[Hand Of Thrawn] - 01(45)

Leia glanced across the dais at Borsk Fey’lya, seated at the far end of the curved row of High Councilors. The Bothan’s expression and fur were under rigid control, but her Jedi senses had no trouble picking up the turmoil of anxiety behind his face. He’d had, she knew, a long conversation with the heads of the Combined Clans back on Bothawui just prior to this meeting. From the hardness of his expression, she guessed the conversation hadn’t gone well .

“I understand your feelings, Senator,” Gavrisom said. “However, I must point out that the legal guidelines of the New Republic are not the same as the traditional codes of Forshuliri justice.” He unfolded his wings from across his long back and brought them in front of him. The prehensile feathertips touched one of the keys on the lectern, and a section of New Republic criminal law appeared on the display above his head. “Those guidelines do not allow us to penalize the entire Bothan people for the crimes of a few.”

“And why do we not know the identities of those supposed few?” the Ishori Senator called out. “I see Councilor Fey’lya seated to your right. What has he to say about all this?”

Gavrisom turned his head to look over his withers at Fey’lya. “Councilor Fey’lya, do you wish to respond?” m mm

Visibly bracing himself, the Bothan rose to his feet. “I understand the anger this revelation has elicited from many of you,” he said. “I assure you that we of the Bothan clan leadership feel the same anger, and the same desire that the perpetrators of this terrible crime be brought to justice. And rest assured that if we knew exactly who those perpetrators were, we would long ago have dealt with them. The problem is that we do not.”

There was a short, warbling scream. Reflexively, Leia jumped, belatedly identified the blood-chilling sound as the Ayrou equivalent of a skeptical snort. “Do you expect us to believe-?”

“President Gavrisom, I would ask you to once again remind the Senator from Moddell sector to shut up that noise!” another Senator interrupted angrily. “The harmonics have already caused me to lose two eggs this session, and if I cannot bear my yearly hatchlings on schedule, I will lose both my status and any possibility of reappointment by my sector assembly.”

“Speaking for myself, that would be a relief,” someone else put in before Gavrisom could respond. “Some of us are exceptionally tired of your precious eggs being used as an excuse for everything you don’t like&mdash”

Gavrisom’s wingtips touched a key, and the voice was cut off as the sound system shut down. For another minute angry voices continued to be heard, echoing indistinctly from various quarters of the chamber, before finally falling reluctantly silent as the participants realized that none of their verbal jabs was getting through to the designated recipients. Gavrisom waited another few seconds before turning the sound system back on. “The prologue to the New Republic charter,” he said quietly, “exhorts all member worlds to behave toward one another in an acceptable and civilized manner. Shall the members of this Senate be held to a lesser standard?”

“You speak of civilization, President Gavrisom,” a tall Bagmim said darkly. “How can we of the New Republic Senate consider ourselves civilized if we do not show our repugnance for the horrible crime committed against the Caamasi?”

Leia cleared her throat. “May I remind the Senate,” she said, “that whatever part any group of Bothans might have played, there is no indication any of them participated in the actual destruction of Caamas. That, it seems to me, should be the focal point of our outrage and justice.”

“Do you seek then to excuse the Bothans?” a Senator she didn’t recognize demanded.

“Besides which, the actual perpetrators were undoubtedly agents of then Senator Palpatine,” someone else added from the opposite side of the chamber. “All such agents have surely been destroyed during our onerously long war against the Empire.”

“Are you certain of that?” another voice chimed in. “We are still learning the full depth of Emperor Palpatine’s deceptions against the peoples of the galaxy. Who is to say his agents don’t yet walk among us?”

“Are you accusing one of us?”

“If you claim the title, what is that to me?” the other shot back. “There are still rumors of Imperial agents scattered among us&mdash”

Again Gavrisom touched the cutoff switch, and again the debate was reduced to distant voices shouting uselessly at each other. Leia listened, to the budding argument fade away, for the umpteenth time thanking the Force that she was at least temporarily no longer the one in charge of this madhouse.