“You’re pirates!” she snapped.
Wedge shook his head. “We’re not pirates. We’re Rebels.” Wedge pointed to his two companions. “We were spying on Imperial activities here in Mah Dala when the Empire clamped down and blockaded the system. Now we’re stuck.”
“Why are you telling me this?” she asked.
“I know I’m taking a risk,” Wedge said, “but we’re running out of options. The Empire knows we’re here. They’ve already captured one of our group.” Tash remembered the Rodian. “It’s only a matter of time before they find us, unless we get offplanet. Your ship is the only one that’s landed or departed from Gobindi in weeks. We need it.”
“You’re going to steal the ship!” she said. “You are pirates!”
“If we had wanted to steal it, we would have done that already,” Wedge replied. “We just need a ride offplanet. You’ll be doing the galaxy a favor-unless, that is, I’m wrong, and you really are part of the Empire.”
“Well, I’m not!” Tash snapped. She was no longer nervous, but she still felt strangely warm, and her breath was short. “I hate the Empire. They killed my parents. They were on Alderaan when it was destroyed by the Death Star.”
Wedge frowned. “You’re from Alderaan?”
“Yes, and I’ll bet I have more reason than you to hate the Empire.”
Again the venom in her words surprised her. But she did hate the Empire. She had every reason to hate it. She felt hot tears form in her eyes. She didn’t mean to speak these words-she was hardly aware that she had thought them-but they came out of her mouth. “I want revenge on them for what they did to my parents.”
“I’m glad you’re on our side,” the other human joked.
But Wedge’s eyes grew soft. “I’m glad we agree that the Empire’s bad, Tash. But didn’t you say you admired the Jedi Knights?”
She nodded.
Wedge considered. “My people, the people I work with, we believe in the Jedi, too. I’ve read a lot about them.”
“Me too!” Tash exclaimed.
Wedge continued. “Let me tell you one of the things I learned about the Jedi. It has to do with that word revenge. Don’t use it. Don’t even think it.” He looked hard at Tash. “The Jedi fought in many wars, but do you know what truly made them great?”
“What?” she asked breathlessly.
“They were warriors, but they weren’t violent. They never forgot that their enemies were living beings, just like they were, with their own beliefs in right and wrong. They didn’t get angry. They didn’t hate their opponents. The Jedi always kept their minds on what they were fighting for, rather than what they were fighting against.”
Tash listened to the words. They sounded like good advice. But they didn’t sink in. Not hate the Empire? Not hate the people who had destroyed her family and her entire planet?
“I-I’m not sure I can do that,” she admitted. If anything, she realized, her anger was growing by the minute. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest. The blood throbbed in her veins. Her bruised left arm ached.
Wedge shrugged. “I’m not sure I can either.” He grinned. “But then, I’m just a starpilot. I’m happiest behind the controls of a snub fighter, not trying to use the Force.”
Wedge paused again. “Tash, we have information we need to get offplanet. All transmissions are blocked. No ships can fly. Except this one. This ship’s registry has unlimited landing clearance for this dock. We can fly out of here and no one will question us.”
Tash recalled how easily the Shroud had docked on Gobindi, once they’d activated their telesponder code. How did Hoole manage to do it? she wondered. Is he an Imperial after all?
She never got the chance to answer. Behind Wedge, the other human cried out.
Something had grabbed him.
CHAPTER 11
Wedge and the Bothan jumped out of the way as the scar-faced human went down. Thick streams of slime had wrapped themselves around his legs.
A blob had crept aboard the ship.
The man cursed and tried to get up. He pounded a gloved fist into the blob. His hand sank partway into its gooey flesh, doing no damage. As he pulled it out, the glove stuck in the slime.
Recovering from shock, Wedge and the Bothan leaped into action. They, too, wore gloves. They used their hands to pry the blob loose from their comrade’s legs.
Wedge and the Bothan pulled the blob away. It was heavy, but they managed to carry it to the hatchway and toss it outside.
“Are you all right?” Tash asked the scarred man.