[Black Fleet Crisis] - 02(94)

“But you need to tell them that, and show them that you’re present, aware, and active,” said Behn-kihl-nahm.

“You need to refocus their attention, or you’ll have nine little kingdoms before you know it, all looking to their councils over in the Senate instead of to you. To a degree, that’s already happened.”

“There’s a great deal of governing which has nothing to do with Koornacht, the Defense Council, black fleets, and matters of state,” Engh said. “Perhaps the ministers and their staffs should not need reassuring, but they do.”

“And I don’t need to be hung by my heels and questioned for four hours.”

“That won’t happen,” Engh said. “It will be your meeting, not theirs.

Thank them for the work they’ve been doing. Call for their reports.

Acknowledge the difficult times ahead. Ask them to remain diligent in discharging their responsibilities. Promise to tell them more when you can. Let them know that they are making it possible for you to do your job.”

“They should know all that without being told,” Leia protested. “Why does it require a pep talk from me?

My stars, during the Rebellion, our pilots got in their fighters knowing they were outnumbered five to one and worse with less handholding than this.”

“That was a different place and a different time,” Behn-kihl-nahm said simply. “Leia—you have never served anywhere in government except at the top. Please trust those of us who are better acquainted with the view from the bottom to advise you in this.”

Sighing, Leia looked to the first administrator.

“When do you suggest we do this, then? This afternoon?”

“Oh, no—that would put the stamp of an emergency on it, which is the last thing you want. No, all you need do this afternoon is give the usual three-day notice. That will start sending the message you want heard. For the rest, three days from now is soon enough.”

“All right. Three days, then,” Leia said grudgingly.

“Will one of you tell Alole on your way out?”

The first full cabinet meeting of the new era went surprisingly smoothly. Minister of State Mokka Falanthas showed signs—noticeable but not overt—of still being disgruntled over Leia’s violation of his turf, but he kept those feelings out of his words when he reported on the work of the diplomatic corps. But the rest of them, Leia was forced to admit, did seem to relish the return to normalcy.

Even better, Leia was able to hold the meeting down to two hours, giving her a chance to get some real work done before meeting Han for lunch. But she didn’t quite manage to escape cleanly—Nanaod Engh followed her out of the council hall and down the corridor toward the turbolifts.

“Do you have some time now, Princess?” Engh asked. “There’s something I’d like to bring up that wasn’t appropriate for that venue.”

“I was planning on taking a slow second look at some new material that came in from General A’baht overnight,” Leia said. “I’m going before the Defense Council on the first, you know.”

“Yes, I do.”

“Well, you have from here to my office door to convince me that whatever this is is more important than that.”

“I think perhaps this is part of that, Princess,” said Engh. “Has Alole been showing you any of the traffic from the ministry channels?”

“I don’t understand. She screens it all and shows me the dispatches and inquiries I need to handle. You know that.”

“I’m sorry—I meant the public lines. The tallies from the message-handling droids that handle the unad-dressed comments, the abstracts from the general call logs—that sort of thing? Or perhaps you’ve taken a peek in there yourself.”

“No,” Leia said, calling for the lift. “Why would I?”

“Well—to get an idea how this all is being taken on the outside, off Coruscant, away from the government.

To see how people are reacting to the news.”

“Go on,” Leia said as the lift arrived.

“This matter of the new members, for example—perfectly within your powers under the Charter,” Engh said, following her into the car.

“Everyone here knows the new members had to agree to observe the Charter like any other member, and that what was done was done not only for a legitimate reason, but a noble one.”

“I’d like to think that none of that needs explaining,” said Leia as the doors knifed closed. “Except perhaps to Minister Falanthas.”

“That’s a matter of professional turf and personal style, which I’m sure you two will work out in time,” Engh said. “But out in the capitals, there’s a great deal of concern about recent events—talk of your having exceeded your authority, of special privileges being granted, and of your acting on a whim, even rashly.”