGER Remember, Peace Is No Accident

Wearing a smile that was broad enough to touch her eyes, Leia looked left and right for the perpetrators of the joke. “All right, ‘fess up, ” she called out.

“Whose handiwork is this? “

Tolik Yar emerged from the shadow of a pillar to Leia’s left and showed a toothy, self-satisfied grin. “If it works for broken toes, bumped heads, and burned fingers, why not for higher stakes as well? “

“I like it, ” Leia confessed. “But isn’t it a bit-undignified? Behn-kihl-nahm will never let it stay. “

“Behn-kihl-nahm helped arrange for it to be installed, ” said Tolik Yar. “And as for dignity-any senator more concerned with dignity than outcomes desperately needs to be reminded why we’re here. Wouldn’t you agree? “

“You are a gem, Tolik Yar, ” she said, surprising him with a hug. She turned back and looked up at the sign. “I do agree. And I think we should have a little celebration when that number reaches a thousand. “